Lucky was shocked. “Call me whatever name you like . . . Beta,” he snarled. “At least I’m not a coward! It was not me who was scared of a dead longpaw, was it? You may be impressed with yourself now, but back in the city you were a different dog . . . you were terrified, helpless . . . pathetic.”

Her eyes blazed with anger. Lucky wanted to take back the words as soon as he had barked them. She may have ignored him and mocked him, but that did not stop him from feeling like he had gone too far.

He was surprised when the fierce look on Sweet’s face faded. “I suppose you have a point, though you didn’t have to make it in such a nasty way.”

“I know; I was just frustrated. I shouldn’t have—”

She dismissed his words with a jerk of her head. “Let’s leave it at that.” She glanced back toward the dog-wolf’s corner of the shelter. “Alpha has a point too, you know? Fierce Dogs are enemies of ours. It makes sense to find out for sure if these pups are beyond the help of the Pack. It could save all our lives.”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

As the Sun-Dog bounded beyond the trees, the Pack gathered to eat the prey the hunters had brought back for them. Alpha stepped forward first, salivating, and clamped his wolfish jaws down on the largest rabbit in the pile.

Lucky lay down in the grass and groomed his paws. The role of Omega had taught him the value of patience—or at least that there was no point watching and drooling while every other dog in the Pack ate their fill, worrying about how much would be left for him.

Sweet followed Alpha. Moon had lost her right to eat early when she’d stopped nursing, but the weaned pups had taken her place. Nose and Squirm tumbled and play-fought over a mouse before running back to Moon’s side to share their spoils. Sunshine had explained to Lucky that they would eat after Alpha and Beta until they were grown enough to choose their new names; then they’d have to work their way up the Pack ranks like any other dog.

Grunt, Lick, and Wiggle bounded up to the prey pile next, with Martha standing strong behind them. She leaned down and muttered into Lick’s ear.

“Not too much now, remember? Eat your fill, but don’t be greedy. Make sure your litter-brothers remember too.”

The female pup nodded. Sure enough, when she saw Wiggle reaching for a second vole, she gently barged him with her shoulder.

“Greedy guts,” she muttered. Wiggle reluctantly put the vole down.