01 The Last Gift

Dingoes at Dinnertime

Chapter 01 The Last Gift Annie sat on the porch steps. She stared down the street at the Frog Creek woods. “ Hey, Jack, ” she said. “ Do you hear it?” Jack sat next to her. He was reading a book. “ Hear what?” he said. “ Teddy’s calling us, ” said Annie. “ You’re kidding, ” said Jack. But he looked down the street and listened, too. A faint bark came from the distance.

Arf! Arf! A big smile crossed Jack’s face. “ You hear it! ” Annie said. “ Yep, ” said Jack. “ You’re right. Time to go. ” He stood up and grabbed his backpack. “ Be back soon! ” Annie shouted through the screen door. “ Don’t be late for dinner! ” their dad called. “ We won’t! ” said Jack. He and Annie ran down the street and into the Frog Creek woods. Soon they came to the tallest oak. There was the magic tree house. A little black nose stuck out the window. “ Hi, silly! ” Annie called. “ We’re coming! ” Arf! came a happy bark. Annie grabbed the rope ladder and started climbing.

Jack followed her up into the tree house. A small dog sat in a circle of afternoon sunshine. His tail wagged. “ Hey, Teddy! ” said Jack. Jack and Annie hugged Teddy. And the dog licked both of them. “ Morgan’s note is still here, ” said Annie. “ Yep, ” said Jack. He knew the note by heart now. This little dog is under a spell and needs your help. To free him, you must be given four special things: A gift from a ship lost at sea, A gift from the prairie blue, A gift from a forest far away, A gift from a kangaroo. Be wise. Be brave. Be careful. Morgan

Beside the note were the gifts from their first three trips: 1. a pocket watch from the Titanic 2. an eagle’s feather from the prairie skies 3. a lotus flower from a forest in India “ We just need to get a gift from a kangaroo, ” said Annie, “ and Teddy will be free from his spell. ” “ We must be going to Australia, ” said Jack. “ That’s where kangaroos live. ” “ Cool, ” said Annie. Teddy whined and scratched at a book lying in the corner. Jack picked it up. “ What’d I tell you?” he said. He showed the cover to Annie. The title was Adventure in Australia. “ Great, ” said Annie. She looked at Teddy. “ Ready to meet a kangaroo?”

Arf! Arf! Jack opened the book. He found a page with small pictures of different animals and a big picture of a forest. Jack pointed at the forest. “ I wish we could go there, ” he said. The wind started to blow. The tree house started to spin. It spun faster and faster. Then everything was still. Absolutely still.