They ran down the path toward the river. They emerged from the woods, glanced at their canoe by the shore, and headed immediately in the direction of the boathouse.
“Did you bring the key?” asked Kim. “Because I brought my flashlight.” Racing ahead to the boathouse door, Kim grabbed ahold of the old padlock and gave it a twist. It held fast.
“Of course,” answered Erin, pulling the key and note out of her pocket.
“I also brought the note in case there is a clue in it that we might have missed.”
She took the key and slipped it into the rusty padlock. It fit perfectly. One quick turn was all that was needed to open the lock.
“Come on,” she said, turning to Kim. “Give me a hand.”
They pulled as hard as they could, and the huge door started to creak open. When they pulled it back far enough to enter, they peered into the old boathouse. Inside were all sorts of boating equipment and a few tools. There was an old wooden canoe hanging upside-down on a pair of concrete blocks and old life jackets resting neatly on the wall. Leaning up against the other wall was a set of paddles. On the back wall was a floor-to-ceiling cabinet with two big doors that had many small drawers on the inside.
“Let’s get started,” Erin said, stepping into the boathouse. “We won’t find that treasure standing around and staring.”
“Is that old canoe ours?” asked Kim.
“Of course it is,” answered Erin. “Don’t you remember what Dad said? Anything in here is ours, including Annabelle’s treasure when we find it.”
For the next half hour they searched the boathouse from top to bottom but couldn’t find anything. Inside the cabinet were more old tools but no treasure. Erin went over and sat down on one of the concrete blocks holding up the canoe. Kim came over and sat down next to her.
“Maybe it’s not here,” said Kim. “Maybe Annabelle took the treasure back a long time ago.”
“Then why would she leave the note?” asked Erin. She paused and thought about it for a moment. “Nope. I’m sure there is a treasure out here. We just haven’t found her dad’s hiding place yet. Remember how we almost gave up in the playroom?”
Kim nodded her head and then spun around, looking out the door of the boathouse. She heard a light scraping of pebbles on the shore. “What’s that?” she asked.
“Dad?” hollered Erin.
The movement stopped. There was nothing but silence now.
“Dad? Is that you out there?” Erin yelled a little louder this time. Now she was sure that her dad was out there playing a trick on them like he often did.
The two of them listened carefully but did not hear the scraping of the pebbles again.
“I’m scared, Erin,” said Kim, grabbing Erin’s arm.
“Come on,” whispered Erin. She stood up and started leading her sister toward the door.
Suddenly, there was a shuffling noise directly outside the door. Erin and Kim were so startled that they backed immediately away toward the rear of the boathouse. The door swung quickly shut and they heard the padlock click into place.
The girls rushed to the door and started pounding. “Let us out of here!”
The only sound they heard was the footsteps of someone quickly moving away from the boathouse toward the woods. Erin put her face to the narrow crack in the door, but she couldn’t get a good look at whoever had locked them in. For the next few minutes, the girls pounded and continued to yell. Finally, Kim began to cry.
“What are we going to do?” she asked, sitting down on the concrete blocks next to the canoe.
“Don’t worry,” consoled Erin. “Dad knows we’re down here. He’ll come and get us out when we don’t come home for lunch.”
Kim immediately felt better at the idea of a rescue. “But what do we do till he comes?” she asked. “Lunchtime isn’t for hours. I’m hungry! And who was that, anyway? Why did they lock us in here?”
“Let’s continue to look for the treasure,” suggested Erin, ignoring all of Kim’s questions. She pulled a candy bar she had been saving from her pocket and handed it to Kim. She didn’t have a single clue as to who locked the door and she felt a shiver go down her spine at the thought of some stranger lurking in the woods behind their new house.
All of a sudden, there was a scratching sound coming from the back of the boathouse. Erin spun around and stared into the dark shadows beyond the canoe.
Kim stopped eating the candy bar and huddled closer to her big sister. She had also heard the sound.
“What was that?”
“Kim, hand me your flashlight,” requested Erin. It wasn’t nearly as bright now that the door was closed. Erin shined the flashlight where she detected some movement near the cabinet on the rear wall. She slowly reached over and grabbed one of the canoe paddles, gripping it tightly in one hand while holding the flashlight in the other.
“Alright! Come out of there!” she yelled, swinging the light back and forth. The sound stopped as they both crept toward the cabinet. Erin raised the paddle high above her head, ready to hit anything that moved.
Suddenly, a small rabbit jumped out from right next to the cabinet. Erin and Kim were so startled that they both fell backwards onto the dirt floor of the boathouse, dropping both the flashlight and paddle with a loud clang. The rabbit took two more short hops toward them and sniffed the air. Erin reached out her hand toward the rabbit and it hopped over to her, peeking into her palm for a snack. She slowly picked up the soft brown bunny.
“Let me see him,” said Kim, getting up and dusting off her pants.
“Be careful,” cautioned Erin, holding it out for her to pet. “He seems friendly, but you never know.”
Erin had been one of the student caretakers of the many small animals kept at their old elementary school. She knew that even small animals could give you a nasty bite when they were scared.
Around the rabbit’s neck was a collar with a tag on it.
“Kim, shine the light on this tag for me.”
The name ‘Sniffles’ was stamped on the faded leather. “Its name is Sniffles,” she said reading the tag aloud to Kim.
“But how did it get in here?” asked Kim. “And is it a girl or boy?”
“I don’t know,” answered Erin, “Probably a boy. I’ll bet he came in when the door was open.”
They sat down on the blocks and continued to pet the soft, brown bunny.
“Do you think Mom and Dad will let us keep him?” asked Kim, putting the bunny down on the floor.
“I don’t know,” answered Erin, “They will probably make us give him back to the person who owns him. He does have a collar, you know.”
“I know that,” said Kim, “but what if he doesn’t have an owner anymore. Or what if the owner is dead?”
“Then I guess Mom and Dad will just have to let us keep him,” Erin replied. It seemed as if Kim was always going to extremes when she thought about something.
Sniffles hopped over to the cabinet and snuggled himself along its side. One moment he was standing right next to the cabinet and in the next moment he was gone.
“Where did he go?” asked Kim, getting up and crossing the room.
Erin came over next to her and knelt down. There was a small hole toward the back of the cabinet in the wall.
“Sniffles!” yelled Kim, but there was no sound.
“Give me a hand,” commanded Erin.
She reached down and yanked on the side of the cabinet, attempting to pull it away from the wall. Kim reached in and pulled along with her. The cabinet groaned and swung away from the wall. It was attached by three large hinges.
Behind the cabinet were some steps leading down into a long, narrow tunnel. Kim aimed the flashlight into the tunnel. It looked as if it went on for quite a distance and then curved slowly until they couldn’t see anything.
“Sniffles
!” called Kim.
Again, there was no sound except the hollow echo of her voice bouncing off of the stone walls and floor.
“I think we found where Annabelle hid the treasure,” declared Erin. She got up off her knees and stepped into the tunnel. “Let’s get moving.”
“Where?” asked Kim.
“To find the treasure,” answered Erin, stepping further into the tunnel entrance and down the four steps. She stopped and turned around to look back at Kim.
“Are you coming?” she asked.
Kim shrugged her shoulders and stepped into the tunnel hesitantly after Erin. She grabbed ahold of Erin’s hand and the two of them started off to hunt for the treasure.
Chapter 6 Discussion Questions
K – 2nd Grade
If you heard a scary sound, what would you do?
What do you think is in the secret tunnel?
3rd & 4th Grade
Why do you think the girls were scared of the rabbit?
Make an inference: Who (or what) do you think locked the girls in the boathouse?
5th & 6th Grade
What do you predict the girls will find in the tunnel?
Map the girls’ emotions throughout the chapter. How do you think the girls feel heading into the tunnel?
Chapter 7:
The Dark Tunnel
The tunnel became darker and darker as the two girls moved closer to the curve. Kim huddled next to Erin, gripping her hand tighter with every step.
“Ouch!” cried Erin, wincing in pain. She pulled her hand away.
Her yell echoed loudly, bouncing back and forth in a deafening roar. The eerie sound of the echo frightened Kim even more, causing her to huddle closer. They stood there quietly until the sound died away.
Just around the curve they could hear the soft sound of something moving.
“What is that?” asked Kim, her eyes wide with fear.
“It’s probably just Sniffles,” answered Erin, trying to make her voice sound as convincing as she could. She really wasn’t too sure what was making the sound, but it definitely was something alive. And it seemed to be moving away, leading them deeper and deeper along the path.
Taking the flashlight from Kim, Erin shifted forward. “Come on.”
Speeding up their pace, they followed after the sound. “He’s getting away!”
Kim grabbed a hold of Erin’s jacket, following closely behind her sister. When they rounded the curve, Erin stopped and flashed the light down the tunnel. Kim peered around her shoulder.
They could see that the tunnel continued on for quite some distance. Tapping on Erin’s shoulder, Kim excitedly pointed to a spot on the tunnel wall about fifteen feet ahead of them.
“Look!” she exclaimed.
There on the wall was an ‘A’ carved into the stone in the same beautiful script that they had found on the door of Annabelle’s playroom. “That proves it,” she whispered. “This tunnel has got to be Annabelle’s hiding place. There’s her ‘A’ just like on the playroom door!”
In the excitement of the moment, Kim forgot her fear and rushed toward the end of the tunnel. Erin followed close behind. It only took a moment before they arrived at an old, wooden door blocking the end of the tunnel. There was a small hole along the bottom edge where Sniffles had obviously squeezed through.
“I bet both the treasure and Sniffles are right behind this door,” declared Erin. She reached up to pull down on the brass latch. There were cobwebs on it and she brushed them away.
“See,” she said, wiping her hands on her pants, “these spider webs prove that nobody has come through this door in a long time.” She pulled down hard on the latch but the door wouldn’t budge.
“It’s locked tight!” she said, unable to hide the disappointment in her voice. She stepped away from the door and leaned against the wall, planning their next move.
Kim examined the latch closely. It was shiny brass with a beautiful floral design imprinted on it. Below the latch was a large keyhole with a little metal cover. Kim swung the cover back and tried to see what was on the other side of the door, but it was too dark.
“Take a look at this!” she squealed. “This keyhole is just like the one on the boathouse lock!”
Erin took the key from her pocket and slid it into the lock. It fit perfectly. When she turned the key, the lock made a loud clicking sound as it opened the tumblers. Now the brass latch easily turned, allowing the door to swing inward. Behind it was a large room and there, in the middle of the room, was Sniffles staring back at them.
“Sniffles!” exclaimed Erin, rushing over and scooping him up.
The rabbit buried his nose in her jacket, wiggling himself under her coat. He quickly twirled around and poked his nose back out of the zippered opening.
“He must be cold,” said Kim, reaching up and tickling Sniffles’ nose. He wiggled his whiskers and then jerked his head back into the coat. The movement of the bunny tickled Erin and she giggled.
“Where are we?” Kim looked around the room. There were shelves surrounding them, all with large boxes neatly stacked. In one corner was a furnace and a water heater with a brick chimney. In another corner was a washing machine and dryer with an ironing board set up on the side. On the ironing board was an iron, plugged into a socket high above on the ceiling.
Erin walked over to the ironing board and held out her hand. She could feel the heat rising from the iron. “It’s still hot,” she whispered. “This is someone’s house!”
“Whose house is it?” asked Kim, walking over.
“I don’t know,” Erin answered. “Let’s look and see if we can figure it out.”
For the next few minutes the two of them searched the basement. They could not find anything that revealed who owned the house or where they were. Next to the tunnel door was a set of stairs leading up to the first floor of the building.
“I guess we just have to go on up,” said Erin, reaching for Kim’s hand.
Kim jerked her hand from Erin’s, backing away toward the tunnel door. “No way,” she whispered shaking her head. “I want to go back to the boathouse and wait for Mom and Dad to come and get us.”
“Don’t be silly,” said Erin, starting up the stairs. “We can just explain to whoever lives here what happened. And then we can go home from here.”
“Oh yeah? And what if the person who lives here is the one who locked us in the boathouse? Then what do we do?”
Erin stopped and turned around. She hadn’t thought of that. She started back down the stairs, but before she reached the bottom, the door at the top flew open with a bang.
“Who’s down there?”
A woman’s voice startled the girls. The bright light at the top of the stairs framed the woman in a dark shadow, concealing her identity.
Erin quickly rushed down the remaining steps and grabbed Kim’s hand. Just as the basement lights turned on, she pulled Kim behind some shelves in a dark corner of the basement. They could hear the footsteps of the woman coming down.
When she reached the final step, Erin and Kim peeked out at her from behind a cardboard box on the shelf.
“Look!” whispered Kim.
A chill ran down Erin’s spine when she recognized the old woman from the house next door – the woman from the window. She held out a broom in front of her for protection.
Kim began to cry softly. She squeezed Erin’s hand.
“I know you’re back there,” said the old woman sharply. “Come on out from behind those boxes.”
The two girls leaned back into the corner as far as they could. Erin looked toward the door of the tunnel and tried to figure how she and Kim could get past the old woman and through it without getting caught. It seemed like an impossible task, but it was their only chance for an escape.
The woman stepped off the stairs and star
ted walking in their direction. Kim let out a wail and began to sob. Just as Erin had decided it was time to make their move, Sniffles jumped out from under her coat.
“Sniffles! Come back here!” hissed Erin.
She let go of Kim and sprang out from their corner hiding place in an attempt to recapture the rabbit. As her hands encircled Sniffles, she tripped and fell to the basement floor. Sniffles wiggled free and scampered to the other side of the basement. Erin gasped and looked up. The woman, holding a broom high above her head, towered over her. The woman’s hands twitched, poised and ready to strike Erin.
Kim shrieked and dove in front of her sister. “Nooo!”
Chapter 7 Discussion Questions
K – 2nd Grade
What do you think will happen next?
Do you think the old woman is nice or mean?
3rd & 4th Grade
What do you predict will happen next in the story?
What in the basement gives the girls a clue that someone lives there?
5th & 6th Grade
How do you think the old woman is feeling in this moment? How are her feelings similar or different from the girls?
Kim shows loyalty to her sister at the end of this chapter. What does she do to support her sister?
Chapter 8:
The Old Woman
Kim let out a wail so loud that it startled both the old woman and Erin. Erin looked up at the broom, which the old woman still held high over her head, and covered her eyes. With a gasp, the old woman dropped the broom and clutched her chest.
“My goodness!” she exclaimed. “You two nearly scared me to death.” She took a few dramatic, short breaths, held her hand over her eyes and then peeked out from behind her fingers to see if the girls were paying attention.
Kim sobbed even louder. Erin leaned up on her elbows. The dramatic gesture hadn’t gone unnoticed by her. “Were you going to hit us with that broom?” she asked.
“Why I ought to take you two over my knee and give you both a good spanking for scaring an old woman that way.”
Hidden Hollow Five--The Secret of Annabelle Page 5
