Later that evening, when Luna showed no interest in playing fetch or even in getting a belly rub, Connie got her leash and said, "I'm going to take Luna for a walk."

Shenoah, who was busy sewing, nodded. "All right," she agreed. "But don't stay out too long. It's almost dark."

"I won't," promised Connie. She went out the door and headed straight for the vet's office. "I'm gonna find out what's wrong with you, girl," she said firmly.

Luna groaned. A vet can't help me, she thought. She felt her stomach lurch as they walked past Toby's house. Toby… she thought with an ache in her chest. How she wanted this all to be over.

Connie marched straight up to the vet's office and tried the doorknob. It was locked. "Oh, no," she complained, stomping her foot. "The office is closed."

"Can I help you?" asked a voice from overhead. Connie looked up to see the vet sticking his head out a window on the second floor.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here!" she called up to him. "Could you take a look at my dog? I don't know what's wrong with her, but Dad won't take her to see you until tomorrow."

The vet shrugged. "I'd like to help you," he replied, Abut the office is closed. I'm sure she'll be fine until then. Do your parents even know you're here?"

"No," answered Connie.

The vet shook his head. "Sorry then, but you'll have to come back tomorrow."

"Please?" begged Connie. But the man had already closed the window.

Connie, not one to be easily discouraged, bent down and scooped up some snow. Rolling it into a ball, she threw it up at the window. There was a thump as the icy sphere hit the glass, and the vet came back and opened it.

"Stop that!" he called down.

"Just take a look at Luna, please?" begged Connie. "Just a quick check-up?"

"All right," the vet relented. "I'll be down in a few minutes." He closed the window and appeared a few minutes later in his white jacket. "Now, let's see what's going on with your dog."

"She won't eat," Connie explained as the vet lifted Luna onto the table. "And she's been really sad all day. I even tried to give her some spaghetti from supper, but she wouldn't touch it."

"Spaghetti?" asked the vet in confusion as he listened to Luna's heartbeat.

"It's her favorite," explained Connie.

Luna's stomach knotted itself at the mere mention of spaghetti. It had been her favorite food ever since Toby had given her some on their first date, but now just the thought of it made her feel sick.

The vet felt Luna's nose, rubbed her side to feel for her ribs, and shrugged. "Has she been acting like this a lot lately?"

Connie shook her head. "No," she answered. "Not until today."

The vet thought for a minute and shook his head. "Let me check her record," he said, going to his file cabinet. He ruffled through the folders, pulled out Luna's, and began to scan through it. "Well, she doesn't have much of a history," he noted. "All I have on her are some basic shots and one case of broken bones and an injured back when she was a puppy."

Connie suddenly thought of something. "Could she be expecting puppies? she asked brightly. "My mom got kind of tired before she had my brother."

Luna groaned. That's all I need, she thought. Puppies at a time like this. She had wanted puppies for a long time, but if she was losing Toby like it seemed, she couldn't bear the thought of having children on top of everything else.

"Well…" the vet began slowly. And then he said something that shook Luna to her very core.

While all this was going on, Toby decided to go to Terra's and tell her everything right away. As he walked through the streets of Nome, dogs growled at him or cast him dirty looks. Old friends turned up their noses. Most of the sled team looked the other way when he passed, while Kodi, Dusty, and Norik just shook their heads in disapproval. One dog, whom he recognized as Luna's brother, even gnashed his teeth at him and had to be pulled away by his master. The gossips in Nome had obviously outdone themselves this time.

As was typical of Toby's luck, Terra wasn't at her house or the granary. He tried to sniff her out, but the smells of all the dogs and people that had passed though the area obscured the scent. He tried asking around, but that proved useless as well. The few dogs who would still talk to him―most of whom were total strangers―could not provide him with any help whatsoever. Finally with the sun going down, he trudged home with his head and tail drooping in defeat.

Toby found it all but impossible to sleep that night. All he could think about was Luna. True, they'd had their rough times, but this nightmare was a first. He vividly recalled Luna's tear-soaked face when she had come to the door. He'd never seen Luna cry before. Never. Not even when he had broken her back legs by accident as a puppy. And now he had personally seen her crying her eyes out, all because of him. I never should've agreed to keep it secret, he thought. It didn't seem wrong at the time and yet…

And while he was thinking this, something else was arising in the back of his mind. What if Luna was so upset that she decided not to be his mate anymore? No, part of him argued. She's not like that. She wouldn't do that, not to me. Would she?

Toby wasn't the only one to suffer a troubled sleep that night. At her own house, Luna was also tossing and turning so much that although Connie kept silent, it was hours before the girl got any sleep. The sounds she heard Toby and…Terra making behind the door played endlessly over and over in her mind. It just didn't make any sense. Toby had always been so open with her. He was a loyal friend and a loving mate. Why the change? Was it something she'd done? True, she'd joked about his appearance and manners from time to time, but it had only been meant as humor, not nagging, and he always seemed to understand that. No, she thought, there has to be a logical explanation for all of this. But what? And in the middle of it, the vet's revelation kept playing itself over and over in her mind, looming before her like a giant reaching out to crush her in its fist.

"Luna?" asked Connie. Awakened by the constant movement of Luna's tossing and turning, Connie crawled out from under the covers to pet her. "It's okay, Luna. I know you're sad, but you'll be okay."

Right, thought Luna skeptically. As if the vet's news was her real problem. It wasn't, it was just extra wood on the fire. She went over those she could possibly go to for advice. Her sisters were sympathetic, but deep down this was just gossip to them. Her parents had been supportive when they found out, but somehow they didn't seem to be much help either. Her brothers had promised to get revenge on Toby, but Luna didn't want that. Even if she had, promises of revenge could only go so far. None of her brothers had ever actually been through anything like this. Her parents had always been faithful to each other. Even her sisters, who had been through more boyfriends than she cared to count, had never been betrayed in this manner. Without Toby, Luna's whole existence was falling apart. For the first time in her life, she felt truly and completely alone.

The next day, Toby went to the granary as usual. Sure enough, Terra was waiting for him. "Ready to go?" she asked.

Toby shook his head. "Not really. Listen, we need to talk."

"Okay," said Terra agreeably. "But let's do it inside, it's warmer there."

Toby followed her inside and sat down. "Terra, we can't go on like this." Terra eyed him curiously. "Some of the dogs are starting to talk."

Terra's eyes widened. "But you promised you wouldn't tell anyone!" she cried. "What would happen to my reputation if word got out? I'd never be able to show my face again!"

"Well right now, I can't show mine," Toby retorted. "Disappearing for an hour every day, going behind locked doors with a female that isn't my mate. You do the math. Everyone is coming to the conclusion that I'm two-timing on Luna. Old friends, my brothers-in-law, they're all turning against me! All you have to worry about are some acquaintances who might think you're a lowlife if they find out. But if I keep hiding the truth for you, I could lose my friends, some of my family, maybe even Luna." Toby frowned. "Terra, do you realize what this is doing to me? Everybody in town is giving me dirty looks. Pete thinks I've turned into one of the 'bad boys' like him, and Luna is going out of her mind!" He paused to let this sink in, then decided to pull out the heavy artillery. "And I'm telling you right now that I'm not giving you any more lessons until this is over."

Terra stared at the ground and was quiet for a long time, feeling very guilty. She'd been so concerned about her own social life that she hadn't given any thought to how this might look on him. But now that she knew, it left her feeling disgusted with herself. "you're right," she agreed. "I shouldn't have made you promise to keep it secret, especially from Luna, and I'm sorry." She stood up. "Come on, let's go tell her what we've been doing before it gets any worse."

Toby sighed. "Thank you! For a second there, I was starting to worry."

They trotted outside only to be faced by a daunting crowd: Phoebe, Haley, half the town gossips, and all three of Luna's brothers. Even Luna was there, at the head of the group. And to top it off, Pete had joined the crowd just to get on Toby's nerves.

"There they are!" shouted Phoebe.

"Caught in the act!" announced Haley angrily.

"I knew you didn't have it in you," Pete sneered with a nasty grin.

Luna looked like she might cry again. "Toby, I thought you were better than this."

"Come on!" said one of Luna=s brothers. "Let's get those two-timing rats!"

"No, wait! Listen!" barked Toby as several of the dogs got ready to attack him. "This isn't what you think!"

"Shove it, mutt!" snapped one of the gossips. "We've got you red-pawed!"

"Listen," said Toby desperately. "I promise we can explain everything." As he surveyed the crowd, he realized they weren't exactly eager to take his word for anything. "And I can prove we're telling the truth, too."

"How?"

Toby looked desperately at Luna. "Luna, would you please…no, I'll go. I've caused you enough trouble already." He turned to the crowd. "I'll explain everything, but first I need to get a couple of dogs who can back up what I'm going to tell you."

The crowd parted with a concert of growls to let Toby leave, but closed shut before Terra could follow. "We'll keep her here until you get back," snarled Haley.

Toby nodded, hoping that Luna wouldn't let them hurt Terra. "Okay," he agreed. "But if you do anything to her, you'll be answering to me and my parents for it." And with that he ran off down the street.

Luna stared after him. "Please, Toby," she whispered. "Don't let me down."