“You were so brave!” Sparrow Fur hurried out from behind the thin wood. “You didn’t even look scared!”
Tom shrugged. “Nothing scares me.”
Arrogant mouseheart! Thunder exchanged glances with Lightning Tail. “Are you ready to grab them?”
“Let’s go.” Lightning Tail strode past him into the den.
Thunder followed, ears flat.
River Ripple padded to the center of the opening and waited, hackles up.
“Thunder!” Sparrow Fur’s excited squeak echoed around the den as she spotted him. “You’ve come too!”
Owl Eyes blinked. “Is Turtle Tail with you?”
Thunder swallowed back the pain rising in his chest. “No,” he told Owl Eyes. “We came by ourselves. Turtle Tail and Gray Wing wanted us to bring you home.”
Tom stepped forward, ears flattening. “They are home.”
Pebble Heart’s gaze sharpened. “If this is home, is Turtle Tail coming to live here?”
Tom growled. “You don’t need Turtle Tail. You’re my kits and you’re living with me.”
Sparrow Fur’s eyes clouded. “But Turtle Tail promised I could see Wind Runner’s kits!”
“I told you!” Tom snapped. “You’re my kits. This is where you belong!”
Thunder’s pelt rippled with sudden cold. Tom had told them he was their father. He glanced at Lightning Tail. The black tom’s gaze was dark. If the kits knew that Tom was their father, they couldn’t snatch them back. The kits wouldn’t understand.
Thunder sheathed his claws. They would have to use reason. “How are you going to look after them?” he challenged. “You can’t hunt.”
Tom flicked his tail toward the hollow stone filled with berries. “I got them food, didn’t I?”
“But your Twoleg didn’t know it was feeding three hungry kits as well as you,” Thunder argued. “It doesn’t know they’re here, does it?”
Tom glared at him. “So?”
“You can’t keep them secret forever.” Lightning Tail stepped forward. “And when your Twoleg finds out, what will it do with them?”
Owl Eyes’s fur spiked. “What do you mean?” He looked anxiously toward the Twoleg entrance.
Thunder forced himself to ignore the frightened kit. He had to convince Tom that keeping them here was impossible. “They’re half wild.” He paced around Tom, gazing at him beseechingly. “They don’t belong here. They belong on the moor. With cats who love them.”
“Who says I don’t love them?” Tom puffed out his chest. “I rescued them from the moor. They were wandering around by themselves. Anything could have happened to them.”
“We were practicing tracking rabbits,” Pebble Heart mewed.
Tom glared at the tabby kit. “How do you know a fox wasn’t practicing tracking kits at the same time?”
Pebble Heart’s eyes widened.
Tom stopped Thunder’s pacing by turning to face him. “They’re safe here,” he growled. “They have me to protect them.”
By filling their heads full of horror stories about the moor? Thunder bit back a growl. We have to get them away from him. He glanced desperately around the den. They couldn’t fight Tom. Not now the kits knew he was their father. He moved closer to Lightning Tail. “What do we do?”
“We’ll have to leave them,” Lightning Tail meowed calmly.
Thunder stared at him. “But—”
Lightning Tail nudged him toward the den entrance.
“We can’t!” Thunder stopped as they reached River Ripple. “Those are Turtle Tail’s kits! They belong on the moor.” He stared desperately at Lightning Tail, pausing as he saw the black tom’s eyes narrow. He dropped his mew to a whisper. “You’ve got a plan, haven’t you?”
Lightning Tail winked at him and marched away from the den.
Hope fizzing in his paws, Thunder hurried after.
Chapter 14
Help me!
Gray Wing jolted awake as his ears rang with Turtle Tail’s desperate cry. He blinked open his eyes, heart lurching, and jerked his head around. “Turtle Tail?” The camp was quiet, the sunny clearing empty. There was no sign of his tortoiseshell mate. Relief swamped him. It had been a dream.
Where is she? He sat up, his muscles weary. Warmth drenched his pelt as the sun slid toward the horizon. It would be dusk soon and he was still in his nest. He drew in a breath. The tightness in his chest was gone at last. He could breathe easily again.
Rainswept Flower nodded to him as she crossed the clearing. Water-soaked moss dripped from between her jaws. She was heading toward the bramble den, where Gorse Fur’s tail stuck out among the flowery stems. Wind Runner had kitted! He remembered Turtle Tail telling him through the haze of his sickness.
And then she’d left to search for the kits. Surely she’d found them by now? He tasted the air. Her scent bathed his tongue and his heart quickened for a moment. Then he realized it was just lingering traces of fur in their nest. He climbed out, his paws trembling. His belly rumbled.
“You’re awake!” Jagged Peak trotted toward him. “How are you feeling?”
“Better.” Gray Wing noticed Acorn Fur, crouching beside the heather wall. The chestnut brown she-cat was gazing anxiously through the gap. Was she watching for Turtle Tail and the kits?
Cloud Spots padded past her. He was carrying herbs between his jaws, heading for the bramble. Gray Wing frowned. Why was his gaze so dark? “Is Wind Runner okay?” he asked Jagged Peak.
“She’s fine,” Jagged Peak reported. “She had four kits—three toms and a she-kit.”
Gray Wing purred. “Sparrow Fur will be excited,” he meowed. “She’ll have new friends. They all will. Kits need playmates.” He paused as he saw Jagged Peak’s gaze cloud. “What’s wrong?” He leaned forward, alarm pulsing through him. “Has there been any news?”
“Not yet.” Jagged Peak glanced toward Tall Shadow. The black she-cat was on the flat rock, looking out over the moor. Had she moved at all while Gray Wing had slept?
“Why aren’t they back yet?” Gray Wing couldn’t believe the kits would have wandered so far from the camp.
“We found kittypet scent near their trail,” Jagged Peak told him softly. “Tall Shadow didn’t want you to know until you’d recovered.”
“Kittypet scent?” Gray Wing searched Jagged Peak’s gaze. Why did he look so worried? He stiffened, suspicion pricking in his mind. “Did Turtle Tail recognize it?” he demanded.
Jagged Peak nodded.
“It was Tom, wasn’t it?”
“Yes.” Jagged Peak’s ear twitched. “We can’t be sure they went with him. But Turtle Tail went after him, with Thunder and Lightning Tail. He won’t get far.”
“He took the kits?” Gray Wing could hardly believe it. What kind of sick cat would steal kits from their mother? He strode toward the gap in the heather. “I’ll get them back.” Strength surged through him as he left Jagged Peak, blinking, behind.
“Wait!” Tall Shadow’s call surprised him.
He stopped at the flat rock and looked up at her. “I have to help Turtle Tail get the kits back.”
Tall Shadow leaped down and landed lightly beside him. “Thunder and Lightning Tail are already following her. They’ve probably found them by now and are on their way home.” She stared gravely at Gray Wing. “You need to save your strength for your meeting with Clear Sky. The safety of all of us may depend on it.”
Gray Wing dipped his head. She was speaking sense. His whiskers twitched wryly. Not long ago, he’d led the moor cats. Now Tall Shadow was back in charge, making decisions.