A Creepy Case of Vampires Read Free Page A

“A gizmo is something a small child might make from Christmas-tree lights and Popsicle sticks. This is an invention. This is a complex piece of electronics.”
    “Okay,” said Giles, rolling his eyes at Kevin. “How does it work?”
    “Well, I won’t confuse you by getting too technical,” she said, “but it’s supposed to scare the bats away. Allow me to demonstrate.”
    She handed a set of headphones to Kevin.
    “Put these on,” she said.
    “Do I have to?” said Kevin warily.
    “Yes,” said Tina, “it’s a scientific experiment.”
    “Why is it always me, though?” said Kevin. “Why don’t you put the headphones on?”
    “Someone has to operate the controls,” said Tina.
    Reluctantly, Kevin put the headphones over his ears while Tina plugged them into her machine. She tapped various buttons, turned a few dials, and finally flicked a red switch.
    All at once, Kevin jerked back and all his curly hair shot straight up from his head. His eyes and mouth formed huge circles, and he immediately scrambled to push the headphones off his ears.
    Watching all this, Tina merely nodded to herself in satisfaction.
    “Excellent,” she said.
    “What was that ?” Kevin shouted. “That’s the most horrible sound I’ve ever heard!”
    “Precisely,” said Tina. “Naturally, this won’t be the same sound we play to the bats. It’ll be at a much higher frequency. But the principle is identical. The noise will be so frightening to them, they’ll do anything to avoid it.”
    “I don’t blame them,” said Kevin, wagging his head. “My ears are still ringing.”
    “So we put this giz—I mean, this electronic machine of yours, in the church,” said Giles, “and it scares the bats away. Kind of like a scarecrow.”
    “I’ve decided to call it the Bat Zapper,” said Tina proudly. “Now, let’s go show Father Peter.” She paused and sniffed the air with distaste. “Is that garlic?”
    “Do we really have to go up here?” said Giles.
    “Yes,” said Tina. “It’s essential that we put the Bat Zapper as close as possible to the bats.”
    Giles, Tina, and Kevin, with Father Peter in tow,slowly made their way up the narrow, spiral staircase to the bell tower. Even in mid-afternoon it was quite dark, and Giles had to guide himself by trailing a hand along the cold, damp stone. He was glad Father Peter was with them. A priest could ward off vampires, couldn’t he?
    “Now, be very quiet,” whispered Tina. “We don’t want to wake up the bats.”
    They reached the top of the tower and padded around the big shaft where the bells hung. There were three of them, each a different shape and size, and through the hole in the floor, Giles could see straight down into the church.
    “What a stink!” gasped Kevin, plugging his nose.
    “Bat droppings,” whispered Father Peter, pointing to the floor.
    “At least there’s no sign of a coffin for the you-know-what,” Giles whispered to Kevin.
    “Shhhh!” Tina hissed.
    Pale shafts of light filtered through the slit windows. As Giles stared up into the darkness, he couldn’t see a thing at first, but then, as his eyes adjusted, he could make out hundreds of small black and brown shapes, roosting among the timbers and stone.
    “There are zillions of them!” Kevin gasped.
    Tina was already at work, setting down her machine and twiddling the dials and knobs.
    “It’ll turn itself on in one hour,” she said to Father Peter. “And then you should be bat-free within a day.”
    “I hope it works,” said the priest.
    “Me too,” Giles said, staring at the mass of bats overhead. “Let’s get out of here.”

Chapter 5
One More Chance
    “It’s a disaster!” Father Peter cried when they came back the next day. He’d met them in front of the church doors. “There are more bats than ever!”
    “Impossible,” said Tina with a frown. “The Bat Zap-per is supposed to scare them off.”
    “Well, it’s not working,” said Father Peter. “It’s