儿童英语读物《神奇树屋》 第七册 Afternoon on the Amazon 06

6 Song on the Wind

“Peanut’s tracks，”said Annie.“We have to find her before she freezes.”

She wrapped her reindeer coat around her and headed across the snow.

Jack pulled on his backpack and followed.

The mouse’s tracks led them between the fallen rocks and back onto the open plain.

The wind blew harder.Snow swirled over the ground，covering the tiny footprints.

“I can’t see them anymore!”wailed Annie.

She and Jack now stood in the middle of the plain.They stared at the windswept snow.

The mouse’s tracks had vanished.

“Yikes，”whispered Annie，staring up.

Jack followed her gaze.On one of the cliffs was a tiger.A giant tiger with two long，sharp fangs.

“A sabertooth，”said Jack.

“I hope he doesn’t see us，”whispered Annie.

“Me too，”Jack whispered back.“We’d better head back to the tree house.”

Jack and Annie stepped very softly across the snow.Then Jack glanced back at the cliff.

The sabertooth was gone.

“Oh man，”he said.“Where is he?”

“Run to the trees!”said Annie.

He and Annie started running.They ran over the snowy plain，heading toward the tall，bare trees in the distance.

Suddenly Jack heard a crack.

The ground caved in，and Jack went with it.

Annie fell beside him.

They crashed down onto a heap of branches，snow，and earth.

They struggled to stand.Jack pushed his glasses into place.

“You all right?”he asked Annie.

“Yes，”she said.

They both looked up.They were in a deep hole.All Jack could see were gray clouds moving overhead.

“This is a trap，”Jack said.“The Cro-Mag-nons must have put branches over this hole.Then the snow hid the branches.So we didn’t see them.”

“There’s no way out，”said Annie.

She was right.They were helpless.The pit was too deep to climb out of.

“I feel like a trapped animal，”Annie said.

“Me too，”said Jack.

He heard a yowl in the distance.

“The sabertooth!”whispered Annie.

Jack pulled out the Ice Age book.He found a picture of the sabertooth.He read:

The sabertooth was the fiercest beast of the Ice Age.It attacked humans as well as woolly mammoths and other large animals.

“Oh brother，”said Jack.

“Listen!”Annie grabbed him.

“What?”Jack jumped.

“I hear music.”

Jack listened.But all he heard was the wind.

“You hear it?”said Annie.

“No，”said Jack.

“Listen carefully.”

He closed his eyes.He listened very carefully.

He heard the wind.But this time he heard another sound，too.

Strange，haunting music.

“Ahhh!”cried Annie.

Jack opened his eyes.

Staring down at them was a figure wearing reindeer antlers and an owl mask.

“The sorcerer，”whispered Jack.

Squeak.

Peanut peered down at them，too!

6风中的歌声

“花生的脚印。”安妮说，“在它冻僵之前，我们必须找到它。”

她把身上的驯鹿皮外套裹得更严些，然后就向雪地走去。

杰克背上背包，跟了上去。

小老鼠的足迹引着他们在坠落的乱石间穿行，带他们回到了广阔的平原上。

风越刮越凶。雪片在地面上打转，掩盖了那细细的足迹。

“我什么足迹也看不见了!”安妮呜咽着。

她和杰克此刻站在平原的中央。他们目不转睛地盯着风中的雪。

小老鼠的足迹早已无影无踪了。

“天啊。”安妮咕哝着，抬头往上看。

杰克顺着她的目光看过去。在一面悬崖上有一只老虎。一只有着两枚长长的锋利尖牙的大老虎。

“剑齿虎!”杰克说。

“我希望它没看见我们。”安妮低声说。

“我也一样。”杰克低声跟着说，“我们最好回树屋去。”

杰克和安妮轻手轻脚地横穿雪地。然后，杰克回头瞄了一眼悬崖。

剑齿虎不见了。

“啊，老天。”他说，“它上哪儿去了?”

“快朝树林跑!”安妮说。

他和安妮开始跑了起来。他们跑过大雪覆盖的平原，朝着远处那高高的光秃秃的树林跑去。

杰克突然间听见哗啦一声。

地面坍陷了，杰克掉了下去。

安妮在他身旁也跟着掉了下去。

他们踩塌了一堆树枝、积雪和泥土，轰地掉了下去。

他们挣扎着站了起来。杰克扶了扶眼镜。

“你还好吗?”他问安妮。

“是的。”她说。

他们俩向上望去。他们掉进了一个很深的土坑里。杰克只能看见灰暗的云在头顶飘过。

“这是一个陷阱。”杰克说，“肯定是克罗马农人把树枝放在坑上面，然后大雪把树枝遮盖了。所以我们看不见。”

“我们出不去了。”安妮说。

她说得对。他们孤立无助。土坑深得爬不出去。

“我感觉自己像只掉入陷阱的动物。”安妮说。

“我的感觉也一样。”杰克说。

他听见远处的一声吼叫。

“剑齿虎!”安妮低声说。

杰克打开冰河时代那本书。他找到一幅画有剑齿虎的画，读道：

剑齿虎是冰河时代最凶猛的野兽。它既攻击人类也攻击长毛猛犸，以及其他大型动物。

“啊，天哪!”杰克说。

“听!”安妮一把抓住杰克。

“什么?”杰克跳了起来。

“我听到了音乐声。”

杰克侧耳倾听。但他只听到了风声。

“你听到了吗?”安妮问。

“没有。”杰克说。

“仔细听听。”

他闭上双眼，仔仔细细地认真听着。

他听到了风声。不过这一次他也听到了另一种声音。

奇特的萦绕不断的音乐声。

“哎——!”安妮叫喊着。

杰克睁开了眼睛。

正向下盯着他们的是一个头戴驯鹿角和猫头鹰面具的人。

“是巫师。”杰克说。

吱吱。

花生也低头瞄着他们。