Terror at the Zoo by Peg Kehret Page B

sending her thoughts to the elephant.
Good elephant, help us! We need you. The man is evil. Please help us escape.
    The elephant trumpeted again; other elephants replied. There were more of them now and they all seemed close.
    Behind her, on the other side of the fence, Ellen heard another car go past. In front of her, and from both sides, she heard movement. Although Ellen could make out only three distinct shapes, she knew that there were several more elephants nearby.
    They trumpeted again. And again. The sound filled the night. It bounced back from the paths, from the trees, from the stars.
    If the security guard was anywhere on the zoo grounds, Ellen thought, surely he would come to investigate. He would hear the elephants and come to see what was wrong. Even the cars whizzing past on Aurora Avenue would hear this much noise. Maybe someone would wonder what was wrong and call the police.
    Keep calling, good elephants. Bring help.
    There was another loud eruption from the elephantchorus. A tingle of excitement prickled Ellen’s skin. She was sure the elephants recognized that she and Corey were in danger and they were responding in the only way they could. Would their cries for help work? Would someone hear them and come?
    “An earthquake’s coming,” Corey repeated. “The elephants know that an earthquake’s coming.”
    “Let’s get out of here,” the man said.
    “You’ll get away faster if you go alone,” Ellen said.
    The man grabbed Corey’s arm in one hand and Ellen’s arm in the other. He started away from the fence, pulling them with him. “We’re staying together,” he said, “until I collect my ransom. Now, move it.”
    The elephants kept calling. It was a steady clamor with first one and then another sounding the alarm.
    The man moved around the first elephant, keeping lots of space between it and them. Even in the dim light, Ellen could see that it was watching them. Its huge ears were spread wide and its trunk was raised in the air. Just as they passed it, the elephant let out a mighty blast.
    The man began to run. Ellen and Corey stumbled along beside him.
    The clouds lifted and the full moon once again shed its eerie light. The second elephant approached from their left and the man swerved away from it. Propelled by the man’s hands on their arms, Corey and Ellen crashed through the woods while the elephants continued their uproar.
    They zigzagged through the elephant obstacle course, making wide swings around each elephant that they saw. Once, the man didn’t see an elephant approaching fromthe side and it reached out its trunk and touched the back of his neck.
    The man cried out and then ran even faster. Ellen held her right arm in front of her face, trying to shield herself from scratchy branches that they passed.
    They came to the edge of the forest and started across the clearing toward the gully.
    The man stopped. Just ahead, Ellen saw a huge elephant blocking their way. It was Hugo, the enormous elephant that they had helped wash. The trainer had said Hugo was ten feet tall and weighed more than six tons. Looming before them in the dim light, he looked even bigger than that.
    Behind Hugo, Ellen saw the gully that led out of the Elephant Forest. They could not get out unless Hugo moved.
    The man walked to his right, shoving Ellen and Corey in that direction. Hugo turned that way, too. The man moved the other way. Hugo did the same. His ears fanned out to full size.
    “Damn elephant,” muttered the man.
    Ellen looked up, directly toward the small eyes of the enormous old elephant.
Help us, Hugo
, she pleaded silently.
We’re your friends and we need help.
    The elephant swayed slightly from side to side as his upraised trunk fanned the air. His big ears framed his face like giant bookends; his long ivory tusks gleamed in the moonlight.
    The man let go of Corey and Ellen. He withdrew the knife from his jacket pocket.
    “No,” Ellen said. “You can’t.”
    Hugo lifted his trunk