Ice -- Wolv book II

10 - Normalcy...?

"Umf."

I stretched out my legs and rolled over on the sheets sleepily. Boy, do these smell good. I felt the joints in my paws crack, and I let myself go slack on the mattress, inhaling the lavender scent of the bedding happily. I hadn't slept on something so comfortable since I'd been bitten months ago; the bed conformed around my side, and the sheets underneath me were silky smooth.

I felt the edge of the bed dip, and Nadie's scent washed over me.

"I can't figure out how to open the door."

I forced my eyes open. She sat on the bed, looking rather frustrated.

"Did you try pushing it?"

"Yes, genius, I did. Would ya come and help me already? I've been at it for fifteen minutes!"

"Ugh," I muttered. I didn't want to get up. "Fine." I pushed myself up and walked across the mattress, my paws sinking down into the springs with every step I took until I leapt off of the bed and onto the carpet.

Last night, we'd been lead into what resembled a tiny hotel suite by Sarah and her Grandmother. All the while, everyone had been giving us the strangest looks; to say that we'd been looked upon with suspicion wouldn't quite do it justice.

Sarah had promised to come by again in the morning before shutting Nadie and I inside the room. "The two of you look awful. Some food and a good sleep will do wonders, trust me," she'd said before leaving. Hutch and Tara had been lead into an adjacent room and similarly shut inside. I'd heard the two of them arguing with each other through the walls for about an hour, each one laying blame for our predicament.

But its not really a "predicament," is it?  The people here, however strange, had in fact helped us, whether we'd been accepting of their benevolence or not. A large chunk of meat had been left in our room by the door, but neither Nadie or I had touched it yet. In fact, when we'd first entered the room, we'd both curled up on the bed within minutes, exhaustion overruling our starvation.

Everyone here was Cree; they all shared the same dark, tanned complexion, and the few that had spoken to us spoke with a thick accent clouding their English, making their words seem drawn out and overly deliberate. I'd figured that this place was some kind of reserve, yet I'd never heard the name "Minikwakunis Lake" before.

Nadie stood at the door--this one was split into an upper and lower section as well--and pawed at the lower portion, growling at it.

"Open, dangit!"

I gingerly stepped over the chunk of sirloin that had been left for us, and pushed at the door with my nose. Something clicked in the wall, and the door swung outward, opening up a few inches. I looked over at Nadie and smirked.

"Don't...don't say anything," she growled.

I stuck my muzzle out the door and looked up and down the dark hallway. Doors lined both walls, and I could hear the sound of people breathing from underneath them; it seemed that we were in some kind of dormitory. Carpet covered the hallway floor, adding to the feeling that I was in a hotel.

I stepped back and drew the door closed.

"What are you doing? I've been trying to get out!"

I shook my head at her. "There's nothing to see. We should probably wait for Hutch before we go poking around here, don't you think?" She bristled at me, but I cut her off. "Look, we'll find a way outta here yet. It can't be that hard; after all, they didn't lock us in here."

"I wasn't gonna go exploring. I need to go out."

Oh. "There's a bathroom literally right beside you," I pointed. She rolled her eyes at me.