The Secret of Zanzibar by Frances Watts Page A

sky was hidden by a dense canopy of leaves which allowed only a trickle of green light. Moss dripped from trees growing straight out of the water that lapped against the muddy path on which they walked. Instead of the fresh river smell of the Winns, the air of the swamp was at once ripe and sour and musty.
    â€˜Pee-uw,’ said Alex behind her. ‘This place stinks. I’m going to hold my breath until we’re out of here.’
    â€˜How long will it take us to cross the swamp?’ Alice asked Solomon.
    â€˜We should reach the other side by around lunchtime tomorrow,’ said the rusty orange and white mouse.
    â€˜Tomorrow?’ squawked Alex. ‘I’ll have suffocated to death by then!’
    â€˜Sorry, kids,’ said Solomon. ‘I wish there was another way, but it’s the only part of Gerander I know where there’s no risk of running into Queen’s Guards, and that’s an advantage we can’t afford to ignore.’
    â€˜Why aren’t there any Queen’s Guards in here?’ Alice wanted to know.
    â€˜Because of the snakes,’ said Solomon Honker casually.
    â€˜Snakes?’ yelped Alex.
    â€˜That’s right. Serpentine Swamp is full of them. But don’t worry. You know what they say: snakes only attack when they’re hungry.’
    â€˜What do snakes like to eat?’ Alice asked uneasily.
    â€˜Mice,’ said Solomon Honker.
    â€˜Mice?’ Alice repeated in horror.
    â€˜Well, I’ve never met these particular snakes before. Maybe they’re allergic.’
    â€˜So what do we do if we see a snake?’ Alex wanted to know.
    â€˜Avoid it,’ Solomon advised.
    And with that they moved into the cover of the trees.
    Alice felt as if her senses were on hyper-alert as she splashed through the ankle-deep water, her feet sinking into the soft mud below the surface. The rustling of leaves sounded like hissing and occasionally a strange cry rang through the tree tops to remind them that they were not alone. The vines creeping up the trunks looked like the sinuous forms of serpents. The slimy mud beneath her feet felt like it was moving, alive, sucking at her toes. Her skin quivered beneath her fur with a sense of dread. She didn’t like this place. She would almost rather be taking her chances with Queen’s Guards along the road – anything would be better than this eerie, oozing swamp.
    A movement in the trees above startled her and Alice turned her gaze upwards. ‘Aaaah!’ she screamed when she saw a huge thick brown snake coiling itself around a branch only an arm’s length away.
    The snake stared back at her, its gleaming eyes unblinking, and flicked its tongue.
    Alice, her heart pounding like a drum, put a hand to her chest.
    â€˜Everything all right back there?’ Solomon called.
    â€˜J-just a s-s-snake,’ Alice called back.
    â€˜Did it seem allergic?’ asked Solomon.
    â€˜N-n-no.’
    â€˜So much for that theory,’ said Solomon.
    Too frightened now to look around, Alice did her best to ignore the slitherings in the reeds, the murmurings in the trees, and instead fixed her eyes on the path ahead so as not to trip on the vine that twisted across it like …
    â€˜Solomon!’ she cried, her voice shrill, as the vines on the path moved suddenly.
    â€˜Hmmm?’ Solomon started, then: ‘Oh!’ He sprang backwards, almost colliding with Alice as the snake on the path slid into the water.
    On they sloshed through thickening mud. It seemed to Alice that the stench was getting worse. She tried breathing through her mouth but then it seemed to her that she could taste the rot and decay on her lips and tongue.
    â€˜This place is giving me the creeps,’ Alex said behind her. ‘And this mud stinks.’
    â€˜I know,’ said Alice, wrinkling her nose. ‘But maybe that’s a good thing. It might keep the snakes away. Do you think snakes have a sense