soldiers to notice things I want to know.”

Silver Arrow nodded, and left the cave wondering what this wolf-dog would be like. The wolf who had brought the news walked behind him, showing respect that was usually reserved only for alphas.

Copper stopped in his tracks when Nome was nearly out of sight. “How could I be so stupid?”

“I wonder that about you, too,” Taya commented, “What’s the problem?”

Copper felt like beating himself over the head. “Steele’s going to go after my dad, my mom, my siblings! We have to go back!” With the surprise of encountering Steele and seeing Taya again, he had almost forgotten the danger.

Taya’s face tightened into a mask of deathly calm. “Don’t worry about your family. The only one he’s after now is me.” She scuffed her paw around in the snow. “When I saw him in White Mountain, I just couldn’t keep it in. I basically told him what a lousy father he is, though with much…stronger words.” She slashed savagely at the ground. “I was the best fighter at the Northern Fights. I should have been able to fight my dad, kill him, even. Get him out of my life. But there’s something about him…All I could do was run.” She hung her head and kicked at the snow again.

Copper watched her with a growing ache inside him. To think he allowed himself to complain about minor things when her life was pure torture. He sickened himself.

Copper dared to step closer to Taya. She became very still, but at least she didn’t clock him one.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” he told her gently, “No one wants to come up against Steele in a fight. He’s cruel, cold, and heartless…You’ve got one heck of a dad, Taya.”

She nodded with a grim smile. “It’s funny. I went to White Mountain to forget about my father, and then I meet up with him so he can chase me all the way back to Nome. I’m back where I started.” She shook her head. “At least I don’t look like him. Then I would have been in trouble a long time ago.”

Copper looked at her. “Well, you did inherit some things.”

Her teeth came out. “Be careful what you say about this, Copper.”

He backed up quickly. “Okay, okay!” He studied her again, a small smile hovering on his lips. Gosh, she was beautiful. “You have his blue eyes. But his are cruel, like ice. Yours are more like the blue in the Northern Lights.”

Taya’s teeth came in. She watched him warily, but he knew he had her full attention.

“You have his temper, and his fighting skills,” he continued, “But you don’t use them like your dad does.” ‘I identified Hawk as Steele’s son by his blue eyes,’ he thought all of a sudden. The thought shattered like glass through his brain. The thought throbbed in his mind. He had killed Hawk, Taya’s brother, in the Northern Fights. He hoped he would never have to admit that to her. She might kill him.

He pushed the thought away and smiled weakly. “Actually, you’re not as much like Steele as I thought.”

“Good,” Taya said, “If I ever thought I was becoming like him, I would kill myself.”

Copper stared at her. For all her insolence and dark past, Taya was like the sun to him: angry and spitting insults like flames that burned him and beat him down, but necessary for light and heat…and life.

“Trust me, you will never be like your dad, Taya,” Copper said fiercely, “Never.”

“There he is!” a voice called in the distance, “I see him! Copper!”

Copper swung around to see Chase bounding toward him, with Dusty, a brown mutt, and Balto right behind her.

“Thanks for waiting for us,” Chase said sarcastically. Her eyes moved to look behind Copper, and she froze. Her mouth tightened into a hard line, and she scrutinized Taya. “Who…is…that?”

“A friend,” Copper said quickly, his heart thumping inside him. He watched as the mutt came up behind Chase and stood over her protectively. He managed to grin, cocking an eyebrow. “Who…is…that?” he asked, imitating his sister.

Chase glared at him. “A friend,” she growled.

“Copper! I was beginning to wonder if we would ever find you again,” Balto remarked. His golden eyes fell on Taya. Copper squirmed as he watched his father start in surprise, and then collect himself. “Well, who is this?”

“This is Taya,” Copper said, barely breathing, “She’s a friend from the Northern Fights.”

Chase snorted. “ ‘Friend’? Since when are dogs friends when they’re busy ripping each other limb from limb?”

Copper smiled weakly. “Trust me, the friendship took awhile. But she came with me back to Nome after Johnson left me at the Fights, and well…things change.”

“But what’s she doing outhere?” Chase demanded. Copper wished his sister would stop talking like Taya wasn’t there. He could almost feel the heat as Taya’s temper rose from being ignored.

Taya stepped forward. “I’m being chased by my father. He wants me dead.”

There was a stunned silence.

“Well, that gives a whole new meaning to the word ‘family’,” Chase muttered, “Can’t you just feel the love?”

The mutt looked at her disapprovingly. “Chase…”

“I’m not going to lie to you,” Taya cried fiercely, “I’m not like my father, who lies and cheats and left me and my siblings to die…My father is Steele.”

“WHAT?” Chase’s legs shook uncontrollably, and she toppled into the melting snow.

“Chase!” The mutt dove down and tried to help her up. She pushed him away and angrily shoved herself to her feet, panting. “I’m fine, Ketch!”

She glared at Taya, who stood her ground and stared right back. “You?” Chase gasped, “You are the daughter of that, that…that thing?”

“Believe me, I hate him as much as you do,” Taya said with a dark calm, “I would do almost anything not to be his daughter. I would have killed myself if it hadn’t been for Copper.”

Copper felt a strange surge of pride zip through him, but with the pride came overwhelming worry. He hadn’t thought Taya would tell them about her past! Now Chase would probably never forgive him.

“Do you know what your father did to me?” Chase spat, “He made my mother sick. He almost killed my father. He made me betray my family. Because of him, I have this.” She threw her head back to indicate her missing leg. Her dark eyes burned like acid, and she glowered at Taya fiercely. “So you can just–”

“Chase, that’s enough!” Dusty suddenly barked, ending his silence. Chase threw him a reproachful look, but she bit her lip and stopped talking. “Just listen to yourself!” Dusty cried, “You’re no better than Steele! He hated Dad because of his wolf blood. You hate Taya because she has Steele’s blood running through her. Can’t you see? Just because Taya is Steele’s daughter doesn’t mean she’s out to kill us.” He stared pointedly at Chase. “And just because you’re one of Balto’s kids doesn’t mean you’re understanding like he is.”

Ketch coughed.

Chase’s eyes were tiny slits, but all of a sudden her anger seemed to release, and she stood quietly with a blank face. Copper could tell she was embarrassed, and that she was trying to keep her pride.

Dusty smiled and padded up to Taya. “Taya is nothing like Steele.”

There was gratitude in Taya’s eyes. She smiled back at Dusty, and she whispered to Copper, “I like your brother.”

Dusty flushed slightly, and Copper grinned at him. “Thanks, Dusty.” He looked over to see Balto had gone pale beneath his dark fur.

Balto stared at Taya, and then shook himself. “You’re saying Steele is out here somewhere, looking for you?”

Taya nodded. “I put you all in danger. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Balto reassured her. He sighed heavily. “We’ve come up against Steele more than once before. Another encounter was inevitable.” He studied Taya. “By the way, I’m Balto. We’ll do everything to protect you, Taya. For Copper’s sake, I trust you.”

Chase spluttered something under her breath, but she went quiet.

“Well, let’s go,” Balto said suddenly, “We have Kaila to find, and Steele to avoid.”

“Next stop, wherever Kaila is,” Ketch said with a grin, looking at Taya, “Room for one more.”

Taya didn’t smile back, but Copper saw a flicker of amusement in her eyes. He breathed a sigh of relief.

The group set out on Kaila’s trail, Balto leading the way, Copper and Taya behind him, Chase and Ketch behind them, and Dusty bringing up the rear.

Copper worried about Taya and Chase. He knew there would be a problem between them, but he had been trying not to think about it ever since he had wondered about meeting Taya again. Now that time had come, and the issue was as bad as he had feared. He loved Taya, he realized. And he loved Chase, but not in the same way, of course. Their conflict set him in the middle. Unless Chase admitted she was wrong about Taya, he would have to choose sides. And how do you choose between your sister and your love?

Chase mumbled and grumbled under her breath about Taya as the group trailed behind Balto. Ketch heard her complaints, and nudged her gently with his paw. “Hey. Stop it. Dusty has a good point, you know. You have no right to judge Taya until you get to know her.”

“But look at her! It’s disgusting,” Chase cried. Taya had just muttered something that made Copper grin. “Did you ever wonder what they were doing out here alone?”

Ketch shook his head. “Taya doesn’t seem the type to flirt. You know, you and her are alike in a lot of ways.”

“Don’t flatter her,” Chase growled. On a sudden impulse, she trotted up to Taya and walked at her side. She watched as Taya tensed and curled her lip ever so slightly.

“I was the best fighter at the Northern Fights, and the only dog I’m afraid to take down is my father. So if you have anything else to say about me and Steele, I suggest you go complain to your boyfriend over there. I’m not taking it anymore.”

“The best fighter?” Chase said in disbelief. Then she suddenly found a weak spot. Her smile grew cruel. “You wish.”

Taya shook her head angrily. “No. I was. My owner started the Northern Fights. I was a way for him to get money. And if I didn’t win him enough money, sometimes he beat me.” She shuddered. “I’m glad Copper got me out of there.”

Taya’s story softened Chase’s heart a little. But