ICEHOTEL Read Online Free PDF

can’t stand the cold.’
    As we started our descent into Kiruna, Wilson’s last words
rang in my head. The holiday couldn’t have been Marcellus’s idea. The Icehotel
was a strange choice of location if you couldn’t stand the cold.

Chapter 3
    Kiruna airport was packed. All
flights that day seemed to have arrived at once.
    We pushed our way into the tiny arrivals lounge, searching
for o ur tour guide. He was holding a company
placard, scanning the crowd anxiously.
    Harry was the first to reach him. ‘I’m Harry Auchinleck,’ he
beamed. ‘I believe we’re on your tour.’
    ‘The Edinburgh group? Great. I’m Leonard Tullis. Call me
Leo.’ The guide smiled broadly, showing uneven teeth. His fair hair was a
tangle of curls, as though he was just out of bed. He seemed too young and,
anywhere else, I’d have taken him for a sixth-former. ‘First things first,’ he
said. ‘I’ll need your names.’
    The Bibbys came forward. Wilson stood aside while Marcellus
took care of business. Leo made a mark on his sheet but, if he recognised the
name, he gave no indication.
    ‘Looks like the Bibbys will be with us,’ I said to Liz.
    ‘I do hope it doesn’t spoil Harry’s holiday. He’s been so
looking forward to it.’ She lowered her voice. ‘You don’t think there’s going
to be any unpleasantness, do you?’
    ‘I wouldn’t put anything past Harry. You know how he is
about his research.’
    ‘I meant on Wilson’s part.’ She looked fondly at Harry.
‘Whatever the situation, Harry’s manners are always impeccable.’
    Wilson was speaking quietly to Marcellus, who was smiling
and nodding. No, I couldn’t see Wilson raising an issue about the incident at
Stockholm; his manners would also be impeccable. Unlike Liz, however, I was
less sure about Harry.
    A girl with fiercely-permed red hair was peering over Leo’s
shoulder, watching anxiously as he ran a finger down the list. He found her
name, and she relaxed visibly, flashing him a smile which illuminated her face.
She seemed to have limitless energy, like a puppy, and was unable to stay still
for long. Her porcelain skin, vacant blue eyes, and cupid-bow lips reminded me
of a Dresden china doll. Leo glanced at her from time to time, interest on his
face, and I wondered whether, like a china doll, she could be damaged easily.
    The last names on the list were Jim and Robyn Ellis. Robyn
was a small woman, marginally bigger than her enormous rucksack. She had to
lean forward permanently to keep her centre of gravity from toppling her
backwards. Her husband was remarkably the same – they could have been brother
and sister – although he was taller. Both were wiry with short greying hair
that stood straight up like brush bristles. Their physique was that of hill-walkers,
which they probably were given the condition of their boots. They made a
beeline for the wall, and peered with bloodshot eyes at the map of the local
terrain. Robyn made notes. I turned away, smiling. I knew the type – they meant
business.
    Leo called us to attention. ‘ Okay ,
folks, time to rock and roll.’
    He pulled up the hood of his black ski suit and fastened it
firmly at the neck. I watched his deliberate movements impatiently, hungry for
my first glimpse of Lapland. When he drew on his gloves and worked them over
his hands, pressing firmly between the fingers, I realised I could wait no
longer. I pushed open the swing doors and stepped outside.
    My initial reaction was one of shock, laced with disbelief.
    The freezing air crisped my face and hands, the cold seeping
through my clothes and into my body. I gasped, drawing in air which seared my
throat, reminding me of my first clandestine iced vodka. A second later I was
shuddering. And it was still only midday.
    Leo had brought the others outside. He watched me with
amusement in his eyes. ‘You think this is cold?’ The corners of his mouth
lifted. ‘The temperature starts dropping about now.’ He led the way to the
coach.
    Once