by Erin Hunter
“What’s wrong?” Talltail asked.
“You nearly went over the edge,” Reena croaked.
“What edge?” Talltail glanced back through the blizzarding snow.
“That’s a cliff.”
“Like the gorge?” Talltail stiffened, remembering his first day as an apprentice, when he nearly fell into the river.
“Worse.” Swallowing, Reena padded warily forward.
Talltail followed her, stopping when she stopped and peering over the edge of a steep, sandy cliff. Through the snow, he saw monsters hurtling below them along a huge Thunderpath. It cut through the gorge like a wide, angry river. He flinched as wind from the monsters’ backs ruffled his whiskers.
“You stopped just in time.” Jake halted beside him and stared down. His ears flattened when he saw the monsters streaming along the gorge, teeming like fish in a river. “You would have been killed if you’d fallen down there.”
Talltail swallowed. He’d nearly died! The snow had hidden the Thunderpath’s sound and scent. He was lucky he’d caught up with the rabbit when he did. Another tail-length . . . He pictured plunging down, down, down, a monster hurtling toward him. He closed his eyes. I could have been killed.
An idea flared inside his mind. He trembled, not with fear but excitement. That’s how I’ll do it! All he had to do was lure Sparrow here. One push and the murdering rogue would plunge down beneath the paws of a monster.
Talltail’s heart pounded in his chest. Sandgorse! I promised you I’d avenge your death. Sparrow will never harm another cat again.
CHAPTER 37
Talltail twitched in his nest as a dream wound its way into his sleep. With his fur lifted by the wind, he stepped onto a broad, sloping moor. Heather trembled in the distance and grass streamed around his paws. A hole yawned in the ground beside him. Talltail trembled as he peered inside. Darkness sucked him in, drawing him down through the tunnel before he could stop himself. He struggled to find his paws, scrabbling against the muddy walls, the scent of water and earth filling his mouth.
“Talltail!” Sandgorse’s agonized yowl echoed from the shadows.
Through the darkness, Talltail could see the anguished face of his father, half-buried in mud. Lunging forward, he reached for Sandgorse’s scruff and dragged him backward, hauling him, heavy as stone, up toward sky and wind. Bursting out onto the moor-top, he laid his father on the streaming grass. “Sandgorse!”
Mud bubbled at Sandgorse’s lips. His flanks quivered weakly. Eyes closed, he twitched and fell still.
“Don’t die.” Talltail crouched down and pressed his nose against Sandgorse’s cheek.
Sandgorse’s eyes blinked open.
Talltail jerked back, pelt bushing up. “You’re alive?”
Sandgorse stared at him blankly, his eyes black as night.
“Sandgorse?” Talltail thrust his muzzle against his father’s fur. “It’s me, Talltail. I’m going to avenge you. Your death won’t go unpunished. Sparrow will pay for what he did!”
Sandgorse’s head lolled, his eyes gazing back emptily for a moment before they closed. Talltail felt his father’s body slump against him. I’m alone now. Talltail yowled to the starless sky while grief scorched through him, as pitiless as fire.
“Talltail?” A muzzle poked his shudder. Talltail blinked open his eyes, dazed. “Talltail!” Jake’s face loomed above him.
Talltail jerked his head up. “Is it dawn?” He stared blearily around the rogues’ camp. Shadow swallowed the clearing.
“Not yet,” Jake soothed. “You were twitching in your sleep. I was worried.”
“It was a bad dream.” Talltail looked into Jake’s steady gaze, comforted by his friend’s soft, sleep-hazy scent.
Jake curled down beside him. “Go back to sleep.”
Talltail pressed closer, grateful for Jake’s warmth, and closed his eyes. His dream flashed in his mind. Over and over, he watched Sandgorse die, his belly tightening each time. As Jake relaxed beside him and drifted into sleep, Talltail’s tail-tip twitched.
A nest rustled across the clearing. Talltail snapped open his eyes. He saw a shadow move from Sparrow’s nest. Where was the rogue going? Holding his breath, Talltail strained to see through the darkness. He could just make out Sparrow as he slid into the bracken. Was he going hunting?
This is my chance. Talltail leaped to his paws, leaves rustling beneath him. I’ll ask to join him. He hopped out of his nest. I’ll lead him to the cliff. The fur rippled excitedly along his spine.
“Talltail?” Reena was blinking at him from her nest, her eyes shining in the darkness. “Where are you going?”
Talltail froze. “I saw Sparrow head into the woods,” he whispered. “I wanted to see if he was hunting so I could join him.”
“Sparrow doesn’t like company when he goes out early,” Reena warned him.
Talltail’s pelt pricked with frustration. “He might like mine.”
“I wouldn’t risk it.” Reena stood up and stretched. “You can hunt with me, if you want.”
Talltail shook his head. “I’ll get some more sleep, thanks.” He left her staring at him, round-eyed, and climbed back into his nest. Jake didn’t stir as he curled down beside him. Talltail’s paws itched. How much longer would he have to wait?
It was dawn by the time the rogue padded back into camp. Weak daylight was filtering though the branches. Thick clouds hid the sun, and snow was flecking the forest, settling lightly on top of yesterday’s thin coating. Talltail stretched in his nest and pretended to yawn, then trotted into the clearing.
Sparrow was carrying a fat pigeon in his jaws. He dropped it and met Talltail’s gaze. “Have you just woken up?”
“Yes,” Talltail lied. He glanced at Sparrow’s catch. “Another pigeon?” He remembered what the rogue had told them. I’ve found a place where the Twolegs scatter grain. There’ll be pigeons coming for as long as it’s there.
“The Twolegs leave food for them in the field,” Sparrow reminded him.
Talltail’s ears pricked. “In the field?”
“Near the Thunderpath.” Sparrow padded to a pool of snowmelt caught in the crook of a twisted root and began to drink.
Talltail’s thoughts quickened. Can I persuade him to take me hunting there?
“Pigeon!” Bess’s delighted mew interrupted his plans. She hopped out of her nest and sniffed the fresh-kill. Still warm, it was melting the thin snow beneath it. Reena hurried to join her, licking her lips while Mole stretched in his nest. Jake was still sleeping, a light coat of snowflakes dappling his fur.
“Will you take me there?” Talltail called to Sparrow.
“Where?” Sparrow glanced around.
“Where the pigeons come.” Talltail pressed back excitement.
Sparrow shrugged. “Okay.”
Talltail felt the need to explain. “I want to hunt for you. To thank you for letting us stay.”
Jake stirred in his nest, lifting his head. “Who’s letting us stay?”
Sparrow gazed impassively at Jake. “No one’s letting anyone stay.” He licked water from his lips. “You’re just sharing the camp for now.”
Talltail dipped his head. “Of course.”
Reena rolled the pigeon over. “They can stay, though, can’t they?”
Bess’s gaze darkened. “Warriors and kittypets don’t belong with rogues,” she murmured.
“I’m not a warrior. I’m a—” Talltail hesitated. The words had come before he’d had chance to think.
Jake hopped out of his nest. “You’ll always be a warrior, Talltail.” He shook the snow from his fur. “Just like I’ll always be a kittypet.”
Algernon padded from his nest. “And we’ll always be rogues.” He stretched, nose twitching. “Who caught the pigeon?”
“Sparrow.” Bess looked fondly at the brown tom.
Talltail’s pelt pricked. “Come on, Jake.” He padded toward the bracken. “Let’s practice your stalking.”
“Stalking?” Jake b
linked at him. “Aren’t we eating first?” He glanced at the pigeon.
“Later.” Talltail stared at Jake. I want to talk to you. In private! He willed Jake to understand, relieved when Jake padded toward him. “We might catch something while we’re practicing,” Talltail went on. He led the way into the woods, nosing through the bracken. Snow fluttered onto his spine as he pushed between the stems.
“What should we stalk?” Jake asked when they emerged into a narrow clearing.
Talltail paced the leaf-strewn forest floor. “Did you hear?” he demanded.
“Hear what?” Jake was looking distractedly around the woodland.
“Sparrow!” Had Jake forgotten why they’d come here?
“What?”
“He’s taking me hunting beside the cliff.”
Jake stiffened. “You’re not thinking of—”
“Of course!” Talltail cut in. “That’s why we’re here. It’s the perfect place. No fighting. No explanations. I just need to time it right and I can give him a push.”
“Onto the Thunderpath?” Jake’s eyes widened in horror.
“It’s perfect!” Talltail insisted. “He’ll pay for my father’s death beneath the paws of a monster.”
“Don’t do it, Talltail.”
Talltail narrowed his eyes. “You said you would help me.”
“Do you really want to kill a cat?”
“If I’d stayed in WindClan, I’d have probably killed a cat in battle by now!”
“In battle,” Jake pointed out. “That’s different. Killing in the heat of battle, to defend your Clanmates—that makes sense. But to kill a cat moons later—”
“He never understood the damage he did.” Talltail curled his lip. “That’s why he must be punished. To make him sorry.”
“Just tell him!” Jake’s fur rose along his spine. “Make him understand. How Sandgorse’s death hurt you, and how you feel he’s responsible.”
Talltail glared at Jake. “Don’t you think I tried that when Sandgorse died? He wouldn’t admit it. Even when I told him to his whiskers that he killed Sandgorse, he just shrugged it off, like he shrugs everything off. He doesn’t care about anything. So I’m going to make him care about this.”
“By killing him?” Jake shook his head. “I know you, Talltail. You’re not a killer. You’d die to defend those you love. But kill a cat you hardly know?” He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“He has to pay!” Talltail hissed. Why was Jake arguing? Was that why he’d come? To stop Talltail from doing the one thing he’d sworn he would do—the one thing that would make sense of his life? “If no one pays for Sandgorse’s death, then it’s not fair!”
“Life isn’t fair!”
“It’s not fair to me!” Talltail realized that he was shaking with fury.
Jake gazed at him. “Don’t do this, Talltail,” he begged softly. “Please.”
“I have to!” Talltail snarled. “If you don’t agree, then go home. You’re no use to me.” Raging, he stamped away, pushing through brambles and barging past hawthorns, too angry to feel their thorns scrape his muzzle. Even Jake had betrayed him! Why had Talltail trusted him? Why had he trusted anyone? Hadn’t he learned that he could only rely on himself? I came here for revenge and I’m going to get it!
Snow flurries came and went. The wind grew colder. Shivering and hungry, Talltail headed back to camp. “Can we hunt now?” he asked Sparrow as he padded into the clearing.
Sparrow looked up from his nest. “There’s fresh-kill under the holly bush.”
“What about the pigeons?” Talltail pressed.
“They’ll be wary after this morning,” Sparrow warned. “Let’s wait until tomorrow. We don’t want to scare them off for good.”
Frustrated, Talltail paced the camp.
“I’ll hunt with you.” Reena’s offer came as a relief. But woodland hunting only made Talltail more restless, even though he and Reena caught a squirrel and a fat blackbird. Back in camp, Talltail avoided Jake’s gaze, though he could feel the kittypet watching him in silence. As dusk darkened into night, they shared fresh-kill with the rogues. Then Talltail climbed into his nest.
“Are you tired already?” Reena called. “I thought we could go for a walk.”
“It’s a bit cold for a nighttime walk,” he grunted, resting his muzzle on his paws.
“I’ll go with you, Reena,” Jake offered.
Reena blinked. “No, thanks.” She sighed. “Talltail’s right. It’s too cold.”
Jake’s fur twitched. He glanced around at the rogues, then climbed into the nest, curling up a muzzle-length away from Talltail.
Talltail swallowed back a growl and stared at Sparrow. The rogue was calmly washing in his nest. Tomorrow. Talltail’s heart was racing too fast to sleep. Fury throbbed beneath his pelt. His claws ached as he curled and uncurled them, picturing Sparrow hurtling into the gorge, a monster racing toward him as he landed on the hard stone.
Above the trees, the sky cleared slowly, the moon showing just as dawn began to push back the night. As soon as milky light showed over the horizon, Talltail hopped out of his nest. He crossed the camp and thrust his nose close to Sparrow’s ear. “Let’s hunt!” he meowed.
Sparrow lifted his head, blinking. “Now?” He glanced at the dark blue sky. “The sun’s not even up.”
“I thought you liked early hunting.” Talltail stepped back, whisking his tail. “The pigeons will hardly be awake. If we get there before them, we can choose a good hiding spot.”
“You sound like a warrior planning a patrol.” Sparrow narrowed his eyes. “I thought you’d left the Clan to get away from rules and duties.”
“Hunting isn’t a duty,” Talltail muttered. “It’s fun.”
Sparrow yawned and climbed out of his nest. “Come on, then.” He headed into the forest.
Talltail stalked him through the silent dawn, keeping a muzzle-length behind. Blood roared in his ears. Sparrow was prey to him now, more deserving of his death than any mouse or pigeon. Talltail’s heart pounded harder until his whole body seemed to ring with its beat. Images flashed in his mind. He saw Sandgorse struggling to escape from the collapsing tunnel, pinned by the earth, mud blocking his yowls as he fought desperately to escape. Ahead, Sparrow’s tail disappeared as he threaded through a dense laurel bush. Was Sparrow’s tail-tip the last thing Sandgorse had ever seen? Talltail pushed after him through the waxy leaves, clenching his teeth to stop himself from growling.
As they reached the field, Sparrow slowed. “The grain is over there.” He nodded downslope toward a smooth stretch of grass. It rippled in the light breeze, gray in the pale dawn light.
Talltail headed toward the cliff. “Let’s check the Thunderpath first.”
“What for?” Sparrow called, trotting after him.
“Crows would pick fresh-kill from the Thunderpath back home.” Home? He corrected himself quickly. “Back in WindClan territory.”
“What good is that to us?” Sparrow fell in beside him. “Who eats crow-food? Or crows? The cliff’s too steep to climb down anyway.”
“Is it?” Talltail asked innocently.
“Come on.” Sparrow veered toward the patch of smooth grass. “Let’s wait for a pigeon.”
“Let’s look at the Thunderpath.” Talltail struggled not to growl. Was Sparrow going to make this impossible? He uncurled his claws, ready to fight the rogue if he had to.
“Okay.” Sparrow shrugged. “If that’s what you want.”
Talltail glanced over his shoulder, relieved to see Sparrow following him toward the cliff. He could smell the tang of stone and monsters, and as he neared the edge, he slowed.
“Any sign of crow-food?” Sparrow grunted, padding past him and peering over the edge.
Elation thrilled through Talltail.
Sparrow leaned forward. “I can’t see anything.”
Talltail lifted his paws, ready to slam them into Sparrow’s flank. Heat pulsed through his pelt. This was it. He was
finally avenging Sandgorse’s death. Are you watching, Sandgorse? I’m punishing this cat for you! Can you see?
“Talltail?” Sparrow turned, his paws crumbling earth over the cliff edge. “What’s the matter? You look odd.”
Talltail stretched his claws. “Take a good look at me, Sparrow. I’m the last cat you’re ever going to see. I brought you here to kill you,” he hissed.
“Kill me?” Sparrow’s pelt rippled. “Why?”
Talltail felt cold air pierce his fur. “Don’t you know?” He dropped onto all fours. Couldn’t this heartless rogue even guess?
For the first time, emotion sparked in Sparrow’s gaze. “Tell me.”
“You killed my father.” The words caught in Talltail’s throat.
“Sandgorse?”
“You made him go into that tunnel!” Talltail found he was shaking. “You left him there to die.”
Sparrow blinked. “That’s not how it happened.”
Talltail hissed. “I saw you run from the tunnel like a frightened rabbit! You left my father behind!”
“I didn’t know what to do. I’m no warrior.” Sparrow glanced over the edge. “I had no training. Your father knew that. He gave his life so that I could escape. That’s why he died. He held back the earth long enough for me to run.”
He held back the earth. Talltail’s head began to spin. A monster sounded in the distance, its roar echoing through the still dawn air.
Sparrow edged closer. “He died a hero, Talltail.”
“Why should I believe you?” Rage swept through Talltail. Why wait till now to tell him? The rogue must be lying.
“Don’t you believe that Sandgorse would give his life to save me?” Sparrow turned his head toward the monster as it rumbled beyond the gorge.
He’s playing with me like I’m the prey! Talltail curled his claws into the grass. He’d waited too long for this moment. Sparrow wasn’t going to take it away from him. His ear fur trembled as the monster thundered closer. Its yellow eye beams showed faintly on the cliff face.
Just push him!
“So you’re going to kill me?” Sparrow breathed. “A life for a life? Is that part of the warrior code?”