Page 45 of Moon Chosen

“But they will follow Wilkes, and Wilkes appreciates your skill. He will listen to you, thus the others will inadvertently be following you.”

Nik’s jaws clenched.So, I’m to risk my ass without being granted the respect I deserve for it.

“Is there a problem?”

Nik drew a deep breath. “No. There is no problem.”

“Thank you, son,” Sol said. “It is like an itching beneath my skin, this pity that I have for the Scratchers.”

“Father, I’ll do as you ask, but I have to know—you aren’t actually considering setting the Scratchers loose, are you?” Nik asked.

“Would that I could, son. The Tribe would argue that the captive Scratchers need to be cared for—that what we do by keeping them on Farm Island is really a kindness. But you know as well as I what would happen if we were forced to tend our own crops. The harvests would decrease drastically without whatever earth magick the Scratchers use, but more importantly the accidents that would take place would be unavoidable.” Sol shook his head sadly. “As would the deaths that would follow.”

Nik shuddered. “Has there been no breakthroughs made by the Healers?”

“None whatsoever,” Sol said somberly. “If our skin is broken we become vulnerable to the blight, and once it shows symptoms it cannot be cured—it can only be endured. And there is but one ending for the disease.”

“Death.” Nik shuddered.And a horrible death at that.Nik met his father’s gaze, knowing they both were thinking of the beautiful woman who had been wife and mother to them, and who had slipped one day as she was carving a new lute to be played for the Mother Plants. She’d cut her wrist. Not a bad cut. It hadn’t been deep or long. But the blight had infected her, using the vein at her wrist to spread quickly throughout her body. The disease had ravaged her in weeks.Such a simple accident. Such a small cut.Nik’s thoughts turned to accidents and the tragedy that followed too often, turning small things into horrors. “A Scratcher hit Miguel last night with a rock.”

Sol’s sharp gaze pierced him. “His skin was broken?”

Nik nodded. “Yes.”

Sol sighed. “I will go to him after sunrise. Nikolas, if Miguel is infected you should ready yourself. His family may blame you.”

Nik bit back his angry excuses. His father was right. That he hadn’t actually caused the Scratcher to strike Miguel wouldn’t be important to a grieving family. The entire Tribe knew that Nik was still searching for the pup, and that because of that search the Hunters had roamed outside their normal territory. “I’ll be ready. I’ll keep a low profile.”

Sol’s brows lifted sardonically. “That might be a nice change.”

Nik frowned at his father. “I don’t usually cause trouble.”

Sol’s laughter was a little more sarcastic than Nik might have liked, but he joined him, glad that it broke up some of the sadness that had begun to settle between them.

“Come with me to welcome the sunrise?” Sol asked.

“I’d like to, but I need to get back to that holly bush as soon as possible, and I need to let a Hunter know he’s going with me.”

“Thaddeus and his Odysseus are one of the most talented tracking pairs that I’ve seen in many winters,” Sol said.

“Actually, I’d rather not take Thaddeus,” Nik said. “I prefer the company of Davis and his Cameron.”

“They’re young and a lot less experienced.”

“Then searching for my pup will help them gain experience.”

“Might I make a suggestion?”

Nik motioned for his father to continue.

“I’d like to suggest that if I was in a situation where an older, more experienced Tribe member like Thaddeus was, well, for lack of a better way to put it—rather condescending about something I believed strongly in…” Sol paused and Nik gave a weary nod of agreement. “Ah, I thought so. Let’s say that I had a chance to prove directly to this condescending Tribe member that my belief was valid, and that his was rather shortsighted, I would take the opportunity to show him; thereby showing the entire Tribe.”

“He’s so arrogant! He completely dismisses the possibility that the pup still lives, even after we found sign of him.”

“Thaddeus is definitely arrogant, and he can be rather caustic, but he takes immense pride in his tracking skills, which are indeed vast.”

“I still don’t like him.”

Sol smiled. “What if I give permission for you to include Davis and Cameron with Thaddeus and Odysseus in your search? They could use the experience. It would help the Tribe, and make your searching more pleasant. Agreed?”