A Dangerous Path Read online

  WARRIORS

  A DANGEROUS PATH

  ERIN HUNTER

  Dedication

  To the real Bramblepaw

  Special thanks to Cherith Baldry

  Contents

  DEDICATION

  ALLEGIANCES

  MAPS

  PROLOGUE

  Inside the kennel-that-moves, everything was dark. The pack leader could…

  CHAPTER 1

  Fireheart’s fur bristled with disbelief and fury as he gazed…

  CHAPTER 2

  The sky was growing pale with the first light of…

  CHAPTER 3

  Fireheart opened his eyes and blinked in the uncomfortably bright…

  CHAPTER 4

  Fireheart’s flanks heaved as he fought for breath, and his…

  CHAPTER 5

  The sun was going down, casting long shadows across the…

  CHAPTER 6

  The forest was dark. No moon shone down that night,…

  CHAPTER 7

  Fireheart peered out from behind his rock. Tigerstar had spotted…

  CHAPTER 8

  The sun was rising over the trees as Fireheart and…

  CHAPTER 9

  As her Clan stared at her in horror, Bluestar spun…

  CHAPTER 10

  The stars of Silverpelt blazed froma clear sky, and the…

  CHAPTER 11

  The sun was rising over the trees as Fireheart emerged…

  CHAPTER 12

  Fireheart padded swiftly out of the camp, hoping no other…

  CHAPTER 13

  Fireheart darted from one clump of gorse to the next…

  CHAPTER 14

  When Fireheart returned to the clearing, there was still no…

  CHAPTER 15

  Fireheart sprang to his paws. “Tell me what happened.”

  CHAPTER 16

  Cinderpelt could tell Fireheart nothing more, nor suggest what the…

  CHAPTER 17

  The RiverClan warriors froze, their blue eyes wide with shock.

  CHAPTER 18

  As Fireheart wearily pushed his way through the entrance to…

  CHAPTER 19

  Next morning, Fireheart watched the dawn patrol leave before going…

  CHAPTER 20

  “Will she live?” Fireheart asked anxiously.

  CHAPTER 21

  “Keep well back,” Brackenfur warned. “This is a dangerous place.”

  CHAPTER 22

  A full moon crossed the sky behind thin wisps of…

  CHAPTER 23

  Fireheart padded warily through Tallpines toward the Twolegplace. Heavy rain…

  CHAPTER 24

  Fireheart emerged from the warriors’ den and paused. He gazed…

  CHAPTER 25

  Cloudtail and Sandstorm carried Brindleface’s body back to the camp,…

  CHAPTER 26

  When Fireheart reached the top of the ravine he halted…

  CHAPTER 27

  Fireheart struggled desperately to get free, lashing out with his…

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  OTHER BOOKS BY ERIN HUNTER

  COPYRIGHT

  ABOUT THE PUBLISHER

  Allegiances

  THUNDERCLAN

  LEADER

  BLUESTAR—blue-gray she-cat, tinged with silver around her muzzle

  DEPUTY

  FIREHEART—handsome ginger tom APPRENTICE, CLOUDPAW

  MEDICINE CAT

  CINDERPELT—dark gray she-cat

  WARRIORS

  (toms, and she-cats without kits)

  WHITESTORM—big white tom APPRENTICE, BRIGHTPAW

  DARKSTRIPE—sleek black-and-gray tabby tom

  APPRENTICE, FERNPAW

  FROSTFUR—beautiful white coat and blue eyes

  BRINDLEFACE—pretty tabby

  LONGTAIL—pale tabby tom with dark black stripes

  APPRENTICE, SWIFTPAW

  MOUSEFUR—small dusky brown she-cat APPRENTICE, THORNPAW

  BRACKENFUR—golden brown tabby tom

  DUSTPELT—dark brown tabby tom APPRENTICE, ASHPAW

  SANDSTORM—pale ginger she-cat

  APPRENTICES

  (more than six moons old, in training to become warriors)

  SWIFTPAW—black-and-white tom

  CLOUDPAW—long-haired white tom

  BRIGHTPAW—she-cat, white with ginger splotches

  THORNPAW—golden brown tabby tom

  FERNPAW—pale gray (with darker flecks) she-cat, pale green eyes

  ASHPAW—pale gray (with darker flecks) tom, dark blue eyes

  QUEENS

  (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)

  GOLDENFLOWER—pale ginger coat

  SPECKLETAIL—pale tabby, and the oldest nursery queen

  WILLOWPELT—very pale gray she-cat with unusual blue eyes

  ELDERS

  (former warriors and queens, now retired)

  ONE-EYE—pale gray she-cat, the oldest she-cat in ThunderClan; virtually blind and deaf

  SMALLEAR—gray tom with very small ears; the oldest tom in ThunderClan

  DAPPLETAIL—once-pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat

  SHADOWCLAN

  LEADER

  TIGERSTAR—big dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws, formerly of ThunderClan

  DEPUTY

  BLACKFOOT—large white tom with huge jet-black paws, formerly a rogue cat

  MEDICINE CAT

  RUNNINGNOSE—small gray-and-white tom

  WARRIORS

  OAKFUR—small brown tom

  LITTLECLOUD—very small tabby tom

  DARKFLOWER—black she-cat

  BOULDER—silver tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat

  RUSSETFUR—dark ginger she-cat, formerly a rogue cat

  APPRENTICE, CEDARPAW

  JAGGEDTOOTH—huge tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat

  APPRENTICE, ROWANPAW

  QUEENS

  TALLPOPPY—long-legged light brown tabby she-cat

  WINDCLAN

  LEADER

  TALLSTAR—black-and-white tom with a very long tail

  DEPUTY

  DEADFOOT—black tom with a twisted paw

  MEDICINE CAT

  BARKFACE—short-tailed brown tom

  WARRIORS

  MUDCLAW—mottled dark brown tom

  WEBFOOT—dark gray tabby tom

  TORNEAR—tabby tom

  TAWNYFUR—golden brown she-cat

  ONEWHISKER—brown tabby tom APPRENTICE, GORSEPAW

  RUNNINGBROOK—light gray she-cat

  QUEENS

  ASHFOOT—gray queen

  MORNINGFLOWER—tortoiseshell queen

  WHITETAIL—small white she-cat

  RIVERCLAN

  LEADER

  CROOKEDSTAR—huge light-colored tabby with a twisted jaw

  DEPUTY

  LEOPARDFUR—unusually spotted golden tabby she-cat

  MEDICINE CAT

  MUDFUR—long-haired light brown tom

  WARRIORS

  BLACKCLAW—smoky black tom

  HEAVYSTEP—thickset tabby tom

  APPRENTICE, DAWNPAW

  STONEFUR—gray tom with battle-scarred ears

  MISTYFOOT—gray she-cat with blue eyes

  SHADEPELT—very dark gray she-cat

  LOUDBELLY—dark brown tom

  GRAYSTRIPE—long-haired gray tom, formerly of ThunderClan

  QUEENS

  MOSSPELT—tortoiseshell she-cat

  ELDERS

  GRAYPOOL—dark gray she-cat

  CATS OUTSIDE CLANS

  BARLEY—black-and-white tom that lives on a farm close to the forest

  RAVENPAW—sleek black cat who lives on the farm with Barley

&
nbsp; PRINCESS—light brown tabby with a distinctive white chest and paws; a kittypet

  SMUDGE—plump black-and-white kittypet who lives in a house at the edge of the forest

  Maps

  PROLOGUE

  Inside the kennel-that-moves, everything was dark. The pack leader could hear the scrabbling of claws and feel the sleek pelt of the dog next to him, but he could see nothing. Dog scent filled his nostrils, and beyond that the smell of the burned forest.

  The pack leader sat uncomfortably on the vibrating floor until the kennel-that-moves bounced to a halt. Outside, he could hear Man voices. He understood some of the words. “Fire…keep watch…guard dogs.”

  The pack leader picked up the Men’s fear-scent, along with the bittersweet smell of cut wood. He remembered coming here the night before, and the night before that, more than four paws’ worth of nights. He had prowled the compound with the rest of the pack, sifting through the scents for intruders, ready to drive them away.

  The dog snarled softly, his lips drawn back from sharp teeth. The pack was strong. They could run, and kill. They craved warm blood, and the terror-scent of prey before it died. But instead they were penned up, they ate the food the Man threw to them, and they obeyed the Man’s orders.

  The dog rose to his powerful paws, rattling the doors as he butted them with his massive black-and-tan head. He lifted his voice in a bark that sounded all the louder in the confined space. “Out! Pack out! Out now!”

  The rest of the pack added their voices. “Pack out! Pack run!”

  As if in answer, the doors of the kennel-that-moves were flung open. In the twilight the pack leader could see the Man standing there, barking an order.

  The leader jumped down first, close to a pile of logs stacked in the middle of the compound. His paws threw up little puffs of ash and soot. The rest of the pack followed in a stream of black-and-brown bodies. “Pack follow! Pack follow!” they barked. The leader padded restlessly along the fence that separated them from the forest. Beyond the fence, burned-out tree trunks leaned against each other or lay on the ground. Farther away a barrier of undamaged trees rustled in the breeze.

  Scents flowed enticingly from the leaf-thick shadows. The dog’s muscles tensed. Out there, in the prey-filled forest, the pack could run free. There would be no Man to chain or command them. They would feed as often as they wanted, because they would be the strongest and most savage of all.

  “Free!” the lead dog barked. “Pack free! Free soon!”

  He walked up to the fence and pressed his nose against the mesh links, drawing the smells of the forest deep into his lungs. Many of the scents he had never smelled before, but there was one he knew well, stronger than the rest, the scent of his enemy and his prey.

  Cats!

  Night had fallen; the leafless branches of the blackened trees were silhouetted against a full moon. In the darkness the dogs ranged to and fro, deep shadows in the night. Paws padded softly among soot and sawdust. Muscles rippled under shining coats. Their eyes gleamed. Their jaws were parted, revealing sharp teeth, and their tongues lolled.

  The pack leader sniffed along the bottom of the fence, searching for a special place on the opposite side of the compound from where the Man stayed at night. Three nights ago the dog had discovered a narrow hole leading under the fence. He knew at once that this would be the route to freedom for the pack.

  “Hole. Where hole?” he growled.

  Then he spotted the place where the earth floor of the compound fell away into a hollow. One massive paw scraped at the ground. The dog raised his head to bark to his followers. “Here. Hole, hole. Here.”

  He could feel their eagerness in his own mind, sharp as thorns, hot as carrion. They came bounding up to the lead dog, answering his bark. “Hole. Hole.”

  “Bigger, hole bigger,” the pack leader promised. “Run soon.”

  He began scraping at the ground again with all the strength in his lean, powerful body. Earth scattered as the hole under the chain-link fence grew wider and deeper. The remaining dogs milled around, snuffling at the night air that carried scents from the forest. They drooled at the thought of sinking their teeth into the warm bodies of living prey.

  The pack leader stopped, ears pricked for the sound of the Man coming to check on them. But there was no sign of him, and his scent drifted from far away.

  The lead dog flattened himself on the ground and squirmed down into the hole. The bottom of the fence scraped along his pelt. The dog thrust hard with his hind paws, propelling himself forward until he could scramble up and stand in the forest outside.

  “Free now,” he barked. “Come! Come!”

  The hole grew deeper still as each dog forced his way through, to stand beside his leader among the burned-out trees. They padded back and forth, pushing their muzzles into the holes at the roots of trees, gazing into the darkness with eyes that glowed with a cold fire.

  As the last dog dragged itself under the fence, the pack leader raised his head and let out a triumphant bark. “Run. Pack free. Run now!”

  Turning toward the trees, he bounded away, powerful muscles working in a smooth rhythm. The pack streamed behind, their dark shapes flashing through the forest night.

  Pack, pack, they thought. Pack run.

  The whole of the forest was theirs, and in their minds, there was a single instinct. “Kill! Kill!”

  CHAPTER 1

  Fireheart’s fur bristled with disbelief and fury as he gazed up at the new leader of ShadowClan standing on the Great Rock. He watched as the cat swung his massive head from side to side. Muscles rippled under his gleaming pelt and his amber eyes seemed to glow with triumph.

  “Tigerclaw!” Fireheart spat. His old enemy—the cat who had tried to kill him more than once—was now one of the most powerful cats in the forest.

  The full moon rode high above Fourtrees, shedding its cold light over the cats of the four Clans, assembled there for the Gathering. They had all been shocked to learn of the death of Nightstar, the ShadowClan leader. But no cat in the forest had expected that ShadowClan’s new leader would be Tigerclaw, the former ThunderClan deputy.

  Beside Fireheart, Darkstripe was rigid with excitement, his eyes glittering. Fireheart wondered what thoughts were going through the mind of his black-pelted Clan mate. When Tigerclaw had been banished from ThunderClan, he had invited his old friend to go with him, but Darkstripe had refused. Was he regretting that decision now?

  Fireheart caught sight of Sandstorm weaving her way toward him. “What’s going on?” the pale ginger she-cat hissed as she came into earshot. “Tigerclaw can’t lead ShadowClan. He’s a traitor!”

  For several heartbeats, Fireheart hesitated. Shortly after he had joined ThunderClan, Fireheart had discovered that Tigerclaw had murdered Redtail, the deputy. Once Tigerclaw became deputy himself, he had led rogue cats to attack the ThunderClan camp, trying to murder their leader, Bluestar, so that he could take her place. As punishment, he had been banished from their Clan and the forest. It was hardly a noble history for a leader of any Clan.

  “But ShadowClan don’t know about all that,” Fireheart reminded Sandstorm now, keeping his voice low. “None of the other Clans know.”

  “Then you should tell them!”

  Fireheart glanced up at Tallstar and Crookedstar, the leaders of WindClan and RiverClan, respectively, who stood beside Tigerstar on the Great Rock. Would they listen if he told them what he knew? ShadowClan had suffered so much from Brokentail’s bloodthirsty leadership, followed by a devastating sickness, that they probably wouldn’t care what their new leader had done, as long as he could forge them into a strong Clan again.

  Besides, Fireheart couldn’t help feeling a guilty relief that Tigerclaw had satisfied his hunger for power in a different Clan. Maybe now ThunderClan could stop waiting for him to attack, and Fireheart could walk the forest without constantly glancing over his shoulder.

  Yet, as he struggled with his conflicting emotions, he knew that he would never
forgive himself if he let Tigerclaw come to power without even making a protest.