“Then explain.”
Storm’s jaws suddenly felt dry, and she licked her lips nervously. The Pack was watching her. Daisy was sitting with the pups, who were huddled close together, their eyes wide. Beetle’s hackles were raised, and Moon seemed as if she was in such shock she could hardly react at all. Beside her, Mickey’s sides rose and fell as he took and released a very deep breath.
“I trusted Breeze too,” she said. “Until I left the Pack, and I started to put the clues together. Breeze has been trying to get revenge for Terror’s death. She’s been going after every dog who was there when it happened. She targeted me, made you all suspect me, and made me leave the Pack, because I killed him. She’s the one who told the pups stories about the lake—hoping that they’d wander into it and drown—to attack Lucky. She framed Moon for stealing food and tried to crush her in a rock trap. She poisoned Bella’s prey and put clear-stone in Twitch’s. She killed Whisper because he was so happy that Terror was gone. She confessed everything to me—how she wanted to bring the Fear-Dog here and tear the Pack apart. She murdered Bruno because he wanted to clear my name.”
The Pack dogs were looking at one another, and Storm saw disbelief as well as a few shivers of fear. She couldn’t tell if any of them believed her.
“I spoke to Rake and the others, and they said she was the only dog in Terror’s Pack who was truly loyal to him, and not just afraid of him. And Arrow said he saw her bringing a live, bleeding rabbit back to the camp, prolonging its suffering,” she said. “She was the one who smeared that blood all around the camp.”
Lucky’s ears pricked up. “You saw Arrow? Was Bella with him?”
Storm stared at him. She couldn’t believe that in all of this, she hadn’t told him about his litter-sister. “Yes . . . they’re my Pack now. They’re living in a forest near the High Ground. Bella has two pups, both males. They’re doing really well.”
Lucky’s tongue lolled from his mouth happily, and then he seemed to remember what was happening and his expression settled back into worry.
“Is that everything you have to say, Storm?” Sweet prompted.
“Breeze admitted it all,” Storm said. “I confronted her, and she told me exactly what she was doing and why. Then she bit herself on the shoulder and howled for help. That’s when Lucky arrived.”
“This is all ridiculous,” muttered Moon, though she looked at Breeze and a shudder ran through her fur.
“I know,” Storm said. “But it’s true. And she’s not finished. You’re all in terrible danger if you let her go free.”
“Breeze?” Sweet asked, turning to the bad dog. Storm was exhausted and disgusted to see that Breeze was trembling, and a low, frightened whine came from her throat.
“Storm, you have to stop this,” she said. “If you stop making these things up now, perhaps Alpha will let you live. You could even go back to Bella. Although . . . her pups . . .”
“I could have fought you all off,” Storm put in. “I could have run away, but instead I let Lucky and Mickey and Snap bring me here, so that I could explain it all to you. I just want to protect this Pack.”
“You’ve had your chance, Storm,” Sweet snapped. “Let Breeze speak.”
“I don’t . . . I don’t have anything to say!” Breeze muttered, as if she was trying so hard to work out Storm’s actions that it was hurting her head. “I don’t know why Storm would choose me to blame, but then, why Whisper? Why Bruno? I think she’s telling the truth that she wants to protect us. Especially your pups. But if her idea of protection is murder . . . who’s to say she won’t hurt them too, if we just let her go?”
You!
Storm stifled a howl of rage by dipping her head again, the closest she’d come to letting her emotions overtake her. But a frothing, violent Fierce Dog was what Breeze was suggesting she had become, and she would not give her the satisfaction of playing it out for the Pack to see.
“Storm would never hurt us,” said a small voice, and Storm raised her head to see Tiny stepping forward in front of her Mother-Dog, her ears pricked up with determination. “I don’t think she’s the bad dog, and I don’t think she’d lie, either.” The pup didn’t look at Breeze, even though she must know what believing Storm would mean.
Storm’s heart swelled in her chest, with love and with anxiety about what Breeze might do now. Tiny, thank you, but please be careful! She might have been a runt once, but she was as brave as any grown dog.
“Shush, Tiny,” said Sweet. “You’re only a pup, you don’t know what you’re saying.”
Storm winced as she saw an expression of hurt and anger pass across Tiny’s face. It was painfully familiar. The pup stepped aside and sat down next to Daisy, her brows drawn down and her tail lashing in agitation.
So Sweet and Lucky won’t listen to their own pups either.
It was almost reassuring, to know that they believed they were right even when the pup telling them otherwise wasn’t a half-grown Fierce Dog. She wished she could tell Tiny all the times the Pack would have been better off if they’d listened to her.
“It can’t be Breeze,” Chase spoke up. “What Rake said about how she was in Terror’s Pack is true, but we all had to find our own ways to cope. It doesn’t mean anything. She’s a gentle dog! Whereas Storm . . .”
She left that hanging in the air, and Storm sat down.
This again. “Storm is . . . well . . . we wouldn’t want to be mean, we’re sure it’s not just that she’s a Fierce Dog, but, well, you know . . .”
She didn’t even know if dogs like Chase truly believed that Fierce Dogs were uncontrollably violent; it was just something they’d been told so often they didn’t think before they repeated it.
“So what do we do?” Daisy asked, her voice shaking.
“If Storm’s dangerous,” Chase said, “then we can’t let her go, and we can’t keep her here. We don’t want the bad dog back here, do we?”
All the dogs shook their heads.
“The pups are growing fast, but they’re still vulnerable,” said Snap slowly. “How far would we need to drive her out, before we felt safe? I hate this as much as any of you, but if Storm lives, we may never sleep soundly in our dens again.”
“What?” Daisy yipped, almost falling over in her rush to get to her paws. “Kill Storm? Are you crazy? We’re not doing that!”
“But if she’s telling the truth about Bella and her pups, how do we know they’d be safe?” said Chase. Lucky twitched at this, and he looked at Storm and then at Breeze. “If she’s crazy, we can’t just let her wander off to torment another Pack!”
“I’m not crazy, and I would never hurt Nip or Scramble,” Storm said, as evenly as she could manage.
“Storm’s a good dog. She’s saved all our lives at some point or other,” Twitch pointed out slowly. “Even when some of us weren’t all that keen on her being in our Pack.”
Sweet cocked her head at this, as if what the Third Dog had said had made her think of something, but she didn’t interrupt.
“I don’t care if she is mad,” Daisy yipped. “I won’t let you hurt her, she’s . . . she’s our responsibility, even if she has lost her mind!”
“Daisy’s right,” said Breeze, and all the dogs turned to look at her. “I don’t mind that she’s accusing me. She shouldn’t be killed for that. Maybe it’s all Blade’s fault—look at how she was treated, losing her litter-brothers the way she did, being trapped in that Dog-Garden with her Mother-Dog’s body for days . . . it all must have taken a far greater toll than we thought.”
Storm’s hackles rose. How dare you talk about my Mother-Dog or my litter-brothers.
“So how do you propose we control her?” Chase barked. “She’s twice as big as some of us!”
“I don’t know,” Breeze said miserably. “Perhaps she could be . . . wounded. To make her harmless. Perhaps . . . if she was blind . . .”
Storm felt as if a freezing wave from the Endless Lake had just washed over her. Breeze met her eyes,
and just for a second Storm thought she could see something black and enormous looking back.
“No!” Mickey howled. “Alpha, that would be so cruel.”
“Dogs can live good lives when they’re blind,” said Chase slowly. “I knew an old dog once who—”
“This isn’t the same! You’re talking about intentionally blinding her,” Twitch cried. “A dog can live with a lot, but that kind of betrayal—”
“She betrayed us first!” snapped Chase.
“All right,” said Sweet, in a quiet voice that nonetheless seemed to shut down the barking all around her. “That’s enough. I’ve heard everything I need to hear. And I’m not making the decision to kill or maim a dog right this moment. All of this needs more consideration. For tonight, Storm will remain here as our captive. We’ll put her in my own den, with three dogs on guard at all times to make sure she doesn’t dig her way out. Lucky, the pups, and I will sleep in the hunters’ and Patrol Dogs’ dens tonight.”
There was a short pause, and then Sweet turned her stare on Chase, and Chase sat down on her haunches and dipped her head. “Yes, Alpha.”
A chorus of “Yes, Alphas” ran around the camp, and Sweet turned her gaze on Storm.
“I expect you to cooperate,” she said. “If you don’t, I’ll have no choice but to take Breeze’s advice and make sure you can’t escape justice. Is that understood?”
Storm sagged to the ground, all the energy draining from her. “Yes, Alpha,” she said.
Mickey nudged Storm again, and she turned and headed for the Alpha’s den.
I never imagined I might sleep here, she thought, as she ducked her head to go in through the dark entrance, and especially not as a prisoner.
When she was inside, she turned and looked out and saw the four pups standing nearby, misery and confusion in the thumping of their tails and the drooping of their ears. She wanted to say something, but a thick tangle of twigs was dragged across the entrance, blocking them from view.
What would she have said, anyway? It’s going to be all right?
She wasn’t sure it was.
Alpha’s den was large, warm, and comfortable, partly dug down into the earth, lined with the freshest moss. Above her the twisting branches of a large bush with tiny, bright red-brown leaves formed a complete dome, sheltering Alpha and her family from the wind and rain, and coincidentally giving Storm no chance to escape.
Storm turned an angry sleep-circle, stomping down the moss under her paws, then settled down in the center of the den. The scents of Sweet, Lucky, and the four pups were so strong and so relaxed that she let out a sad whine.
I knew this would happen. Or something like this. I knew if I came back to the Wild Pack, they would believe Breeze and not me.
That they would consider blinding or killing her . . . that she hadn’t expected. But that was Breeze, suggesting things, wriggling her opinions in wherever she could, fooling all the other dogs with her trembling and her whining.
They’re being driven by the Fear-Dog. I can smell him. How can I convince dogs who are so afraid they’d turn on their own Packmates?
I can’t. So what good am I?
Outside the den, she smelled dogs close by—probably her guards—and heard the mutter and bark of the Pack attempting to go on with their normal Pack tasks. There was a fearful whining note to all the dogs’ voices, and Storm could tell that they were all in for a restless night.
But the danger isn’t in here—it’s out there with you, eating your prey, watching your pups, putting ideas into your heads.
Storm sighed and laid her head on the moss, closing her eyes.
She’d felt less alone when she was running through the forests, starving and drenched from the river, than she did now that she was surrounded by dogs who said they were her friends but wouldn’t believe her when she told them they were in danger.
I have to save the pups . . . I have to save them all, even if they think I’m crazy.
But what could she do from inside her prison?
Spirit Dogs, you’ve helped me before. You saved me from the river. You took me to Thoughtful and Peaceful. You kept Bella and two of her pups alive.
Help me now. Earth-Dog, River-Dog, Watch-Dog . . . help me save my Pack.
There was no response from the Spirit Dogs. The light that filtered into the den through the branches grew weaker and weaker, and soon Storm was almost lying in the dark. She heard more barking outside, the soft rustle of many dogs walking over Red Leaf grass and gathering together. It must be time for their meal. Storm’s stomach rumbled.
Then the tangle of twigs moved, and the last light of the Sun-Dog spilled into the den. Storm’s heart gave a lurch of gratefulness and worry as she saw Sunshine squeeze inside with a rabbit leg clutched in her tiny jaws.
“Thank you,” Storm whined. “Sunshine, I—”
“Shh,” said the tiny white dog. She dropped the rabbit, and then she walked right up to Storm’s muzzle and licked her nose. “I believe you,” she whispered. “And I’m not the only one.”
“Sunshine?” said Chase’s voice from outside in an anxious whine. “Are you all right? Do you need me to come in there?”
“I’m fine,” Sunshine barked back. She turned her beady black eyes on Storm, and hope blossomed painfully in Storm’s chest. She nuzzled the little dog, almost knocking her over. Sunshine gave her another brief lick on the side of her face, and then she was gone, scrambling up and out of the den. The twigs were pushed back across the entrance and the light went out.
Storm lay in the darkness, her heart pounding. Sunshine was so little, and she was the Pack’s Omega. It wasn’t much of a hope. There was little she could do, if Breeze decided to strike while Storm was still being held captive.
But it was still hope. The Fear-Dog might be stalking them, but Storm knew she could face him, as long as she didn’t have to do it all alone.
As long as Sunshine believed in her, the Fear-Dog would never win.
She wouldn’t let it.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Special thanks to Gillian Philip
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ERIN HUNTER is inspired by a fascination with the ferocity of the natural world. As well as having great respect for nature in all its forms, Erin enjoys creating rich mythical explanations for animal behavior. She is also the author of the Warriors, Seekers, and Bravelands series. Visit her online at www.survivorsdogs.com.
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BOOKS BY ERIN HUNTER
Book One: The Empty City
Book Two: A Hidden Enemy
Book Three: Darkness Falls
Book Four: The Broken Path
Book Five: The Endless Lake
Book Six: Storm of Dogs
THE GATHERING DARKNESS
Book One: A Pack Divided
Book Two: Dead of Night
Book Three: Into the Shadows
Book Four: Red Moon Rising
Survivors: Tales from the Packs
NOVELLAS
Alpha’s Tale
Sweet’s Journey
Moon’s Choice
THE PROPHECIES BEGIN
Book One: Into the Wild
Book Two: Fire and Ice
Book Three: Forest of Secrets
Book Four: Rising Storm
Book Five: A Dangerous Path
Book Six: The Darkest Hour
THE NEW PROPHECY
Book One: Midnight
Book Two: Moonrise
Book Three: Dawn
Book Four: Starlight
Book Five: Twilight
Book Six: Sunset
POWER OF THREE
Book One: The Sight
Book Two: Dark River
Book Three: Outcast
Book Four: Eclipse
Book Five: Long Shadows
Book Six: Sunrise
OMEN OF THE STARS
Book One: The Fourth Apprentice
Book Two: Fading Ech
oes
Book Three: Night Whispers
Book Four: Sign of the Moon
Book Five: The Forgotten Warrior
Book Six: The Last Hope
DAWN OF THE CLANS
Book One: The Sun Trail
Book Two: Thunder Rising
Book Three: The First Battle
Book Four: The Blazing Star
Book Five: A Forest Divided
Book Six: Path of Stars
A VISION OF SHADOWS
Book One: The Apprentice’s Quest
Book Two: Thunder and Shadow
Book Three: Shattered Sky
Book Four: Darkest Night
Book Five: River of Fire
Warriors Super Edition: Firestar’s Quest
Warriors Super Edition: Bluestar’s Prophecy
Warriors Super Edition: SkyClan’s Destiny
Warriors Super Edition: Crookedstar’s Promise
Warriors Super Edition: Yellowfang’s Secret
Warriors Super Edition: Tallstar’s Revenge
Warriors Super Edition: Bramblestar’s Storm
Warriors Super Edition: Moth Flight’s Vision
Warriors Super Edition: Hawkwing’s Journey
Warriors Super Edition: Tigerheart’s Shadow
Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans
Warriors: Cats of the Clans
Warriors: Code of the Clans
Warriors: Battles of the Clans
Warriors: Enter the Clans
Warriors: The Ultimate Guide
Warriors: The Untold Stories
Warriors: Tales from the Clans
Warriors: Shadows of the Clans
Warriors: Legends of the Clans
MANGA
The Lost Warrior
Warrior’s Refuge
Warrior’s Return
The Rise of Scourge
Tigerstar and Sasha #1: Into the Woods
Tigerstar and Sasha #2: Escape from the Forest
Tigerstar and Sasha #3: Return to the Clans
Ravenpaw’s Path #1: Shattered Peace
Ravenpaw’s Path #2: A Clan in Need
Ravenpaw’s Path #3: The Heart of a Warrior
SkyClan and the Stranger #1: The Rescue