At last Fiery glanced back at them all and nodded. “Twitch reported a few deer here this morning. Let’s be quiet.”

Lucky and Spring followed Fiery as Snap slunk quietly off to the side, soon disappearing into the undergrowth. Twitch had been right, Lucky realized as his nose prickled with the musky scent of large prey animals. He was determined not to let down the hunting group, but he was confident too. I’m good at hunting, no matter how much they sneer at my old city life. Deer were fast, sure enough—but so were rabbits, and a deer made a bigger target.

Spring melted away into the bushes to his left, so that Fiery and Lucky were the only dogs following the main trail. The pungent scent of deer was strong now. When Fiery nodded at him, Lucky knew immediately what to do; it wasn’t unlike the times when he’d join up with other City Dogs, just for a hungry night or two, to hunt in a group. Lucky followed the rules and tricks he’d learned then; he separated from his leader, taking a wide circle but keeping Fiery in view.

A ray of sunlight through the branches burnished a furry golden flank; leaf and branch litter rustled beneath delicate hooves. Three of them, Lucky counted, and the deer were still browsing, unaware. He went entirely still as a slender head lifted to snuff the air. Suddenly there was alarm in the buck’s huge, dark eye.

But it wasn’t Lucky’s scent the buck had caught. It leaped with a flash of white tail, and the hinds followed, but they were fleeing from Spring at the far side of the clearing—and toward Lucky. The buck bounded, crashing through bracken and brush, the two hinds following in a panic, but one hind was slower than the other, and was dashing in a straight line between Fiery and Lucky.

Lucky’s blood raced as he smelled her fear, his muscles tightening. He sprang at the same time as Fiery, and they fell on the hind together. Lucky’s teeth closed on her flank as Fiery seized her throat, and the deer stumbled and went down with a high squeal of terror.

Lucky held on grimly on as she kicked and struggled, but Snap and Spring were with them now too, piling onto the struggling prey. As Fiery held the hind down, her eyes lost their terrified light and she sank down into the undergrowth, kicking feebly. Lucky couldn’t help feeling a thrill of pleasure at their success. They’d hunted well.

When the fight had gone from the hind completely, and she went limp and heavy with death, Fiery drew back. He was panting with effort, but clearly pleased.

“Well done, Lucky,” he said gruffly. “And you two. That was fine flushing.”

“Alpha’s going to be happy with this,” Snap barked.

“Don’t relax,” growled Fiery. “He will be happy, but we can do better. Let’s prove it! The gopher meadow next. Spring, you guard this prey.”