She nosed Bristlefrost away from the den, away from their Clanmates. “I have to speak to you,” she whispered.
Bristlefrost’s pelt prickled. “Is everything okay?”
“Remember what Rootpaw said?” Squirrelflight told her urgently. “At the Gathering? That’s not Bramblestar.” She glanced nervously toward the dirtplace tunnel.
“Of course it is.” Bristlefrost blinked at her. “Who else could it be?”
“I know it sounds crazy,” Squirrelflight hissed. “But Bramblestar is my mate. I can tell. I had a feeling something was wrong . . . I just told myself it was because he’d lost a life. Now I think it’s more than that. I’ve been paying close attention to him today. He’s . . . different.”
“But he’s our leader.” Bristlefrost lifted her chin. “And he’s obeying StarClan.” How could he be any cat but Bramblestar? Things had been going too well. The Clan was following the warrior code more closely than ever. Prey was plentiful. StarClan must be pleased. Bramblestar was making ThunderClan the best Clan in the forest.
Squirrelflight stared at her, her gaze suddenly unreadable. Then she headed back to the Highledge, settling into the spot she’d left just as Bramblestar padded into camp.
“Bristlefrost.” The ThunderClan leader beckoned her with a flick of his tail.
She hurried to meet him, shaking out her fur smartly as she reached him. She narrowed her eyes. He looked like Bramblestar. His mew was exactly as it had always been. She glanced at Squirrelflight, puzzled. How had an apprentice from another Clan managed to convince her that her mate was some other cat? “What is it?” She blinked at him eagerly. Did he have another special duty for her?
“I want a word in private.” He padded slowly around the clearing and stopped at the far side, a distance from their Clanmates. “The camp is in good order.” He nodded toward Flamepaw, who was still weaving bracken. “And our Clanmates seem to be following the code. You’ve been a really big help making sure the Clan does its best.”
Bristlefrost’s pelt warmed with pride. She dropped her gaze shyly. “I want StarClan to come back, that’s all.”
“Of course.” Bramblestar’s gaze drifted toward the forest. “Prey has been running well, which is a good sign. I’m pleased to see the fresh-kill pile so full, but I think our warriors could be doing better.” He swung his gaze back to Bristlefrost. “Don’t you agree?”
She blinked at him. Was he about to criticize her? Had she let him down? Anxiety burrowed beneath her fur. “I—I guess?” She searched his gaze, trying to guess what he was thinking.
“I’ve been out in the forest, and I’ve seen prey trails that haven’t been followed and undisturbed mouse nests. I’m worried that some of our warriors aren’t pulling their weight.”
Relief swamped Bristlefrost. She’d been hunting more diligently than ever before. He couldn’t be blaming her. “I think every cat is trying,” she told him earnestly. Her Clanmates had been working hard too. She didn’t want Bramblestar to be disappointed in them.
“Every cat?” He tipped his head to one side.
She met his gaze. “Every cat.”
“Are you sure?”
As he stared at her she hesitated. Am I sure? She tried to remember, feeling less sure by the moment. Had every warrior on her patrols hunted as hard as she had? She frowned as she remembered yesterday’s patrol with Sparkpelt, Spotfur, and Thornclaw. Sparkpelt hadn’t caught as much prey as usual, even though she’d ventured deeper into the forest than the others. Bristlefrost could feel Bramblestar’s gaze boring into her. It couldn’t do any harm to mention Sparkpelt. After all, she was Bramblestar’s kit. If she was having trouble keeping up with her Clanmates, surely he’d just want to help her. “Sparkpelt went off by herself during yesterday’s patrol,” she mewed. “She said she knew a good hunting spot near the edge of our territory, but she didn’t bring any prey back.”
“None?” Bramblestar narrowed his eyes.
“She caught a mouse later and a shrew on the way home,” Bristlefrost told him quickly. “She’s a really good hunter. I think she was just having a bad day.”
She held her breath as Bramblestar’s eyes clouded in thought. This was the sort of information he wanted, right? So his warriors could please StarClan. She stiffened as he stalked away, his tail twitching ominously.
“Sparkpelt!” He yowled his daughter’s name, and she turned and blinked at him.
Bristlefrost’s belly tightened. She crept around the clearing so she could see Bramblestar’s expression. Was he as angry as he sounded?
“What is it?” When she saw her father’s face, her emerald gaze sharpened. She glanced toward Squirrelflight.
“Don’t look at her.” Bramblestar snapped. “I’m your leader.”
Bristlefrost’s pads itched with foreboding. Should she have kept quiet?
Squirrelflight got to her paws slowly as Sparkpelt crossed the clearing.
“Is something wrong?” Sparkpelt stopped in front of Bramblestar. Bristlefrost hung back at the edge of the clearing, her fur pricking with fear.
“You disappeared during your hunting patrol yesterday,” Bramblestar growled. “Where did you go?”
Sparkpelt stuck out her chest. “I was hunting,” she told him. “I wanted to check the territory near the border. We hadn’t hunted there for a while.”
Bramblestar held her gaze. “Why didn’t the rest of the patrol go with you?”
“I don’t know,” she told him. “I didn’t ask. I didn’t realize I had to ask. I’ve hunted alone before. We all have.”
“But things are different now,” Bramblestar growled. “StarClan is angry. We have to be careful what we do. We must stay with our Clanmates.”
“How will that make StarClan happy?” Sparkpelt’s ears twitched.
“It will make me happy,” Bramblestar snapped. “And while StarClan is silent, I’m their voice in the forest. They gave me nine lives. I think they must trust me to care for my Clan, don’t you?” He leaned closer to Sparkpelt. “Or do you think you know better than StarClan?”
“Of course I don’t!” Sparkpelt bristled.
“Where did you go?” Bramblestar snarled.
“I was hunting!”
“Then why didn’t you bring any prey back? Did you forget how to catch it?”
“No!” Sparkpelt was angry now. As her hackles lifted, Squirrelflight padded closer. Flamepaw slid quietly from the elders’ roof and watched, his eyes rounding with alarm.
Bristlefrost glanced guiltily at the apprentice. She hadn’t meant to get his mother into trouble. She’d only wanted to help Bramblestar take care of the Clan.
“Where did you go?” Bramblestar demanded again.
Sparkpelt glared at him. “I went to look for Lionblaze, okay? Has StarClan made a rule against caring about our Clanmates now?”
Bristlefrost’s heart quickened with fear. She hadn’t known Sparkpelt had been looking for Lionblaze. If she had, would she have told Bramblestar about his daughter’s disappearance? Had Sparkpelt broken the code? She no longer knew.
She glanced at the ThunderClan leader, seeing that his ears had flattened. “How dare you!” he snarled at Sparkpelt. “I banished Lionblaze. You had no business going after him.”
“I didn’t go after him. The quarter moon was up two days ago, and he’s still not back yet. I went to see if he might be on his way home.”
As Sparkpelt stood her ground, Bramblestar stared at her. Around them, the Clan had fallen silent. They were watching, pelts ruffled with unease.
Squirrelflight padded softly to Bramblestar’s side. “She only went to check on a Clanmate,” she mewed.