Free Wild Moose Chase by Siobhan Rowden Page A

huge whirlwind out there, you idiot! We would be blown out of the train!”
    But Bert had already unbolted the huge gate and started to slide it back. A tunnel of icy wind roared into the carriage, smashing into the walls and hurling everyone off their feet. Bert made a frantic grab for his sister just as they were all sucked out of the train.

The Bouncy Castle
    Cam and Bert were wrenched apart and whipped up into the Siberian sky like crumbs in a vacuum cleaner. Cam lost all sense of her surroundings as the whirlwind sucked the air from her lungs and pounded her face with tiny ice particles. She felt herself being tossed round and round as it roared over the bridge and out on to the river.
    Bert managed to catch a breath as the fierce wind eventually lost some of its momentum. He could feel his ears popping as the pressure dropped, and he opened his eyes as the wind died completely. Cam was right beside him, floating in mid-air like a piece of litter blown up in the storm. There was a second of calm before they both dropped like stones, hurtling towards the frozen river below. Bert could hear Cam shrieking, but her scream was drowned out by a much louder one, as Mr Zola tumbled past. Bert reached out for his sister and they managed to link fingers. But just as he thought they would crash into the ice, Mr Zola reappeared in front of them, soaring back up again and still screaming loudly. Bert glanced down just in time to see a mound of red rubber beneath them. There was a loud BOING as the twins fell into the object. Cam hit a wobbling wall and was boosted sideways, knocking into Bert, who bounced into a returning Mr Zola. Eventually, the three of them lay in a rippling heap in the middle of the billowing rubber.
    â€œI don’t believe it!” cried Bert. “We’ve landed on that bouncy castle we saw flying through the air! It must have blown on to the river. Is everyone OK?”
    They lay on their backs, panting heavily.
    â€œI think so,” groaned Cam. “But that was terrifying. I thought we were going to die.”
    Mr Zola stared fearfully up into the sky. “It’s not too late,” he mumbled. “What about the moose? They could come raining down on us at any moment.”
    â€œThey’ll be safe,” said Bert. “I secured them to the carriage, remember? It probably saved their lives.”
    Mr Zola tried to get to his feet but the wind picked up again, hitting the back of the bouncy castle and propelling it along the frozen river. He fell back and almost bounced right out.
    â€œWe’re going to take off again,” he whimpered, grasping hold of one of the large rubber air-plugs attached to the floor. “This is all your fault! Monty is traumatized and I’ve lost my cheese hat!”
    The weight of the two children and Mr Zola kept the bouncy castle from being tossed into the air again. But it sped along the ice at breakneck speed, leaving the Krasnoyarsk Bridge far behind.
    â€œHold on to one of those plugs,” called Bert to Cam. “But be careful you don’t disturb the seal. We don’t want to lose any air. This is going to be a fast ride.”
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    After a little while Cam let go and bounced over to a wobbly wall.
    â€œActually, this isn’t too bad,” she said, looking out on to the river. “Look how far we’ve gone already.”
    Bert joined her as the bouncy castle hurtled past an icebreaking ship. He waved to the astonished people on board.
    â€œWe’re much faster than them,” he said. “It’s brilliant!”
    â€œBrilliant?” yelped Mr Zola, clinging to his air-plug. “It’s intolerable!”
    â€œWe should be grateful,” said Cam. “This bouncy castle saved our lives. What on earth was it doing blowing around?”
    â€œI guess Siberian kids have birthday parties too,” replied Bert. “But what are we going to do when the wind dies down?”
    But the wind