House of a Thousand Screams Read Free Page A

how it’s done—”
    I broke off in mid-sentence. What was that scraping sound? It came from somewhere near the fireplace.
    At first I couldn’t figure it out. Everything seemed normal. Then I noticed. The books on the mantelpiece were on the far right end. Hadn’t they been in the middle?
    I turned to my brother. “Freddy, I—” I started to say.
    Swish!
    I glanced back at the mantelpiece. My heart beat faster. Now the books were on the far left end.
    Freddy was so absorbed in the magic show, he didn’t notice. Keeping my eyes on the books, I reached out to shake him. Just as I touched his shoulder, the books zipped to the other end.
    Swish!
    Fear rippled through me. “Freddy,” I whimpered. “It’s happening again.”
    The books began to move without stopping, back and forth across the mantel. Swish—swish—swish!
    Freddy leaned forward, peering at the TV screen. “Wow, the puppet is eating all that junk it was juggling.”
    â€œWould you forget the video?” I squeaked. “Look at this.”
    He glanced at the moving books. They were picking up speed. Out of the corner of my eye I saw his mouth fall open.
    All at once the books stopped, dead center, on the mantel. We sat like stone, afraid to move.
    â€œIs it over?” Freddy whispered.
    Something made me look at the tall white bookshelves. They stood on opposite sides of the room. With us in the middle.
    The books on those shelves were jostling up anddown. Their covers rubbed against each other, making a noise like a crowd of people whispering.
    â€œI don’t think so,” I said in a low voice.
    The movement on the white shelves increased. Dozens of books danced in place, faster and faster. Now they sounded like angry, whirring insects.
    I was so scared, I couldn’t move. This wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be happening. Why were the books shaking like that? What would happen next?
    Then I had a horrible thought.
    â€œFreddy?” I whispered. “Remember the lamp?”
    â€œYeah.” His voice was tense. “So?”
    On his last word the books leapt from the shelves on either side. They flew through the air, hurtling toward us!
    â€œSo duck!” I yelled, and hit the floor.

4

    F reddy followed me in a flash. And just in time too!
    Books shot from either side of the room. They slammed together in the air above our heads. Heavy volumes fell all over us. “Ow!” I heard Freddy muttering. “Ow! Ow!”
    Then the rain of books ended almost as quickly as it began.
    I lifted my head cautiously and peeped around the room. Everything normal. Above me I heard a door slam and the sharp stride of Mom’s shoes in the upstairs hall.
    â€œOh, no,” I groaned. Books littered the room. It was a total wreck. How could this happen twice in one day?
    Freddy stood and brushed himself off. “On the bright side, at least nothing broke this time.”
    At that, one of Mom’s special collector’s plates tumbled from the wall rack.
    I barely managed to leap and catch it before it hit the floor. I was stretched out like a baseball player, Mom’s beloved Elvis in Hawaii plate in my hand, when she walked through the door.
    Her eyes widened in horror. Her head swiveled slowly, taking it all in. When she got to me, she simply stopped and stared.
    â€œHi, Mom,” I said with a weak grin.
    On the videotape the monster puppet and Uncle Solly were silently juggling books, tossing them back and forth across the stage. Mom sighed.
    â€œDon’t you know it takes years of practice to juggle like that?” she said. Bending down, she took the plate from my hand. She returned it to its rack on the wall. “And you certainly don’t practice in the den, where you might break my precious Elvis plate. Among other things.”
    I rose slowly and glared at the video. Of course, I knew it was ridiculous. But it almost seemed as if the