felt the others gather around him, and he looked over his shoulder to see Kira and the pups ducking into a clump of three pine trees near the cave mouth. They hid in the center, the three trees encircling them like sentinels. Dusty hoped Kira could see his small nod of approval through the branches; she had chosen a good hiding place. The hidden cave Copper and Taya had found was an option, but now Dusty doubted if it was such a good hiding place. If the Northern Hills wolves ransacked the cave, they would find the hidden one soon enough. And what about that hole in the ceiling? If the fighting got around behind the cave, the ceiling would probably collapse, and the wolves would fall right in.

Dusty faced front again and narrowed his eyes as the Northern Hills pack spread out before him. The brown alpha male stood at the front of the pack, the gray beta wolf at his right, and Steele at his left. The alpha’s name was Dark Moon, Dusty remembered Aniu saying.

Dusty stole a look at Kaila. Her face was leery, staring suspiciously at the gray beta male. Dusty took this gesture to mean that the beta was Silver Arrow.

Ten wolves stretched out in a line behind the leading threesome. Dusty suddenly felt very conspicuous as the one who was obviously leading the Anvil Creek pack. Out of the side of his mouth, he whispered to the wolf beside him, “So what’s the battle plan, Cheyenne?”

She kept looking straight ahead, her face expressionless. “Kill them,” she said shortly. “Kill them all.”

“So, Dusty,” Steele sneered, “Lose something?”

A path ruffled through the ranks to let a small gray pup with a red chest limp through. Robin weakly raised her head and looked from one face to the next in confusion. Her sky blue eyes locked on Dusty’s, and that stare nearly broke Dusty’s heart.

Robin, his little bird, was battered beyond flying. A paw-sized bruise mottled her cheek, and her gray fur was filthy with old blood and dirt. Her blue eyes were empty, but desperate hope shot through them when she saw him and cried his name, with a voice hoarse from screaming, “Dusty!”

“Robin!” It tore at Dusty’s heart to see her so weak and beaten.

Robin tried to run to Dusty, but Steele’s paw gripped her back and held her there.

Anger roared up from Dusty’s gut, and he whirled on Steele. “How? How did you know?”

Steele gave him a pitying look. “How did I know? Well, well. Let’s just say I overheardyou mention the pups’ names once or twice, and when your girl came running through here last night screaming out the same names, it was kind of hard not to make the connection, you know?”

Dusty glared at him. “Steele, hand over my daughter.”

“You lost her, remember?” Steele tightened his grip on Robin, making her gasp. “Come and get her.”

Dusty dug his paws into the snow until his bones ached. He was trapped, and he knew it.

“Steele,” Balto tried.

“Shut up, wolf-dog,” Steele snarled.

Balto tensed, and shook his head. “I can’t believe you, Steele. You said you would stop calling me wolf-dog. You said you would leave my family alone.”

“I swore on my honor, remember?” Steele said with a gleaming grin, “One problem: I have no honor.”

“Finally, something we agree on,” Kaila muttered.

“You have to stop, Steele,” Balto admonished, “Where is revenge going to get you? What happened in 1925 is what happened. Maybe you would be better off now if you had just let it go.”

“I can’t get any lower than I am now,” Steele said with a deranged smile, “Why not kill the wolf-dog who brought all this misery on me, and his family while I’m waiting to die?”

Balto gave him a look of pity and compassion. “You brought this upon yourself, not me. And I forgave you for hating me for something I didn’t do.”

“And you have a great way of showing that forgiveness,” Steele sneered.

“Just because I forgive you doesn’t mean I trust you with my children’s lives,” Balto replied in a low voice.

“Where’s Chase?” Copper cried impatiently.

Steele looked puzzled for a minute. “Chase?…Oh, yes. The little traitor.” He eyed Copper with amusement. “But please. Don’t distract me from the task at hand.” With a shrill cry from Robin he smashed her into the dirt.

“No!” Pain and fear lashed at Dusty like a whip. He flew forward, but stumbled back when a wolf jumped out of line and struck him across the face.

In a moment Kira was at his side. “Don’t you dare,” she spat, glaring death at Steele and steadying Dusty.

Steele paused for a second, and then lifted his paw a little. Robin raised her head and coughed for air. She was whimpering softly, and small tears rolled down her tiny muzzle and dropped onto the snow.

Each tear cut deeper and deeper into Dusty’s heart. With a furious roar he threw himself forward again, but this time he was met by three wolves, and though he sent two of them crumpling to the ground over their pains, they slashed and kicked and bit him enough to fling him to the ground again.

Dusty lay gasping and panting, wishing he could kill all of them, every last one. He felt warm fur against his own, and slowly looked up and saw Kira bending down next to him. There was a red gash on her cheek, and four long, red claw marks ran from her shoulder to her hip; she had been trying to help him fight the wolves. He leaned on her painfully, and she helped haul him to his feet. He sucked in his breath fast when she leaned on one of his wounds.

“Sorry!” she mumbled.

“It’s okay,” he lied, “Are you all right? You shouldn’t have tried to help me.”

“If I hadn’t, you would be dead,” she retorted.

“So, Dusty,” Steele said, eyes glittering. He held Robin up in the air, her legs dangling helplessly. “Do you still want her?”

Dusty tasted blood, and he spat it out on the dirt. He wished he could have spat on Steele. Steelewas dirt.

“She’s my daughter. I’ll always want her,” he said hoarsely, glowering up at Steele, “I’ll always love her. I’ll always take her back.” He thought of Taya, and his eyes narrowed even more. “Unlike you.”

Steele’s arrogant air did not deflate one bit. “You’ve brought up an interesting comparison.” He stared at Kira. “You.”

Kira flinched.

“You look enough like me to maybe even be one of my daughters,” Steele continued with a sly, amused grin.

“She’s not, but I am!”

Dusty whipped his head around and saw an army of about twenty dogs had snuck up behind the Northern Hills pack. Leading them was a black and white dog, who he took to be Steele’s daughter, Ava. She was the one who had shouted. Beside her stood Chase.

A mixture of relief and awe rushed through Dusty as he realized Chase had gotten help from the street dogs, even with her hate for Ava. Chase’s strength inside and out would never cease to amaze him.

He focused all he had on the limp pup in Steele’s paw as he heard Chase shriek, “Charge!”

Kaila watched in horror as everything happened in a split second: Dusty lunged for Robin; Chase led the charge and fought ferociously as the street dogs crashed into the Northern Hills wolves; Taya struggled through the throng of fighting canines to get to her father; Balto was fighting like a mad dog to get to Steele.

Kaila felt herself being hurled towards the battle as the Anvil Creek pack surged forward, and her claws met the side of a wolf, and then another and another as she tried to survive the bloodshed. She watched as if from outside her body as she wounded wolf after wolf, and they in turn wounded her. The smell of blood sickened her. She could barely block out the shrieks and roars that pounded her ears. She had never been in a more horrible place, and she knew if she stopped to think she wouldn’t be able to go on with the terror of it all.

A wolf smashed his paw onto her head. Another ripped and slashed her sides. She slipped in wet redness and fell, and when she got up again, head pounding, she was next to Copper.

He blocked a blow to her neck with his leg and sent the attacker to the ground. “Kaila! Where’s Taya? I lost her!”

Kaila looked around, and spotted a splash of orange moving in a jagged line towards Steele. “There!” she cried, pointing.

Copper ducked a bite and kicked the wolf in the gut. “Thanks!” He took a step and was swallowed up by the lashing wolves.

Kaila shuddered, and felt bodies closing in around her. She was going to be trapped if she didn’t get out of there fast. She lunged blindly, and locked claws with someone. She made the mistake of looking up into his face, and she growled. Her combatant was Silver Arrow.

“You again,” she spat, “Liar. Deserter. Traitor!”

“Actually, it’s Silver Arrow,” he said calmly, dodging a swipe she dealt him. “Listen, Kaila, I’m sorry for what I did. I was just trying to be loyal to my pack.”

“By spying on us?” Kaila cried, swiping again. Her claws barely nicked his side as he jumped away. She wondered, ‘Why isn’t he fighting back?’

“I thought I was protecting my pack,” he explained, “But now I see it was wrong. I started a war that’s been raging for years. I’m sorry, Kaila.”

“Well, that really helps the situation, doesn’t it?” she growled sarcastically. She attacked viciously, backing Silver Arrow into a fury of fighting dogs and wolves. She tried to push him into it, but at the last second he locked front claws with her.

Kaila huffed with astonishment and tried to pull away, but they were stuck. She glared at him as they both stood face to face, balancing on their hind legs with their front paws pressed together. “Why aren’t you fighting?” she finally snarled, breathing hard, “Why don’t you hate me as much as I hate you?”

“Well…” Silver Arrow seemed to be lost for words. “I…Um.” Kaila waited impatiently while the sounds of battle raged around them. Silver Arrow finally shook his head in frustration with himself, and exclaimed, “I love you!”

Kaila stared at him, openmouthed. At first she thought he was lying, but his face betrayed such a mix of relief and uneasiness that she knew it was true. Her muscles relaxed with the shock, and her claws slid away from Silver Arrow’s. Four