Read Online Halloween Party by R.L. Stine - Free Book Online Page A

take it out—we’d ruin it,” said Ricky, holding the box tighter. “Of course, if you want to touch it—”
    Alex defiantly thrust his hand into the box, then just as quickly pulled it out with a strangled cry.
    â€œSort of slimy, isn’t it?” said Ricky smugly. “Anyone else want to try?”
    â€œSure,” said David. He walked up to Ricky, pretended to put his hand in the box, but grabbed it instead and turned it upside down. The contents slithered out, landing on the stone hearth with a sickening plop .
    â€œSome brains!” said David. “Looks like cold spaghetti to me. Gotcha!”
    â€œNo, I gotcha first,” said Ricky. “Angela and Alex both thought it was brains.”
    â€œNo, we didn’t,” protested Alex. “We were just putting you on. This is one for the jock team—”
    The argument about whose gotcha it was stopped when Justine rang a little bell.
    â€œMay I have your attention?” She was standing in front of the fire, and outlined in light it was almost possible to believe she was a vampire. To one side of the fireplace her uncle Philip sat slouched on a stool, the artificial tear sparkling on his sad clown’s face.
    â€œIs everyone back in the groove, ready to party?” Justine asked. Without waiting for an answer, she went on. “It’s time for the next surprise. This one is a treasure hunt, but it’s not like any treasure hunt you’ve ever heard of.”
    â€œA treasure hunt!” exclaimed Trisha. “What fun!”
    â€œGet real,” said Murphy. “Treasure hunts are for little kids—and wimps.”
    Justine, still smiling, turned to Murphy. “You might not think so when you see the list of items,” she said teasingly. “But, of course, no one has to participate. In fact, it could be a little dangerous. This treasure hunt is only for those who are really brave.”
    â€œHey, I never said I wouldn’t participate,” said Murphy.
    â€œGood,” said Justine, her cat-green eyes sparkling with excitement. She began passing out a photocopied list. “This is a list of the items Uncle Philip and I have hidden around the mansion,” she went on. “There are treasures in every room—on both floors and in the attic and basement. Whichever team finds the most treasures by midnight will win a special prize.”
    Everyone grabbed the lists and prepared to rush off—but Justine’s voice stopped them. “One more thing,” she added. “Please be careful. After all—anything can happen on Halloween.”
    Trisha found the first treasure before anyone had even left the living room. While Justine was still explaining the rules, Trisha carefully removed the food still sitting on the casket and opened it to reveal a bundle of bones wrapped in tattered blue cloth. The hand bones of a mummy.
    â€œI’ve got a treasure!” she cried. “But, Justine, is this really from a mummy?”
    â€œSupposedly,” said Justine. “We picked it up in Egypt.”
    For the next few minutes everyone checked out the ground floor. There were constant shrieks and laughter as one person after another discovered a new treasure—or a trick.
    â€œThis is great, isn’t it?” said David, laughing, as he and Terry simultaneously walked into the pantry from opposite doors.
    â€œI can’t believe all this weird stuff Justine and her uncle have,” Terry said. He showed David the only treasure he’d found so far—a hairy tarantula preserved in a glass paperweight. “I found this in the toilet tank.”
    â€œI found my treasure in a terrarium,” David said, showing Terry a stuffed cobra. “At first I thought it was alive because it was moving around. But then I saw it was attached to an electric motor.”
    â€œI’m not even sure I want to find some of this stuff,” Terry said, scanning