“You think?” Bella looked doubtful, and Mickey gave her a worried glance.

“The best time is sunset,” Lucky went on. “Not only is that a good time to travel—because the dusk gives good camouflage—but that is the time the hunters come back to the Pack. The whole Pack eats together, so no dog will be patrolling.”

He did not want to mention the Great Howl, though he could not say why this was. Perhaps because the very thought of it gave him that ache of Pack-longing in his belly. . . .

Mickey pawed the ground, and Bella furrowed her brows. “I’m not sure that Bruno and Martha will be strong enough,” she said.

“That’ll be all right,” said Lucky. “We can take all the fit and strong dogs down to the lake, and that should leave enough clean water back at camp for the sick ones. See?”

The Leashed Dogs exchanged a glance—one that he did not like, though he couldn’t say why. Mickey shuffled some leaves into a pile with a paw, the pointless task seeming to fascinate him. Bella peered at the stars above her, as if searching intently for the shape of the Rabbit or one of the other star-creatures their mother had pointed out to them when they were just pups.

“I can’t tell you how glad I am to be coming back.” Lucky’s voice was too bright; he could hear it himself. “I’ve missed you all!”

“Lucky?” With a great sigh, Bella raised her eyes to meet his. “You shouldn’t come back . . . not yet.”

“What?” He was startled. “But I’ve found the way—”

“No.” Bella shook her head determinedly. “You have done a wonderful job, Lucky, but don’t you see? That Wild Pack trusts you now. You can slip away without anyone suspecting anything is wrong. You might be able to find out more! Stay with them a little longer, Lucky—for us.”

Lucky stared at her. The thought of going back to the Wild Pack after betraying them like this filled him with shame as well as guilt. And what if they had noticed his absence? He did not like the idea of having to explain himself to Alpha—or to Sweet, who had trusted him to watch over the camp. Would she get in trouble for what he had done?

Yet he did want to see Sweet again. And not just because of what he had to do for Bella and her friends.

I can take part in the Howl again. . . . I can feel the power of the Earth-Dog and the Sky-Dogs. I can feel like I’m in control of myself, my destiny—rather than rushing around, simply trying to stay alive.

His fur bristled with sadness at that thought. Without him, would the Leashed Dogs be able to survive? His litter-sister was becoming stronger and more confident—he could see that—but even she seemed not to understand the world around them in the way that the dogs in Alpha’s Pack did. They would always need his help.