"Jack!" cried Annie.
The skinny dog barked and jumped around happily.
Jack was hanging a few feet off the ground, with arope around his ankle. His glasses and hat and baghad fallen to the ground. Jack felt the blood rushing tohis head.
"I must have stepped into a hunting trap," he said ina strangled voice.
"I'll free you," Annie said. She tried to reach therope, but it was too high.
Jack heard voices over the wild barking of the dog.
A blur of people gathered around him and Annie.
"Oh, mercy!" a woman cried.
"We have caught a boy!" a man said.
The dog licked Jack's face. "Help," said Jack.
A burly man shooed the dog away, then grabbedJack. Another cut the rope with a knife. Then theygently lowered Jack to the ground.
Jack sat in the leaves, feeling dizzy. He took therope off his foot and rubbed his ankle.
"Here," said Annie, handing Jack, his glasses, hat,and bag.
He put them all on and stood up. Now he could see.
About forty or fifty Pilgrims-- men, women, and lotsof children--stared at him and Annie. Some of thechildren were laughing.
The girls were dressed just like the women. Theboys were dressed just like the men.
One person, though, looked different from everyoneelse in the crowd. His skin was brown. A deer skinhung over his shoulder.
His black hair was braided and had a feather in it.
Is that Squanto? Jack wondered. The WampanoagIndian who helped out the Pilgrims?
Two Pilgrim men stepped forward. One had a smileon his face. The other was frowning.
"Good day!" the friendly-looking man said. "Whoart thou?""I'm Annie," said Annie. "This is my brother, Jack.
We come in peace.""Welcome to Plymouth Colony," said the man. "Iam Governor Bradford. This is Captain Standish. "Captain Standish kept frowning. He carried a longgun over his shoulder.
"Oh, wow!" said Annie.
"Wow?" said Captain Standish.
"Wow?" whispered others, as if they didn'tunderstand.
"I've just heard a lot about you," said Annie. Shelooked around. "Is Priscilla here?""Shhh!" whispered Jack.
"I am Priscilla," said a young woman. She lookedabout seventeen or eighteen. Her face looked weary,and her eyes were sad.
"Hi," said Annie shyly. "I was you.
Annie," warned Jack.
"Thou was me?" Priscilla asked. She soundedpuzzled.
"Never mind my sister," said Jack. "She's nuts.""Nuts?" repeated Priscilla. "Nuts?" whisperedothers.
"Oh, brother," said Jack, with a nervous laugh.
"Oh, brother?" repeated Priscilla.
Annie giggled.
"Um. Never mind " said Jack. "That's just how wesay things at home.""And where is thy home?" Captain Standish asked.
He didn't sound as friendly as Governor Bradford orPriscilla.
"Um, we live in a village up north," said Jack. "Ourparents sent us here to, uh"--he rememberedsomething from their research book--"to learn how togrow corn."7"But how and when did your family come toAmerica?" the captain asked.
Jack was worried. Now that he had started makingup a story, he couldn't back out. Luckily, heremembered something else from their book.
"We sailed to America with Captain John Smith,"he said, "when he was exploring the coast. Annie andI were babies then."I"Ah, indeed?" said Governor Bradford.
Jack nodded. "Indeed," he said.
"i believe Squanto knew Captain John Smith whenhe was in Plymouth," said Captain Standish. "Perhapshe remembers thee."Everyone in the crowd turned to the man with thebraid.
Oh, no! thought Jack. He knew Squanto wouldn'tremember them.
"These children say they sailed with Captain JohnSmith," Governor Bradford said to Squanto. "Doesthou remember two wee babes named Jack andAnnie?"Squanto moved closer to Jack and Annie. He lookedcarefully at their faces. Jack held his breath. His heartpounded.
Squanto turned to the governor.
"Yes," he said quietly. "I remember." |