10. Through the Hedge Maze

THROUGH THE HEDGE MAZE 10 The walls of the hedge maze towered over Sam and his friends. "Going through this maze is the only way back to school," Sam said. "And if this whole swamp-maze thing was a trap from the start, we really need to hurry!" Lucy said. "The monkey bars are on the far side of the playground," Antonio said. "They're right next to the school's rear steps."

"So we need to go toward the monkey bars!" Sam said. "Come on!" The friends began to follow the winding path. Antonio dropped breadcrumbs as they walked. The dark maze snaked through the playground! Sam saw the same things he had seen during recess— the swings and the slides— but everything was different now. Grassy walls surrounded the playground equipment. The ground was mucky and wet. Vines crawled over everything. Rocking horses seemed to cry out as Sam walked past. Their springs squeezed and their eyes bulged.

A merry-go-round, covered in vines, spun on its own. It creaked and howled with each turn. Finally, Sam spotted the monkey bars. "We're almost to the steps!" "But getting there won't be easy," Lucy said. Lucy was right. There was now a swamp below the monkey bars! It covered the entire path. There was no way around it.

"Maybe we can swim across the swamp?" Antonio asked. "The last swamp almost ate me!" Lucy said. "Maybe this one is different..." Antonio said. "Lucy," Sam said. "Do you have anything in your backpack you don't need?" Lucy opened her backpack. She dug past her school books and sunglasses and pulled out her neon yellow pencil case. Sam took the case. "Let's see how the swamp reacts if we throw this in."

He tossed the pencil case into the swamp. It splashed onto the muddy water and floated on top. Suddenly, a long, winding branch burst through the muddy surface. The branch grabbed the case and dragged it below. Sam, Lucy, and Antonio all gulped. "Nope," Lucy said. "This swamp's not any different." "Then there's only one way across," Sam said, stepping up. He reached out and grabbed hold of a bar. It was covered in vines and moss. Sam took a deep breath. "I'll go first," he said. Then he began to climb.