03 Life or Death

Chapter 03 Life or Death “ Tigers?” said Annie. “ Cool. ” Jack read more: A wild tiger eats almost 5, 000 pounds of fresh raw meat a year. “ Oh, not so cool, ” said Annie. Jack went on: Tigers usually leave elephants alone. And like many smaller cats, tigers often avoid wild dogs.

Teddy growled. “ Wild dogs, not a shrimp like you, ” Jack said to Teddy. “ A tiger would eat you in a minute. ” Teddy growled again. Just then, Kah and Ko began hooting. Koo-koo-koo! The peacocks cried Kok! Kok! The small deer made short barking sounds and stamped their hooves. “ What’s going on?” said Annie. “ We better put Teddy in my pack, ” said Jack, “ to keep him safe. ” Jack slipped the dog into his pack. Teddy’s head poked out the top. “ All set?” Jack asked the little dog. Teddy growled again.

This time, a deep, fierce growl answered back. It seemed to surround them. Jack’s hair stood on end. “ Yikes! ” said Annie. “ A tiger! ” said Jack. Arf! Arf! Teddy barked. Kah and Ko screeched at Jack and Annie from their tree. “ They want us to join them! ” said Annie. “ Come on! ” She grabbed a branch and climbed up. Jack’s hands were shaking as he put his backpack on. He grabbed a branch and pushed off the ground. He pulled himself into the tree. Another growl shook the forest. “ Oh, man, ” said Jack. Koo-koo-koo! The langurs climbed higher up the tree.

Jack and Annie followed them, climbing from branch to branch. The sky above was no longer glowing. The bright orange had faded to a twilight gray. Jack looked down. He couldn’t see the ground at all. He listened for another scary roar. Only the cries of frightened forest creatures filled the air. “ Maybe the tiger’s gone, ” said Annie. Jack glanced at Kah and Ko. The langurs cuddled together. Their dark faces looked worried. “ And maybe not, ” said Jack. “ How can we get through the forest without running into him?” said Annie.

“ That’s a problem, ” said Jack. “ And it’s getting dark. Soon we won’t be able to see anything. ” Kah and Ko hooted again. They pointed down the tree trunk. Arf! Arf! Teddy barked from Jack’s pack. “ Do they see the tiger?” Jack asked, his heart thumping again. He couldn’t see anything but leaves and branches. Then, far below, he saw the tree trunk move! “ A snake! ” said Annie. The snake was slithering around the trunk. It had black-and-tan markings. The snake’s body was as thick as the tree trunk! “ A python, ” breathed Jack. The python kept curling up the tree trunk.