2 Wind Rider

Chapter 2 Wind Rider Max examined the neglected boat. Navy-blue paint was chipping off the wooden boards of the hull. The torn, yellowing sail hung over the deck rail, covering

the faded white letters that were painted on the bow. Max lifted the sail and Sofia came closer to read them.

"Wind Rider," she murmured.

"You can tell it used to be a nice boat," Max said thoughtfully, tracing the sun-bleached W with his finger. "Why would anyone abandon it?" Sofia didn't answer. She was too busy finding the quickest way on board. Max turned just in time to see her climbing a creaky metal ladder hanging on the side of the boat onto the deck. "Sofia, wait!" he called. "It might not be safe!" He pictured the rotting boards of the deck and the creatures that might have made themselves at home below, like alligators, snakes, or even bears!

But Sofia was already tugging on the rusty metal handle to a wooden hatch leading below deck. There was a snap. "Oops," she said, staring at the handle in her hand. Max climbed over the deck rail. Something dove toward him, ruffling his brown hair. The seagull landed a few feet away from Sofia and bobbed its head. Then it flapped its wings just enough to fly to the helm, the wooden steering wheel near the stern of the boat. As the bird shifted its weight, the wheel creaked left and then right.

"Hey!" Max stared in wonder. "It's the seagull!" He pointed toward the fishing line still wrapped around the gull's leg. Sofia's heart leaped at the sight. "Maybe it knows we want to help it." The bird watched her carefully as she stepped toward the helm. Sofia paused. "My mom and I saved a bird with an injured wing once," she said. She remembered how her mother had