Tigerheart’s Shadow

“Didn’t you hear it coming?” Tigerheart stared at the kit, his heart pounding.

“We were playing with the acorn.” Lightkit’s eyes glittered with shock.

“It was going so fast.” Pouncekit hurried toward them, Shadowkit at her heels. “We didn’t have time.”

As Dovewing pulled the kits close to her and purred quick, desperate purrs to reassure them, Tigerheart hurried toward Spire. The healer was pushing himself stiffly to his paws.

Blaze was already at his side. “Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine.” Spire shook out his pelt and gazed along the Silverpath.

“You saved my kit.” Gratitude swelled in Tigerheart’s throat.

Spire met his gaze. His eyes were dark with foreboding. “Next time, I might not be able to.”

“Next time?” Tigerheart bristled.

“If we stay on the Silverpath, there will be death.” He held Tigerheart’s gaze. “Death too quickly. Death without meaning.”

The cold wind seemed to reach Tigerheart’s bones. He shivered.

“We have to leave the Silverpath.” Spire stared at him unblinking.

Ant reached them, Cinnamon at his side. “What did he say?”

Berryheart, Sparrowtail, Rippletail, and Cloverfoot crowded around Tigerheart, Blaze, and the healer.

Death without meaning. Fear tightened Tigerheart’s belly as Spire’s words burrowed deeper.

“That was close,” Rippletail murmured.

“Is Spire okay?” Berryheart’s pelt pricked anxiously.

“Why was the Thundersnake running so fast?” Cloverfoot asked.

Blaze glanced around them. He ignored their questions. “Spire says we have to leave the Silverpath.”

Cloverfoot blinked. “But Tigerheart said it leads to the lake.”

“We’ll have to find another way,” Blaze told her.

Should we follow Spire’s advice? Tigerheart’s mouth grew dry.

Rippletail shifted his paws. “That was scary,” he mewed. “But all it means is that we have to be more careful. There’s no need to leave the Silverpath.”

“We’ll get lost if we leave it,” Berryheart agreed.

Sparrowtail moved closer to his mate. “We need to get back to the lake before Berryheart starts kitting. We can’t risk losing our way.”

Spire’s gaze was still fixed on Tigerheart. “We have to leave the Silverpath,” he repeated. “If we don’t, cats will die.”

Tigerheart avoided the anxious looks of the others. “But we don’t know how to get to the lake without the Silverpath to guide us,” he told Spire.

“I know.” Spire didn’t move.

Tigerheart blinked. “But you’ve never even left the city before. How can you know?”

“My dreams will show me the way.”

Berryheart stiffened. “I know he’s some kind of medicine cat—somehow—but… are we sure he knows what he’s talking about?”

Blaze glared at the black-and-white queen. “His dreams found you, didn’t they?”

Tigerheart’s thoughts quickened. Leaving the Silverpath was risky. They could follow the sunset. But what if the Silverpath changed direction and headed away from the sunset? Why didn’t I pay more attention to which way I was heading when I left the lake? He should have watched the sunsets and made sure to remember the changing landscapes. But he’d followed the Silverpath blindly, like a squirrel chasing a trail of beechnuts.

He searched Spire’s gaze. He’d listened to this cat’s dreams before: the falling tree, Rowanstar’s voice. And his vision of the orange sun had led them to the ShadowClan cats. “Do you really think your dreams can lead us home?”

“I know they can,” Spire answered firmly.

Fear trickled along Tigerheart’s spine. I have to trust him.

Rippletail grunted. “I hope you’re right.”

“He is.” Tigerheart held Spire’s gaze. “He dreams with StarClan.”

Blaze lifted his tail. “Are we going to let Spire lead us?”

“Yes.” Tigerheart dipped his head. He thought of Lightkit, so close to the paws of the Thundersnake. His heart quickened. He wasn’t risking her life again by staying on the Silverpath. “We’ll follow Spire.”

Chapter 31

Tigerheart tracked Spire’s and Blaze’s scents under the hedge that bordered the sheep meadow. His paws were mucky from crossing. The sheep were crowded at the far end of the field, but the ground here had been churned to mud by their paws. Dovewing was guiding Pouncekit, Lightkit, and Shadowkit around the stickiest patch, helped by Ant and Cinnamon, but Tigerheart had hurried ahead, anxious not to lose sight of Spire and Blaze as they headed through the beech wood beyond.

Rippletail, Cloverfoot, Berryheart, and Sparrowtail were already following them between the trees. The bare branches filtered sunshine, which dappled the golden forest floor. Tigerheart glimpsed Blaze and Spire beyond them, padding between the trees, and looked back to make sure Dovewing and the kits were okay. Dovewing was nosing Pouncekit beneath the hedge. Ant followed the kit through and turned to help Lightkit and Shadowkit over the roots while Dovewing and Cinnamon squeezed through on either side.