Blood Beast Read Online Free PDF Page B

living rooms and the kitchen — it doesn’t look like a whole lot.
    “Maybe we need to make another run,” Frank muses, opening a bag of chips.
    “Maybe you need to stop snacking before anyone arrives,” Reni retorts, grabbing the bag from him. “No,” she says, casting a professional eye around. “This will do. Any more would be a waste.” She checks her watch. “I’m going home to get ready. And you boys . . .” She wrinkles her nose and pulls a face. “Ever heard of showers?”
    She leaves. I look around at Loch, Frank, and Leon. They stare back. Then we all raise an arm and sniff.

Party Animal
    T HE party’s not set to start until seven, but the first guests begin arriving right after six. I’m nervous and twitchy, worrying about where their coats should go, if there’s enough food and drink, if anyone’s smuggled in anything they shouldn’t have. But as more arrive and the laughter and buzz of voices increase, I begin to relax as I realize people are having fun.
    Not everyone who comes was on the invitation list, but there’s nothing I can do about that. If I turned them away, I’d ruin the atmosphere. A few gate-crashers have to be expected at any party.
    Loch and Frank help (Leon can’t make it until nine), opening the front doors and greeting newcomers while I’m showing others around the mansion. It’s cool to be a guide to so many fascinated guests. I love leading them through the halls, pointing out weapons on the walls, explaining the house’s bloody history, showing them the hall of portraits and the faces of the dead.
    “How come there are so many young people?” Mary asks, studying the paintings and photos.
    “We’re an adventurous bunch,” I lie. “We don’t sit around quietly, waiting to grow old. We embrace life and danger, and so a lot of us die young.”
    “They leave good-looking corpses though,” Reni says, and giggles sweetly when I blush.
    Bill-E arrives at a quarter to eight. I’m coming down the stairs when he enters, admitted by Loch.
    “Hey, Bill-E, great to see you, glad you could come,” Loch enthuses, offering his hand, which Bill-E predictably — and, I must admit, amusingly — tries to shake. “Sucker!”
    But even Loch’s teasing can’t spoil the mood. Bill-E breezes past him, feathers only mildly ruffled, and makes for the nearest pile of food. Ten minutes of solid scarfing later, he’s by my side, marching after me as I lead the latest group on a tour. Halfway through, he’s taken over — he knows much more about the house and its legends than I do and is better at telling the stories. I don’t mind. It’s nice to see him come out of his shell. I wish he was like this all the time.
    As the night ticks on I start to feel strange. Nauseous, dizzy, the rooms and people around me appearing weirdly out of focus. My breath is heavy in my ears and my stomach and chest ache if I move quickly. It’s not alcohol — nobody brought booze — but maybe somebody spiked the soft drinks with a spoon of a nasty powder or a pill.
    “Are you OK?” Reni asks, spotting me staggering towards the kitchen.
    “A bit. . . weird . . .” I gasp, having to sit on the floor a couple of yards shy of the kitchen door.
    Reni squats beside me. “You don’t look good,” she says, and feels my forehead. “You haven’t been drinking, have you?” I shake my head. “Drugs?” Her voice is hard.
    “Not. . . that I know. . . about,” I wheeze. “I was going. . . to the kitchen. . . to check. Think somebody. . . might have spiked. . . the drinks.”
    “They’d better not,” Reni growls, surging to her feet. “I’ll have them arrested if they did! You wait here.” She storms off to investigate. Five or ten minutes later — hard to keep track of time, my head’s throbbing so much — she returns, calmer. “Everyone else is fine. I don’t think the drinks have been spiked.”
    “Maybe I’m just sick,” I mutter.
    “That’s what it looks like,” she says,