Whatever After #6: Cold as Ice (7 page)

Jonah starts counting. “One! Two! Thr — Oh! Look at that!”

“What?” Gerda, Ralph, and I ask at the same time.

“Maybe this is the lock?” I hear a loud click. “Yes! I thought it was decoration! Hold on.” Jonah opens the window and a gush of cold, fresh air blows through the room.

“Ah,” Ralph says. “That feels good.”

“I’m going through,” Jonah says.

“Careful!” I call out again.

He shimmies through the window. “Pass up the blanket!” he calls.

I bend down very carefully, pick the blanket off Ralph’s back, and pass it back up. When Jonah gets the blanket, he holds it down to Gerda and heaves her up and out through the window.

“I’m next,” I say.

“No kidding,” Ralph mutters. Then he looks up at me with moon-sized eyes that squeeze my heart. “You won’t forget about me?”

“I won’t! I promise! JARG forever!” The blanket comes down and I grab hold. “We’ll come get you in five minutes.”

Gerda and Jonah yank me up and toward the darkness.

A
s I crawl through the window, I enjoy the rush of icy air against my cheeks. “We did it!” I whisper, climbing to my feet.

With the full moon and the stars, it’s lighter out here than it was in the basement. The snow of the front yard glows. My hair feels cold, and I realize I forgot my polar bear headpiece down in the basement. It’s fine. I’ll get it when I go back for Ralph.

“Now, how do I get back in?” I ask Gerda.

“Are you really going back in?” Jonah asks.

“Of course I am,” I say. “I promised Ralph!”

Gerda eyes the house nervously. “Maybe we should all go in together.”

“We’ll be too noisy,” I say. “Better for me to do it alone. I’ll go and you guys hide out here. I’ll be right back.”

“Let me go,” Gerda says.

“Or me,” Jonah says.

“No,” I say. “I’m the one who promised him. And I’m very good at sneaking into basements. I have a lot of experience.”

“So do I,” Jonah says.

“You make a lot more noise than I do,” I tell him. He’s always crashing into things, and he’s not so good at using his indoor voice. “I’ll go and you hide out here.” I take a deep breath and add, “If I don’t come back in twenty minutes, go ahead to the igloo castle, rescue Kai and Prince, and then come back for me.”

Jonah crosses his arms. “No way. I’m not leaving you!”

“We’re staying,” Gerda says firmly. “JARG!”

I shake my head. “It can’t just be about JARG. We have to be strategic.” I try to sound brave, even though I don’t want to be separated from Jonah. I need to protect him, after all. Even though I trust Gerda, the idea of leaving my little brother makes me feel queasy.

Gerda and Jonah shake their heads. I sigh, but I’m secretly glad. “Okay. Then wait for me. If I’m not back in twenty minutes, one of you can come in after me. Then we’ll all go together. Okay?”

Gerda nods. Jonah checks his Spider-Man watch to see the time.

I give Jonah a quick, tight hug just in case. It takes him a few extra seconds to let go.

“Be back in a sec!” I say, sounding extra chirpy.

Gerda and Jonah wave. “Go, JARG, go!” Gerda whisper-yells.

I make my way back to the house. Now what? I can’t go back through the window, obviously, because then I’ll be stuck inside.

Do I just go through the front door?

I might as well try, right?

I run very quietly to the front door. I turn the knob.

It doesn’t open.

Who knew? Robbers lock their front door.

I don’t know how to break a lock. I am just a ten-year-old girl. Not a robber or an escape artist.

I guess I have two options. I can find another window to climb through or look for another door.

A back door? Yes, a back door! We have a back door at our house, and we always forget to lock it.

I sneak around the side of the house. This time I tiptoe. Not that I’m making a ton of noise in my polar bear booties. At least the moon is bright, and I can see where I’m going.

And I can also see that there is in fact a back door. Hurrah!

The problem is that Mother is sitting on the back porch in a rocking chair, drinking something from a large chipped mug. Hot chocolate, probably. Of course SHE gets to drink as much hot chocolate as
she
wants. I bet she even gets marshmallows. Why is she still up?

I hide behind a tree.

I guess I have to just wait it out. Mother’s not going to sleep outside. Eventually, she’ll finish her drink and go inside. And when she does, that’s when I’ll make my move.

Yes. That’s the plan. She’ll probably slurp it down and be done in a minute or two.

She takes another sip. A slow one.

Another one.

Mother is the slowest drinker of all time.

What feels like ten minutes later, Mother finally, finally takes the last sip. She stands up and stretches her arms over her head. Her one good eye seems to glance over to where I am. But then she turns and disappears inside.

Whew.

I wait two extra minutes just to be safe and then sneak over to the back door. Did she lock it? That’s the million-dollar question.

I turn, turn, turn the handle. I hold my breath.

It turns. The door opens!

Yay!

Wow, I really have to remind Mom and Dad to lock our back door at home, huh? A crazy person could break in.

I slowly open the door. The house is pitch-black. How will I know where the basement is?

I hear a low voice and freeze.

“They’re never coming back. I’m going to be stuck here forever. All alone. I’ll never see my herd again.”

Oh! It’s Ralph complaining to himself. I’ll just follow his voice and voilà — basement!

I tiptoe over until I am standing in front of the basement door.

“JARG,” Ralph is saying. “Hah. JAG took off and left R to rot.”

Now all I have to do is unlock the door and go down the stairs. Abby to the rescue!

The door has one of those locks that pops when you turn the handle. I start to twist the handle and it easily turns. Did the lock pop and I not hear it? I crack open the door.

“Hello?” I whisper. I see Ralph resting on his front hooves in the middle of the room. I jog down the stairs and over to him. “Ready?”

He stares at me. Then he makes two long blinks and one short one.

My stomach drops. The code for
Sharon
. For danger.

“Well, look who came back, after all,” a girl’s voice says.

I spin around. Sure enough, Sharon is standing in the corner of the room, her eyes narrowed at me.

I
jump.

Sharon cuts between me and the stairs, blocking my way out.

“Imagine my surprise when I came downstairs and discovered that three of you were gone!” she snarls.

Something silver glints in her hand. Is it a ring? A bracelet?

No.

It’s a knife. Sharon is holding a knife.

Oh my goodness! Sharon is holding a knife! It’s a butter knife, but still. It’s scary! What kind of kid walks around with a knife? A horrible one, that’s the kind.

I take a step back and put my arm around Ralph’s midsection.

Ralph’s eyes are teary. “You came back! You really did!”

“Of course I did,” I say. “JARG!”

Ralph sighs. “But I guess now we’re not going anywhere.”

“Why not?” Sharon asks.

“Um, because you caught us?” Ralph says. “And because you’re holding a knife?”

She looks down at the knife in surprise. “This? I was just going to make myself a bagel with cream cheese. I like a middle-of-the-night snack. I can’t sleep. It’s too hot in my room.”

Hope balloons in my chest. “So you’re not going to stop us?”

She cracks her knuckles. “No. I’m going to join you! I was just coming downstairs to tell you. I thought about what you said, and you’re right. This place is awful. I want out. Anywhere has to be better than here.”

“Really?” I ask.

“Really!” she says. “Let’s go! I packed us a bag!”

I notice a black duffel bag at her feet.

“After you,” I say. But then I push ahead and hurry up the stairs before she does. “Actually, I’ll go first.”
Just in case.

*  *  *

“Jonah? Gerda?” I whisper-yell when we get outside.

I don’t see them.

“Gerda? Jonah?” I whisper-yell a little louder.

Ralph takes a big gulp of air and extends his front hooves. “It is so good to be out of that basement! Reindeer need to stretch our bodies and our brains, you know. We have extremely high IQs. Higher than humans. Did you know we’re geniuses?”

I run farther down the road.
Where are they?
My heart starts to thump. Could Mother have caught them? I turn back toward the house. It’s dark. If someone had caught them, there would be yelling.

Unless Sharon has been tricking me the whole time? What if this is an ambush?

“Any chance they went to the ice castle without you?” Sharon asks me.

Hmm. “I did tell them that they should go ahead if I didn’t come back right away….”

“There you go,” Ralph says. “They probably did that. We can pick them up along the way.”

“You don’t think they went back into the house, do you?” I ask worriedly.

“No,” Sharon says. “The only other way in is through the back and that’s how we came out. We would have seen them.”

“Good point.” I hope she’s right. And I really hope Jonah and Gerda are just a little up the road. “Oh,” I add, my hands going to my icy ears, “I left my polar bear mask in the basement
again
.”

“Take these, Abby,” Sharon says. She hands me a pair of earmuffs from her duffel. “Oh, and these.” She hands me a pair of brown suede boots.

“Thank you!” I say. “What else is inside? More warm clothes?”

“Yeah. And some food. Carrots and apples and bread. And disguises.”

“Really?”

“Of course! If I learned anything from my time with the band of robbers —”

I wait for Jonah to make his air-guitar motion and then feel a lump in my throat when I remember he’s not here.

“— it’s that you always need to carry disguises. Just in case. Face paint. Sunglasses. Fake mustaches.”

“Seriously? Fake mustaches?”

The lump gets larger. Jonah would scream with excitement.

“Of course. The best disguises always have mustaches.”

I slip my polar bear feet into the boots. They are huge on me. But beggars can’t be choosers. Then I put on the earmuffs, which are nice and cozy.

“I guess we could fly,” Ralph says.

“Fly?” Sharon and I ask at the same time.

“Yes, fly,” he says. “Have I never mentioned that I can fly? Most reindeer can.”

“If you can fly, why didn’t we fly around instead of you pulling us all on the sled?” Sharon asks.

“Did you think I was going to tell the robber ladies that I could fly? I have a bad back! I couldn’t fit you all on me, and I can’t fly with that sled. It’s too heavy. Speaking of which, I could really use a massage. Not that anyone ever offered me one.”

“Poor Ralph,” I say, and give his back a little rub. “But why did we have to stand on you in the basement? Why didn’t you just fly up to the window? Wouldn’t that have been better for your back?”

He shakes his head. “Reindeer can’t fly indoors. You guys really don’t know anything.”

“So does this mean you’ll fly us to the ice castle?” Sharon asks.

“I’ll fly you,” he says. “But are you sure really want to go there? What if the Snow Queen kisses you?”

“Well, hopefully, she won’t be there,” I say. I don’t add,
She’s not there in the fairy tale when Gerda goes back for Kai
. That would require too much explaining. “And you don’t have to come in. You can just drop us all off.”

“All right,” he says. “And then I’ll go north to find my herd! I haven’t seen them in years. When I was eighteen, I took off to explore. I didn’t realize how much I missed them until I got stuck with the robbers.” He turns to Sharon. “What about you? Where do you need to be?”

“I don’t need to be anywhere,” she says with a slight look of sadness. “But I’m dying to see the castle.”

Ralph bends down. “Come on, then. Don’t be shy. I’m not getting any younger.”

“Yay!” Sharon bounces right onto his back. Then she grabs his antlers.

“Do not touch the antlers,” he snaps.

“But how will I steer you?”

“You won’t,” he barks. “I am not a sled. I am a living, breathing, reindeer being. I can steer myself. Come on, Abby, get on. You go in front.”

Honestly, I am not sure this is a good idea. There are definitely no seat belts. And I am not wearing a helmet. Maybe we should just walk.

No. Time is ticking. I have to find my brother. And Prince. And I have to get home. Soon. If my parents wake up and find us missing, they’ll be so upset.
And
they’ll ground us for the rest of our lives. “Okay,” I say. I climb on in front of Sharon so I can better look for my brother and Gerda.

First, Ralph starts to trot. Then he picks up more and more speed, going faster and faster, the bell around his neck ringing louder and louder. Then I’m tilting backward and —

We’re in the air! We are in the air!

Oh my gosh, we are in the air!

I wrap my arms around Ralph’s neck for dear life.
Please don’t fall off, please don’t fall off.

“I have to breathe, you know,” Ralph calls back to me.

“Sorry,” I cry, but I don’t loosen my grip.

He swoops up and down. The cold wind rushes against my cheeks like an air conditioner on high.

I am feeling a bit carsick. Make that reindeer-sick?

“This view is amazing!” Sharon cries. “Ralph, you’re amazing! I can’t believe I have lived with you for so long and never knew how amazing you are!”

I feel him puff up with pride underneath me. It’s sweet, but it almost makes me lose my grip.

The view
is
amazing. We’re above the snowy trees and mountains. The sun is just starting to come up, and the snow below us is covered in shades of orange and red.

“Wasn’t it just night?” I ask.

“The sun sets at eleven
P.M.
and rises at three
A.M.
in the summer,” Ralph says.

“This is summer?” I ask in disbelief.

“Of course!” he says. “Wait until you see how cold it gets in the winter.”

No way am I dealing with a Republic of Blizzard winter. Thanks, but no thanks.

I can’t believe I longed for snow back in Smithville.

Whoosh!

One of my boots flies off. I knew it was too big. Oops.

“I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you more, Ralph,” says Sharon. “Mother told me I couldn’t, but I shouldn’t have listened to her. I was so lonely. And I hated robbing people. Why did we need so many statues, anyway?”

While Sharon is feeling guilty about how she treated Ralph, I’m feeling guilty for letting Jonah out of my sight. I’m his big sister! It’s my responsibility to watch out for and protect him. Where is he? And where’s Gerda?

“I don’t see them anywhere,” I say, scanning the ground below us. How far could they have gotten? We should have seen them by now.

“I hope they didn’t freeze,” Sharon says. “Or get eaten by wolves.”

“Oh my goodness, the wolves!” I shout. “I forgot about the wolves!”

“Oh, don’t worry about the wolves,” Ralph says. “They spend summers in the kingdom of Subzero. They find Blizzard summers too warm.”

Yet another reason why I don’t want to still be here in winter.

“I’ll do another loop to look for Jonah and Gerda,” Ralph says. We circle back and then back again.

“Maybe they’re already at the igloo castle,” I say. I don’t know how they could have gotten there that fast. Although they’re both in pretty good shape, with their rock climbing and jumping jacks.

“I’ll fly over the castle,” Ralph says.

The big sparkling igloo gets bigger as we get closer.

I strain my neck to see if I can spot my brother. Something is moving on the roof! Is that them? Is that a penguin? No! Wait! It’s Jonah! In his penguin costume! And Gerda in her orange tracksuit and matching hat. She’s hard to miss.

“Look!” I say, my body heaving in relief. “They’re on the roof! They made it!” I exhale. My brother is here! And I will never, ever let him out of my sight again.

“Hooray!” cheers Sharon.

“Jonah!” I call down. “Gerda!”

Gerda lifts her arm in a wave.

Hooray! She seems perfectly normal! Which means the Snow Queen really
isn’t
here and didn’t blow any kisses to her.

Prince is on the roof, too. I feel another whoosh of relief. He’s in the exact same position he was in before, frozen in mid-gallop. They probably haven’t been able to defrost him yet.

Kai is also on the roof. He’s lying on his back. It looks like he’s making another snow angel. I guess they haven’t cured him yet, either.

It’s okay. I’m here now to help. We’ll have to figure out how to defrost everyone, but at least Kai and Prince are still
alive
.

“So where do you want me to drop you guys off?” Ralph asks. “I’m not sure there’s enough room for me on the roof. And I weigh a lot. I don’t want to break it.”

Kai has certainly been busy. There are three more snowmen than there were yesterday.

“Maybe at the front door?” I suggest. I can see the staircase that leads up to the roof from inside the house.

“No problemo,” Ralph bellows. “I can’t believe I’m going home. I’m really going home! Thank you, Abby, for coming back for me!”

“Happy to help,” I say, feeling warm inside.

“I can’t wait to see my herd,” he says.

“You’re lucky you have a family,” Sharon says wistfully.

Ralph not so gently lands on a snowbank. “Good luck, girls.”

“You too,” I say. I put my arms around his midsection to give him a hug.

“Bye,” Sharon says. “Sorry for, you know, keeping you prisoner all those years.”

Ralph grimaces. “I know it wasn’t your decision.”

“But still,” Sharon says, hanging her head, “I should have helped you escape long ago.”

“Yes,” Ralph says. “You should have. Good-bye, girls! Good-bye, Jonah! Good-bye, sweet Gerda!” He waves to all of us with one hoof. Then, with a running jump, he takes flight off the mountain. I watch him sail into the sky, and then I turn around to see my brother.

“Jonah!” I call up.

He doesn’t look down. Obviously, he doesn’t hear me.

“Jonah!” I call again.

He still doesn’t look down. He’s very busy rolling something. Is he making a snowball?

Gerda is helping him. She is packing the snow on the ground into a big ball.

Are they making a snowman?

She has a completely dazed look on her face. They both do.

“Why are they building snowmen when they should be defrosting Kai and Prince?” Sharon asks. “Did the Snow Queen put a spell on them, too?”

Dread seeps through me. It can’t be. My brother and Gerda can’t be under the Snow Queen’s spell. The Snow Queen isn’t supposed to be here.

“But Gerda waved at me,” I say. “Frombies don’t wave!”

“Did she?” Sharon asks. “I thought she was just taking off her hat. Look — she put it on one of the snowmen.”

Sure enough, one of the snowmen is now wearing Gerda’s orange hat.

Oh no oh no oh no.

“We have to save Jonah!” I scream.

“Shhhh!” Sharon orders. “If he’s under a spell, that means the Snow Queen was just here. She could be in the castle right now.”

I nod. “She’s not on the roof, though. Maybe she went to sleep or is out jogging or something. Who knows? We need to sneak up to the roof, get everyone, and leave.”

“Yes,” Sharon says. “And you know what that means.” She unzips her duffel bag. “We need disguises.”