Ch7-Panic

CHAPTER SEVEN Panic WAHOO! Koku shrieked and jumped up and down. Annie slapped Jack on the back. "You did it!" she cried.

"We did it," Jack said, breathing hard. "Thanks for saving me when I lost my grip!" He shook his finger at the baby baboon. "Bad time for an ear grab, Koku von Kensky!" Koku pressed her lips against Jack's cheek and gave him a kiss. "Eww, gross!" said Jack, laughing. "She's so happy we saved her!" said Annie. Jack glanced down at the ground below the cliffs to make sure the jackals hadn't returned. "Okay, let's rest a minute," he said. He sat back, closed his eyes, and took a long, deep breath. "Koku, would you like a treat?" Annie said. "Here," said Jack. He opened his eyes and reached into his pouch. He took out a bit of bread and gave it to Koku. She chewed happily as the three of them sat together, looking out over the land of western Thebes. "What a great view," said Jack. The sun was setting behind the honey-colored mountains, and the River Nile glimmered with golden light. The cornfields were golden, too, as herds of sheep and goats headed home. Jack felt

the same calm feeling he'd felt during his climb. He felt free of all his fears and worries. As the sky turned from gold to red to dark purple, the wind began to blow. The air grew cooler. Sand swirled around the two Colossi of Memnon. Jack imagined that the giants' breath was stirring the sands. He shivered and pulled out the handbook and looked at the map of Thebes. "Okay. On the other side of the Nile are the Temples of Karnak and Luxor," Jack said. He looked across the Nile to the distant temples. Beyond the temples, a full moon was starting to rise. Jack looked back at the map. "And on this side of the Nile are the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens." "Look!" said Annie. She pointed to the fallen temple near the road to the river. "Do you see two people?" Sure enough, in the distance two people were riding a horse and a donkey. "It's them!" Jack said. "Florence and Mustafa! Maybe they can help us get back, since we don't have donkeys anymore." He stood up and waved his arms. "Hello!"

Annie joined him. "Hello!" she yelled. But Florence and Mustafa didn't seem to hear them as they rode back toward the Nile. "Hello!" Annie called once more, but it was no use. "Well, we'll just walk fast and catch up with them at the boat," said Jack. "We still have time to get down, don't we?" said Annie. "I mean, our hour isn't up yet, is it?" "I… I don't think so," said Jack. He couldn't believe he'd forgotten about the time! "How long did it take us to climb up? How long have we been sitting here?" "I don't know," said Annie. The sun had sunk below the horizon, and the sky was quickly growing dark. "We have to hurry!" said Jack. "Before our hour runs out! Before we lose our rock-climbing skills! Before it gets darker! Before the hills become more dangerous!" "Relax, Jack," said Annie. "Remember, rock climbers go slowly. We look. We think. We move."

"Right," said Jack. "Right. Okay." He took a deep breath and tried to slow his racing heart. He tried not to think about running out of time, or losing their rock-climbing skills, or the danger in the dark valley. "You okay?" said Annie. "Yes," said Jack. They looked over the edge of the cliff at the rock face. Jack realized he still knew exactly what to do. "No big deal," he said. "No big deal," echoed Annie. Jack mapped out his route to the ground. He located bumps… ledges… holes… ridges… cracks… until he had a good plan. "I'll carry Koku on my back. She's not heavy," said Annie. "I'll start down over there." She moved about twenty feet away from Jack. "Don't forget, go slowly," she reminded Jack. "And don't freak out! We look, we think, we move." "Yeah, right, I know," said Jack. "Just concentrate on yourself." Jack turned away from Annie and Koku. He took a full, deep breath. When he felt a perfect

balance between calm and alertness, he started down the cliff wall. Jack inched smoothly along the face of the rock, shifting his weight and keeping his eyes on his feet. He reached down to lower ledges with his toes and lodged his fingertips in the cracks above. He kept his body straight and didn't lean too closely into the rock. Jack knew exactly what to do—until he was halfway down. Then suddenly he didn't know anything. Jack froze. His body started to shake. His toes slipped from the cracks they were in. His hands slipped from the ridge he was gripping. He fell. Jack hit the ground so hard he couldn't breathe. His whole body screamed with pain, especially his right shoulder and arm. "Jaaack!" Annie cried out from above him. Then there was a terrible thud. Jack heard Koku shriek. He wanted desperately to help Annie and the baby baboon, but he was still struggling to breathe. He couldn't stand up. He couldn't move at all! Jackals started howling. It sounded like many more than just two. It sounded like a whole pack.