CHAPTER 22
Brambleclaw stared down at his Clanleader. He still couldn’t move. He knew that all he had to do was tighten2 the noose3 around Firestar’s neck, and he would lose his remaining six lives at once. His gaze met Firestar’s, where his leader lay helpless in front of him. But there was no pleading in the green eyes, only a fierce, proud question: What will you do, Brambleclaw? It’s your choice
Brambleclaw thought of how Firestar and Tigerstar had confronted each other, time after time. Each hated the other for what they stood for, the plans they had for their Clan1. But Firestar had never needed to fight Tigerstar to the death. Scourge4, the vicious leader of BloodClan, whom Tigerstar himself had invited into the forest, had killed him with a single blow.
This time it looked as though Tigerstar would win. Brambleclaw was aware of his father’s spirit close beside him, urging him on. Fool! Kill him now!
Closing his eyes, Brambleclaw remembered the clearing at Fourtrees, the blood pouring out onto the grass as Tigerstar lost all nine lives at once. He saw Scourge looking down at his twitching6 body with cold triumph. Was that what Hawkfrost and Tigerstar wanted him to become?
“Six lives . . .” he murmured. Six lives stood between him and the leadership of ThunderClan.
“That’s right,” Hawkfrost hissed7. “This is our chance to take revenge on Firestar for our father’s death. He could have tried to stop Scourge, but he just stood there and watched Tigerstar die, over and over and over.”
Revenge? Brambleclaw wrenched8 his gaze from Firestar to stare at his half brother. This wasn’t about revenge. He knew very well that Tigerstar had willingly set his own paws on the path that led to his violent death.
All I want is to lead my Clan, he thought. But not like this. His loyalty9 was not to ThunderClan alone, but to Firestar too—the cat who had mentored10 him, accepted him in spite of his father, and in the end had trusted him enough to make him Clan deputy. He had thought that loyalty to the Clan didn’t necessarily mean loyalty to the Clan leader. That wasn’t true. Firestar wasThunderClan.
“No,” he meowed to Hawkfrost, amazed to hear his voice come out strong and steady. “I won’t do it.”
He recalled how Brook11 and Squirrelflight had freed Berrykit when the kit12 caught his tail in a fox trap. Leaping over to Firestar’s side, he began scrabbling in the earth, trying to dig up the stick that held the tendril taut13 around his leader’s neck. “Keep still, Firestar,” he panted as the earth flew. “I’ll have you out of this in a heartbeat.”
A yowl of protest battered14 his ears; he couldn’t be sure whether it came from Hawkfrost or from the vengeful spirit of Tigerstar. Hawkfrost sprang at him, slamming into his side and knocking him off his paws. Brambleclaw was pinned under him. Hawkfrost’s ice-blue eyes glared into his.
Never!Brambleclaw thrust his hind17 paws hard into Hawkfrost’s belly18, throwing him off. While his half brother lay winded, he hurled19 himself at the stick again, grabbing it in his jaws20. His earlier digging had loosened it; now it came free altogether, and the tendril around Firestar’s neck slackened. He heard his Clan leader draw a single gasping21 breath.
A fierce snarl15 behind him made him spin around to see Hawkfrost springing at him. Brambleclaw dodged22 to one side, letting the stick fall. He felt the sting of Hawkfrost’s claws raking through his fur as his half brother leaped past him.
Spinning around, Brambleclaw faced Hawkfrost again, and saw a cold flame in the RiverClan cat’s ice-blue eyes.
“Traitor23!” Hawkfrost spat24. “You’re a traitor to everything our father planned! You were never strong enough to be like him.”
“I don’t want to be like him,” Brambleclaw retorted.
“Then you’re a fool,” Hawkfrost sneered25. “And stupid too. You never realized that this was a test. It was Tigerstar’s idea. He said that if you really deserved power, you would do anythingto get it.”
“Even kill my Clan leader?”
“Especially that. But you’re as weak as Tigerstar feared. We have great plans for the forest, he and I, and you could have been part of them. But we don’t need you.”
Brambleclaw understood exactly what his half brother was saying. He knew too much. Hawkfrost could not let him or Firestar live now; that must have been part of his plan from the beginning.
He took a step toward Hawkfrost. “Go back to RiverClan. You’re my brother. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Because you’re weak,” Hawkfrost taunted26 him. “You care more for kin5 than for power. But Idon’t.”
He leaped for Brambleclaw again, carrying him off his paws and pinning him down. His ice-blue eyes blazed close to Brambleclaw’s own. Brambleclaw felt sharp claws digging deep into his fur and saw teeth snapping at his throat. He struggled vainly to rake Hawkfrost’s belly with his hind paws, feeling his own death a heartbeat away. To save himself, to save Firestar and ThunderClan, there was only one thing he could do.
Writhing27 from side to side, he spotted28 the stick from the fox trap lying half under his shoulder. He strained his neck and managed to grab it in his teeth. As Hawkfrost lunged down toward him he heaved the stick around and felt the sharpened end sink deep into Hawkfrost’s throat. Hawkfrost stiffened29 with a horrible gurgling sound, then fell limp and heavy on Brambleclaw’s chest.
Shocked, Brambleclaw struggled free of his half brother’s body and let go of the stick. It fell to the ground, leaving a ragged30 wound in Hawkfrost’s throat. Scarlet31 blood splashed onto the earth, faster and faster until it started to spill down toward the lakeshore.
Amazingly, his half brother pushed himself to his paws and staggered toward him. Brambleclaw braced33 himself, not knowing whether to expect another attack or an appeal for help.
“Fool!” Hawkfrost rasped; the effort of speaking made the blood pour even faster from his terrible wound. “Do you think I did this alone? Do you think you’re safe within your own Clan?” He coughed, spitting out clots34 of blood, and added, “Think again!”
“What?” Brambleclaw took a step toward him, his forepaws splashing in the scarlet pool. Was Hawkfrost accusing a ThunderClan warriorof leading Firestar into this trap? “What do you mean? Tell me, Hawkfrost! Whodo you mean?”
But the cold fire was leaving Hawkfrost’s eyes. He turned away from Brambleclaw, staggered a few paces through the ferns, and collapsed35 beside the lake, his haunches trailing in the water. Tiny waves rippled36 over his body, and his blood spread out in a scarlet cloud.
Brambleclaw gazed down at him. There was so much more that he needed to know—but Hawkfrost was dead.
For a moment, his half brother’s voice echoed softly in his ears: We will meet again, my brother. This is not over yet.
“Brambleclaw.” Firestar still lay on his side, his neck fur stained with blood from his own wound. Weak as he was, his gaze was unwavering as he looked at Brambleclaw.
“Firestar—” Brambleclaw broke off. There was nothing that he could say. Firestar had seen his own deputy struggling with the temptation to kill him. He would never be able to trust Brambleclaw again. How could he be ThunderClan’s deputy now? He stood with bowed head and waited for the words that would send him into exile.
“Brambleclaw, you did well.”
Brambleclaw looked up, staring at his leader in astonishment37.
“Your path has been hard, harder than most,” Firestar rasped. “But you fought a great battle here, and you won. You are a worthy38 deputy of ThunderClan.”
His voice quavered on the last few words. Exhausted39, he let his head fall again and closed his eyes.
Brambleclaw stood looking down at him, his half brother’s blood sticky on his paws and the reek40 of it in his nostrils41. I won, he thought. But what will my father do to me now?
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1
clan
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| n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派 | |
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tighten
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| v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧 | |
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noose
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| n.绳套，绞索（刑）；v.用套索捉；使落入圈套；处以绞刑 | |
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scourge
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| n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏 | |
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kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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twitching
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| n.颤搐 | |
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hissed
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| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
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8
wrenched
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| v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛 | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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mentored
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| v.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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brook
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| n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让 | |
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kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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taut
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| adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的 | |
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14
battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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15
snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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16
snarled
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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gasping
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| adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词 | |
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22
dodged
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| v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 )；回避 | |
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traitor
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| n.叛徒，卖国贼 | |
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24
spat
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| n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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25
sneered
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| 讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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26
taunted
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| 嘲讽( taunt的过去式和过去分词 )； 嘲弄； 辱骂； 奚落 | |
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writhing
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
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spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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stiffened
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| 加强的 | |
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ragged
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| adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的 | |
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scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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32
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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33
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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clots
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| n.凝块( clot的名词复数 )；血块；蠢人；傻瓜v.凝固( clot的第三人称单数 ) | |
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collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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rippled
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| 使泛起涟漪（ripple的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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38
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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39
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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40
reek
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| v.发出臭气；n.恶臭 | |
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41
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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