The name rippled through the camp like a shockwave, silencing the laughter and clatter of dinner preparations.
Mothers froze with ladles hovering over steaming pots. Fathers dropped their axes, the thud of wood hitting the ground echoing in the sudden silence.
Every golden eye in the Golden Mane tribe turned to scan the group of playing cubs near the firelight.
Mao Mao looked around, his fluffy tail drooping low between his legs, his ears pinned back in confusion. "Kito? He was here! He was chasing me just a second ago!" His voice trembled, small and lost in the vastness of the savanna night.
"He went to get water!" Qiu Qiu cried out, his little paw pointing frantically toward the darkening tree line where the shadows stretched long and hungry.
"He said he wanted to show the cheetah man his new rock! The shiny one he found by the river!"
The blood drained from Xin Yi's face so quickly she felt dizzy.
