Leaning closer to the riverbank, he pressed an ear to the ground again. The sound was weaker this time, fragile and broken, but there. It was life, whimpering from beneath the stones. His chest constricted. He turned his face toward the wolf, whispering, “There’s something down there, isn’t there?”
The wolf’s body tensed, shoulders rising like a coiled rope. Adrian felt the warning in its stance. Stay back. But there had been no mistake. The sound was real. Each whimper cut like a blade, underscoring the urgency. Whatever was trapped beneath would not last another storm.