Free Blizzard of the Blue Moon: A Merlin Mission by Mary Pope Osborne Page B

started?
How?”
said Jack.
    “Maybe we should talk to some New Yorkers,” said Annie. “We can ask them if they know anything about a unicorn in New York City.” She looked out the window. “There’re some people in the park right now.”
    Jack looked out. Through the falling snow, he saw girls crossing the field carrying skates. He saw two people standing on top of a small hill. One wore a cape, and the other a long raincoat.
    “If we start asking people about unicorns, they’ll think we’re crazy,” said Jack.
    “Who cares?” said Annie. “Maybe
someone
will at least know
something
that can help us. Let’s go down.” She started down the ladder.
    Jack quickly packed up their books. He buckled his bag and followed her. When they stepped onto the ground, Jack and Annie looked around. The skaters were gone. The two people on the hill were gone, too.
    “Where’d everybody go?” said Jack.
    “I don’t know. But we’ll find someone else. Come on,” said Annie.
    Jack and Annie started across the wide field. The snow was falling fast and furiously. The wind blew harder.
    “Look, a frozen pond,” said Annie, pointing. “That must be where the skaters were coming from.”
    Wet snow stuck to Jack’s glasses. He wiped them off so he could see. No one was skating on the pond now. Whirlwinds of powdery snow swirled over the ice.
    “Keep going,” said Jack.
    They kept trudging through the snow.
    “Hey, look! Remember that?” said Annie.
    “What?” said Jack. He wiped the snow off his glasses again. He saw a merry-go-round. “Oh, yeah.” On their trip to New York with their aunt Mallory, they’d taken a ride on it. But now the riderless painted horses looked sad and lonely.

    “I feel like we’re the last living creatures in Central Park,” said Jack.
    “Which way do we go now?” asked Annie. “Which way did we come from?”
    It was hard to see anything in the white haze of the falling snow. The buildings bordering the park and the skyscrapers in the distance had disappeared.
    “Let’s see what our book says,” said Jack. He unbuckled his leather briefcase and pulled out their research book. He found a picture of Central Park and read:
    Central Park is a vast natural area in the middle of New York City. The park has thirty-two miles of winding footpaths and covers 840 acres of land. It has rock formations, woods, and many bodies of water. It also has—
    “Okay, okay, got it,” said Annie. “It’s a
big
park. Is there a map that shows where we are?”
    Jack tried to read from the index, but the wind and snow made it impossible. He stuffed the book back into his briefcase. “Forget it,” he said. “Let’s just try to get out of the park.”
    Jack and Annie turned away from the lonely merry-go-round and walked across the snow. A gust of wind blew Jack’s cap off. As he turned around to grab it, he saw a couple walking a short distance behind them.
    The two people looked like teenagers. They were walking with their heads bowed against the wind. The girl wore a dark cape with a hood. The boy wore a hat and a tan raincoat with a belt.
    “Hey, look—” Jack said to Annie. But at that moment, the wind shook the trees, and big clumps of snow fell from the branches. Jack and Annie ducked and covered their heads. When the wind died down, Jack looked around for the couple.
    “They’re gone now,” he said.
    “Who’s
gone?” said Annie. “Who did you see?”
    “Two teenagers, I think,” said Jack. “A boy and a girl. We saw them earlier from the tree house. I think they might be following us.”
    “Wait a second,” said Annie. “Two teenagers? A boy and a girl? Following us? Who does that remind you of?”
    A big smile crossed Jack’s face. “Teddy and Kathleen?” he said.
    “Think about it,” said Annie. “On our last three missions, it seemed like Teddy and
    Kathleen were always nearby, wearing disguises, ready to help us when we needed it.”
    “Right,” said Jack. “We