Melting the Ice Witch Read Online Free PDF Page A

returned to the dogs Mae started glancing up at the sky just as often.
    It was getting dark awfully early, and Kam only realized the cause was heavy clouds coming from the west when Mae started giving those clouds sharp looks while they were washing the lunch bowls.
    When the clouds started to take on a faint green tinge, Mae calmly stood up and started barking orders.
    "Blizzard's coming!" she yelled. "Start packing up. We're settling in the caves tonight!"
    Kam gulped. He had never been in a blizzard before, just the regular snowstorms that fell every few days. His own fear and the scurry of everyone around him galvanized Kam. He quickly gathered up all the brushing paraphernalia and started calling the sled dogs over.
    Even as the sleds started to fill with the clan's belongings, Kam was busy hitching up six dogs to every sled. When all ten sleds were ready and he still had a couple of loose sled dogs, Kam improvised a way to hook one or two more dogs to the traces until every sled dog in the clan was accounted for.
    "I've packed up your tent," Hern called as he dropped the trunk that usually held Kam's meager belongings onto the sled Kam was working by. Somehow the trunk had been turned into a case for Kam's entire tent. The heavy leather straps that held the top closed also secured the tent poles and Kam was sure his furs and the tent itself were stored safely inside. The clan was clearly prepared for any eventuality.
    "Thanks, Hern," Kam called after Hern's back as the man rushed off to complete another task.
    The hunting dogs were still loose, but Kam already had a solution for them. He had seen hunting parties go out with the dogs on long leashes attached to the sleds when the hunters didn't want their dogs to stray far during the journey. Kam dug out those leashes and started calling the hunting dogs to the sleds.
    "I've never rounded up all those animals so quickly before," Mae said as she stopped by the sleds and saw all the dogs sitting calmly in their leashes and traces next to their sleds. "Usually the excitement from our packing sends them into a frenzy. Maybe there's something to what Lor was saying," she added offhandedly. "Is there anything you need help with?" she asked finally.
    Kam nodded. "I've gotten all the dogs except the new mother and her four pups. I wasn't sure how you wanted me to secure them."
    Mae hummed thoughtfully. "Well, the mom's okay to run by now. Hook her up to a leash. Take out one of the old furs from the kennel and find a place on the same sled to stash the pups. I doubt the runt is strong enough to make the journey, so if you can only find space for three, you'll have to leave her behind."
    Kam frowned at that thought. The runt might be small, but she was going to grow into a great hunting dog. Leaving her behind would be a great disservice to the clan.
    "All right," Kam said as he hurried off to the kennels. The mother dog was waiting by the door with all four of her pups whining awkwardly at her side. The runt took a tumble as she tried to hop forward to say hello to Kam. He quickly bent down to scoop her and her siblings up before turning to the mother. "Come on," he said gently. Kam led them at a pace slow enough that he didn't accidentally drop one of the squirming pups in his arms. He leashed the mother to the side of one of the sleds and tucked the three pups into a secure space between two trunks where they could still smell their mother.
    Kam could have fit the runt into the space as well, but the poor thing was shivering and unhappy, so he tucked her into his coat where Kam knew she'd be warm and secure.
    The sound of panting dogs made Kam turn just in time to see Lor's sled rush into what was left of the camp. Lor was at the helm, but he was alone.
    "Move out now!" he yelled before anyone could turn and ask questions. "The storm's much closer than it looks."
    Luckily, the tents, people's belongings, and the essentials like food and peat were already loaded. Only the