Star Flower looked up at him, and seeing the despair in her eyes made Thunder feel as though a giant claw was piercing his heart. “Please,” she whispered, “can’t we at least bury him? Then I’ll leave you alone and never bother you again.”
Thunder hesitated, then gave her a curt nod. Leaping up onto a nearby rock, he cleared his throat and called the cats around him. “It’s time to bury the dead,” he announced when they had all gathered.
Sparrow Fur’s eyes stretched wide with amazement. “Why would we give him the respect he would never have given any of us?” she demanded.
Thunder glanced over at River Ripple, Wind Runner, and Clear Sky, who had managed to sit up, looking shaky but determined. “It’s because we’re different from One Eye,” he responded, “and we always have been.”
The other leaders nodded their agreement.
“One Eye believed every cat was out for themselves,” Clear Sky meowed. “But we believe that life is better for every cat when each of us acts for the greater good.”
A murmur of approval rose from the crowd at Clear Sky’s words. Thunder glanced around and picked out cats who seemed to have suffered least from their enemies’ claws: Shattered Ice, Lightning Tail, and Night. “Come and help me dig the grave,” he instructed, leaping down among them.
“I want to help, too,” Star Flower mewed as Thunder led the way to the foot of the thorn tree where One Eye was lying.
With so many paws working together, it didn’t take long to dig a hole deep enough to bury One Eye. Then Star Flower nudged his body into the hole and watched as the others covered him with earth and leaves.
When the task was finished, the cats who had gathered looked at one another uncertainly, murmuring together as if they weren’t sure what to do now. Should one of us say something? Thunder wondered.
Then Star Flower stepped forward, raising her face to the sunshine. “To my father, a true ray of light,” she mewed.
Thunder narrowly stopped himself from gaping, and heard scornful snorts of disbelief from one or two of the others. But no cat said anything.
River Ripple came to stand beside her, and dipped his head toward the grave. “One Eye was a survivor,” he pronounced. “A cat like no other who will be missed by those who loved him.”
Perfectly true, Thunder thought, admiring River Ripple’s cleverness. But it leaves an awful lot out!
Star Flower stretched out a paw and laid it gently on her father’s grave. For several heartbeats she remained motionless, her eyes closed. Then at last she opened her eyes again and slowly padded up to Thunder.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “I won’t trouble you anymore.” She slipped past him and headed toward the forest.
Thunder stood with his back to her. A massive urge to turn and call her back crashed over him like a storm, and he had to fight with all his strength not to yield to it. When he finally couldn’t fight anymore, he spun around to see that Star Flower had disappeared over the swell of the moor.
Meanwhile, River Ripple was rounding up his cats, while Wind Runner joined Gorse Fur. Cloud Spots helped Clear Sky to his paws and let him lean on his shoulder.
“I’ll come with you back to the forest,” Cloud Spots meowed. “No—don’t argue. I don’t want you collapsing halfway there.”
“I’ll come too,” Shattered Ice offered. “Just in case there’s trouble.”
“And me!” Sparrow Fur bounced up enthusiastically.
As they set out, Clear Sky paused and looked back, his gaze traveling over the cats who had fought for him. “Thank you,” he mewed. “Thank you, every cat. I’ll never forget this.”
Watching them go, Thunder realized that River Ripple had sidled up to him and was angling his ears toward the place where Star Flower had disappeared. His eyes were alight with a mixture of sympathy and amusement.
“Don’t worry,” he murmured. “There will be others.”
Thunder felt his heart pounding hard in his chest. “Right,” he meowed with a casual flick of his ears.
But while River Ripple padded away, Thunder couldn’t tear his gaze away from the spot where he had last seen Star Flower.
I’m not so sure there will be others. . . .
CHAPTER 27
Clear Sky forged ahead, ignoring the pain of his wounds and the ache of exhaustion in his chest. His eagerness to return to the forest was growing with every paw step. Though he had only been away for a few days, it felt like a lifetime. He drank in the familiar forest scent and feasted his eyes on every tree and bush as he drew closer.
I haven’t lived here very long, he thought, his spirits lifting. But the forest has truly become my home.
“Hey!” Cloud Spots, who was falling behind, called out to him. “Take it a bit slower! You’re still hurt, and the forest isn’t going anywhere.”
But Clear Sky yearned to feel leaf-mold beneath his paws again, and to listen to the creak and rustle of branches above his head. And he was desperate to return to his camp, to find out what One Eye had done to his cats.
Shattered Ice quickened his pace to lope alongside him, with Sparrow Fur scampering behind. “So what now, Clear Sky?” he asked. “Don’t you think you’ll find life . . . uneventful without One Eye?”
Clear Sky glared at him. “Don’t be such a mouse-brain!”
“I can just imagine you, curled up in your nest,” Shattered Ice went on, a teasing look in his eyes. “Bored with hunting and training, and wishing you had One Eye back to liven things up a bit.”
Clear Sky halted, feeling his shoulder fur beginning to rise. “Are you trying to be annoying?” he demanded. “Do you think I went through all this, nearly got my pelt ripped off, put you and your denmates in danger, just so that I could wish for that mangy excuse for a cat to come back again?”
Unbothered by his sharp tone, Shattered Ice let out a mrrow of laughter. “Sorry, Clear Sky. But at least I got you to slow down!”
Clear Sky heaved a deep sigh, unable to hide his amusement. “Thank you, Shattered Ice.” The words welled up from deep within his heart. “Thank you for helping me to get my territory back. I know I haven’t always been . . .” His voice trailed off as he failed to find the right words.
“It’s okay,” Shattered Ice meowed understandingly, as the two cats walked on more slowly toward the outskirts of the forest. “I’ve known you since you were a kit. Perhaps you haven’t always made the right decisions, but I know who you truly are, deep inside. Maybe this fresh start will help you to remember that, too.”
His words gave Clear Sky a lot to think about, but before he could respond, Shattered Ice halted again, beneath the boughs of the outlying trees. “Who’s there?” he called sharply. “Come out and show yourself!”
Acorn Fur poked her head out cautiously from behind a tree, relief flooding into her gaze as she saw who was approaching. “It’s you!” she exclaimed, bounding out into the open. “You’ve come to save us!”
She ran up to Shattered Ice and touched noses with him, then with Cloud Spots. Clear Sky felt a prickle of annoyance in his pads that she had greeted the moorland cats and ignored him. What am I, invisible or something?
“Yes,” he meowed. “One Eye is dead, and I’ve come to take back leadership of the forest cats.”
Acorn Fur turned to him at last. “You’d better come quickly, then,” she responded.
She whirled around and took off into the forest at a fast trot, not waiting to see whether the other cats were following her. Apprehension trickled down Clear Sky’s spine like melting snow, and he exchanged a worried glance with Shattered Ice before heading after Acorn Fur.
The young she-cat was making for the clearing where Clear Sky had made camp, but before she reached it she veered off into the trees. A low moaning came from up ahead, making every hair on Clear Sky’s pelt rise with horror.
Skirting a bramble thicket in Acorn Fur’s paw steps, Clear Sky emerged into a small clearing. In front of him he saw Petal and the two kits, Birch and Alder
, lying in a makeshift nest at the foot of an elder bush. All three of them had the bloated bellies, the sores on their skin, and the foam around their jaws that were the signs of the sickness. The moans were coming from Petal as she made pitiful efforts to lick and comfort the kits.
“What are they doing here?” Clear Sky asked, stunned.
“One Eye made them come,” Acorn Fur mewed, her voice shaking with a mixture of pity and outrage. “He wouldn’t let us help them. He posted a guard and said we should leave them here to die, because they weren’t doing us any good.” She almost broke down, beginning to tremble, then forced herself to continue. “I couldn’t get here until today, when One Eye and his rogues left for the battle. Quick Water and I brought them water and food, but I’m afraid it’s too late!”
“Maybe not.” Cloud Spots shouldered his way past Clear Sky and rushed over to the sick cats. “Tall Shadow and Gray Wing have gone to fetch the Blazing Star from the other side of the Thunderpath. We must find tansy, quickly, to use until they return.”
There was a rustle in the undergrowth as Shattered Ice, Acorn Fur, and Sparrow Fur darted off immediately to find the herb.
Clear Sky’s legs felt shaky as he padded forward and stood looking down at Petal. As if his scent or the sound of movement had alerted her, she stirred, and her clouded eyes focused on him. “Clear Sky!” she whispered through cracked lips. “You came!”
Crouching beside the nest, Clear Sky lowered his head close to Petal’s. “Of course I came,” he murmured. “I couldn’t let that rogue—”
“I knew you would come!” Petal interrupted, her voice suddenly sounding stronger. “Of course you would! I’ve always been able to count on you, Clear Sky, ever since . . .” Her voice faded, the brief flash of strength ebbing away. Her eyes clouded again.
“Petal!” Clear Sky mewed urgently.
He could see the huge effort Petal was making to focus on him again. “I have to get better. . . .” she croaked. “I want to help you, Clear Sky . . . to repay all you’ve done for me!”
As she spoke the last words her eyes seemed to fix on something in the distance. Her body gave a massive shudder, and went limp.
“Petal!” Clear Sky called out, sickness rising in his belly.
There was no response.
Cloud Spots padded up with Acorn Fur just behind him, a bunch of tansy in her jaws. He gave Petal a brief sniff and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Clear Sky. She’s gone.” As Clear Sky dug his claws into the ground, rigid with grief, the older tom continued, “She went untreated for too long. The kits are younger, more able to fight it. There’s hope for them still.”
“When we brought Petal the food she wouldn’t eat it,” Acorn Fur mewed, setting her herbs down beside the nest. “She took one bite and gave the rest to the kits.”
“They weren’t even hers.” Clear Sky’s voice was bleak. “But she was dedicated to them, right up to the end.” He was still struggling to accept that he had lost Petal, the cat who had given him unfailing support from the first time they met. I didn’t deserve her.
“We should bury her . . . quickly,” Cloud Spots meowed. They covered Petal’s body with leaves so that the sickness would not spread. Then with the help of Shattered Ice, who had also returned with tansy, Acorn Fur gently lifted Petal’s body out of the nest, trying not to disturb the kits. Finally they began to dig a grave at the side of the clearing.
Meanwhile Cloud Spots chewed up some of the tansy and began trickling the juices into the kits’ mouths. They were barely conscious, but their tongues lapped eagerly at the moisture as if they were tormented by thirst.
Clear Sky dipped his head until he could nuzzle the kits affectionately, not caring about the risk of infection. “Hello, my little ones,” he murmured. “You’ll feel better soon, I promise.”
Birch blinked up at him. “Where’s Petal?” he asked.
Clear Sky’s heart ached. “She’s gone back to camp,” he lied, fixing Cloud Spots with a gaze that forbade the other tom to contradict him. They’re too weak to bear the truth now. I’ll tell them when they’re stronger. He wondered what had happened to the expedition led by Gray Wing and Tall Shadow. They can’t get back with that plant soon enough.
Birch sighed and snuggled down in the nest again, pressing himself close to his sister.
“Should we move them back to camp?” Clear Sky asked.
Cloud Spots shook his head. “They’re better than Petal, but they’re still not doing well. They need the Blazing Star. Besides, it’s best to keep the kits away from the cats who are still healthy.”
Clear Sky nodded. “When we’ve buried Petal, Shattered Ice can go find Gray Wing and ask him to let us have some of the flowers.”
Leaving Cloud Spots with the kits, Clear Sky limped across the clearing to where Shattered Ice and Acorn Fur were digging the grave. His injuries made it hard for him to help, but in any case they had almost finished, and he contented himself with tidying up the scattered earth and removing the bigger stones.
“That’ll do,” Shattered Ice meowed after a few moments, standing back with a nod of satisfaction.
Clear Sky gently nudged Petal’s leaf-wrapped body into the hole and raised his head to the sky, his eyes closed, as the other two cats covered her with earth.
Please take care of Petal, determined and loyal to the last, he prayed silently to the spirit-cats. Let her join your ranks and give us guidance. I will miss her.
Opening his eyes again, he wondered if the spirit-cats had heard him. Oddly the prayer had made him feel better.
Shattered Ice and Acorn Fur stood silently beside the grave for a few heartbeats, until Acorn Fur gave her pelt a shake. “Clear Sky, we ought to go back to camp,” she mewed.
Clear Sky nodded. “Right. Shattered Ice,” he added, “will you go to the hollow, and when Gray Wing comes back with the Blazing Star, tell him we need some here?”
“I’m on my way,” Shattered Ice replied briskly, loping toward the edge of the clearing.
“I’ll stay with the kits until the herb comes,” Cloud Spots offered. “I need to make sure it will help them.”
“Thank you.” Clear Sky dipped his head. “Will you be okay on your own here?”
“I think One Eye’s rogues are long gone,” Cloud Spots responded. “But on your way to camp, will you keep an eye out for Sparrow Fur? She went to collect tansy, and she hasn’t come back.”
Uneasiness tingled through Clear Sky from ears to tail-tip. Sparrow Fur was one of the bravest cats he had ever known, but she was still only a half-grown kit. And we don’t know there aren’t still rogues lurking about.
“I’ll do that,” he promised Cloud Spots. “And if she hasn’t turned up when I’ve spoken to my cats, I’ll send a patrol out to look for her.” Turning back to Acorn Fur, he flicked his tail in the direction of the camp. “Lead the way.”
All of Clear Sky’s senses were alert as he followed Acorn Fur, but he didn’t see or scent any sign of Sparrow Fur. I’ll get my cats to follow her scent trail from the clearing, he decided. Thorn is good at tracking. We’ll find her.
When he and Acorn Fur emerged from the undergrowth and entered the camp, Clear Sky saw the rest of his cats huddled around the pool in the center. They spun around, their shoulder fur rising apprehensively as he padded toward them.
Then Quick Water jumped to her paws. “Clear Sky!” she exclaimed, sounding both surprised and relieved. “You’re alive! Are you okay?”
“Apart from having half my pelt ripped off, I’m fine,” Clear Sky replied, his glance raking across the others. “It’s good to see you all again.”
Thorn, Leaf, and Nettle looked glad to see him, too, but Snake was glaring at him with clear hostility in his eyes. As Clear Sky was speaking he leaped up and padded forward to face him.
“Good to see us?” he snarled. “Like I’d believe that! You let this happen! We’re all scarred by One Eye’s mark now.”
“I know.” Clear Sky bowed his head. “I?
??m more sorry than I can say. It was my poor judgment that allowed One Eye into our group in the first place. But I intend to spend the rest of my life making up for that mistake.” When Snake didn’t respond, he continued, his voice choking with the strength of his emotion. “This forest is my home and you’re all my family. I would do anything for you, and I risked my life to get rid of One Eye and come back to you. Can’t you see that?” he appealed to Snake.
Snake stared at him for a moment. Then without warning he leaped at Clear Sky, striking at his face with claws extended. Shaky from his injuries and the stress of Petal’s death and burial, Clear Sky was knocked to the ground, letting out a yowl. Summoning all the strength he could, he battered at Snake with his hind paws and managed to throw him off.
The two cats crouched on the ground, facing each other. Clear Sky could see the burning hatred in Snake’s eyes; he tried to stare him down, but he could see that Snake intended to attack again.
What am I going to do? Clear Sky flattened his ears. His chest was heaving from their brief tussle, and he knew that in his injured state he couldn’t win a fight. What will the other cats do when they see their leader beaten?
But before either of them could make a move, a wild screech sounded from the undergrowth at the edge of the clearing. A blur of tortoiseshell fur shot into the open and barreled into Snake.
Sparrow Fur! Clear Sky stared in astonishment as the little she-cat tackled the tom—who was twice her size—her paws flailing wildly. Snake could have flattened her with a couple of blows, but for a heartbeat he was too confused to defend himself.
In that moment, Nettle threw himself into the battle, raking his claws across Snake’s ears. “Come on!” he yowled to the other cats. “We can’t let some kit fight for our leader!”
“Yes!” From the other side, Quick Water hurled herself at Snake. “Come on!”
At her words, Acorn Fur, Thorn, and Leaf leaped into the fray. Snake went down underneath a mound of spitting, clawing cats.
“Stop!” Clear Sky exclaimed, stepping forward to haul Acorn Fur off. “That’s enough. I don’t want him dead.”