Fire and Ice Read Online Free

sponsored in January. Several other landowners let them run over their property and turned out to help man checkpoints for the race.
    As the dogs pulled her along, she prayed silently for Grandpa. If he went to the rehab place, would he be able to come home in time for this year’s race? They’d received forty-eight entries—a record number for the Fire & Ice. Some of the names on the list impressed even Grandpa, who knew every musher in Alaska. A few well-known dog racers liked to use the Hollands’ race as a warm-up for longer competitions or a training ground for young dogs. That suited Robyn just fine. It gave the Hollands an opportunity to display their kennel and dogs they had raised to potential customers.
    The race fell on January twenty-third this year, which gave her only a few weeks to complete all the preparations. Without Grandpa’s help, she would carry most of the load.
    When she got back to the house half an hour later, Darby came smiling from the puppies’ enclosure. “How’d they do?” she called.
    “Perfect.” Robyn stopped the team and started to set the snow hook. “Hey, do you know how to use one of these?”
    “Not very well,” Darby admitted, eyeing the metal hook uncertainly.
    “Well, come on, girl. Now that we’ve got plenty of snow again, it’s time you learned.” Robyn beckoned her over and showed her how to push the hook into the snow near the sled, so that she could step on it and anchor it well while holding onto the sled’s handlebar. She had the dogs move forward a little, putting tension on the anchor line.
    “Now, if you want to release it, they have to back up.” She pulled back on the sled, and the dogs inched backward. “As long as they’re pulling on the line, if you’ve set it right, they can’t go.”
    “That is so cool. Can I try it?”
    Robyn grinned. “When you can do it right, I’ll let you mush around the yard.”
    Darby was an apt pupil, and in less than ten minutes Robyn unhooked the two youngest dogs from the towline and rearranged the four older dogs.
    “Okay. Don’t forget to hold onto the sled when you take the snow hook off. If you can stand on the brake with one foot while you do it, that’s even better.” Robyn stood near the leaders, just in case. She didn’t want another runaway team.
    Darby pulled on the rope attached to the top of the hook and released it without trouble. The dogs twitched when they heard it come out of the snow.
    “Brake,” Robyn called.
    Darby quickly put all her weight on the brake board.
    “You’re good,” Robyn assured her. “Now wind up the rope and stow the hook. You don’t want it dragging along behind the sled.”
    Darby fumbled with the line. “I’m nervous.”
    “Take your time. The dogs will know you’re antsy, and they will be, too.” Robyn was glad she’d cut the team down to four dogs. She’d considered letting Darby take them outside the enclosure today, but thought better of it. With a little more practice, Darby would gain the confidence she needed to control the team without the aid of a fence. For now, a trot around the path inside the yard would be enough.
    After Darby’s short ride, they put the dogs and the harness away and spent some time with the puppies, putting the small harness on each one for just a few minutes. Robyn was pleased that most of them obeyed her “sit” and “come” commands without error.
    “Guess I’d better get home.” Darby looked toward the sky. The moon still hung overhead.
    “Thanks for the help,” Robyn said. “Do you want me to drive you home in the truck?”
    “No, I’ll be okay if I leave now.”
    “Take the flashlight.”
    “Thanks. Can I come back tomorrow?”
    “Yes. Oh—call first. I’m not sure if Grandpa’s coming home or not.”
    “I hope he will. Bye.” Darby dashed down the driveway.
    Robyn went into the house and filled the woodstove. She liked to have a hot supper waiting when her mother got home from work. Afterward, she