Free The Curse of the Ancient Emerald by Franklin W. Dixon Page B

immediately understood his caution. The roof’s shingles were slippery from the earlier rain. One wrong move and we would go sliding down five stories to the hard ground below.
    We picked our way across as fast as we could. I glanced over my shoulder to check on the police. I turned away for only a second, but as soon as I did, I felt something slip underfoot, as if I were sliding on ice. I looked down in horror and saw that an entire shingle had come off, sliding down the angled roof with my foot still on it.
    I lost my balance and fell on my back, hitting the shingles with a terrific crash. I felt some of them shatter beneath my elbow. I started to slide amid an avalanche of red shingles, heading straight for the edge. My arms flailed behind me, frantically reaching for anything to grab hold of. I tried to twist around, but the shingles shifted beneath me so much that I was now heading for the edge headfirst. I opened my mouth to shout for help—
    And lurched to a stop. My eyes swiveled up to see Joe lying stretched out full length, his feet hooked over the peak of the roof and one hand gripping my ankle.
    The shingles flew past me. I heard them crash to the ground, shattering the quiet with loud cracks. I struggled to look over my shoulder. The police had stopped running and had turned their attention to the roof.
    I reached up and grabbed Joe’s arm. He had shifted to the side slightly, where the rooftop was still in one piece. He let go of my ankle, and I crawled up toward him.
    A shout from below informed me that we’d been spotted. Nothing to be done about that now. Joe moved back up the roof and stood up. I followed his example, my legs a bit shaky, and we set off again.
    The Phantom was at the opposite edge of the roof by now, and as we watched, he dropped from sight. I wondered if he had another bungee cord or if there was some other way down. I really hoped that whatever it was, we could use it too.
    Just then I heard a shout behind us. I glanced back and saw Chief Olaf peering over the edge of the roof. He looked around, then ducked back inside the building.
    I smiled. There was no way he would come up here after us. He’d send some of the younger officers.
    My face was dripping with sweat, my breathing amplified by the mask. The sweat was getting into my eyes, stinging them, and I couldn’t even wipe it away. I couldn’t risk lifting the mask in case we were being watched.
    We reached the end of the roof, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Just below us, attached to an emergency door on the fifth floor, was a fire escape.
    But as we watched, the same door started to open.
    Joe and I did the exact same thing. Without a moment’s hesitation we leaped off the roof, dropping onto the fire escape with a loud clang. We rammed ourselves up against the door, slamming it shut again. Someone on the other side pushed against it, but the two of us had more weight. The only problem was, we couldn’t just stand there all night. The police would be coming around the side of the building any moment now.
    I looked at Joe. “We have to make a run for it.”
    He nodded. “When you’re ready.”
    â€œLet’s go.”
    We jerked away from the door and clattered down the series of fire-escape ladders leading to the ground. Each time we hit a metal landing I would shove the ladder back up again and push the latch into place. It wouldn’t stop anyone, but it might give us an extra minute or two.
    We landed on the street behind the town hall just as the Phantom was sprinting away, heading away from the police station. We set off after him, putting our athletic prowess to good use.
    Just as we started to catch up with him, we heard more sirens blaring, closer this time.
    I looked over my shoulder and saw two squad cars screech around a corner. Joe grabbed me and we ducked into a narrow alley, leaving the Phantom in clear view.
    The squad cars shot past us. We moved deeper into