Sunset of the Sabertooth (2 page)

Jack, Annie, and Peanut looked outside.

Snow was falling from a gray sky.

The tree house was in the tallest tree in a grove of tall, bare trees.

The grove was on a wide, white plain. Beyond the plain were high, rocky cliffs.

“I’m c-cold,” said Annie. Her teeth chattered. She wrapped her towel tightly around her.

Sq-squeak
. Peanut sounded cold, too.

“Poor mouse,” said Annie. “I’ll put you into Jack’s pack. You’ll be warmer there.”

Annie slipped Peanut into the pocket of the backpack.

“We have to go home,” said Jack. “We need warmer clothes.”

“We can’t go home,” said Annie. “We can’t find the Pennsylvania book. Not until our mission is complete. Remember? That’s the way the magic works.”

“Oh … right,” said Jack. He looked around. There was no sign of the Pennsylvania book that always took them home.

Annie peered out the window again. “Where are we, anyway?” she asked.

“I’ll find out,” said Jack. He picked up the open book and read the title on the cover. “
Life in the Ice Age
.”

“
Ice Age?
” said Annie. “No wonder we’re cold.”

“We better find the third M thing soon,” said Jack. “Before we freeze to death.”

“Look,” whispered Annie, “people.” She pointed out the window.

Jack saw them, too: four figures on a cliff. Two big figures and two little ones—all holding long spears.

“Who are they?” said Annie.

“I’ll look in the book,” said Jack.

He found a picture of some people. He read the caption to Annie:

Early modern humans were called Cro-Magnons. During the late Ice Age in Europe, they sometimes lived in caves beneath cliffs.

“Why are they carrying spears?” said Annie.

Jack turned the page. He found another picture of the Cro-Magnons. He read aloud:

The Cro-Magnon family often hunted together. They covered deep pits with branches. Then they drove reindeer and mammoths into the traps.

“Oh, trapping the animals—that’s sad,” said Annie.

“No, it’s not,” said Jack. “They couldn’t live without hunting. They didn’t have supermarkets, you know.”

They watched the family disappear over the other side of the cliff.

“Come on, I’m freezing,” said Jack. “Let’s hurry and find the M thing while the Cro-Magnons are hunting.”

“But I want to meet them,” said Annie.

“Forget it,” said Jack. “They don’t have books that tell them about
us
. They’ll think we’re some enemy and hurl their spears.”

“Yikes,” said Annie.

Jack put his book away.

Squeak
. Peanut peeked out of the backpack.

“Stay in there,” said Annie.

Jack pulled on his pack and started down the rope ladder.

Annie followed.

On the icy ground, they huddled together.

The wind was biting. Jack put his towel over his head. Snow blew against his glasses.

“Hey, Jack,” said Annie. “Look at me.”

Annie had put on her swimming goggles. “Now I can see,” she said.

“Good thinking,” said Jack. “Now cover your head with your towel. Most of your body heat is lost through your head.”

Annie wrapped her towel around her head.

“We should find a cave or someplace warmer,” said Jack.

“I bet there are caves in those cliffs,” said Annie.

She and Jack started across the white plain. The snow wasn’t deep yet. But the wind was blowing hard.

“I told you!” Annie pointed to an opening in the rocks—a
cave
.

They ran to it.

“Careful,” said Jack. They stepped carefully into the shadowy cave.

It was only slightly warmer inside. But at least the wind wasn’t blowing.

In the gray light, they stamped the snow off their sneakers.

Annie took off her goggles.

“It smells in here,” said Jack.

“Yeah, like a wet dog,” said Annie.

“Let me see what I can find out,” said Jack.

He pulled out the Ice Age book.

“I’ll look around,” said Annie. “Maybe the M thing is here. Then we can go home and get warm.”

Jack stood by the entrance so he could read the book.

“This cave is filled with sticks,” Annie said.

“What?” said Jack. He didn’t look up from the book.

“No, wait. I think they’re
bones
,” said Annie.

“Bones?” echoed Jack.

“Yeah. Lots of them back here. All over the floor.”

Jack turned the pages of his book. He found a picture of a cave filled with bones.

“I hear something,” said Annie.

Jack read the writing below the picture of the cave. It said:

The great cave bears of the Ice Age were over eight feet tall. These bears were larger and fiercer than today’s grizzlies. Their caves were filled with the bones of their ancestors.

“Annie!” whispered Jack. “Get back here now!”

They were in the cave of a great cave bear!

“Annie!” whispered Jack again.

No answer.

He put his book quietly into his pack. He stepped deeper into the cave.

“Annie!” he said a little louder.

Jack stepped on the bones.

The wet dog smell grew stronger.

He kept going, deeper into the smelly blackness.

He ran into something. He gasped.

“Jack?” said Annie. “Is that you?”

“Didn’t you hear me calling?” Jack whispered. “We have to get out of here!”

“Wait,” she said. “Someone’s sleeping back there. Hear him snoring?”

Jack heard a low, deep moaning. It was loud, then soft. Loud, then soft.

“That’s not a person,” he said. “It’s a great cave bear!”

A booming snore shattered the air.

“Yikes!” said Annie.

“Go! Go
!
” said Jack.

He and Annie ran through the cave, over the bones, and out into the falling snow.

They kept on going. They ran between fallen rocks and under jagged cliffs.

Finally they stopped and turned around.

All they could see was snow and rocks and their own footprints.

No bear.

“Whew,” said Annie. “That was lucky.”

“Yeah,” said Jack. “He probably never even woke up. We just got in a panic.”

Annie huddled close to Jack. “Brrr! I’m f-freezing,” she said.

“Me too,” he said.

He took off his glasses to wipe off the snow. The cold wind blew against his bare legs.

“Wow,” Annie said. “Look.” She pointed to something behind Jack.

“What?” Jack put his glasses back on and turned around.

Under a cliff was a wide ledge. Under the ledge was another cave.

Only
this
cave seemed to have a golden glow.

This
one looked cozy and safe and warm.

Jack and Annie crept to the cave and peeked inside.

A small flame danced from a bed of glowing coals.

Near the fire were knives, axes, and hollowed-out stones.

Animal skins were neatly stacked against the wall.

“People must live here,” said Annie.

“Maybe it’s the home of the Cro-Magnons we saw,” said Jack, looking around.

“Let’s go inside and get warm,” said Annie.

Jack and Annie moved quickly to the fire and warmed their hands.

Their shadows danced on the stone walls.

Jack pulled out his Ice Age book. He found a picture of a cave. He read:

Cro-Magnons made many things from animals, plants, and stone. They made flute-like musical instruments from mammoth bones. They made ropes by braiding plant fibers. They made axes and knives from stone.

Jack pulled out his notebook and pencil. He started a list:

“Ta-da!” said Annie.

Jack looked up. Annie was wearing a coat.

It had a hood and long sleeves. It went all the way down to her sneakers.

“Where did you get that?” said Jack.

“From that pile of furry skins,” said Annie, pointing. “These must be their clothes. Maybe they’re being mended.”

She picked up another coat and handed it to Jack.

“Try one. It’s really warm,” she said.

Jack put his backpack and towel down on the hard dirt floor. He slipped on the coat.

It did feel very warm—and soft.

“We look like cave kids,” said Annie.

Squeak
. Peanut peeked out of Jack’s pack lying on the floor.

“You stay in there,” said Annie. “There’s no teeny coat for you.”

Peanut vanished back into the pack.

“I wonder how they made these coats,” said Jack.

He turned the pages in the book until he found a picture of Cro-Magnon women sewing. He read:

Cro-Magnons scraped reindeer skins with flint rocks to make them soft. They used bone needles to sew the skins together for clothing.

Jack added to his list:

“I hope the cave people won’t mind if we borrow their coats,” said Jack.

“Maybe we should give them our towels,” said Annie. “To thank them.”

“Good idea.”

“And my goggles, too,” said Annie.

They left their gifts on top of the rest of the animal skins.

“Let’s explore the cave before they come home,” said Jack.

“It’s too dark in the back,” said Annie. “We won’t be able to see anything.”

“I’ll find out how Cro-Magnons saw in the dark,” said Jack.

He opened the Ice Age book. He found a picture of cave people holding odd-looking lamps. He read aloud to Annie:

Cro-Magnons made stone lamps. They hollowed out a rock, filled it with animal fat, then burned a wick made from moss.

“There!” said Annie. She pointed to two stones near the fire. In the hollow of each was gooey white stuff and a pile of moss.

“We have to be careful,” said Jack.

He picked up one stone. It was smaller than a soup bowl, but much heavier.

Jack held the stone close to the fire and lit the piece of moss.

He lit another lamp and gave it to Annie.

“Carry it with two hands,” he said.

“I know,” she said.

Jack tucked the book under his arm. He and Annie carried their stone lamps to the back of the cave.

“Hey, I wonder where this goes,” said Annie. She held her lamp up to an opening in the wall.

“I’ll check in the book,” said Jack.

He put down his lamp and flipped through the Ice Age book.

“I think it’s a tunnel,” she said. “Be right back.”

“Wait a second,” said Jack.

Too late—she had squeezed into the opening and was gone.

“Oh brother,” said Jack, sighing.

He closed his book and peeked into the opening.

“Come back here!” he said.

“No! You come
here!
” said Annie. Her voice sounded far away. “You won’t believe this!”

Jack picked up his lamp and book. He ducked into a small tunnel.

“Wow!” came Annie’s voice.

Jack could see her lamp flickering at the other end.

Crouching clown, he hurried toward her. At the end of the tunnel was a huge cavern with a high ceiling.

Annie held her lamp close to the wall.

“Look,” she said. Her voice echoed.

Animals were painted on the wall in strokes of red and black and yellow.

There were cave bears and lions, elk and reindeer, bison and woolly rhinos and mammoths.

In the flickering light, the prehistoric beasts looked alive.