Page 58 of Feast

Ika had been trying to escape from Slaine and his pack, but now she felt only gratitude that he had caught up with her in time.

Things could be much worse.

Ika still had her life. And a second wave of relief washed over her when she realized that she still had her ring necklace too. It was still fastened around her throat.

That little steel ring brought to mind Rolf, and Ika’s heart sank a little.

Once the storm outside had passed, Slaine would remove her from this grim shelter and return with her to his pack. Then she would be right back where she had started.

But for now it was just her and Slaine.

The ukkur obviously cared about her on some level—enough to save her from dying. Maybe that meant she could persuade him to help her get back to Rolf.

It was worth a try at least.

“Slaine. What will you do with me when the storm is over? Where will you take me?”

The only reply was a grunt.

Perhaps the question was a little too complicated. So far, Slaine had only spoken two words. He had not even formed a full sentence. Ika needed to keep it simple. Something that could be answered with a mere yes or no.

“Slaine, will you help me get back home to Rolf’s den?”

Grunt.

Ika tried to figure out if that animal sound held some answer—a rising or falling intonation that might give a clue to its being an affirmative or negative answer. But she could discern nothing of the sort.

She repeated her question, a little more slowly this time, but she was met with the same inscrutable reply.

Okay, so much for that approach.

Ika sighed.

If she could not communicate with Slaine, then there was nothing else to do but wait for the storm to pass. Ika was a naked captive in his arms. And even if she could somehow manage to wriggle free, where would she go? She would freeze to death in mere minutes out there in the storm.

The only thing to do now was to wait it out. After that, whatever happened happened. For now, she was just grateful to be alive.

Her only wish was that their shelter was a little less disgusting.

It was not like Ika had never seen or tasted blood before. Of course she had. Rolf had taught her how to gut and dress wild game with her stone knife. Ika was hardly squeamish.

But this was a bit much.

Surrounded and encased in bloody innards, she swallowed against the nausea creeping up her throat.

Again, Ika reminded herself to be grateful.

She was safe, for now. Safe and warm.

Ika resigned herself to the situation. She pressed herself back against Slaine’s protective body. The touch of his living warmth was more appealing than dead guts.

But as she squeezed herself against Slaine’s hard muscles, slippery with gore, something long and hard wedged in the cleft of her butt and throbbed against her tailbone.

Ika instantly knew what that was.

“Slaine!”

The ukkur grunted, and this time Ika could hear the smile in that sound.