“We can’t walk forever,” agreed Whine. “We need a permanent territory.”

“The old camp is closer to the Dog-Garden,” Mickey pointed out. “How do we know it’s safer there?”

“It’s easier for us to protect,” said Alpha. “Here in the meadow we’re a sitting target. Anyone can spy on us from the hill—they can sneak up on us and take us by surprise. . . .”

“Not if we place a watch-dog by the pine trees,” said Bella.

Daisy shuddered. “But any dog up there would be all alone, with the others down in the valley. It would be dangerous.” Her eyes shot up to the pine trees. “If the dog raises the alarm, they will just be the first dog to be killed!”

Whine and Sunshine whimpered, and Dart yelped in agreement.

“Settle down!” snarled Alpha, thumping his paw impatiently. The dogs fell silent. He spoke again in a low growl. “It is dangerous here—we have all seen that. Our old camp was more defendable, even if it was closer to the wrath of the Sky Dogs and the Fierce Dogs. But there is another possibility.” He paused, making sure all the dogs were listening. “We could travel in the other direction, over the white ridge.”

Lucky saw several of the dogs visibly tense at this. Even Sweet seemed shocked, turning to watch Alpha closely.

“But what about the giantfur?” Bruno yelped.

“In the end, he was no threat,” said Alpha. “He only attacked because that pup provoked him.”

“There could be others out there,” said Moon. “Lots of them! Packs, even!”

“Giantfurs are not Pack creatures—not from what I can tell. They act alone.” Alpha glanced pointedly at Lucky when he said this.

Lucky knew what the half wolf was implying. Whatever he thinks, I am a Pack Dog now.

Lucky pictured the white ridge. It had been tough terrain on the approach: parched, rocky, and unforgiving. He thought about small dogs like Whine and Sunshine—they would struggle out there. It would be even worse for Nose and Squirm. But maybe Alpha had a point—the Fierce Dogs were unlikely to stray that far, and their thick, heavyset bodies were not suited to climbing rocks.

“We didn’t get a good enough look at the land beyond the white ridge,” said Lucky. “It was very dry, and it might not be an easy place to make a camp. But maybe Alpha’s right. I can’t imagine other dogs living out there. Daisy, you got the closest of any dog. What do you think?”

All eyes turned to the little dog, but before she could reply, Sunshine let out a loud yelp. The Pack all turned to see that she was gazing up at the pine trees. She stiffened; her ears pricked up. “Someone’s coming!” she barked. “I can smell them.”