My body crumpled beneath their furious gazes. I crouched so low that my belly touched the ground. When I spoke, my breath came out in a whimper. “I do. I believe in you...”
“I hope so,” Konrad replied, still sounding wounded. He raised his eyes to address the crowd. “Everything I do is for your sake.”
My sake?I thought.He must mean everyone’s—the sake of the clan.
Sorrel shouldered forward, leaving me grovelling on the ground. “I’m ready,” he announced. “I accept my duty assignment with pride.”
The clan cheered, and Konrad’s eyes glittered with satisfaction.
“Thank you, Sorrel,” the alpha said calmly. “You’ll be a fine addition to the ranks. In time, of course,” he added, shooting me a contemptuous look.
When Konrad’s address was over, the crowd dispersed. Everyone hurried away from me like I was contagious. Only Rorik remained beside me, although he was clearly aware of the tension gripping the air.
I couldn’t move. I just lay there and trembled on the ground. Ahead, too far for me to hear, Konrad spoke with Sorrel, who listened dutifully and wagged his tail.
My younger brother had shoved right past me. Like I was nothing to him.
“...okay? Poppy?”
Rorik’s voice floated into my ringing ears. Still lying on the ground, I glanced up at him.
“Are you all right?” the bear asked again.
Summoning the air to speak was difficult, so I nodded. But even that felt like I was taking up too much space in the world.
Rorik hesitated. He wasn’t the best with words either, and this was an uncomfortable situation. “Don’t worry. Konrad would never do anything bad to Sorrel.”
I wanted to believe him. I really did. But the statement rolled off my back, meaningless. Right now, everything was meaningless.
Rorik nudged the flat fur between my shoulders with his big nose. “You’re all right,” he stated. “The sooner you stand up, the faster everyone will forget about this.”
He may as well have been speaking to a different person. I already knew I wouldn’t recover from this incident. It gutted me to the core. It rearranged things that couldn’t be fixed. Konrad’s public humiliation had fundamentally changed me.
“Poppy, come on,” Rorik pushed, encouraging but firm.
My voice came out in a frail whisper. “I can’t.”
Rorik cared, but I could tell he was losing his patience. The longer he remained to comfort me, the worse my contagion would spread to him. He shouldn’t be seen with me.
“I’m fine,” I managed. “Please, just go.”
Rorik hesitated. He furrowed his brow sympathetically, but in the end, he turned and sauntered away. My newfound loneliness was a relief. At least now I couldn’t infect anyone else with my social exclusion.
Konrad and Sorrel had finished speaking. My brother left the interaction beaming—his tail wagged as he bounced away.But then his gaze slid over me, and his expression fell. His ears flicked back and his lips drew tense. A coldness settled over his eyes. Distrustful.
My heart shattered.
9
Viol
I didn’t seePoppy for a week.
The days dragged by. Once in a while, an oblivious animal crossed my path and became an easy meal. Other than eating and watching the clouds roll across the unfamiliar sky, I slept. In the seven days that passed, my injuries began to heal. The stiff aches and pains left my body until only my wings remained a problem. Soon I was strong enough to stand up and walk around without issue.
One afternoon, I finally had enough dicking around. I stood and stretched with a content groan, then started exploring. I didn’t stray too far from my original spot in the snow, but Poppy had my scent memorized, anyway. I had faith he’d find me even if I went for a stroll.
I walked in the direction he’d run off a week ago and climbed the slope. The hills here weren’t quite mountains like the ones back home, but they offered me a better vantage point than a flat field.
