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he chose right – just as another bird’s beak smashed through the foliage, tearing for the flesh of their arms.
    They both dodged out of the way just in time.
    Ignoring the stitch blazing in his side, Max set off again at his fastest run. There were so many different pathways. He’d never been in such a thick maze and there seemed to be birds everywhere. Just one of them could kill both him and Fin!
    He took a right. Left. Right again. Another left.
    And then suddenly they were in a larger space, a perfect square boxed in by hedges. In the middle of it was a high wooden platform. Steps led up to the platform and there was a railing all the way round the edge. A round metal sign screwed on to a wooden post set in a heavy base said:
Centre of Maze
.
    â€˜We’ve reached the middle!’ Max gasped.
    Finlay panted for breath and listened. ‘Where are the birds?’ They could hear distant screeches further away in the maze passageways but no sound of birds nearby. ‘Maybe we’ve lost them. I know, let’s get up on that platform. We’ll be able to see over the hedges from there!’ Finlay clambered up the steps. ‘Hey, Max! You can see the whole maze!’ he hissed.
    Max followed him. Finlay was right. Standing up on the wooden platform he could see out over the whole maze with its network of linked passageways, thick hedges and dead ends. The breath caught in his throat. Four birds were stalking along a pathway quite near tothe centre. Even worse, another four birds were approaching from the opposite direction. Their eyes gleamed and they cawed harshly as if they were talking to each other, planning and plotting. Shivers ran down Max’s

    spine. There was no way he and Finlay could get out past them, at least not if they wanted to stay alive.
    â€˜Fin! What are we going to do?’ he said. ‘We’re trapped!’

CHAPTER FIVE

TRAPPED!
    â€˜Hang on!’ Finlay exclaimed. ‘Look, Max!’
    He pulled Max round and pointed at a narrow overgrown path on the other side of the centre of the maze that led between two hedges all the way to the outside. There was a green gate at the end with a large sign on it.
    â€˜Escape Gate,’ Max read out. Reliefsurged through him. ‘It’s an exit, so people don’t have to get out by going all the way back through the maze! Come on, Fin. We can get out that way!’ He began scrambling down the steps.
    Finlay was about to follow him when he saw something that sent his heart plummeting into his trainers. A Man-Eating Bird was walking past the gate on the outside of the maze. As he watched, it turned round and walked back. It was obviously guarding the escape gate. ‘Wait, Max!’ he hissed. ‘There’s a bird there!’
    Max climbed back up the steps and looked. The bird had the meanest eyes and the longest beak of all the birds he had seen. Glancing round, Max saw thatthe other eight birds were stalking horribly near to the pathway that led into the centre of the maze now. They had their heads outstretched and kept stopping every few paces, as if listening to guess where the boys might be.

    If they came into the centre he and Finlay wouldn’t stand a chance.
    If only there was some way I could use my superpower to stop the birds from coming into the centre
, Max thought desperately.
If I could just get them to go away from here then maybe we could figure out how to get past that one guard bird at the exit.
But how could he possibly do that? The only thing that would make the birds go away would be if they thought he and Finlay weren’t there any more…
    Max’s eyes fell on the chunky gravel at the base of the platform and an idea exploded into his mind. He hurried down the steps and grabbed a huge handful of stones.
    â€˜What are you doing?’ Finlay demanded.
    â€˜I’ve had an idea,’ Max answered, climbing back up. He carefully chucked a large stone so