CHAPTER 24

Tigerheart sniffed the edges of the cave. “Which end was open?” he asked Pouncekit.

“The small end behind me,” Pouncekit wailed.

“It’s okay, dear,” Dovewing crooned softly. “We’ll get you out.” She glanced at Tigerheart. Guilt glittered in her green eyes. “She was only away from me for a moment.”

“She’ll be okay.” Tigerheart hoped Dovewing couldn’t hear panic in his mew. His heartbeat pounded in his ears as he sniffed the small end and hooked a claw into the mesh. It was stuck firmly shut.

Fierce, Cobweb, and Dotty reached them.

“What is that?” Dotty stared in horror at the mesh cave.

“It must be some kind of Twoleg trap,” Fierce growled. “I can smell their stench on it.”

“That’s what they were doing in the night,” Cobweb gasped. “Setting this trap.”

A monster rumbled nearby. Tigerheart looked up and saw it stop at the edge of the grass. A Twoleg got out, headed toward the smooth path that led to the gathering-place entrance. Tigerheart felt sick. Was it coming to claim its trap with Pouncekit inside? Relief flickered in his chest as the Twoleg headed around the back of the gathering place. “We’ve got to hurry,” he meowed. “That Twoleg might come back.”

Dotty had pulled Lightkit and Shadowkit against her belly and was soothing them with gentle laps of her tongue, while Dovewing comforted Pouncekit through the mesh. Her eyes were still wide, but her breathing was slowing as Dovewing nuzzled her cheek.

Cobweb crouched beside Tigerheart and examined the trap. “There’s a gap,” he mewed. “Where the edges meet.” He hooked a claw into it and tugged. It shifted, but not much. He strained harder. “It’s stiff, but I think we can get it open if we can find something to wedge in.”

“A stick,” Fierce suggested. She darted away toward a tree.

Tigerheart glanced at Dovewing. Her gaze was fixed on Pouncekit as she whispered reassurance through the mesh. “Just hold still a bit longer. We’re getting you out.”

“We’ve got a plan,” Tigerheart told her.

She met his gaze, fright flashing in her eyes, then turned back to Pouncekit.

Fierce raced back, a stick between her jaws. “This end is thin,” she meowed as she dropped it beside Tigerheart. “But the other end is thick.”

Cobweb sniffed it. “If we feed the thin end through, we can wedge it open.”

Tigerheart understood, hope flaring beneath his fur. “If we push it all the way inside, up to the thick end, it might be strong enough to move the mesh.”

Fierce picked up the stick again and threaded the thin end through the gap while Tigerheart and Cobweb pulled at the mesh with their claws.

“Move out of the way, Pouncekit,” Tigerheart warned as Fierce pushed the stick deeper into the trap.

Pouncekit squeezed against the side, trembling as Dovewing nuzzled her through the mesh. She stared, wide-eyed, as the stick nudged past her. “Will it work?”

“I hope so,” Tigerheart muttered, straining at the trap. His claws burned with the effort. The stick was deep inside now, its thicker end holding the gap open wide enough to squeeze a paw through. “Pull on the stick,” he told Fierce.

Digging her paws into the grass, Fierce tugged on the stick. The thin end caught in the mesh, and she began slowly to lever the small end open.

“It’s working!” Dovewing pricked her ears as the gap widened. “Go on, Pouncekit, squeeze through. But be quick.”

Pouncekit darted to the opening and wriggled through like a mouse squeezing beneath a root. As she bundled out, the stick snapped. Fierce fell backward and the trap slammed shut.

Tigerheart got his claws out of the way just in time. Cobweb hopped nimbly to one side.

“Pouncekit!” With a gasp, Dovewing leaped to the kit’s side, her gaze flitting toward the gray kit’s tail. Tigerheart stiffened. Had the trap bitten her as it closed? His shoulders sagged with relief as Pouncekit fluffed out her fur happily.

“I’m okay!” She flung herself against her mother’s belly and nuzzled hard into her fur.

“I knew they were too young to be outside,” Dovewing fretted. “It’s dangerous.” She glared accusingly at Tigerheart. “How could you think of making them travel through a city when they’re so young?”

“I never said—” Tigerheart stared at her, searching for words. He’d only thought about the journey home. He’d never mentioned it. He held his tongue now. Dovewing had been frightened. The trap had shocked them all. With cold certainty that sat like stone in his belly, he knew that it was far too soon to make the kits travel.

Just seeing them near the dens and Thunderpaths made him realize how small and vulnerable they were. And even if they made it out of the city, fields and forests might be more dangerous. In the Clans, didn’t queens keep their kits in camp until they were six moons old to protect them from the owls and foxes that might carry them off? He returned Dovewing’s gaze evenly. “You’re right. They are too young to travel.” He blinked at Fierce, his thoughts spinning. “Have you seen these traps before?”

“Never.” Fierce poked it warily with her paw.

Lightkit looked out from below Dotty’s belly. “Are the Twolegs trying to hurt us?”

“I don’t know.” Tigerheart frowned. Why had the Twolegs decided to leave such a dangerous thing now? He glanced toward the trees beyond the slabs where Fog and her gang had made their nests. Had too many cats caught the Twolegs’ attention? “But I think they might be trying to catch us.” He’d heard nursery tales about cats carried off by Twolegs and forced to live as kittypets. He shuddered.

A terrified wail sounded at the far end of the gathering den. The Twoleg had appeared from behind it and was carrying a mesh trap. White fur flashed inside. Paws scrabbled against the mesh as the trapped cat wailed again. Tigerheart recognized the anguished face of Streak.

“No!” Fog stared from beside the den wall, her face twisted with grief as she watched the Twoleg carry the trap to its monster and shut it inside.

“Quick.” Tigerheart nudged Dovewing toward the den. “We need to hide. It might be coming for this trap. It mustn’t find us here.”

Dovewing scooped up Pouncekit by the scruff. Cobweb picked up Lightkit. Dotty grabbed Shadowkit. Keeping low, they scurried toward the den entrance. Fierce waved Mittens, Rascal, and the others toward the gathering place with a flick of her tail. As the cats streamed toward their home and began to file inside, Tigerheart watched Fog. The gray she-cat was staring desperately at the monster where Streak was trapped while the Twoleg headed toward Pouncekit’s trap. It grunted angrily as it picked up the mesh cave. Tigerheart guessed it wasn’t pleased to find the trap closed but empty.

As the last of the guardian cats followed Dovewing and Dotty inside, he slid into the shadow of the gathering-den wall and crept to where Fog stood as rigid as stone. “Don’t let the Twoleg see you,” he hissed. “It might take you too.” He nudged her backward until a jutting wall blocked the Twoleg’s view.

“It stole Streak!” Fog’s eyes were wide with disbelief. “He’s my brother. They can’t take him!”

Tigerheart stared at her, his heart aching with pity.

“We’ve got to rescue him.” She lurched forward, but he blocked her way.

“We can’t,” he meowed flatly. “There’s nothing we can do.”

Fog turned her stricken gaze on him. “You’ve traveled. You’re a warrior. You must have seen this happen before. You must know where the Twolegs take the cats they steal!” Her pelt bristled with alarm. “Tell me where they’re taking him!”

“I don’t know.” Tigerheart mewed helplessly.

“I can’t lose Streak.”

“He’ll be okay.”

“How do you know that?”

“They’ll make him live like a kittypet. But eventually he’ll escape. Twolegs can’t stop a cat from leaving if he wants to leave. He’ll find his way back.”

“What if they don’t make him a kittypet?” Fog’s grief was quickly hardening into rage. “What if they kill him?”

The monster began to rumble. Fog darted from behind the wall and stared at it. Tigerheart padded after her and watched the monster pull away.

“No!”

Fog’s wail tore his heart. As the monster disappeared around a corner, she turned on him. “This is your fault!”

“My fault?” Tigerheart blinked at her.

“Why didn’t you tell us there were traps?”

“I didn’t know.”

Paw steps sounded beyond the wall. Tuna and Growler raced around the corner. They stopped in front of Fog.

“Did it take him?” Tuna asked.

Fog stared at him bleakly. “There was nothing I could do.”

Growler glanced around nervously. “We’ve found more traps.”

“More?” Fierce’s mew took Tigerheart by surprise. He turned to see the tortoiseshell padding toward them. Ant and Cobweb were following.

“Are the kits hidden?” Tigerheart asked.

Fierce nodded. “Even if the Twolegs found the den, they wouldn’t find the kits. There’s a lot of clutter to hide behind.” She turned to Growler. “Show us where these other traps are.”

Growler headed across the grass, leading Fierce around the end of the gathering place. Tigerheart followed, Cobweb and Ant at his heels.

He glanced back and saw Tuna weaving around Fog, trying to comfort her.

“Here.” Growler led them to a mesh trap identical to the one that had caught Pouncekit. It sat behind a stone slab, one end wide open. The mouthwatering scent of fresh-kill wafted from inside. Tigerheart could see how Pouncekit had been tempted.

“There’s another one over there.” Growler nodded toward the slabs a few rows away. Then he turned his muzzle toward the patch of trees. “And one near our camp.”

Cobweb was leaning close to the trap, sniffing at it.

“Don’t go inside,” Fierce warned.

“I’m not a mouse-brain,” Cobweb answered. “I was just wondering how Pouncekit made her trap shut.”

Tigerheart peered through the mesh. He could see the tasty fresh-kill wasn’t fresh-kill at all, but just mush smeared beyond a shiny strip that stuck up in the middle of the trap. “It’s not even real fresh-kill.”

Cobweb’s gaze paused as it reached the shiny strip. “That part of the trap wasn’t sticking up in Pouncekit’s trap.”

Ant’s ears pricked. “Do you think it went down when she stepped on it?”

“And shut the trap!” Growler’s eyes shone.

“Let’s find out.” Cobweb hurried away toward a tree and returned carrying a stick.

Tigerheart’s chest tightened as Cobweb poked the stick through the mesh and touched the end to the strip. The trap snapped shut. Tigerheart’s pelt bushed with alarm.

Fierce blinked, her hackles lifting. “Twoleg fox-hearts!”

Cobweb lifted his muzzle triumphantly. “Now we know how to close them!”

Fierce padded away. “Come on. Let’s close the others.”

“Let’s hurry!” Cobweb followed her, tail twitching anxiously. “The sound of the traps shutting seems to attract the Twolegs.”

As they headed toward the next trap, Ant and Growler at their heels, Tigerheart paused. Fog had seen danger here. Now would be the best time to persuade her that they needed to do something about it. . . . He called after Fierce. “There’s something I must do.”

She waved her tail in reply. Cobweb was already fetching a stick to close the next trap. Tigerheart turned and padded around the end of the gathering den. Fog was still standing beside Tuna, staring at where the monster had disappeared as though she could still hardly believe her eyes.

Tigerheart dipped his head as he reached her. “I’m sorry for your loss,” he meowed gently.

She turned on him. “You’re probably glad to see one of us gone,” she snapped.

Tigerheart shifted his paws. He had to handle this conversation carefully. “I’m never glad to see a cat fall into Twoleg paws,” he meowed. “I’m a warrior. I believe all cats should live free.” He caught Tuna’s eye. “But now you see that this is a dangerous place to live.” Tuna shifted his paws. “Perhaps you and your friends would be safer in your old home.”

“How could we be?” Fog demanded. “It’s full of foxes.”

Tigerheart changed tack. “Did you see us training earlier?”

“Do you call jumping around on the grass ‘training’?” Fog grunted.

“We wondered what you were doing.” Tuna looked curious.

“We were practicing battle moves, so we could drive the foxes away from your old home,” Tigerheart explained.

“Battle moves?” Tuna tipped his head.

“Where I come from, all cats learn how to fight,” Tigerheart told him. “We have to fight badgers and foxes and sometimes hawks. It takes special training to learn to fight bigger creatures.”

Fog glared at him. “There are five foxes living in our camp. Do you think that bunch of featherbrains will be able to fight them?”

Tigerheart felt his paws dig into the earth. Five foxes certainly sounded terrifying—but if he could convince Fog that he wasn’t scared, then maybe she’d believe that her cats stood a chance. “We could if you and your friends fought beside us.” He searched her gaze hopefully.

Tuna glanced at her. “We’d outnumber them,” he meowed.

“They’re foxes!” Fog snapped. “They could strip the fur off your muzzle and crush your spine in their jaws.”

“Not if I taught you how to fight.” Tigerheart’s chest tightened with hope. “And once you learned, you’d always be able to defend your land. You’d be safe forever.”

Tuna blinked encouragingly at Fog. “It would be nice not to have to sleep in grass nests anymore.”

“It would be nice to keep my pelt,” Fog growled. “I’m not risking it fighting foxes. Can’t you see? He’s trying to trick us.” She flicked her nose dismissively toward Tigerheart. “He wants us gone, and he’s willing to do anything to get rid of us, even if it means feeding us to foxes.”

“It sounds like a good plan,” Tuna persisted.

“It is a good plan,” Tigerheart pressed. “Two groups of trained cats could fight a whole pack of foxes.”

“Really?” Fog sneered at him. “In that case, train your friends. I’m not risking mine. If you manage to drive the foxes away, we’ll go home.”

Tigerheart’s belly twisted with disappointment, but he squared his shoulders. He wasn’t going to let this rogue-hearted stray think she’d won. “Do you promise?”

Fog looked at him warily. “Promise what?”

“That you’ll leave here and go home if we drive away the foxes.”

“Sure.” Fog turned her tail on him. “I promise.”

He watched her walk away, his heart sinking. The guardian cats could never fight five foxes alone. If only there were another way to get rid of them . . .