Bella did not budge. “It isn’t my fault, or the fault of my Pack, that Twitch decided to leave. We slowed down for him. We tried to help him. He was with you when he got hurt.”

Sweet growled angrily at this but Lucky interrupted:

“What happened to Twitch?”

Sweet turned to look at him, her eyes cool. “He disappeared in the middle of the night. Nobody knows where he went.”

Lucky absorbed this news with a shiver of dread. He thought of the unhappy dog with the injured paw. Twitch had struggled to make his way through the forest last night and had scarcely managed the descent by the lake. How would he fare out there in the wild, where foxes and other creatures stalked? How could he hunt? How would he survive?

Lucky was snapped out of these thoughts by Sweet barking at Bella: “We don’t know where Twitch has gone.” She had inched closer, her narrow body bolt upright, her lips curled back. “But in a way, he’s shown us what to do. Look at this place. I’ve scarcely seen a living thing all morning. The grass is sandy and damp. There won’t be enough food for all these dogs.” She glared accusingly at Daisy and Martha, who had gathered with some of the Wild Pack to watch the exchange from the distance of the rock cover, their tails low. “Maybe back at our own camp we could have supported you, but the Pack is too big for a place like this.” She turned to Bella. “It’s time for the Leashed Dogs to stand on their own four paws. You should move on to establish your own camp—somewhere else.”

Daisy and Martha exchanged worried looks. Standing behind them, Bruno, Snap, and Fiery looked on warily.

Bella ignored them. She would not be cowed. “Aren’t you rather full of yourself, Beta? It was Lucky who spotted the dark cloud and helped the Pack to safety—and in case you’ve forgotten, he’s one of us. You need the Leashed Dogs.”

Lucky’s fur prickled uncomfortably. It wasn’t fair of Bella to bring him into this. He didn’t want Sweet to be reminded of his betrayal!

Alpha appeared from behind the rocks, a shock of gray fur. He sprang down toward them and landed between Bella and Sweet, who both started back in surprise.

“Arguing won’t help anyone.” He paced between Bella and Sweet, his head held high. Lucky would have expected Alpha to take Sweet’s side, but his voice was actually level—reasonable. “There are a lot of nervous dogs in the bigger Pack now. Their courage will hardly be aided by this display of aggression between the stronger among us.”

Lucky tried not to let his amazement show. You’re talking about courage? he thought. After your performance?