Vinnie fought back tears.
“How did this happen?” he cried.
The prisoners began climbing.
The Aztec priests were standing at the top of the pyramid.
Vinnie’s heart beat faster with each step.
Mandy ran toward the temple.
“Vinnie!” she screamed.
She could not find her brother.
Suddenly she saw the prisoners on the temple steps.
The last person in line looked very small and very familiar.
“Mandy! Stop! It’s too dangerous!” Mazatl called to her.
But Mandy kept pushing through the crowd.
“Go back, little one!” a guard yelled.
But Mandy was too quick.
She ran up the stone steps.
“Vinnie!” She grabbed her brother’s arm.
“Mandy! What are we going to do?” Vinnie said in a shaky voice.
“The photo, where is it?
Maybe it can help us,” she said.
“The old man!” gasped Vinnie.
“I remember, he was on some steps.”
Vinnie took the picture out.
It was glowing blue.
“We must be very close,” he said.
“What are those?”
Mandy pointed to the glowing objects in the photo.
She looked around. “Vinnie! Look!”
She pointed to the bottom of the steps. Statues!
Mandy looked at the photo again.
“I can’t tell what they are!” she shouted.
Vinnie peered at the photo.
Then he looked down at the stone objects.
“There’s only one way to find out!” he said.
He grabbed his sister’s hand and headed back down the steps.
The guards began running toward the children.
The crowd below went wild.
The drums beat louder.
“Hang on!” Vinnie climbed onto a huge stone ramp.
He slid all the way down. Mandy followed.
They got to the bottom and saw that the statues were dragons.
The photo glowed red.
“Vinnie! Mandy!” Mazatl called.
They looked at their new friend.
“Thanks for everything, Mazatl!” Mandy called out.
“Don’t worry about us.”
“We’re going home,” Vinnie shouted.
Vinnie and Mandy held hands and closed their eyes.
The noise of the crowd faded as the children fell down the dark tunnel.
“Ohhh!”
Vinnie and Mandy landed safely back in the attic.
“That was a close call,” Mandy said.
Vinnie nodded.
“Mandy!” Mom called from below.
“Where are you?”
“I’m coming!” she yelled.
She winked at Vinnie and ran downstairs.
“What were you doing?
We’re late!” Mom asked.
She looked at Mandy.
“What happened to that bracelet I bought you?”
“Um, I left it in the attic.
Come on, Mom, let’s go!”
Vinnie looked out the window.
His dad was looking up while mowing the lawn.
“Vinnie, come and help me!” he shouted.
Vinnie smiled and waved.
“Okay, Dad! I’ll be right there.”
After his close call with the Aztecs, mowing the lawn didn’t seem that bad.