The penguin tracks had led over the snow and ice, and Angel had followed them. Right up until she’d fallen into this crevasse. It had been hidden by hard-packed snow, and the penguins had somehow managed to cross it, though some of them weighed more than Angel. But for some reason, as soon as Angel stepped on it, it had given way. Her wings had flared automatically, pulling up painfully as she slid down deep into the hard, icy crevasse. Yelping and scrabbling frantically, Total and Akila had been sucked down with her.

Now, three minutes later, Angel, Total, and Akila were wedged tightly in a vee made of ice and rock-hard packed snow. Her wings were stuck open, back and behind her, and it really hurt. She tried pulling them in and down but couldn’t budge them without feeling like they were going to be ripped out of their sockets.

Worse, Angel feared that below them, the crevasse opened out again, that they were caught in a bottleneck of ice, and if it broke, they would fall down who knew how far. One of her feet was dangling through a crack underneath them, and all she felt around it was cold air. She might be able to catch herself, if she had enough room, but she wouldn’t be able to save Total or Akila.

“How far down did we fall?” Total asked.

Angel looked up. “Um, maybe like . . . eighteen feet? Twenty feet?”

“Maybe if I brace my paws on each side, I can climb up, like a chimney,” Total murmured. “No — it’s too wide at the top. Dang it.” His bright black eyes looked at Angel. “We goofed.”

“Yeah.” Angel felt guilty — this was all her fault. If she sent a thought, could Max hear it? She didn’t think so. It only seemed to work when she was really close to the person.

Akila whimpered and scrabbled again, trying to grab a paw-hold. But she only slipped farther down, and now some of her weight was resting on Angel, pushing her down an inch and making her wings feel an inch more ripped, and her foot an inch more precarious.

Akila, please stop, Angel thought at her. Calm down and stay very still. We have to think.

Akila let out a breath. Angel felt her trembling.

Angel’s stomach got butterflies when she realized that they wouldn’t be visible from the air. Because she wasn’t moving, she was starting to feel the horrible grip of coldness seeping under her jacket, her pants. She looked over and saw that both Total’s and Akila’s whiskers were covered with frost.