River of Lost Bears by Erin Hunter Read Free Book Online

bears?”
    â€œI guess.”
    â€œAny sign?”
    â€œNo.” Toklo hurried to catch up with Lusa.
    â€œWhat’s up with Toklo?” Yakone padded beside Kallik. “He seems distracted.”
    â€œI think he’s nervous about running into other bears after his clash with Hakan,” Kallik replied.
    â€œBut we’ve traveled for a day and not even smelled another bear,” Yakone pointed out. He slowed as Lusa and Toklo halted where the river changed direction.
    Kallik and Yakone reached them. “Are we stopping to hunt?” Kallik asked.
    â€œToklo says if we keep following the river, it’ll take longer to get home,” Lusa explained.
    Yakone tilted his head. “Are you sure?”
    Toklo nodded. “The cold wind blows us home.” He looked back along the river, the breeze rippling his fur. “If we head straight through the forest instead of following the river around, we’ll get there quicker.”
    Kallik heard excitement in his voice.
    Yakone’s eyes darkened. “Won’t we get lost if we leave the river?”
    â€œIt’ll meet our path again,” Toklo told him.
    Kallik felt queasy at the thought of plunging into the dark woods. What if they never found their way out? “How do you know?”
    â€œThe water smells of home,” Toklo told her. “It’s mountain water—I can remember its taste. It comes from where we’re headed. We’ll cross it again.”
    Yakone leaned closer to Kallik. “How will we stay cool without the river?”
    â€œIt’ll be shady in the forest,” Lusa promised.
    Kallik gazed across the wide stretch of water, her belly tightening at the thought of leaving it. She looked at Toklo. “You decide,” she told him. She trusted the tug of home. She could feel the ice pulling in the pit of her belly. Surely, Toklo felt the same wrench. “It’s your journey home, Toklo. You should choose the path.”
    Toklo glanced uncertainly from river to forest. “I wish Ujurak was here,” he murmured. “He was good at guiding us.”
    â€œHe was good at everything,” Lusa whispered.
    â€œHe’s still with us in spirit,” Kallik reminded them. “I dreamed of him last night.” She didn’t mention the soft voice she’d heard on the wind after she’d woken from her dream and padded into the shallows. She wanted to keep it as her own quiet memory.
    â€œWhich way would he choose?” Lusa wondered.
    Kallik lifted her muzzle. “He’d tell Toklo to follow his instinct.”
    Toklo straightened. “Then we head through the forest.” Without waiting, he headed upshore and pushed his way through the sedge.
    Kallik hesitated as Yakone and Lusa followed him into the woods. Gazing at the river, she took a final drink and hurried after them.
    The pines closed over her head like storm clouds. The sound of the river faded. Lusa was right, it was shady here, but the trees kept out the wind and Kallik felt suffocated by the stillness. Toklo and Lusa pushed ahead, threading easily between the shrubs. Yakone grunted as he tripped over a root. Kallik kept her eyes on her paws.
    â€œOw!” A bramble caught her pelt and ripped at her fur. She struggled, but more thorns hooked into her flank, and they held her fast. She jerked her muzzle around and nipped at one of the branches. Pain stabbed her jaws as prickles dug in. The bramble trembled as though it was about to tumble over her.
    Panic rising, Kallik turned to Yakone. But his pelt was disappearing among the trees. Toklo and Lusa were already swallowed by shadow. For a moment she imagined being stuck here forever, the trees crowding around her, the sky gone.
    â€œYakone!”
    Yakone jerked around. “Kallik?”
    Toklo stopped and turned.
    Lusa hurried back. “You’re caught! Hold on.” Stretching out her muzzle, she began to pick Kallik free of the sharp