A Forest Divided (7 page)

“We'll eat later,” snapped the tom. “You need to follow those cats.”

Follow those cats?
Gray Wing stretched his ears. He slithered forward as lightly as he could until he was close to the edge of the heather, hoping its dusty scent would mask his own. Through the spiky branches he could make out the two cats.

A broad-shouldered brown tabby faced a black she-cat. Both were scarred, their ears nicked at the tips and their fur crisscrossed by old wounds. The tabby's front legs were marked with a slash of white, his ears were torn, and half his whiskers were missing. The black cat's tail was short, squared at the end as though half had been lost in an accident.

How does she balance with half a tail?
Gray Wing squinted through the heather. The black cat looked young, despite her scars; her muscles were taut. The tabby's flanks sagged with age, but experience glinted in his eyes, and Gray Wing noticed his long claws flexing as he talked. He'd be a formidable enemy, Gray Wing guessed.

The tabby went on. “I want you to follow them. Find out
where they settle. I knew they'd leave this barren piece of land eventually. I need to know where they make camp, where they hunt, their habits, their weaknesses, everything!”

“But why, Slash?” The black cat's mew quavered.

“Don't be such a mouse-brain, Fern!” The tabby lashed out with a paw and caught her across the ear.

Fern ducked away, a low whine in her throat.

“Just do as I tell you!” Slash hissed. “Watch and wait and report back to me.”

“Why can't you come with me?”

Gray Wing wondered why Fern wasn't happy to be away from her vicious companion.

“I've got other fish to catch.” There was menace in Slash's tone. “Don't let me down, Fern. Star Flower betrayed me, and she's lucky I let her live. I won't be so soft with you.”

“I won't let you down,” Fern promised quickly, pressing her belly to the ground like a frightened kit.

“And don't let them see you!” Slash showed his teeth. “When the time comes, I want to see the surprise on their soft, kitty-loving faces for myself.”

“I'll be like a shadow,” Fern mewed.

“You'd better be, or you
know
what I'll do to you.”

Gray Wing saw Fern tremble as terror shone in her gaze. “I—I know, Slash.”

“Good.” Slash straightened, then stalked away across the grass.

Fern watched him leave, the terror in her eyes hardening to hate.

Gray Wing's tail-tip twitched uneasily. These rogues were going to be trouble, and yet their alliance was based on fear.
That is their weakness.
He kept still as Fern padded away. The black she-cat was heading across the slope, no doubt aiming for the Thunderpath and the pine forest beyond. He waited until Fern disappeared behind a wide clump of gorse, then wriggled out from the heather. Shaking crumbs of leaf from his pelt, he scanned the moorside. How long had Slash been roaming their territory? He talked as though he'd been watching the cats for a while. And he knew Star Flower. He must have known her father, One Eye. Gray Wing's paws pricked. These rogues were like poisonous weeds. One Eye had been killed, but Slash had grown in his place. Frustration flashed beneath Gray Wing's pelt.
Will we never find peace?

He ducked back into the heather. He had to catch up to the others without bumping into Fern. He followed an arcing route around the gorse and slid from the heather near the top of the moor. From here he could see rolling countryside sweeping toward the mountains and, ahead, a steep sharp slope down toward the Thunderpath. Shapes moved over it. Jagged Peak and the others! Bounding forward, Gray Wing hurried to catch up. He paced himself, trying to ignore the stabbing in his chest, which was tightening more as the wind chilled. Flakes of snow began to whip his flank. A thick fall was closing in, already swallowing the distant mountains. By the time he reached his friends, he could hardly see a tail-length ahead.

“Gray Wing, is that you?” Pebble Heart's voice called
through the storm. Gray Wing followed it, relieved to see the young tom and his campmates. The kits were still clinging to Mouse Ear, Mud Paws, and Tall Shadow. Snow coated their pelts.

“There'll be shelter in the forest!” Jagged Peak called.

Holly answered him. “We have to cross the Thunderpath first.”

The acrid tang of the black trail touched Gray Wing's tongue. It must be close. How would they cross it when they could hardly see past their whiskers? He wove past Mouse Ear and Mud Paws and fell in beside Jagged Peak. “Perhaps we should find cover and rest before crossing.”

“No.” Jagged Peak kept his gaze fixed forward. “We're going to keep moving until we reach the forest. There'll be prey there and shelter, and the kits are cold and hungry.”

Gray Wing narrowed his eyes against the snow. Jagged Peak was acting like their leader. But he was right. They were close to the Thunderpath, and the pines lay just beyond. It might be a waste of time to scout the slope for somewhere to hide when they were certain that shelter lay ahead.

The wind roared in his ears, growing louder, until Gray Wing realized that it wasn't just the wind.

He froze. “Watch out!”

As he spoke, huge eyes blazed through the snow. He cowered, blinded by their glare. A monster was pounding toward them.

“Get back!” Jagged Peak tugged Holly and scrambled backward with a yowl. He pushed Gray Wing against Tall Shadow.
Dew Nose squeaked with terror as the monster roared past a tail-length ahead. Its massive black paws showed through the blizzard before it thundered away into the storm.

“That was close.” Jagged Peak straightened. He glanced back at the others. “Is everyone okay?”

“Yes.” Gray Wing was impressed by Jagged Peak's calmness. He checked the kits. They clustered together, tails bushed, while Pebble Heart and Tall Shadow crouched beside them.

“Was that a monster?” Eagle Feather gasped.

“Yes, dear.” Holly reached up and nuzzled her kit on Mouse Ear's back. “We have to be careful.”

“We will be,” Jagged Peak growled. “At least we know where the Thunderpath
is
.”

Gray Wing stared into the blizzard. “We can't cross it
now
.”

“Yes we can.” Jagged Peak stepped forward, then stopped. “The last monster made the ground tremble before it reached us.” He shuffled his paws until they were deep in the snow. “I can feel when one's coming and warn you.”

Holly blinked at him. “You can't just stand there!” she gasped. “What if one veers off its path and hits you?”

“It won't,” Jagged Peak told her.

He's like a different cat.
Gray Wing glanced at Tall Shadow. She was staring at Jagged Peak in surprise.

She caught Gray Wing's eye. “I've never seen a cat so changed.”

Gray Wing nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.”

Holly jerked her head around. “It's amazing what a little
love
can do.”

Was that reproach in her mew?

Gray Wing felt a flash of guilt. Had he been too hard on his younger brother when all he needed was a little kindness?

Holly lifted her chin and padded to Jagged Peak's side. “I trust you.” She touched her muzzle to his cheek, then called to Mouse Ear and Mud Paws. “Get the kits across when Jagged Peak gives the word.”

Mouse Ear nodded and padded to where Jagged Peak marked the edge of the Thunderpath.

“Wait,” warned Jagged Peak. “The ground's trembling.” Gray Wing saw him stiffen. “Get away from the edge.”

As Mouse Ear backed away, Jagged Peak stood his ground. The wind's roar became a monster's howl. Gray Wing held his breath as its eyes lit Jagged Peak. Horror scorched through him as the black paws of the monster loomed from the snow. But Jagged Peak hardly flinched as the monster hurtled past.

Gray Wing struggled to take a breath. Snow froze his mouth and made his chest burn.

“Now!” Jagged Peak called.

Mouse Ear and Mud Paws raced past him, the kits squealing. Gray Wing watched, trembling, as they disappeared into the blizzard.

“It's still safe!” Jagged Peak yowled.

Tall Shadow leaped forward. Holly raced after her, Pebble Heart at her heels.

“You too!” Jagged Peak glared at Gray Wing through the snow.

Gray Wing could hardly find the breath to answer.

Jagged Peak ran toward him. “Are you okay?”

“It's hard to breathe in this snow,” Gray Wing rasped.

Jagged Peak pressed against him. “Lean on me.” Gray Wing felt the tom's strong shoulder against his flank. He rested against it, suddenly weak.

“Come on,” Jagged Peak urged gently. “I can't feel any monsters.”

Gray Wing focused on his paws, trying to sense vibrations in the earth, but he couldn't tell whether the ground was shaking or his legs. He glanced at Jagged Peak. His brother's gaze was fixed calmly ahead.
It must be my paws. I can't be this weak. My campmates need me!

Jagged Peak shouldered him forward. “Just keep moving,” he grunted. “Once we're in the shelter of the pines, you'll get more air.”

Gray Wing didn't answer. He stared ahead, thankful for Jagged Peak's strength. With faltering steps he padded forward, letting his brother guide him. The snow was smooth beneath his paws, the ground hard as stone beneath it. They must be on the Thunderpath. He struggled to hurry.

“It's okay,” Jagged Peak reassured him. “The path's clear. Take your time.”

As snow whisked past his muzzle, Gray Wing felt dizzy. “I can't do it,” he gasped.

“You're going to have to!” Jagged Peak growled darkly. “I can feel the ground trembling.”

Gray Wing tried to drag in air, his paws slithering beneath him.

“Hurry!” Jagged Peak shoved his shoulder harder against Gray Wing's flank and half lifted him onward.

Gray Wing heard the roar of a monster. Lights flashed through the snow. The world seemed to tumble as Jagged Peak hurled him forward.

We're going to die!

Gray Wing rolled, the snow soft beneath him, and slid to a halt. The monster's howl ripped through his ear fur. Stones and ice chips blasted his pelt. Acrid smoke filled his nose. And then there was just snow.

The monster was gone.

“Jagged Peak?” Panic ripped through his pelt. “Jagged Peak!”

“I'm here!” His brother's mew sounded triumphant in his ear. “We made it! I can see the trees.”

Weak with relief, Gray Wing let Jagged Peak nudge him to his paws and staggered blindly forward. Dark shapes swirled in front of him, darkening more until eerie silence enfolded him.

The snow had gone. The wind had dropped.

Am I dead?

Blinking open his eyes, Gray Wing gazed around. Tall trunks soared around them. Beneath his paws he could feel a soft bed of needles.

“You made it!” Holly raced from between the pines and pressed her cheek against Jagged Peak's.

“Of course we did.” Jagged Peak nodded to Pebble Heart. “Gray Wing's having his breathing trouble again.”

Pebble Heart dropped his bundle of herbs. “I can smell coltsfoot in here.” He unrolled the wad of leaves with his nose and picked out a dull green sprig. “It's dried from greenleaf, but it should still work.”

Gray Wing smelled the familiar scent of the herb. Relief flickered in his belly. Pebble Heart held out a stalk between his teeth, and Gray Wing took it. “Thanks.” He chewed it carefully to release the juices from the dried old stem before swallowing it.

“Let's rest here for a while.” Tall Shadow shrugged Dew Nose from her back.

Dew Nose squeaked as she landed. “The ground feels weird!”

Eagle Feather and Storm Pelt leaped down from Mud Paws and Mouse Ear.

“It's all springy!” Eagle Feather bounced across the thick covering of needles.

“It must be a tail-length deep!” Storm Pelt shuffled his paws into the brown needles until they disappeared. “Look! I've got no paws!”

Gray Wing sat down, his chest loosening as the coltsfoot began to work. “Thanks, Pebble Heart,” he murmured.

“I just hope there's more in this forest.” Pebble Heart scanned the trees.

The tall, straight trunks were cracked, like ancient prey dried in the sun. Shadows pooled between them. Here and there, dense patches of brambles crowded their roots. Gray Wing looked up. The sky was hidden by thick branches, green even in leaf-bare. Their tips leaned and creaked, stirred by the blizzard howling above them, but they stood firm, their roots dug deep into the peaty earth.

“What do you think?” Tall Shadow followed Gray Wing's gaze upward.

Gray Wing whisked his tail over the needle-strewn earth. A sharp tang of pine cut through the thickness in his chest. He felt strength return to his paws. His shoulders relaxed. “I think I'm going to like it here.”

“Should we make camp?” Holly called.

“Where?” Tall Shadow glanced around.

Gray Wing stiffened as Slash's order to Fern flashed through his mind.
I need to know where they make camp, where they hunt, their habits, their weaknesses, everything!
Had Fern crossed the Thunderpath yet? Was she nearby now? Gray Wing strained to see through the shadows, looking for a flicker of movement. Why couldn't Fern have an
orange
pelt? It was too easy for her to hide here.

“Gray Wing?” Tall Shadow was searching his gaze anxiously. “Is something wrong? Your pelt's pricking.”

“Nothing's wrong,” Gray Wing told her quickly. There was nothing she could do about Slash's spy. Why spoil a pleasure she'd looked forward to for so long? “Is the forest as good as you imagined?”

Tall Shadow purred and padded around the base of a pine, her paw steps no more than a whisper on the needles. “It's even better.” She pricked her ears. “The wind sounds so far away.”