Эрин Хантер - A Forest Divided

“Tall Shadow sent me.”

Gray Wing shifted his paws, feeling suddenly guilty. “Is she okay?”

Worry sparked in Thunder’s gaze. A chill ran down Gray Wing’s spine. Slash! Had he attacked the camp? He’d assumed that Fern’s plan to distract the vicious rogue had worked.

“She’s fine.” Thunder’s tail twitched. “Everyone’s fine.”

“Then why did Tall Shadow send you?” Gray Wing frowned, puzzled.

“I found some strangers in the forest,” Thunder explained hesitantly. “They were looking for Tall Shadow, so I took them to her camp.”

Gray Wing leaned forward, curiosity pricking his pelt. Why did Thunder seem so wary?

“Strangers?”

“They want to see you.”

Slate shifted beside Gray Wing, her pelt bristling. “Who are these strangers?”

Wind Runner tipped her head. “Where are they from?”

Thunder stared at Gray Wing. “They’re from the mountains.”

“The mountains ?” Gray Wing’s thoughts whirled. Had the Tribe followed the Sun Trail? He remembered his dream of the empty cave behind the waterfall. But they wanted to stay among the peaks. Had something terrible happened to drive them from their home?

Thunder lowered his voice. “It’s Quiet Rain.”

My mother! Gray Wing’s heart quickened. The journey from the mountains had been difficult for the young and healthy cat he used to be—Quiet Rain would surely have found it even more trying. “Is she okay?”

“She’s weak and hungry, and carries a wound, but Pebble Heart is taking care of her,” Thunder told him. “She came with a cat named Sun Shadow.”

“Moon Shadow’s son…” Anxiety fluttered in Gray Wing’s belly. What was she doing here? “I must go to her,” he meowed, heading for the heather tunnel.

“Wait!” Slate called. “Who’s Quiet Rain?”

Gray Wing glanced back at her. “She’s my mother!” Why hadn’t he been in the forest to greet her?

He shouldn’t be here on the moor. He had duties and responsibilities at home. As he shouldered his way through the heather tunnel and burst out onto the grass beyond, he felt his breathing shorten. His heart pounded in his ears.

“Wait for me!” Paws thrummed behind him as he raced across the moor.

Thunder caught up with him, panting. “Slow down!” he puffed. “She’s not going anywhere.”

“I should have been there.” Gray Wing struggled to speak, fighting for breath.

Thunder swerved across his path. “There’s no use getting there so out of breath that you can’t even speak to her.”

Gray Wing halted. “You’re right.” His chest wheezed as he spoke.

“Let’s walk.” Thunder fell in beside him.

Tiny flakes of snow spiraled from the sky as dusk fell. There would be snowfall by morning.

Padding slowly, Gray Wing let his fur smooth, relaxing until his breath began to ease. “Is Quiet Rain’s wound dangerous?”

“I don’t know,” Thunder answered. “Pebble Heart says it will take a while to heal.”

“Is Clear Sky with her now?” If Thunder had found Quiet Rain and Sun Shadow in the forest, he must have taken them back to Clear Sky’s camp first.

Thunder kept his gaze fixed ahead. “No.”

“He didn’t travel to Tall Shadow’s camp with her?”

“He doesn’t know she’s here.”

Gray Wing frowned, puzzled. “But you know?”

“I took them straight to Tall Shadow.”

Gray Wing could hear stiffness in Thunder’s voice. Something was wrong. “Why not take them to Clear Sky?”

“We argued,” Thunder mewed softly. “I left Clear Sky’s camp days ago. I’ve set up my own.”

Gray Wing’s heart sank. Would Clear Sky and Thunder ever reconcile? Before he could ask, Thunder changed the subject.

“Tall Shadow says that Sun Shadow looks exactly like his father.” He lowered his voice. “I told him Moon Shadow had died.”

Gray Wing glanced at him. “That must have been hard, for you and him.”

“He was looking forward to knowing his father.” Was that bitterness in Thunder’s mew? “They know about Bright Stream too, but Tall Shadow didn’t want to tell them anything more. Not until your mother is stronger.”

Gray Wing glanced across the moor toward the four trees hollow, where the graves of so many of their friends lay. What would Quiet Rain say when she found out? He slowed, suddenly realizing how much news there was to share with her and how little of it was good.

What will she say when she finds out how we’ve fought among ourselves? As worry wormed beneath his pelt, his forepaw scuffed a hard vine in the grass. Pain shot through his leg as the vine tightened around it. Instinctively he tried to tug himself free, but the vine gripped harder, digging into his flesh.

Thunder leaped back, fur on end. “What’s wrong?”

“Something’s caught me!” Panic flashed through Gray Wing, spiraling as he tried to pull his paw free. Pain scorched up his leg as the vine snared it harder.

“Hold still!” Thunder darted forward, examining his paw. “It looks like a vine from a Twoleg fence.”

Gray Wing could smell blood and looked down to see the fur darken around his paw.

Thunder sniffed along the thin tendril. “It’s tied to a stick.”

Gray Wing fought against the blinding pain as Thunder gripped the stick between his jaws and tried to haul it from the ground.

He groaned with effort, then fell away, growling. “It’s stuck fast. I can’t move it.”

Gray Wing saw him glance warily across the moor. He guessed what Thunder was thinking.

“Foxes will smell my blood.” And come looking for an easy meal. Fear hollowed his belly. I’m trapped like prey!

“Stay calm.” Thunder paced around him. “We’ll find a way to get you out.”

“How?” Gray Wing tugged his paw again, gasping as the vine cut deeper.

“I know.” A mew sounded from the heather behind them.

Gray Wing jerked his muzzle around and saw Fern padding across the grass toward them.

Thunder showed his teeth. “Who are you?”

Fern paused and tipped her head. “Gray Wing knows me.”

“She’s Fern,” Gray Wing rasped.

Fern circled them, leaving a wide berth between her and Thunder.

Thunder’s gaze was suspicious, his orange pelt bristling. “You know how to free Gray Wing?” he growled. “How? Did you set this trap?”

Fern purred with amusement. “Don’t be dumb! It’s a Twoleg trap for rabbits. If I knew how to set it, I’d never go hungry again.” She rolled her eyes at Gray Wing. “I can’t believe you were mouse-brained enough to walk into it.”

Gray Wing gritted his teeth. “Just get me out!”

“You have to stop struggling,” Fern told him. She gave a warning look to Thunder, then ducked down beside Gray Wing’s paw. “Hold still.”

Gray Wing forced himself to keep still, breathing fast against the pain.

“This might hurt a little,” Fern warned. “I have to get my teeth around the vine to loosen it.”

Gray Wing nodded and braced himself.

He shuddered as he felt her small teeth slide between the vine and the wound in his leg. She wriggled her head, and he gasped as pain flared through him like lightning. Suddenly, the vine loosened. Fern jerked her head away and Gray Wing slid his paw easily from the trap.

Relief swamped him as the worst of the pain receded. But the wound stung like fury, and he felt blood seeping into his fur. He put weight on his paw, relieved to find it solid beneath him. “Nothing broken.” It was only a flesh wound. It would heal.

Thunder stared at the scarred she-cat. “Who are you?”

Fern caught Gray Wing’s eye.