Free Abe Lincoln at Last!: A Merlin Mission by Mary Pope Osborne Page A

D.C.)—Fiction.
6. Presidents—Family—Fiction.] I. Murdocca, Sal, ill. II. Title.
PZ7.O81167 Ab 2011 [Fic]—dc23 2011017350
    Random House Children’s Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read.
    v3.1

For Mary Sams

Not often in the story of mankind does a man
arrive on earth who is both steel and velvet, who
is hard as rock and soft as drifting fog.…

—Carl Sandburg



Prologue
    O ne summer day in Frog Creek, Pennsylvania, a mysterious tree house appeared in the woods. A brother and sister named Jack and Annie soon learned that the tree house was magic—it could take them to any time and any place in history.
    Jack and Annie have since gone on many adventures in the magic tree house and have completed many missions for both Morgan le Fay and Merlin the magician of Camelot. On some of their journeys, Jack and Annie have received help from two young enchanters, Teddy and Kathleen, who are learning magic from Merlin and Morgan.
    Now Teddy is in big trouble. While Merlin and Morgan were away, Teddy accidentally put a spell on Penny, Merlin’s beloved penguin. The spellturned her into a stone statue. Teddy thinks that he could be banished from the kingdom—unless Jack and Annie can help!
    Teddy and Kathleen have found an ancient spell that can undo Teddy’s accidental magic. To make the ancient spell work, Jack and Annie must find four special things—each from a different time and place. They have already found two of these things: an emerald in the shape of a rose and a white and yellow flower.
    Now Jack and Annie are waiting to find out what they must search for next.…

CHAPTER ONE
The Third Thing
    A nnie peeked into Jack’s room.
    “Ready?” she whispered.
    “Yep,” said Jack.
    Even though it was two hours before school started, Jack and Annie were already dressed. Jack put his notebook and pencil into his backpack. Then he picked up the pack and his sneakers and followed Annie into the hall. In their sock feet, Jack and Annie tiptoed past their parents’ bedroom. Then they slipped down the stairs.
    When they reached the front hall, Jack andAnnie put on their jackets and shoes and stepped outside. The early-morning sky was gray. Everything was quiet, except for the sound of a gentle spring rain.
    “Should we get our raincoats?” Jack asked.
    “It’s clearing up,” said Annie. She pointed to blue sky in the distance.
    “Oh, good,” said Jack. “Let’s hurry.”
    Jack and Annie stepped off their porch. Then they ran up the sidewalk and crossed the street. By the time they started into the Frog Creek woods, the rain had stopped. Misty rays of sunlight slanted down through the wet trees.
    Jack and Annie kept going until they came to the tallest oak. The leaves at the top of the tree sparkled with raindrops, and the magic tree house was lit by the morning sun.
    “It’s waiting for us,” said Jack.
    “I knew it would be,” said Annie. She grabbed the rope ladder and started up.
    Jack climbed after her. Inside the tree house,they looked around for the two special things they had found on their last missions.
    “Great, they’re still here,” said Jack, pointing to a green jewel and a white and yellow flower in the corner.
    “And it looks like Teddy and Kathleen sent some stuff for us,” said Annie.
    Lying in the shadows was a book. Next to it were a small folded note and a tiny blue bottle. Jack picked up the book. Its cover showed an old black-and-white photograph of a building. It looked like the White House in Washington, D.C.
    Jack gasped. “Oh, man! Abraham Lincoln!”

    “Wow,” said Annie, looking at the book’s cover. “He was a great president.”
    “No kidding,” said Jack. “Do you think we’re actually going to meet him?” He opened the book to the first page and read aloud:
    Abraham Lincoln served as president of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the country through the terrible crisis of the