Read Online The Birthday Party of No Return! by R. L. Stine - Free Book Online Page A

the black car. I only heard the squeal of tires.
    A horn blared right behind me. So close and so loud that I screamed.
    The tires squealed.
    WHUMMMP.
    The car hit me from behind.
    I felt the bump at the bottom of my back. It didn’t feel very strong.
    But it sent me flying.
    I didn’t really have time to know what was happening.
    I landed hard on my back a few feet away.
    I died instantly.

No. I was alive. I didn’t die.
    I didn’t even come close to dying. It was hard to believe but I actually wasn’t hurt at all. Not a scrape.
    I opened my eyes. I was sprawled flat on the pavement. Arfy stood over me. He lowered his head and began licking my face.
    A small, dark-haired woman in a short black jacket and black skirt stood staring down at me. She had her hands balled into tense fists. Her whole body was trembling.
    â€œYou — you’re okay?” Her voice came out in a whisper. “Should I call for an ambulance?”
    I moved my arms and legs. I sat up. “I’m okay,” I said. “I feel fine.”
    She let out a long whoosh of air. “I’m so glad,” she said. “I couldn’t stop in time. You ran right out in front of me.”
    â€œI was chasing after my dog,” I said. I held on to Arfy’s leather collar.
    â€œCan you stand?” The woman reached to help me up. “Does anything hurt? Want me to drive you home?”
    Her hands on my shoulders were ice-cold. Her whole body still shook.
    I let her pull me to my feet. I stretched, testing my arms and legs. I rolled my head around, testing my neck.
    â€œI’m fine. It wasn’t a hard bump,” I told her. “No problem. Really.”
    She led me to her car. She insisted she had to drive me home.
    I stuffed Arfy into the backseat. All the way home, I swore to her I felt fine. She pulled up the driveway and watched me lead Arfy into the house. She didn’t leave till I closed the door.
    Mom was waiting in the kitchen for me. “Lee, you got a phone message. From Coach Taylor. He said the tag football game is first thing tomorrow morning.”
    â€œTomorrow?”
    She nodded. “Is this the final competition for the scholarship?”
    â€œYes,” I said. “It’s my last chance.”
    â€œDo or die,” Mom said.
    I wished she hadn’t put it that way.
    â€œI know you’ll be a star,” she added. She patted my shoulder. Then she made a face. “Ooh. What’s that smell?”
    I checked the bottom of my sneakers. “Oh, noooo.” I’d stepped in dog poop. Both sneakers were totally smeared with it.
    No way I can be a star tomorrow , I thought. No way I can escape this bad luck. My life is getting more and more dangerous. I was hit by a car because of the claw.
    What will happen next?
    I knew I couldn’t keep the claw another minute. I grabbed it and swung it around by the rope. Then I ran to the backyard.
    Dad keeps our three trash cans behind the garage. I opened the first metal can and stuffed the claw inside it. Then I slammed the lid shut.
    My heart was pounding. Sweat poured down my face. But I felt better already.
    The claw was history. Time for my luck to change…

At dinner that night, I felt tense. I waited for something bad to happen.
    Would I scald my mouth on the soup? Knock my spaghetti on the floor? Fall off my chair and break my neck?
    When that didn’t happen, it made me even more nervous.
    I kept picturing the claw in the trash can behind the garage. Was it still too nearby? Could it still cause me all kinds of danger?
    Dad wiped the spaghetti sauce off his chin and turned to me with a solemn expression. “I’ve got bad news, Lee,” he said softly.
    I gasped. “Wh-what?” I stammered.
    A smile slowly crossed his face. “I could only get tickets in the second row for the Stampede game next Saturday night,” he said.
    Of course, he was making a joke.
    â€œThat’s