ENTRAPPED ₂

31

THEY WERE TWENTY YARDS FROM THE PORCH WHEN SOMETHING HISSED IN THE GRASS BEHIND THEM.

Hazel had been dragging Madeleine along, who had been struggling with Percy's weight. Whatever had happened back there, he seemed to have taken it the worst. Madeleine herself felt dizzy and nauseous, but Percy's face was completely drained of color.

Madeleine was worried sick.

"Go!" Frank yelled.

Percy stumbled. Madeleine pulled him to his feet and shoved him toward Hazel. "Get him to the porch."

She didn't watch to see if Hazel would follow her orders. She turned in the direction Frank was shooting. He let an arrow fly, and it skidded through the grass, bursting into orange flame and whistling.

It didn't appear to do much damage, but it did illuminate the monster. Sitting in a patch of withered yellow grass was a lime-colored snake, short and thick. Its head was ringed with a mane of spiky white fins. The creature stared at the arrow zipping by, more curious than anything else.

Then it fixed it large, yellow eyes on Frank. It advanced like an inchworm, hunching up in the middle. Wherever it touched, the grass withered and died.

Madeleine heard Percy and Hazel climbing the steps of the store. She didn't dare turn, and Frank remained where he was, tensed. The snake studied them and hissed, flames billowing from its mouth.

"Nice creepy reptile," Frank said, his voice shaking. "Nice poisonous, fire-breathing reptile."

"Guys!" Hazel yelled behind them. "Come on!"

The snake sprang at Frank. It sailed through the air. It was very fast, but Madeleine had always been quick. She drew her bronze knife and hurled it at the snake. It was sliced into two separate halves. Its back fell into the grass. Its front latched onto Frank's bow. Frank yelped and dropped the bow, and the still-moving front half of the reptile fell to the grass. The bow dissolved as the snake clung on, wriggling desperately.

It was sort of a horrible sight. Madeleine and Frank stared as the snake slowly stopped moving. Frank's bow was steaming, crumbling to dust. Madeleine's bronze knife lay in the grass by the lower half of the monster, unharmed.

Madeleine retrieved her knife.

Frank was staring at her, eyes wide. "Um, thanks," he said. "Nice shot."

Madeleine flexed her fingers. "I never miss."

She heard hissing down the hill, and she and Frank didn't need to talk anymore. She stumbled a little, a wave of dizziness nearly knocking her over, but Frank wrapped his hand around her bicep and pulled her forward. Hazel and Percy helped them up onto the porch steps. When Madeleine turned back, the two remaining snakes were circling in the grass, breathing fire and turning the hillside brown with their poisonous touch. They seemed unable or unwilling to come closer to the store, which was a temporary reprieve. Madeleine didn't miss the fact that they were trapped, though. She hated being trapped.

"We'll never get out of here," Frank said miserably.

"Shut up," Madeleine told him. "I'm going to vomit all over you, and I'm going to do it on purpose."

Frank went considerably paler.

Hazel sighed. "I really don't want to deal with vomit or snakes, so let's go in." She pointed to the hand-painted sign over the door: RAINBOW ORGANIC FOODS & LIFESTYLES.

"Great," Madeleine said. "I'm thrilled."

"You're always fucking thrilled," Percy slurred.

Together, the four of them made their way inside.