Bella’s tail drooped. “I wish you could,” she said. “But I don’t want you to catch this sickness.”

Lucky slumped with disappointment. “You’re right,” he said sadly. “Tell them I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Thank you, Lucky.” Bella nuzzled his ear. “Thank you.”

“Bella, even going back tonight will be difficult. One of them—well, I think my absence might have been noticed.” His gut twisted when he thought of how he’d left Sweet, and the things she’d said.

“Then you have to be careful, Yap.” She licked him affectionately. “Don’t get hurt. I don’t want my litter-brother in any trouble.”

Why not? It’s you who got me into it! But in spite of his dread and misery, Lucky had to admit the sense in what she said. There was certainly no point in making himself ill, and it wouldn’t be for much longer. Just till the sickness had worked its way out of her Pack, if it was as bad as she said it was. . . .

“Don’t forget, then,” he sighed. “Whine’s a patrol dog now, and he’s weak. And however cunning he is, he’s not too competent as a Pack Dog. That’s a soft spot you can exploit when you need to move around. And remember, the Wild Pack hunts late after sun-high. The meadows on this side of the forest have good hunting. If you do it in the early sunup, and avoid scent-marking, your presence should have faded enough by the time we come around.”

“Yes, yes. I understand all that, Lucky.” Bella seemed thoughtful and serious, but there was a hint of impatience in her tensed muscles, too. “Now you’d best be getting back, if you’re worried. Be careful. And I promise you can be back with our Pack. Soon! It’ll be before another turn of the Moon-Dog, I’m sure of it. Go on!” She licked his nose fondly, her tail wagging.

“Good-bye, then?”

“Good-bye, Lucky! May the Forest-Dog be with you!”

She’d dismissed him like a pup, he thought, as he loped back in the direction of the Wild Pack camp. She wanted me gone. She couldn’t wait for me to leave. The very thought sent a chill of dread down his spine.

Don’t be silly, Lucky! You’re both anxious.

Still, he could feel his litter-sister watching him until he was well out of sight. The low-burning resentment in his belly was bad enough without this tingle of apprehension, too.

There was something Bella wasn’t telling him.

He couldn’t place his paw on it, but he knew it for sure. Something was horribly, dangerously wrong.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

The next day, Lucky sniffed carefully at each patch of grass among the gopher burrows, and even licked at tree stumps, but there was no trace of Bella or the other Leashed Dogs. Had they covered their tracks so well, and moved like ghosts as they hunted? Or had she ignored his advice and stayed away from the hunting meadows?