The Apprentice's Curse (A Shrouded Path book 1) {COMPLETE}

Chapter 23

 "No! Breezekit!" Cherryheart wailed, jumping forward to her kit.

Silverheart stepped back. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "He's gone."

Minnowpaw couldn't move. Shadebelly's body flashed through her mind. The water vole.

"Why? StarClan, why?" Cherryheart cried. Outside the nursery, voices sounded as cats drew closer to the scene.

Silverheart stepped forward and gingerly picked up Breezekit's limp body from the ground. She carried it out of the nursery, followed closely by a panicked Cherryheart. Ashflower was at the grieving queen's side, trying to console her, and somehow Minnowpaw's feet carried her after them.

"What happened?" Birchclaw demanded, eyes wide as he beheld the dead kit.

"My kit is dead!" Cherryheart wailed as Silverheart laid Breezekit on the ground.

Cloudsplash pushed through the crowd. "My son!" he called, his voice anguished. He joined his mate over their son's body. "What happened?"

Silverheart looked at a loss for words. "I-I don't know," she stuttered. By now, every cat in the Clan was gathered around them. Ashstar and Tawnyclaw had emerged from Ashstar's den, looking on with shocked expressions. "I wasn't with him."

"He was eating some fresh-kill," came Reedkit's voice. No one had noticed the little she-kit approaching. Her eyes were fixed on her brother as she spoke, Specklekit and Beechkit behind her. "Then he started shaking and choking."

Quickly, Ashflower rushed back into the nursery, returning with the water vole. It had one kit-sized bite taken out of it. She dropped it on the ground. "He was eating this."

Silverheart sniffed at it once, her face screwing up immediately in disgust. "It's poisoned!" she exclaimed. Minnowpaw's heart stopped.

Nightwhisper, coming forward, sniffed at it as well and nodded. "Yes, this vole is poisoned. Who brought this back to camp?"

Everyone was silent, and Minnowpaw said in a small voice, "Me."

Before she could think, Cloudsplash leaped at her and bowled her over, claws sinking into her shoulders as he spat in her face, "You killed my son!"

His body was pulled off of Minnowpaw by Tawnyclaw, who held the black and white warrior back. "Enough!" he hissed. "Minnowpaw is not to blame! She caught the vole, but I carried it back to camp! It was perfectly fine!"

Minnowpaw stood back up, shaking slightly. "It smelled fine," she insisted, but it was hard to find the words. "I was going to share it with him." She broke off in a sob, eyes stuck on the dead kit's body. First Shadebelly, now Breezekit, dead at her claws.

"It was fine!" Tawnyclaw insisted. He looked desperately towards Nightwhisper and Silverheart. "It has to be a sign from StarClan!" he exclaimed, eyes wide.

Silverheart was staring at the ground, her expression pained and grieving. But Nightwhisper's eyes turned dark and angry, and he turned his head towards Minnowpaw. "No, it isn't," he spat. "I tried to tell you all: Minnowpaw is cursed, and because of her, two cats are dead!"

His words were met with an uproar of agreement, and suddenly cats were pushing forward to spit and hiss in Minnowpaw's face: Mudpelt, Pebblenose, Cloudsplash, and Cherryheart. Twigtail and Sweetstripe's ears were flattened, and at the back of the crowd, Blacktail's tail lashed as he spat insults. Minnowpaw backed up, crouching low. Her Clan was turning against her.

"Enough!" Ashstar screeched. The noise died down. "Everyone, get back!"

Reluctantly, the angered cats retreated. Ashstar padded forward to look Minnowpaw in the eye. His gaze was pained, and Minnowpaw knew what he was thinking; she'd killed his deputy, and now a kit. "You didn't know it was poisoned?" he said softly.