Angel and the dogs crouched down while Fang and I dug out a cave as fast as we could. Since our hands were frozen and we couldn’t feel them, this took longer than we hoped. Finally it was big enough to hold all of us — barely. We grabbed Angel, Total, and Akila, and pulled them into our makeshift shelter. Fang and I kept our backs to the wind, and within a minute, the storm had blown enough snow to seal us in. It was amazing how the wall deadened the sound outside. The lack of wind howling in my ears was deafening.

I took off my sunglasses and checked us all out. Angel was still pale and shaking with cold. Fang was trying hard not to shiver, but he was obviously grimly miserable. Total was struggling to his feet. Akila was standing uncertainly, pressed against the back wall of the shelter. Her thick fur was full of ice, and I quickly rubbed my gloved hands over her, brushing the ice to the ground.

“How’s your ankle, Angel?” I asked.

“It hurts. It might not be actually broken, though. Don’t know. It hurts.” She was wiped, hardly able to speak.

“Okay, everyone, rub your arms and slap your hands against your chest,” I ordered, fighting the urge to just lie down and go to sleep. It was quiet in here, cozy almost, and maybe I was imagining it, but I felt warmer. “Get that blood going!” I reached over and rubbed Total’s fur. “How you doin’?”

“I’d give a lot for one of those thermal pools about now,” he said, his voice thin and crackly.

“You and me both,” I said with feeling. I glanced at Fang. “Too bad Brigid isn’t here. I bet she’d know what to do.” I probably only sounded about 70 percent bitter.

Fang met my gaze evenly. “I’m sure she’ll come find our frozen bodies.”

“We’re not gonna freeze!” Angel said anxiously. “Are we?”

Instantly I regretted baiting Fang, but what do you know, even a little bit of anger warms you right up. “No, sweetie, we have this shelter. We’ll be okay,” I said. “We’ll just wait out the storm, and as soon as it’s over, we’ll all get back to the station.”

I wondered if the others had got caught in the storm. I sure hoped not. I was totally not up for rescuing anyone else.

Chapter 58

58

HERE’S A TIP: If you’re ever stuck in an ice cave in the middle of a storm with two bird kids, a talking dog, and another dog, do yourself a favor: Bring a book. ’Cause once it seems as though you might not die any second, it suddenly becomes intensely boring. And if Total hummed another song from My Fair Lady, I was gonna throw him back out into the blizzard.