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9.跟着带路人
四周漆黑一片。
“怎么啦？”安妮问。
“我也不知道，奇怪得很。”杰克说，“我们得赶紧从这里出去，一起推门吧。”
“好主意。”安妮小声说。
他们在黑暗中摸索着方向，终于到了阶梯的最高处。
“别着急，不会有问题的。”杰克说。他努力地保持着镇静。
“那是当然。”安妮说。
他们用身子顶住木门开始推。
可是门一动不动。
他们更用力地推。
还是没有用。
杰克深吸了一口气。他们开始感觉呼吸困难，而且也愈加难以保持镇静了。
“咱们怎么办呢？”安妮问。
“先……先休息一会儿。”杰克喘着气说。
杰克努力地想看清黑暗中的一切，他能感到自己的心怦怦直跳。
“也许我们该顺着走廊往下走。”他说，“说不定那样能走到一个出口。”
其实他也并不确定，但没有别的办法了。
“来吧。”他说，“摸着墙走。”
杰克一面用手扶着石墙，一面慢慢地顺着阶梯往下爬。安妮跟在他身后。
杰克又顺着漆黑的走廊往下走，简直是伸手不见五指。
但他依然继续向前走着。他一步一个台阶，手扶着旁边的墙壁。
他转过了一个墙角，又转过了另一个墙角，来到了一截阶梯跟前，又开始往上爬。
那里有一扇门。杰克推了推门，安妮也跟着使劲推着，可是这扇门也推不开。
难道这就是他们一开始离开的那扇门？
没办法，他们这下被困住了。
在黑暗里，安妮紧紧地握住了杰克的手。
他们站在阶梯的最高处，在寂静里默默聆听着。
“喵。”
“哦，天啊。”杰克小声说。
“它回来了！”安妮说。
“喵。”
“跟着它！”杰克喊道，“它快要跑远了。”
他们跟着猫咪的叫声顺着漆黑的走廊往前走。
杰克和安妮用手扶着墙壁，在黑暗里跌跌撞撞地往前走。
“喵。”
他们跟着叫声一路走过了曲曲折折的走廊，不断地往下，往下，再往下。
他们拐了一个又一个弯。
终于，杰克和安妮看到了通道尽头的亮光。他们冲向前去，冲进了明媚的阳光之下。
“耶！”安妮喊着。
但杰克却还在思考着什么。
“安妮。”他说，“我们是怎么从假通道里出来的？”
“是那只猫。”安妮说。
“可是猫是怎么做到的呢？”杰克问。
“是魔法。”安妮说。
杰克皱了皱眉头。“可是——”
“看！”安妮说，一面用手指着沙地。
猫咪蹦蹦跳跳地在沙地上跑远了。
“谢谢你。”安妮喊道。
“谢谢！”杰克也对猫咪喊道。
猫咪的黑尾巴冲着他们摇了摇。
然后，它就消失在闪着光芒的热浪之中。
杰克望着棕榈树，树上的树屋仿佛一个鸟巢。
“该回家了。”杰克说。
他和安妮开始朝棕榈树走去。这段路真是漫长而炎热。
终于安妮开始抓着绳梯往上爬，杰克也跟着她向上爬。
他们一钻进树屋，杰克就立刻拿出那本关于宾夕法尼亚的书。
就在这时，他听到一种轰隆隆的声音，和他们在金字塔里面听到的那个声音一模一样。
“看！”安妮说着用手指向窗外。
杰克也往外看去。
金字塔边有一只木船正在沙地上滑行，仿佛一只在大海上航行的小船。
渐渐地木船消失在远方。
难道是海市蜃楼吗？
要不就是幽灵王后正在船上，前往她的来世？
“回家吧，杰克。”安妮小声说。
杰克打开了关于宾夕法尼亚的书。
他用手指着蛙溪镇的图片。
“我希望我能回家。”他说。
风吹了起来。
树叶开始摇摆。
风越刮越猛，风声也愈来愈大。
树屋开始打转。
转得越来越快。
然后一切都平静了。
绝对的平静。
9 Follow the leader
It was pitch dark.
“What happened?” asked Annie.
“I don’t know. Something weird，” said Jack.“We have to get out of here fast. Push against the door.”
“Good idea，” said Annie in a small voice.
They felt their way through the darkness. To the top of the stairs.
“Don’t worry.Everything’s going to be okay，” said Jack. He was trying to stay calm.
“Of course，” said Annie.
They leaned against the wooden door and pushed.
It wouldn’t budge.
They pushed harder.
No use.
Jack took a deep breath. It was getting harder to breathe. And harder to stay calm.
“What can we do?” asked Annie.
“Just...just rest a moment，” said Jack， panting.
His heart was pounding as he tried to see through the darkness.
“Maybe we should start down the hall，” he said. “Maybe we’ll eventually come toto an exit.”
He wasn’t sure about that. But they had no choice.
“Come on，” he said.“Feel the wall.”
Jack felt the stone wall as he climbed slowly down the stairs. Annie followed.
Jack started down the dark hallway. It was impossible to see anything.
But he kept going. Taking one step at a time.Moving his hands along the wall.
He went around a corner. He went around another corner. He came to some stairs. He went up.
There was a door. He pushed against it. Annie pushed too. This door wouldn’t budge either.
Was this the same door they had started at?
It was no use. They were trapped.
Annie took his hand in the dark. She squeezed it.
They stood together at the top of the stairs. Listening to the silence.
“Meow.”
“Oh， man，” Jack whispered.
“He’s back!” said Annie.
“Meow.”
“Follow him!” cried Jack. “He’s going away from us.”
They started down the dark hallway. Following the cat’s meow.
Hands against the wall， Jack and Annie stumbled through the darkness.
“Meow.”
They followed the sound. All the way through the winding hallway. Down， down， down.
Around one corner， then another. And another...
Finally they saw a light at the end of the tunnel. They rushed forward—out into the bright sunlight.
“Yay!” Annie shouted.
But Jack was thinking.
“Annie，” he said. “How did we get out of the false passage?”
“The cat，” said Annie.
“But how could the cat do it?” asked Jack.
“Magic，” said Annie.
Jack frowned.“But—”
“Look!” said Annie. She pointed.
The cat was bounding away. Over the sand.
“Thank you!” called Annie.
“Thanks!” Jack shouted at the cat.
His black tail waved.
Then he disappeared in the shimmering waves of heat.
Jack looked toward the palm trees. At the top of one sat the tree house. Like a bird’s nest.
“Time to go home，” Jack said.
He and Annie set off for the palm trees. It was a long hot walk back.
At last Annie grabbed onto the rope ladder.Then Jack.
Once they were inside the tree house， Jack reached for the book about Pennsylvania.
Just then he heard a rumbling sound. The same sound they had heard in the pyramid.
“Look!” Annie said， pointing out the window.
Jack looked.
A boat was beside the pyramid. It was gliding over the sand. Like a boat sailing over the sea.
Then it faded away. Into the distance.
Was it just a mirage?
Or was the ghost-queen finally on her way to the Next Life?
“Home， Jack，” whispered Annie.
Jack opened the Pennsylvania book.
He pointed to the picture of Frog Creek.
“I wish we could go home，” he said.
The wind began to blow.
The leaves began to shake.
The wind blew harder. It whistled louder.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely silent.
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