Ch2-Buried Alive!

CHAPTER TWO Buried Alive! A cold wind swept through the window. The purple light of the setting sun filled the tree house. Jack and Annie wore scratchy wool pants, shirts, hats, scarves, and gloves, and leather shoes. Jack's pack had turned into a leather bag. When he opened it, he saw the scroll and the blue bottle inside—along with his notebook and pencil and the emerald rose.

"So these are the Swiss Alps," said Annie, shivering and looking out the window. "Pretty, but cold." Jack looked out with her. The tree house was nestled between gray boulders on a mountain slope. Snowy peaks loomed overhead. Below the peaks was the snow-covered pass they had seen in the picture. Smoke rose from a tall building. "This must be the Great Saint Bernard Pass," said Jack. He picked up their book and turned to the page with the bookmark and read:

The Great Saint Bernard Pass is an ancient road between the two highest peaks of the Alps. For thousands of years, it was the only route between Switzerland and Italy. The pass was named for Bernard of Menthon, who built a monastery there in the eleventh century. For hundreds of years, the monks at this Swiss monastery have welcomed cold and weary travelers who are crossing the pass. "So that building must be the monastery," said Jack. "Great," said Annie. "We can start our mission by going there." "Okay," said Jack. "But I don't get it. To save Penny we have to find a white and yellow flower. And we have to live its meaning, if only for an hour—whatever that means." "We'll figure it out," said Annie. "Let's hope," said Jack. "But where do we find flowers here?" Jack and Annie looked out at the treeless landscape of ice, snow, and rock. "Well, there

must be flowers somewhere," said Annie. "I don't know," said Jack. "Maybe Teddy and Kathleen made a mistake and sent us to the wrong place." "They've never made a mistake before," said Annie. "Uh, excuse me. Teddy didn't make a mistake turning Penny into stone?" said Jack. "Okay, good point," said Annie. "But let's head to the monastery before it gets dark. We can ask about flowers there." "But what if—" started Jack. "Stop worrying," interrupted Annie. "Our book says the monks welcome cold, weary travelers. I'm cold, and your questions are making me weary. Come on." She climbed out the window into the snow. "Funny," said Jack. But he was ready to find shelter, too. His face was freezing. He packed up their book and slung the leather bag over his shoulder, then followed Annie out the tree house window. Jack's feet crunched down onto the icy snow. As the sun went down behind the peaks, deep

purple shadows climbed over the tall mountains. The monastery in the hollow below was completely hidden in darkness. "We have to hurry," said Annie. "No, we have to move slowly down the slope, so we don't slide," said Jack. "Well, then let's move slowly quickly," said Annie. Jack and Annie started down the slope. As they carefully put one foot in front of the other, a strange sound came from above: whumph! "What was that?" said Jack, looking around. Next came a low rumble like thunder. "What's that?" said Annie. Then came a noise like the sound of glass breaking. "Whoa!" cried Jack. Directly above them on the mountain, big blocks of snow were breaking into smaller chunks and sliding down the slope. "Grab my hand!" shouted Jack. He reached for Annie, and she gripped his hand. Suddenly snow was moving all around them! Even the snow beneath them was sliding! A block

of icy snow slammed into Jack, knocking him away from Annie. "Jack!" Annie cried. Another chunk of snow knocked Jack off his feet and sent him tumbling headfirst down the slope. Jack kept falling downhill until a wall of frozen snow stopped him. He tried to stand, but a giant wave of soft, powdery snow blew over him, burying him completely. Jack kicked his arms and legs, trying to surface from the fluffy sea of snow. He kicked and flailed, but the harder he struggled, the more snow there seemed to be. Snow clogged Jack's eyes, ears, and throat. Every time he coughed, he sucked in more snow. He felt as if he were drowning—until he finally pushed his head up through the snow into the cold air. He could breathe! But Jack still couldn't see. A gust of snow powder blinded him. He couldn't move his arms or hands, his legs or feet. The soft snow around his body had turned hard and solid. Jack felt as if he were trapped in cold concrete, buried up to his