As Lucky loped out of the forest and arrived at the camp with Bruno by his side, he saw Sweet treading toward them. His heart gave a small tremor of excitement—was the swift-dog finally going to talk to him? His tail twitched and he cocked his head, but Sweet did not return the gestures as she stopped a short distance from Lucky.

“Omega, Alpha wants to speak to you,” she barked. Before Lucky could reply, she turned and entered the shelter. Lucky guessed he was supposed to follow her.

“I can take the kill,” Bruno offered.

Lucky gave a nod, dropping the limp bird so that Bruno could scoop it up with the other one that he carried. As Omega, Lucky was not supposed to be hunting, and it would be wrong for him to approach the shelter with the bird in his jaws.

Sweet was already inside when Lucky dipped his head beneath the brambles and entered the dim light of the cave. She strode to Alpha’s corner—the warmest and farthest from the entrance—and stood next to the half wolf. He was stretched out on his bed of moss and leaves, collected by Lucky as part of his duties as Omega. Alpha rose to his paws as Lucky came closer, throwing back his head in a gaping yawn that revealed his huge, pointed fangs. Lucky’s stomach tightened as other dogs approached, watching with interest. Fiery and Moon were both there, as was Martha, though there was no sign of any of the pups. Looking over the dogs, Lucky noticed that Spring was nowhere to be seen—she must be watching the pups deep inside the cave.

Alpha had stopped yawning and was staring ahead as Lucky approached.

What does he want? I’ve done my best to play by his rules, to be an obedient Omega. Is he going to cast me out of the Pack after all?

Lucky caught Bella watching him, her muzzle tight with tension. She must have been thinking the same thing.

The half wolf spoke in his strange, deep voice. “You may be wondering why I called you here, Omega.”

Lucky’s fur bristled but he stayed silent.

“Despite your lowly status I will you do you the favor of discussing a serious matter with you, since you were the one who brought the problem into my camp.”

Lucky instantly thought of the pups, and the confrontation between Moon and Martha. He glanced at the water-dog, who returned his look with a worried expression in her eyes.

Lucky turned back to Alpha and made an effort to keep his voice even. “What do you mean?”

“Those little Fierce Dogs of yours attacked Moon’s pups. There are witnesses. We need to make a decision about whether we should be harboring potential enemies—particularly those that were brought here after the black Sky-Dog appeared in warning.”