“I was only warning her,” a new incisive voice interrupted.
Gray Wing spun around to see a cat half hidden among the leaves of a tree at the edge of the clearing. He narrowed his eyes, trying to make out who it was. Then he stiffened as Clear Sky jumped down and paced forward toward the other cats, his eyes glaring a challenge to attack.
Even with Bumble dying beside him, Gray Wing couldn’t help admiring his brother’s bravery. What other cat would leap into the midst of a hostile group?
Gray Wing was acutely aware of the other cats around him, all of them waiting for him to take control. “Do you know anything about this, Clear Sky?” he demanded, his voice cracking as he forced out the words. “Did you injure Bumble? Or do you know who did?”
“And what about Misty’s kits?” Wind Runner snarled with a lash of her tail. “Did you kill them?”
Clear Sky was prowling around the group, his gaze shifting from cat to cat. His eyes showed mingling guilt and horror as he looked at Bumble. When Gray Wing thought that he would have to let out a screech to break the tense silence, his brother finally spoke.
“Hello to you too.” He paused and gave Gray Wing a long, hard look. Gray Wing felt as though his belly was shrinking under his brother’s gaze—a gaze that seemed to accuse him of betrayal.
“Petal is caring for Misty’s kits,” Clear Sky went on. “They’re fine. As for this cat . . .” He angled his ears toward the dying Bumble. “What do you think?” He looked around the group, and now it was impossible to read his expression. “Do you believe I’m capable of this?”
Gray Wing’s denmates all eyed one another nervously, as if none of them wanted to be the first to answer.
Taking a deep breath, Gray Wing drew himself up. “No,” he meowed. “I don’t believe it.”
Hisses of outrage came from Wind Runner and Gorse Fur. Gray Wing felt movement beside him and saw that Turtle Tail had stepped up to his shoulder.
“I do,” she growled, all her neck fur fluffed up. “I believe you could do this. Since I returned to the moor, I’ve heard nothing but horrible stories about the way you treat other cats. You’re power-mad, Clear Sky. You don’t care who you hurt to get what you want. And now . . . you’re not the cat I came down from the mountains with. You’re . . .” She switched her tail to and fro. “You’re an apology for a cat.”
The group exploded into yowls of agreement, pacing back and forth with their claws extended and their shoulder fur bristling, as if all their anger and hurt had to burst out somehow.
Wind Runner glared at Gray Wing. “Well, leader? What do we do now?”
Every muscle in Gray Wing’s body tensed with anxiety. If I let them know with one twitch of a whisker that I doubt Clear Sky, they’ll attack. He’ll be torn apart. But he’s my brother! And if we do that, we’re no better than he is. The life we’ve tried to build will be over.
He stepped forward between Clear Sky and his own cats, not sure which of them he was trying to protect. “Get out of here, Clear Sky,” he ordered.
Clear Sky’s eyes widened. “Then you believe I’m innocent?”
His words gave Gray Wing a tiny chink of hope. “If you didn’t harm Bumble, who did?” he asked. If only Clear Sky can explain . . .
“This kittypet was hunting here, in the new part of my territory,” Clear Sky began, speaking more quickly now, as if he was glad of the chance to tell the others what happened.
Gray Wing heard a low growl from Wind Runner, but to his relief she didn’t interrupt. This is no time to start arguing about boundaries!
“I wanted to give her a warning,” Clear Sky went on. “Nothing too painful, just a little cuff around her kittypet ear. How was I to know she was so weak from hunger that she would faint? But I could see her paws twitching, and I knew she would come around soon. So I left her and headed back to camp.” He paused, wincing. “Then I heard a fox bark, and I ran back. But I was too late. I was going to get help when I heard you all arrive.”
“Liar!” Turtle Tail spat out the word, shouldering Gray Wing out of the way to confront Clear Sky. Her back was arched and her pelt bristling with fury.
Clear Sky faced her, his lips drawn back in a snarl. “I won’t be spoken to like that!” For a moment he locked his gaze with Gray Wing’s, silently challenging him to speak in his defense.
What can I say? Gray Wing asked himself, staring at the furious cats. I’ll only make things worse.
When Gray Wing didn’t speak, Clear Sky gave a final flick of his tail and stalked off. “I see where I stand now,” he meowed as he went.
Gray Wing watched his brother leave. He wanted to call after Clear Sky, but he could feel the hostility from the other cats in his group. If I don’t let him leave now, there will be a fight.
Turtle Tail turned away, her tail drooping, as Clear Sky vanished into the ferns. She crouched beside Bumble, avoiding the spreading pool of blood, and began licking her head gently. “I’m here,” she murmured between licks. “I won’t leave you.”
Bumble fixed her eyes on Turtle Tail’s face. “I’m sorry if I ever hurt you,” she whispered.
“I wish you could have found happiness,” Turtle Tail replied, her voice quivering. “I know you could never have lived wild with us in the hollow, but I was so unhappy to learn how much you were suffering in the Twolegplace.”
Bumble’s eyes closed while Turtle Tail was speaking. Her breath wheezed and her face twisted with pain. Her body jerked once or twice as her breathing grew shallower still, fading with each heartbeat until her chest stopped moving.
“She’s dead,” Cloud Spots mewed.
Even though Gray Wing had never especially liked Bumble, he felt as though his heart would crack with sorrow. This isn’t just the death of a kittypet. It changes the way my cats think of Clear Sky, and that changes everything.
As he gazed, stunned, at his denmates, the most mournful sound Gray Wing had ever heard rose up into the air. It was the wail of Turtle Tail, grieving for her dead friend.
“Clear Sky told us that a fox must have killed Bumble. There was certainly fox scent all over the clearing.”
Gray Wing stood on the tall rock at the end of the hollow, with his cats gathered around him. He was coming to the end of the story of what the patrol had found when they went to the forest.
“And do you believe him?” Rainswept Flower asked.
“I don’t know what to believe,” Gray Wing confessed. “But I do know that starting a fight with Clear Sky wouldn’t help any cat.”
“So what did you do then?” Jackdaw’s Cry asked.
“We buried Bumble and came home.”
Jackdaw’s Cry let out a hiss of anger, his claws raking the grass. “You mean you let him get away with it? That’s flea-brained!”
“That’s what I told him.” Wind Runner looked just as furious, her tail lashing. “Clear Sky will just think we’re weak! Is that what we want?”
“No!” Jagged Peak yowled; Shattered Ice and Jackdaw’s Cry echoed him.
“Now, wait a moment.” Tall Shadow rose to her paws and padded into the middle of the group. “What would be really flea-brained would be to attack Clear Sky when we’re all worked up about Bumble’s death. After all, she was only a kittypet.”
“She was my friend!” Turtle Tail flashed.
“I know.” Tall Shadow’s voice was calm. “All I’m saying is, we need time to think.”
“And suppose Clear Sky won’t give us time?” Wind Runner challenged her.
Gray Wing realized he would have to intervene. He was relieved that Tall Shadow was recovering some of her old leadership skills, and she deserved his support.
“Tall Shadow is right,” he meowed. “We’ll wait, and starting tomorrow we will send out extra patrols toward the forest, so that we can keep an eye on Clear Sky.” He locked glances with Wind Runner, half expecting her to argue, but after a moment’s pause she gave him a reluctant nod.
Gray Wing was glad to see that the other cats wer
e calming down too. He leaped from the rock and padded over to Tall Shadow. “Thank you for that,” he mewed. “You said exactly the right thing.”
Tall Shadow dipped her head. “Should we talk about this?” she suggested.
With a murmur of agreement Gray Wing led the way to the shelter of a gorse bush. The sun had set over the moor, but the sky was still streaked with scarlet. Some cats had obviously been out hunting while Gray Wing’s patrol had been away, and a pile of prey lay at the bottom of the hollow. Most of the others gathered around to start eating, while Wind Runner leaped up onto the rock to keep watch, and Turtle Tail headed to her den to see her kits.
“Tall Shadow, what do you think we should do now?” Gray Wing asked.
The black she-cat thought for a moment. Gray Wing noticed that she was looking more energized, more like the leader she had once been. She doesn’t have to worry about Moon Shadow any longer, and she knows as well as any cat that we have to deal with Clear Sky.
“Do you want to take over as leader again?” he asked.
Tall Shadow shook her head. “I’m happy to share responsibility with you, Gray Wing,” she replied. Her mouth twisting wryly, she added, “I don’t even mind much that Wind Runner has started organizing us all. She’s a valuable cat, and once all this is over I think we should welcome her and Gorse Fur formally into our group.”
“Good idea,” Gray Wing meowed, pleased that Tall Shadow was losing some of her caution around other cats. Working together is the best way forward. “We need every cat on our side.”
“As to what we do now,” Tall Shadow went on, “some cat has to stop Clear Sky, before more damage is done.”
Gray Wing nodded. “You’re right, but it won’t be easy.”
Tall Shadow gave one forepaw a thoughtful lick and drew it over her ear. “Let me think about it,” she meowed.
Fighting off a sense of foreboding, Gray Wing padded down to the prey, chose part of a hare, and carried it up to Turtle Tail’s den to share with her and the kits.
Turtle Tail was sitting at the entrance to the tunnel, her paws tucked neatly underneath her. The kits were sleeping behind her in a heap of fur.
“Are they okay?” Gray Wing asked as he set the prey down in front of her.
Turtle Tail sighed. “I think they are now. But they were upset when I had to tell them that Bumble is dead. Pebble Heart in particular took a long time to drift off.”
Gray Wing glanced at his mate, faintly surprised at the note of accusation in her voice.
“I didn’t make any of this happen,” he mewed. “We could never have accepted Bumble into our group. She wouldn’t have been able to cope.”
Turtle Tail’s shoulders sagged. “I know,” she murmured, her voice so full of grief that she could hardly get the words out. “I believe in you, Gray Wing. I know this isn’t your fault. It just broke my heart to see her lying there, bleeding. I wish things could have been different.”
Gray Wing pressed himself close to her side and covered her ears with comforting licks. “I’m sorry you’re hurting, Turtle Tail,” he murmured. “You and the kits are the most important things in my life. I never dared hope for such happiness . . . ,” he mewed. “After the fire, I wondered if I could carry on as leader, but you made me rest, and now I’m ready to lead again—with Tall Shadow, if that’s what she wants.”
“But how will you lead?” Turtle Tail asked, looking up and gazing into his eyes. “Innocent cats are being slaughtered—and for what? So Clear Sky and his cats can have enough to eat?”
“No,” Gray Wing replied. “I’m not sure that Clear Sky killed Bumble. I think it was the fox, and besides, I don’t believe this is about hunting anymore. Clear Sky already has more territory than any cat could possibly want. I think he has some kind of plan. I have no idea what it is, but in part of his mind, Clear Sky honestly thinks he’s doing this for a good reason.” He let out a long sigh. “Some cat has to get to the bottom of it all somehow.”
“And that cat has to be you?” Turtle Tail asked.
Gray Wing blinked at her. “What other cat is there?”
CHAPTER 27
Thunder ducked underneath a low-growing elder branch and headed into the clearing, a mouse dangling from his jaws.
Skirting the pool in the middle of the camp, he padded to Petal, who had made a new nest for herself and Misty’s kits underneath an arching clump of ferns. The kits had survived for the three days since their mother’s death, and Thunder was hopeful that they would grow up into healthy cats.
“There you go,” he mewed, dropping the mouse in front of Petal.
“Thanks, Thunder,” Petal responded, dipping her head gratefully. “My belly’s so empty, they can probably hear it rumbling on the moors.”
Thunder saw that she had chewed up some squirrel into a mush, and was encouraging the kits to lap it up. The little she-cat turned her head away and pressed herself against Petal’s belly, rooting for milk.
“No, little one,” Petal murmured gently, guiding the kit back to the squirrel mush with one paw. “This is what you need to eat now that you’re getting bigger.”
“Big kit now,” the tiny she-cat agreed, sniffing at the squirrel mush and then starting to suck it down.
Thunder was amazed to see the kind and loving look in Petal’s eyes as she gazed down at the kits. Petal—the toughest she-cat you could wish to meet! “Have you given them names yet?” he asked.
“Yes,” Petal replied. “The little tom is Birch and the she-cat is Alder.”
“Those are good names,” Thunder mewed.
Most of Clear Sky’s other cats were lazing in the clearing, enjoying the after-sunhigh warmth. Quick Water was curled up drowsing in a patch of sunlight, while Falling Feather was giving her white pelt a thorough wash. Frost was licking the wound that he had gotten in the fire; it still refused to heal.
Everything’s peaceful now, Thunder told himself. Maybe Clear Sky will be satisfied with this new territory.
But he couldn’t convince himself that was true. Clear Sky was the only restless cat in the camp, pacing backward and forward and occasionally stopping to stare into the trees, though Thunder had no idea what he was staring at. He’s been weird ever since he got back yesterday . . . reeking of blood and fox. Something happened that he’s not telling any cat.
Thunder headed for his nest, but before he reached it he was intercepted by Fircone and Nettle, two young rogues who had joined Clear Sky’s group a half-moon before.
“Did you want something?” Thunder asked.
“There’s something we have to say . . . ,” Fircone began, in a low voice and with a furtive glance at Clear Sky to make sure the leader wasn’t within earshot. “Can we find somewhere that’s a bit more private?”
“Private?” Uneasiness stabbed at Thunder like a thorn. “Why does it have to be private?”
“Just come over here and we’ll tell you,” Nettle mewed nervously, beckoning Thunder to a sheltered spot beneath the roots of a fallen tree.
Thunder hesitated, then followed the two toms. If something’s going on, it’s best if I know what it is.
“It’s like this,” Fircone went on when all three cats were settled among the roots. “When we came to join your group, we weren’t really sure what we were getting into. And we’re not sure we like it.”
Thunder wondered what they expected him to do. “You don’t have to stay,” he pointed out.
“Mostly it’s good here,” Nettle mewed. “We like having the support of a group. But some of this stuff . . . chasing cats off—”
“Killing cats,” Fircone added. “We thought—”
He broke off as Leaf padded past, heading for his nest with a bundle of fresh ferns in his jaws. He halted, giving the three cats a curious glance.
“Clear off, we’re not talking to you,” Nettle snarled.
Leaf let the ferns drop. “Are you looking for a clawed ear?” he demanded, beginning to bristle.
“Sorry, Leaf,” T
hunder meowed hastily. “They’re okay, they just don’t know how to behave in a group yet.”
“They won’t get the chance to learn if they don’t shape up,” Leaf snapped, picking up his bedding and padding off with a final glare at Nettle.
“That really wasn’t a good idea, antagonizing the older cats,” Thunder muttered. “Anyway, what do you expect me to do about the way Clear Sky runs his group? I don’t enjoy the way things are, any more than you do.”
“We wondered if you would have a talk with your father,” Nettle suggested. “If he realized that his cats aren’t happy . . .”
“We’re worried about where all this is leading,” Fircone added. “Soon, Clear Sky won’t listen to what anyone has to say, and we won’t have any choice about what he asks us to do.”
“And he might ask us to do anything,” Nettle finished.
Thunder couldn’t help thinking that the young cats were optimistic if they thought that a talk from him would turn Clear Sky aside from anything he wanted.
“I suppose you have a point,” he sighed. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Thunder could feel his belly shaking with apprehension as he realized what he was getting into. I might be the one with a clawed ear—or worse! Reluctantly he snagged a piece of rabbit from the prey the hunting patrols had brought in, and carried it over to Clear Sky.
“What can I do for you?” Clear Sky asked, not looking at him.
“I wanted you to have this.” Thunder set down the rabbit at his father’s paws. “You haven’t eaten today.”
“I’ll eat when I’m ready. I’m not hungry now.” Clear Sky turned an intense blue gaze on Thunder. “I saw you talking to those young rogues. Why have they sent you over here?”
Thunder hesitated, clearing his throat. So much for being private . . . He realized that other cats were looking interested, too, beginning to edge closer to hear the conversation. Frost in particular was watching with ears pricked, and Falling Feather had halted her grooming with one paw in the air.
“Nothing really . . . ,” Thunder began, trying not to cringe under his father’s scrutiny. “We were just saying how green the forest was looking. When I was out hunting just now I saw that green shoots are springing up in the places the fire damaged. Soon no cat will know that there was a fire here. And have you seen the number of bugs and small prey that are returning? There isn’t any reason for a cat to go hungry at all. No reason to extend our territory any farther, don’t you think . . . ?”