Brambleclaw was the first to move, padding forward until he stood face to face with Squirrelflight. "Why?" he meowed.
Squirrelflight's voice was desperate. "I had to! She's my sister!"
"And you couldn't trust me?" Brambleclaw's voice was shaking.
Squirrelflight didn't reply, just held his gaze without flinching.
"You couldn't trust me," he repeated. "Don't you think I would have helped you, if you'd told me the truth? But it's too late now."
He turned away, shouldering a path through the crowd.
"Brambleclaw-" Squirrelflight took a a pace after him, then halted, her head hanging and her tail drooping in despair.







