儿童英语读物《神奇树屋》 第三册 Mummies in the Morning 01
“还在这儿呢。”杰克说。
“看起来好像是空的。”安妮说。
杰克和他七岁的妹妹安妮盯着一棵高高的橡树，树顶上有一个树屋。
晌午的阳光照耀着树林，已经差不多是吃中饭的时候了。
“嘘!”杰克说，“那是什么声音?”
“什么声音?”
“我听到一个声音。”杰克说，他四下里望了望。“听起来好像是有人在咳嗽。”
“我什么也没听到。”安妮说，“来，咱们上去吧。”
她抓住绳梯开始往上爬。
杰克踮着脚尖走向一簇灌木丛，拨开了一个小树枝。
“喂!”他说，“有人吗?”
没有回答。
“快来!”安妮冲下面喊着，“这个树屋看起来还是昨天的老样子。”
杰克还是觉得附近有人。会不会是那个把所有的书放在树屋里的人呢?
“杰——克!”
杰克盯着灌木丛顶一直看着。
那个神秘人，那个名字的首字母是M的人会不会正在看着他呢?
也许M想要回那个杰克在恐龙世界历险时找到的金奖牌。也许他还想要回城堡之书里的皮书签。
奖牌上有一个字母M，书签上也有。但M到底代表着什么呢?
“明天我就把所有的东西都还回来。”杰克大声地说。
一阵清风吹过树林，树叶沙沙作响。
“来啊!”安妮喊道。
杰克回到那棵巨大的老橡树前，抓住绳梯往上爬去。
到了绳梯顶，他钻进木地板上的洞，爬到了树屋里面。他把背包往旁边一扔，推了推眼镜。
“嗯。今天会是哪本书呢?”安妮说。
她一面说着一面翻着树屋里四散着的书籍。
安妮拿起那本关于城堡的书。
“嘿，已经不湿了。”她说。
“我看看。”
杰克从安妮手里拿过书。他简直惊讶极了。那本书看上去完好无损。而昨天它还被泡在城堡四周的护城河里呢。
上一次城堡之书把杰克和安妮带回到骑士的时代。
杰克在心里默默地感谢着那个救了他们的神秘骑士。
“小心!”安妮警告说。
她冲着杰克的脸挥了挥一本关于恐龙的书。
“把它放回去。”杰克说。
前天，就是这本关于恐龙的书把他们带到了恐龙的时代。
杰克又在心里默默地感谢着那只把他从霸王龙的爪子下救出来的无齿翼龙。
安妮把恐龙书放了回去。突然，她呼吸变得急促起来。
“哇。”她小声说，“你看这个。”
她拿起一本关于古代埃及的书。
杰克屏了口气，从安妮手里接过书来。一个绿色的丝质书签从书里露了出来。
杰克把书翻到了夹着书签的那一页。那页画着一幅金字塔的图画。
一长列队伍正向金字塔走去。四只长角的巨大母牛拉着一个滑橇，上面放着一个长条形的金色箱子。一行埃及人走在滑橇后面，而队伍的最后面是一只毛色光滑的黑猫。
“咱们去那儿吧。”安妮小声地说，“现在就去。”
“等等。”杰克说。他还想再多研究一会儿这本书。
“是金字塔哦，杰克。”安妮说，“你不是喜欢金字塔吗。”
的确，金字塔是杰克的最爱之一，仅次于骑士，胜过恐龙，而且胜过恐龙好多呢。
起码他不需要担心被金字塔吃掉。
“好吧。”他说，“但是得带着那本关于宾夕法尼亚的书，万一我们想立刻回到这里呢。”
安妮找到了那本有着他们家乡图片的书。正是宾夕法尼亚的蛙溪镇。
然后，杰克便用手指着埃及书里的那幅金字塔图片。他清了清嗓子说：“我希望我们能到这个地方去。”
“喵!”
“什么东西?”杰克从树屋的窗户向外看去。
一只黑猫正停在窗外的一根树枝上。那只猫正看着杰克和安妮。
这是杰克所见过的最奇怪的猫了。它毛色光滑，全身漆黑，有一双明亮的黄眼睛，还戴着一个很宽的金色项圈。
“它就是那本埃及书里的猫。”安妮小声说。
就在这时，风吹了起来，树叶开始摇摆。
“走咯!”安妮叫道。
风声越来越大，树叶也摇摆得愈加猛烈了。
树屋开始打转，杰克赶紧闭上了眼睛。
树屋转得越来越快，越来越快。
突然，一切都平静了。
绝对的平静。
四周一点声音也没有，任何细微的声音都没有。
杰克睁开眼睛，炽热而明亮的阳光几乎让他什么也看不见了。
“喵!”
1 Meow!
“It’s still here，” said Jack.
“It looks empty，” said Annie.
Jack and his seven-year-old sister gazed up at a very tall oak tree. At the top of the tree was a tree house.
Late-morning sunlight lit the woods. It was almost time for lunch.
“Shhh!” said Jack. “What was that noise?”
“What noise?”
“I heard a noise，” Jack said. He looked around. “It sounded like someone coughing.”
“I didn’t hear anything，” said Annie. “Come on. Let’s go up.”
She grabbed onto the rope ladder and started climbing.
Jack tiptoed over to a clump of bushes. He pushed aside a small branch.
“Hello?” he said. “Anybody there?”
There was no answer.
“Come on!” Annie called down. “The tree house looks the same as it did yesterday.”
Jack still felt that someone was nearby. Could it be the person who’d put all the books in the tree house?
“Ja-ack!”
Jack gazed over the top of the bushes.
Was the mysterious person watching him now?The person whose name began with M?
Maybe M wanted the gold medallion back. The one Jack had found on their dinosaur adventure.
Maybe M wanted the leather bookmark back.The one from the castle book.
There was an M on the medallion. And an M on the bookmark. But what did M stand for?
“Tomorrow I’ll bring everything back，” Jack said loudly.
A breeze swept through the woods. The leaves rattled.
“Come on!” called Annie.
Jack went back to the big oak tree. He grabbed onto the rope ladder and climbed up.
At the top he crawled through a hole in the wooden floor. He tossed down his backpack and pushed his glasses into place.
“Hmmm. Which book is it going to be today?” said Annie.
She was looking at the books scattered around the tree house.
Annie picked up the book about castles.
“Hey， this isn’t wet anymore，” she said.
“Let me see.”
Jack took the book from her. He was amazed.It looked fine. Yesterday it had gotten soaked in acastle moat.
The castle book had taken Jack and Annie back to the time of knights.
Jack silently thanked the mysterious knight who had rescued them.
“Watch out!” warned Annie.
She waved a dinosaur book in Jack’s face.
“Put that away，” said Jack.
The day before yesterday the dinosaur book had taken them to the time of dinosaurs.
Jack silently thanked the Pteranodon who had saved him from a Tyrannosaurus rex.
Annie put the dinosaur book back with the other books. Then she gasped.
“Wow，” she whispered. “Look at this.”
She held up a book about ancient Egypt.
Jack caught his breath. He took the book from her. A green silk bookmark stuck out of it.
Jack turned to the page with the bookmark.There was a picture of a pyramid.
Going toward the pyramid was a long parade.Four huge cows with horns were pulling a sled. On the sled was a long gold box. Many Egyptians were walking behind the sled. At the end of the parade was a sleek black cat.
“let’s go there，” whispered Annie. “Now.”
“Wait，” said Jack.He wanted to study the book a bit more.
“Pyramids， Jack，” said Annie.“You love pyramids.”
It was true. Pyramids were high on his list of favorite things. After knights. But before dinosaurs. Way before dinosaurs.
He didn’t have to worry about being eaten by a pyramid.
“Okay，” he said. “But hold the Pennsylvania book. In case we want to come right back here.”
Annie found the book with the picture of their hometown in it. Frog Creek， Pennsylvania.
Then Jack pointed to the pyramid picture in the Egypt book. He cleared his throat and said，
“I wish we could go to this place.”
“Meow!”
“What was that?” Jack looked out the tree house window.
A black cat was perched on a branch.Right outside the window.The cat was staring at Jack and Annie.
It was the strangest cat Jack had ever seen.He was very sleek and dark.With bright yellow eyes. And a wide gold collar.
“It’s the cat in the Egypt book，” whispered Annie.
Just then the wind started to blow. The leaves began to shake.
“Here we go!” cried Annie.
The wind whistled louder.The leaves shook harder.
Jack closed his eyes as the tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster!And faster!
Suddenly everything was still.
Absolutely still.
Not a sound. Not a whisper.
Jack opened his eyes.
Hot bright sunlight nearly blinded him.
“Me-ow!”
