Then a new voice spoke behind them. “Are you looking for me?”
CHAPTER 14
Hollyleaf whirled around. Behind her, in an arched opening, a tall, well-muscled cat was outlined against the dusk. The white patches on his pelt shone very brightly.
“Sol!” Hazeltail’s gasp was amazed and terrified all at once.
She really thinks Sol is the killer! Hollyleaf thought.
She was aware of bristling pelts and stiff limbs around her. But as soon as she looked into Sol’s glowing amber eyes, Hollyleaf felt herself relaxing. How could she have forgotten how wise he was, how calm and certain he was about the future? Nothing troubled him, because he already knew what to expect.
“Greetings, Sol.” Brambleclaw stepped forward. “Yes, we’re looking for you. You need to come back to ThunderClan.”
Sol looked into the eyes of each cat in turn. “Something has happened.”
Hollyleaf felt a jolt in her belly, as if a stone had struck her. What does he know about Ashfur?
“We just need you to come with us,” Brambleclaw meowed. “Firestar wants to talk to you.”
Sol’s eyes narrowed. “Something has happened that you think concerns me. Something bad. You wouldn’t come all this way to thank me.” He paused thoughtfully. “A cat has died….”
Behind Hollyleaf, Birchfall caught his breath.
“No,” Sol corrected himself. “A cat has been killed. And you think I’m responsible.” The tip of his tail twitched, but he betrayed no other emotion.
I’d be terrified if any cat accused me, Hollyleaf thought, scraping her claws against the cold stone. But Sol just surveyed the patrol calmly and waited for them to speak.
“He must be guilty!” Hazeltail whispered to Hollyleaf. “He didn’t even ask who died!”
“Sol? Is that you?” A frail voice broke the silence, and Purdy appeared in the entrance, dragging a scrawny rabbit behind him. He was thinner than when Hollyleaf had last seen him, and his tabby pelt looked messier than ever.
“Look what I got!” Purdy dropped the prey and looked up. He blinked in astonishment as he recognized the Clan cats. “If it ain’t Brambleclaw!” he exclaimed. “And Hollypaw and Lionpaw! I hope you two young ’uns are behaving yourselves.”
“Yes, we are,” Lionblaze replied, padding forward to touch noses with the old loner. “And we’re warriors now. Lionblaze and Hollyleaf.”
“Well, who’d have thought it?” Purdy’s eyes gleamed. “Well done, youngsters.”
For a few heartbeats, Hollyleaf felt like an apprentice again. She should have been insulted, that Purdy still thought of her and her brother as young cats who were always getting into mischief. Instead she yearned for the days when everything had seemed so simple, and all she had to do was make herself the best warrior she could.
“How’s that brother o’ yours?” Purdy asked.
“He’s Jayfeather now,” Hollyleaf replied. “He’s a full medicine cat.”
Purdy shook his head again. “Who’d have thought it?” he repeated.
Brambleclaw padded forward and dipped his head to the old loner. “Greetings, Purdy. It’s good to see you again. Come and meet my other Clanmates. This is Birchfall, and this is Hazeltail and Brackenfur.”
“Good to know you,” Purdy mumbled, looking a bit embarrassed to be among so many strangers.
“I’m sorry, Purdy.” Sol stepped forward, to stand in front of the old cat. “I have to go.”
Purdy blinked in astonishment. “What? Why?” When Sol didn’t reply, he added, “I know you’ve only been here a couple o’ days, but I reckoned we were getting on fine. This old nest don’t feel half as empty wi’ you around. And look—” He waved his tail toward the rabbit he had dragged in. “I found us some prey. It’s a bit old and scrawny, but it could make a good meal….” His voice trailed off, and he hunched his shoulders.
“You enjoy the rabbit, Purdy,” Sol mewed gently, his amber eyes glowing. “I think the ThunderClan cats want to leave at once.”
“What’s all the rush?” Purdy turned to Brambleclaw. “Why do you need Sol to leave with you right now? Couldn’t you all stay here a bit longer? You’d be right welcome.”
Let Sol stay here. Hollyleaf wanted to speak the words aloud. We don’t need to take him back. Purdy needs him more than we do. But she knew that was impossible.
“We’ll stay for the night,” Brambleclaw decided. “But we’ll have to leave at dawn.”
“Fine!” Purdy’s ears perked up. “Have some o’ this rabbit,” he invited proudly.
“Thank you,” Brambleclaw replied, his voice gentle, “but we can catch our own to add to your fresh-kill pile.”
“I brought you a mouse,” Hollyleaf added, snatching up her prey and dropping it at Purdy’s paws.
The old tabby’s eyes shone. “That’s right kind of you.” He crouched down and tucked in.
The Clan cats headed for the entrance to the den. Brackenfur glanced back at Sol, who was still standing in the middle of the den.
“Don’t worry,” Sol meowed. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
Brackenfur still looked uncertain; as they padded through the entrance, Brambleclaw shouldered his way toward him and murmured into his ear. “Stay on guard. But keep out of sight.”
Brackenfur gave him a relieved nod and crept underneath the low-growing branches of a nearby bush, where he crouched with his gaze firmly fixed on the den.
Darkness had fallen while the cats were inside. The harsh orange light of the Twolegplace covered the sky, blotting out the stars. Hollyleaf wished she could have seen the spirits of the Clan’s warrior ancestors, to know that they were still watching over her.
Once outside, she headed for the thicket of shiny green leaves where she had caught her mice. Hazeltail padded along beside her.
“I’m so glad we found Sol,” she murmured. “Now we can go home.”
Hollyleaf nodded. “I feel bad about taking Sol away from Purdy,” she confessed.
“But Sol is a murderer!” Hazeltail halted, her eyes wide with shock. “What if he kills Purdy, too?”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Hollyleaf replied.
“How do you know?” Hazeltail persisted. “We need to get him back to the camp fast, before he does any more damage. Firestar will know what to do with him.”
Hollyleaf shook her head helplessly. There was no way to reply to Hazeltail’s questions. Besides, if Sol didn’t come back to ThunderClan with them, what would happen in the hunt for Ashfur’s killer? Would Firestar be forced to look closer to home? Hollyleaf’s belly felt cold at the thought of accusations flying around her Clan.
She plunged into the thicket to hunt, but this time prey didn’t come so easily to her paws. In the end she had to be content with a single shrew; she padded back to Purdy’s den feeling embarrassed, but the rest of the patrol had only found thin pickings, too.
“Prey’s pretty scarce ’round here,” Purdy admitted as they crouched down to eat. “But I can find enough to feed me and Sol through leaf-bare. I ain’t never starved before!”
He must be so lonely if he’s willing to share this much prey with a stranger, Hollyleaf thought sadly, swallowing her morsel of shrew.
Once she had eaten, she settled down to sleep. The stone floor of the den was damp and cold, and wind whistled through the gaps in the walls. Huddling next to Lionblaze for warmth, Hollyleaf wished for the thick moss and bracken of her nest in the camp, and for the sheltering branches of the warriors’ den.