Horrid Henry Wakes the Dead Read Free

Mrs. Oddbod, “you have two candidates for president. Posters can be displayed beginning tomorrow. Speeches the day after tomorrow. Good luck to both candidates.”
    Horrid Henry glared at Moody Margaret.
    Moody Margaret glared at Horrid Henry.

    I’ll beat that grumpface frog if it’s the last thing I do, thought Horrid Henry.
    I’ll beat that pongy pants pimple if it’s the last thing I do, thought Moody Margaret.
    “Vote Margaret! Margaret for president!” trilled Sour Susan the next day, as she and Margaret handed out leaflets during playtime.
    “Ha ha, Henry, I’m going to win, and you’re not!” chanted Margaret, sticking out her tongue.

    “Yeah Henry, Margaret’s going to win,” said Sour Susan.
    “Oh yeah?” said Henry. Wait till she saw his fantastic campaign posters with the big picture of King Henry the Horrible.
    “Yeah.”
    “We’ll see about that,” said Horrid Henry.
    He’d better start campaigning at once. Now, whose votes could he count on?
    Ralph’s for sure. And, uh…um…uhmmmm…Ralph.
    Toby might vote for him but he’d probably have to beg. Hmmm. Two votes were not enough to win. He’d have to get more support. Well, no time like the present to remind everyone what a great guy he was.
    Zippy Zoe zipped past. Horrid Henry smiled at her. Zoe stopped dead.

    “Why are you smiling at me, Henry?” said Zippy Zoe. She checked to see if she’d come to school wearing pajamas or if her jumper had a big hole.
    “Just because it’s so nice to see you,” said Horrid Henry. “Will you vote for me for president?”
    Zoe stared at him. “Margaret gave me a pencil with her name on it,” said Zoe. “And a sticker. What will you give me?”
    Give? Give? Horrid Henry liked getting. He did not like giving. So Margaret was bribing people, was she? Well, two could play at that game. He’d bring tons of candy into school tomorrow and hand them out to everyone who promised to vote for him. That would guarantee victory! And he’d make sure that everyone had to give him candy after he’d won.
    Anxious Andrew walked by wearing a “Margaret for President’ sticker.
    “Oooh, Andrew, I wouldn’t vote for her,” said Henry. “Do you know what she’s planning to do?” Henry whispered in Andrew’s ear. Andrew gasped.
    “No,” said Andrew.
    “Yes,” said Henry. “And ban chips, too. You know what an old bossyboots Margaret is.”
    Henry handed him a leaflet.

    Andrew looked uncertain.
    “Vote for me and I’ll make you Vice-Chairman of the Presidential Snacks Subcommittee.”
    “Oooh,” said Andrew.
    Henry promised the same job to Dizzy Dave, Jolly Josh, and Weepy William.
    He promised Needy Neil his mom could sit with him in class. He promised Singing Soraya she could sing every day in assembly. He promised Greedy Graham there’d be ice cream every day for lunch.
    The election is in the bag, thought Horrid Henry gleefully. He fingered the magic marker in his pocket. Tee-hee. Just wait till Margaret saw how he was planning to graffiti her poster! And wasn’t it lucky that it was impossible to graffiti his name or change it to something rude. Shame, thought Horrid Henry, that Peter wasn’t running for president. If you crossed out the t and the r you’d get “Vote for Pee.”

    Horrid Henry strolled over to the wall where the campaign posters were displayed.
    Huh?
    What?
    A terrible sight met his eyes. His “Vote for Henry’ posters had been defaced. Instead of his crowned head, a horrible picture of a chicken’s head had been glued on top of his body. And the ry of his name had been crossed out.

    Beneath it was written:
    “Cluck cluck yuck! Vote for a Hen? No way!”
    What a dirty trick, thought Horrid Henry indignantly. How dare Margaret deface his posters! Just because he’d handed out leaflets showing Margaret with a frog’s face. Margaret was a frog-face. The school needed to know the truth about her.
    Well, no more Mr. Nice Guy. This was war.

    Moody Margaret entered