.â
Just then Billy grabbed Bellaâs arm. They were high above the crowds now and Billy was terrified.
âOh, dear,â he quavered, shutting his eyes tight. âI canât bear to look!â
âWhy donât you turn into a bat?â said Bella kindly. âYouâre not scared of heights when youâre a bat.â
âBut Miss Gargoyle said we shouldnât!â said Billy.
Suddenly Lee sat up.
âOnly in front of Fangless folk,â he said brightly. âBut when we get to the top, no one will see us.â
â Us ?â said Bella. âWhat do you mean, us ?â
âIâve just had an idea,â grinned Lee. âListen â¦â
Chapter 3
Bat Trick
Ten minutes later, car number seven came to a halt at the bottom of the Ferris wheel. The man with the thin mustache unlocked the door and a Fangless boy and girl got out. The wheel moved on and car number eight swung down.
âHur-hur,â sneered the man. âHere come those three weird-looking kids I cheated.â He unlocked the car. It was empty. âWhat? Hang on a minute,â he gasped. âWhereâd they go?â
He looked in, under, and on top of the car. Nothing. He was baffled. Those kids had definitely got into car number eight, he was sure of it.
Or had they?
Maybe heâd got the number wrong. He waited while all the other cars came down and checked inside every one. But there was no sign of the children. He scratched his mustache, puzzled.
Finally, car number eight came back down again. The man couldnât understand it. Those children had gone up, so they must have come down. But where were they? All he could see were three little bats fluttering high above his head.
There was a long line of people waiting to get on the Ferris wheel. The man thought hard.
âIâll just take one last look in car number eight,â he muttered. âMaybe those pesky kids are hiding under the seat.â He crawled into the car on his hands and knees for a closer look. And then three things happened very quickly.
First, the three little bats turnedâ POP! POP! POP! âinto three giggling vampires.
Next, Lee quickly locked the door of the car with a SLAM! Then, Billy pressed the green button that said START.
âHey!â yelled the man. âWhatâs going on? Let me out!â
But the three vampires just smiled and waved.
âHave a nice trip,â called Lee, as car number eight swung into the air. The man was shouting some very rude words, but they grew fainter and fainter as he rose higher and higher.
When car number eight reached the top of the Ferris wheel, Bella pressed the red STOP button.
âGood,â said Lee. âThatâll serve him right for cheating people. Weâll let him out in half an hour!â
As they left the Ferris wheel, Lee hung a sign on the entrance. It said CLOSED FOR REPAIRS.
âSorry,â Lee said to the waiting Fangless people. âCome back later!â
Chapter 4
Mirror Malarkey
The three vampires wandered around the fair. They bought cotton candy and ice cream, rode on the roller coaster, and guessed the weight of a large pig. They also bumped into Leeâs werewolf friend Ollie Talbot and his big brother Claude. Ollie and Claude went to Chaney Street Elementary School.
âHow come thereâs no school tonight?â asked Lee.
âItâs a blue moon,â said Ollie. âWe get a nightâs holiday.â
Ollie and Claude were both in human form so as not to terrify Fangless folk. Apart from their hairy hands they looked just like normal children.
âWeâre going for a raw burger,â said Ollie. âComing?â
âNo thanks,â said Lee. âWe just had ice cream. Weâre heading for the hall of mirrors.â
âOkay,â said Ollie. âBeen on the ghost train yet?â
âNo,â said Lee. âMaybe weâll see you