In another part of the forest, Maximus, the palace guard horse, was still eagerly sniffing¹ the ground for Flynn Rider. Furious about losing Flynn, he saw one of Flynn's wantedposters. In a frenzy², Maximus ripped it from the tree with his teeth and shredded³ it into tiny bits. Maximus was not used to failing in a chase. And he definitely was not going to fail in this one. He had nothing but disdain⁴ for that cocky thief, and he couldn't stand the thought that the man had evaded⁵ him. Maximus knew that he was considered the best horse in the royal guard. He had helped his humans win awards, promotions⁶, and bonuses. And all that he asked for in return was a warm stable, some hay, and maybe a few oats every day.

 

But this was different. When it came to this conniving⁷, disrespectful thief, Maximus had reached his limit. He wanted to apprehend⁸ Flynn Rider himself!

 

Maximus sniffed⁹ the air, trying to pick up the scoundrel's scent¹⁰. He looked for the puny¹¹ footprints left by the puny man who barely made an imprint¹² in the soil. Maximus knew — he knew — he would find those prints, however small, and track down Flynn Rider.

 

Suddenly, his ears perked¹³ up. There was a rustling¹⁴ in the bushes. Aha! The horse hid behind a large green bush, ready to catch that man. A figure, dark and shadowy, approached. When the figure got just close enough, he leaped out to confront it. But it wasn't Flynn he found. He was face to face with Mother Gothel!

 

Who is she? Maximus wondered.

 

Mother Gothel was wondering the same thing about the horse. Startled at first, she quickly noticed the kingdom's emblem¹⁵ on the horse's bridle¹⁶.

 

"A palace horse?" she mumbled¹⁷ to herself. "Where is your rider?" The palace guards rarely came around this area of the forest, not since —

 

"Oh, no," Mother Gothel gasped¹⁸. "Rapunzel!" There was no other explanation. The horse's rider must have been searching for Rapunzel. That was the only reason for any royal guard to be in this part of the forest. What if he had found the tunnel into the valley, leaving the horse outside?

 

In a panic, Mother Gothel turned and ran back toward the tower. When she got there, she called out, "Rapunzel? Rapunzel! Let down your hair!" But no one answered.

 

She ran to the back of the tower. Long ago, she had used this entrance. But once Rapunzel's hair had grown long enough for Mother Gothel to use it as a way of entering and exiting the tower, she had closed off the door, with bricks and mortar¹⁹. Now, she ripped at the branches that had grown over the door and uncovered the hidden entrance.

 

At least no one got in this way, she thought as she began prying²⁰ away the bricks with her bare hands, until she could open the door behind the wall she had built.

 

Climbing a secret staircase, Mother Gothel burst through a door hidden in the floor. She looked around the tower. It was just as she feared. The tower was empty.

 

In a fury, Mother Gothel ransacked²¹ the tower. Rapunzel couldn't leave. She had raised the child! Rapunzel believed everything Mother Gothel had told her. All that work nurturing²² her precious flower, the child with the magical hair — had it all been for naught²³?

 

"Rapunzel!" she called out desperately²⁴. Then she saw a glint of something under the stairs. She moved toward it, walking up a few steps, and a board creaked under her foot.

 

Mother Gothel ripped the board away and found a satchel²⁵ hidden underneath²⁶. She pulled it out and looked inside. Much to her horror, she found a crown inside. The crown of the lost princess! Then she saw the wantedposter with Flynn Rider's picture on it.

 

Mother Gothel wasted no time. She grabbed a dagger²⁷ and the satchel and quickly left the empty tower.

 

森林的另一边，宫殿卫队的军马捍马还在急切地嗅着地面，追踪费林·雷德。正当它因跟丢了费林而火冒三丈的时候，它见到了费林的通缉令。捍马暴躁地用牙齿把通缉令从树上扯下来，撕了个粉碎。捍马可不习惯追踪失败。这次当然也不会失败。它对那个自大的窃贼充满了蔑视，一想到他从自己这儿逃脱就怒不可遏。捍马知道自己被认为是卫队里最好的马。他为他的主人们赢得奖赏、提拔和奖金。而它所要的回报不过是一个温暖的马厩，一些干草，也许每天再来点儿燕麦。

 

但这次不一样。对于这个狡诈无礼的小偷，捍马已经忍无可忍。它要亲自抓到费林·雷德！

 

捍马在空气中嗅着，想要捕捉到一丝那个坏蛋的气味。他寻找着那个卑鄙小人留下的浅浅的脚印——他几乎没有在土壤上留下什么脚印。捍马知道——他知道——他会发现脚印，不管脚印多么浅，他都能追踪到费林·雷德。

 

突然，他的耳朵竖了起来。灌木丛沙沙作响。啊哈！这匹马躲到一大丛灌木后面，准备好抓人。一个黑色阴暗的身影渐渐靠近。当那个身影足够近的时候，他一下子跳出来与其对质。但是，那不是费林。他正面对着高瑟妈妈！

 

她是谁？捍马很想知道。

 

高瑟妈妈也想知道这匹马是怎么回事。一开始，她吓了一跳，但很快留意到马缰绳上王国的徽章。

 

“宫里的马？”她低声自言自语，“你的主人呢？”卫队几乎不到森林的这片地区来，自从——

 

“哦，不，”高瑟妈妈喘着气说，“乐佩！”不会有别的原因。这匹马的骑手一定在搜寻乐佩。那是皇家卫队来这片森林的唯一理由。要是他已经找到了通往山谷的密道，而把马留在外面，那该怎么办呢？

 

高瑟妈妈惊慌失措地转过身，向着高塔跑去。她到了之后便高声喊道：“乐佩？乐佩！放下你的头发！”但是没有人 回应。

 

她跑到塔的背面。她在很久以前用过这个入口。但是当乐佩的头发长到能够被高瑟妈妈用来进出高塔的时候，她就用砖石和灰浆把门给封死了。现在，她扯断了大门前长满的树枝，露出了秘密入口。

 

至少还没人从这里进去，她一边想，一边开始徒手挖石头，一直挖到她能打开自己砌的墙后的门为止。

 

高瑟妈妈顺着秘密楼梯向上爬去，推开地板上的一道密门。她环顾塔内，就像她害怕的那样，塔里空无一人。

 

高瑟妈妈气急败坏地疯狂搜寻着。乐佩不能离开。她养大了那个孩子！乐佩相信高瑟妈妈告诉她的一切。她辛辛苦苦栽培的珍贵的花儿，就是那个长着魔法头发的孩子——这一切都付诸东流了？

 

“乐佩！”她绝望地喊道。突然她看到了楼梯下有什么东西在闪烁。她走过去，走上几级楼梯，脚下有块木板嘎吱作响。

 

高瑟妈妈扯掉木板，发现了藏在下面的背包。她把包拽出来，朝里面看去。她惊恐不已，发现了一顶皇冠。失踪公主的皇冠！就在这时，她见到了画有费林·雷德肖像的通缉令。

 

高瑟妈妈没有浪费时间。她抓过一把匕首和那个背包，迅速离开了空荡荡的高塔。

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