<2-5>
Trapped
"Come on!" cried Annie.
Jack raced behind her.
Were they being followed?
"Here! Quick!" Annie dashed toward a door off the hallway. She pushed the door open. The two of them stumbled into a dark, cold room. The door creaked shut behind them.
"Give me the flashlight," said Annie. Jack handed it to her, and she switched it on.
Yikes! A row of knights right in front of them!
Annie flicked off the light.
Silence.
"They aren't moving," Jack whispered.
Annie turned the light back on.
"They're just suits," Jack said.
"Without heads," said Annie.
"Let me have the flashlight a second," said Jack. "So I can look in the book."
Annie handed him the flashlight. He pulled out the castle book. He flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for.
Jack put the book aways. "It's called the armory," he said. "It's where armor and weapons are stored."
He shined the flashlight around the room.
"Oh, man," whispered Jack.
The light fell on shiny breastplates, leg plates, arm plates. On shelves filled with helmets and weapons. On shields, spears, swords, crossbows, clubs, battleaxes.
There was a noise in the hall. Voices!
"Let's hide!" said Annie.
"Wait," said Jack. "I've got to check on something first."
"Hurry," said Annie.
"It'll take just a second," said Jack. "Hold this." He handed Annie the flashlight.
He tried to lift a helmet from a shelf. It was too heavy.
He bent over and dragged the helmet over his head. The visor slammed shut.
Oh, forget it. It was worse than having a five-year-old on your head.
Not only could Jack not lift his head, he couldn't see anything, either.
"Jack!" Annie's voice sounded far away. "The voices are getting closer!"
"Turn off the flashlight!" Jack's voice echoed inside the meetal chamber.
He struggled to get the helmet off.
Suddenly he lost his balance and went crashing into other pieces of armor.
The metal plates and weapons clattered to the floor.
Jack lay on the floor in the dark.
He tried to get up. But his head was too heavy.
He heard deep voices.
Someone grabbed him by the arm. The next thing he knew, his helmet was yanked off. He was staring into the blazing light of a fiery torch.
<2-6>
Ta-da!
In the torchlight, Jack saw three huge men standing over him.
One with very squinty eyes held the torch. One with a very red face held Jack. And one with a very long mustache held on to Annie.
Annie was kicking and yelling.
"Stop!" said the one with the very long mustache.
"Who art thou?" said the one with the very red face.
"Spies? Foreigners? Egyptians? Romans? Persians?" said the squinty-eyed one.
"No, you dummies!" said Annie.
"Oh, brother," Jack muttered.
"Arrest them!" said Red-face.
"The dungeon!" said Squinty-eyes.
The guards marched Jack and Annie out of the armory. Jack looked back frantically. Where was his backpack?
"Go!" said a guard, giving him a push.
Jack went.
Down they marched, down the long, dark hallway.
Squinty, Annie, Mustache, Jack and Red.
Down a narrow, winding staircase.
Jack heard Annie shouting at the guards. "Dummies! Meanies! We didn't do anything!"
The guards laughed. They didn't take her seriously at all.
At the bottom of the stairs was a big iron door with a bar across it.
Squinty pushed the bar off the door. Then he shoved at the door. It creaked open.
Jack and Annie were pushed into a cold, clammy room.
The fiery torch lit the dungeon. There were chains hanging from the flithy walls. Water dripped from the ceiling, making puddles on the stone floor. It was the creepiest place Jack had ever seen.
"We'll keep them here till the feast is done. Then turn them over to the Duke," said Squinty. "He knows how to take care of thieves."
"There will be a hanging tomorrow," said Mustache.
"If the rats don't get them first," said Red.
They all laughed.
Jack saw that Annie had his backpack. She was quietly unzipping it.
"Come on, let's chain the two of'em," said Squinty.
The guards started toward them. Annie whipped her flashlight out of the pack.
"Ta-da!" she yelled.
The guards froze. They stared at the shiny flashlight in her hand.
Annie switched the light on. The guards gasped in fear. They jumped back against the wall.
Squinty dropped the torch. It fell into a dirty puddle on the floor, sputtered, and went out.
"My magic wand!" Annie said, waving the flashlight. "Get down. Or I'll wipe you out!"
Jack's mouth dropped open.
Annie fiercely pointed her light at one, then the other. Each howled and covered his face.
"Down! All of you! Get down!" shouted Annie.
One by one, the guards lay down on the wet floor.
Jack couldn't believe it.
"Come on," Annie said him. "Let's go."
Jack looked at the open doorway. He looked at the guards quaking on the ground.
"Hurry!" said Annie.
In one quick leap, Jack followed her out of the terrible dungeoun.
