“Are you trying to poison him?” His rage seemed to howl like a storm through the den.
Bramblestar pushed through the entrance. “No cat is trying to poison any cat.” He nudged Alderheart to one side and stood facing the ShadowClan leader. “In fact, I was sending Molewhisker and Cloudtail to warn you that Puddleshine is gravely ill. But you intercepted them at our border. Alderheart, Jayfeather, and Leafpool have been doing everything they can to heal Puddleshine. Alderheart’s barely slept in days. Look!” He nodded toward Puddleshine’s nest. “He’s washed and he’s lying on fresh bedding. We’ve taken the best possible care of him. But we can’t fight Twoleg poison.”
Tigerstar’s gaze was still fixed on Alderheart. “So you decided to put him out of his misery instead!” His yowl dripped with anger.
Alderheart stiffened against the trembling in his legs. Was his plan to save Puddleshine going to cause war between ThunderClan and ShadowClan?
Jayfeather lifted his muzzle. “Puddleshine was close to death,” he meowed calmly. “Alderheart saw a rabbit cured from the same infection by eating deathberry flesh. He wanted to see if the cure would work on Puddleshine. We’d tried everything else. It was our only chance to save him.”
Tigerstar glared at Jayfeather. “It doesn’t seem to have worked.” He narrowed his eyes accusingly. “But I know how little you value ShadowClan lives.”
Jayfeather seemed to recoil.
Alderheart frowned. “What do you mean? Jayfeather values every life.”
“What about Flametail, my littermate?” Tigerstar showed his teeth.
Bramblestar lashed his tail. “No cat ever believed Jayfeather killed your brother. No cat except Dawnpelt, and she was out of her mind with grief!”
Tigerstar’s gaze stayed on Jayfeather. “You didn’t manage to save him, though, did you?”
Guilt flashed in Jayfeather’s blind blue gaze. “I had to let him go,” he whispered.
“And now you’re trying to let Puddleshine go too,” Tigerstar growled.
“No!” Anger flared in Alderheart’s chest as he faced the ShadowClan leader. “We’re not letting him go. We’re going to keep treating him until he’s well. StarClan showed me a vision of flowers returning to the land after a fire. They were telling me that deathberries could cure Puddleshine, that they could make him stronger. I’m only feeding him the flesh, not the seeds. It will cleanse the Twoleg poison from his body, I know it will!” Conviction surged beneath his pelt, stronger than it had since he began the potentially deadly treatment. He held Tigerstar’s gaze, his paws shaking as the ShadowClan leader glared back at him.
“Puddleshine agreed to the treatment,” Jayfeather whispered. “We all knew how dangerous it was, but nothing else worked, and Puddleshine was willing to try.”
Tigerstar turned his head. “Puddleshine agreed?”
Jayfeather nodded. “He knew we meant to give him deathberries and he understood why. He told Alderheart to go ahead.”
Tigerstar eyed Puddleshine’s limp body for a moment; then he narrowed his eyes. “Is the treatment working?”
“He hasn’t died,” Jayfeather growled.
“But he might?” Tigerstar gaze flashed with uncertainty.
“He might,” Jayfeather conceded.
Tigerstar paused. His tail swished slowly behind him. “Then I will take him home,” he meowed at last. “If he is to die, he should be among his Clanmates.”
“But he’s too sick to walk,” Jayfeather pointed out.
“Juniperclaw and Sparrowtail can carry him,” Tigerstar shot back.
Alderheart’s paws pricked with fear. “But who will look after him once he’s home?”
Tigerstar’s eyes rounded with mock innocence. “Surely you’ll want to come with us to care for your patient?”
Alderheart hesitated. What if Puddleshine died? I’d be alone, in a hostile camp. His belly churned with fear.
“Alderheart stays here.” Bramblestar lifted his muzzle defiantly.
“But Alderheart has already pointed out that Puddleshine will need treatment,” Tigerstar meowed smoothly.
“Then Puddleshine will have to stay too,” Bramblestar growled.
The leaders held each other’s gaze. Neither moved, but Alderheart could see their muscles hardening beneath their pelts. Bramblestar’s fur began to bristle. Were they going to fight? I chose to use the deathberries. Alderheart swallowed. My choice mustn’t cause a war. “I’ll go,” he murmured softy. Foreboding hollowed his chest.
“It’s good to see you have such faith in your treatment,” Tigerstar meowed. “If Puddleshine recovers, all will be well.”
Bramblestar’s ears twitched. “And if he doesn’t?”
Tigerstar met the ThunderClan leader’s gaze. “In that case, an argument could be made that Alderheart poisoned him. Surely a cat who kills another cat should be punished?”
“Don’t be rabbit-brained!” Jayfeather snapped. “Alderheart is trying to save him!”
“If that’s true, then he’ll be happy to travel to ShadowClan to see him through his recovery.” Tigerstar stared challengingly at Jayfeather.
“You want to hold him hostage,” Bramblestar growled.
“I don’t intend to discuss this further.” Tigerstar flicked his tail. “We’re taking Puddleshine home and Alderheart will join us. Unless, of course, you have no faith in your medicine cat. Perhaps you want to keep Alderheart here where you can protect him, because you know this treatment is a sham.”
Anger surged beneath Alderheart’s pelt. “It’s not a sham. Feeding him deathberries is the best hope he has. I’ll come with you and I’ll prove it.”
“Alderheart, are you sure?” Bramblestar stared at him, worry clouding his gaze.
“I’m sure.” Alderheart lifted his chin. “It was my decision to use the deathberries. I stand by it. No other cat is going to suffer because of it.”
Tigerstar moved to the entrance and called to his Clanmates. “Juniperclaw! Sparrowtail! Come here.” He nodded to Bramblestar. “If Puddleshine recovers, I’ll send Alderheart home, unharmed.”
Alderheart’s chest tightened. And if he doesn’t?
CHAPTER 8
“Keep your muzzle down.” Twigbranch tugged Flypaw closer to the earth, praying that the young cat would be quiet. A log hid them from a plump chaffinch, which was rummaging through leaf litter for bugs. “Birds are the hardest prey to catch,” she whispered. Her whiskers brushed the damp moss. “They are sensitive to any movement, and they’ll fly away at the slightest noise. You need to be fast.”
“If they’re so hard to catch, why don’t we just hunt mice and squirrels instead?” Flypaw whispered back.
Twigbranch blinked at her. “Because warriors need to be able to catch birds as well.”
“Why?”
Twigbranch swallowed back frustration. “Because we’re warriors!” Flypaw was missing the point again. Twigbranch could hear the chaffinch pecking at the leaves. Her paws itched impatiently. She jerked her nose toward the rise. Flypaw lifted her head above the log to follow her gaze as she went on. “When you stalk a bird, you need to be patient. You must wait until it’s distracted and only pounce when you’re sure you’re—”
Flypaw didn’t wait to hear the rest. With a mrrow of excitement, she scrambled over the log and hurled herself at the chaffinch. Twigbranch stared after her as the chaffinch exploded upward in a flurry of feathers. Flypaw twisted in the air, reaching for the escaping bird, and fell back to earth with a thump.
“What did I tell you?” Anger scorched beneath Twigbranch’s pelt as she leaped the log and marched to where Flypaw was shaking out her ruffled pelt.