Chapter Eleven BAIT
The Combined Werewolf and Vampire Trapping Expedition was back on track--at least the vampire part was. I beckoned to Wanda. She sighed and mouthed, "Do we have to?" and I mouthed back, "Yes!" We crept out of the ghost-in-the- bath bathroom and followed Max. This time I was determined not to lose him so I got as close as I dared.
I guess I was a bit jumpy by now because I caught sight of something moving along the floor beside me and I nearly yelled, but then I realized that it was only the stupid shiny ears on Wanda's slippers waggling as she tiptoed along. Max headed into the twisty corridor that led to the locked turret. I know it really well since before Wanda came to live here I used to spend a lot of time trying to pick the lock. I wondered if maybe Max had a key! Maybe the turret was stuffed full of vampires and he hadn't really come to stay with us at all--he had come to stay with them. Max wandered around another corner in the corridor, and I tried to make Wanda speed up a bit. She was dragging her rabbit slippers and was not exactly the enthusiastic assistant a vampire hunter needs.
So I was not sur- prised that when we eventually got around the next corner, Max was gone. I could see the steps leading to the locked turret and the big cobwebby door at the top of them--but no Max. Not a good sign. I rushed up the steps and tried the door, but it was locked as usual, and I could tell it had not been opened as it was covered in very old and dusty spiders that looked like they had not moved in years. It was weird. Vampire Max had completely disappeared--just like in the movie where the vampire suddenly falls through a trapdoor into the river below and dissolves. But as much as I hoped that Max had fallen through a trap- door and dissolved, I knew he couldn't have.
I know where all the trapdoors are in Spookie House, and there definitely was not one in the twisty corridor to the locked turret. So where was he? And then I remembered. The locked turret has a fire escape chute! Underneath the steps is a little red door, just like the one that goes into Uncle Drac's bat turret--except this door leads to a big tube that runs all the way around the locked turret and takes you right down to the basement. I hadn't gone down it since I was little because Aunt Tabby had told me not to, and despite what you may think, I do sometimes take notice of what Aunt Tabby says. She also told me that a scary monster lived inside it, so that put me off a bit too. But now I was big enough to know that Aunt Tabby was fibbing about the monster.
Wanda did not want to go down the fire escape chute--and especially not when I opened the little door and shone my flashlight into it, for it was stuffed full of spiderwebs. "I am not going down there, Araminta, " she said. "No way. " I could tell from the way she said it she would not change her mind, so I pushed her in and jumped in after her. It was great. Wanda screamed a bit but that was okay, as all the spiderwebs muffled the sound. We rocketed down, around and around, but I didn't get a bit dizzy, and in no time we shot out into an old larder in the basement. Wanda did not appreciate it. Especially when I landed right on top of her. She jumped up and I could see she was about to yell at me, so I put my hand over her mouth and hissed, "Shh!" I switched on my flashlight. Wanda looked really funny; she was covered in cobwebs, dust, and spiders. I was not as bad since Wanda had acted like a chimney sweep's brush, so I only had a few spiders wandering around my hair, which was okay. I was surprised that Wanda was not making more of a fuss, like she usually does, but she was staring at the floor. "Araminta, " she whis- pered, "there's . . . Werewolf stuff. " For a moment I did not want to look, as I thought it might be something really gross, like werewolf poop, but I did. A trapper of were- wolves has to face these things. But it was worse than werewolf poop--it was werewolf footprints. There were tons of them. They went round and round in circles inside the larder and then they zigzagged out the door and disappeared along the corridor.
The werewolf had gone back to its lair. I wasn't quite as pleased about this as I should have been. "You're shaking, " said Wanda. "No I'm not, " I said. "Your eyes must be going funny. " Now we had to set the werewolf trap. I had already worked out the perfect place for it-- a tall, thin cupboard just past the bat poo hatch where Uncle Drac used to store his shovels. I knew there was enough room in it for Wanda because I had once locked her in there by mistake--it really was a mistake, even though Aunt Tabby would not believe me, but the day before I had checked that there was enough room for me, which there was.
There was not space for us both but that was okay since Wanda was not going to be inside the cupboard. She had a very important job to do outside. She was going to be the bait. I beckoned Wanda out of the larder, then I switched off my flashlight because I did not want the werewolf to see us. It was really scary, as we tiptoed along the creepy base- ment corridor, past all the dark kitchens and the deserted larders and pantries. Even the boiler room was scary with its dull red glow seeping out from underneath the door, and the funny breathing sounds the boiler made, like it was a sleeping monster. Soon we were really close to Creepy Corner, where I had seen the werewolf eyes.
We tiptoed past the bat poo hatch and stopped outside Uncle Drac's old shovel cupboard. I wanted to get into that cupboard fast. I hadn't told Wanda about being the bait yet, because I thought it would probably lead to trouble. So I just gave her the bag of dog biscuits, then opened the cupboard door and got inside. I was about to shut the door when I noticed Wanda looking at the dog biscuits in a puzzled way. "Ugh, " she said, "these biscuits smell funny. You can have them, Araminta. " "They're supposed to smell funny. They're dog biscuits, " I explained. "They're going to help us catch the werewolf. " Wanda looked puzzled. "So why am I holding them?" she asked. I sighed. It is hard having to explain stuff all the time, especially when a werewolf might pounce at any moment. "Because you are the bait, " I told her. "Bait?" Wanda's eyes almost popped out. "No way, " she said. "Let me into the cup- board. " "Don't be silly, Wanda, " I told her. "There isn't enough room for two of us. " Wanda seemed to take this in. She looked at the cupboard and said, "No, there isn't, is there?" The next moment she had pulled me out of the cupboard, pushed the dog biscuits into my hands, jumped in herself, and slammed the door shut. I pulled on the cupboard door but it would not open. I could tell that Wanda was holding it closed from the inside.
So there I was, in a deserted corridor in the middle of the night, holding a bag of dog biscuits and waiting for the nearest werewolf to pounce at any moment. It was not a good feeling. I felt like banging on the door, and yelling "Let me in, " but I dared not make any noise in Q case the werewolf heard. There was nothing else to do--it was time to use the Combined Werewolf and Vampire Trapping Kit. I got the fishing net out fast, just in case the werewolf came zooming around the corner right then, and I practiced a few swoops with it. It worked fine. Then I took out both of the sacks and the rope. And then I pulled out the best part of the kit--the hologram sticker eyeglasses. I put them on. Pooh. I couldn't see--the stickers were in the way.
I hadn't thought of that. But then I realized that the hologram werewolf eyes did not have to be over my eyes, they could be anywhere. So I pushed the glasses up onto my forehead and they were fine. Now I was ready for anything: vampires, were- wolves, even Aunt Tabby. But I wasn't quite ready for the scuffling. I do not like scuffling, especially when it is after midnight in the basement of Spookie House and my so-called best friend has locked herself in a cupboard and left me out- side as werewolf bait. At first I hoped it might be one of Uncle Drac's bats. When Barry shovels up the bat poo some of the bats get out and he does not notice. But bats do not scuffle along the ground. The scuffling was getting closer . . . And closer. I shrank back against the wall and I must have done a Wanda-style squeak or something because suddenly the cupboard door opened behind me.
I nearly screamed. Wanda stuck her nosy nose out and whis- pered, "Are you all right, Araminta?' "No, " I told her. "Why? What is it?" "What do you think it is? There's a werewolf coming. Can't you hear it?" Wanda listened. Scuffle . . . Scuffle . . . She
went kind of pale. "Get in the cupboard, " she hissed, and she grabbed hold of my sleeve and tugged me in. I didn't think we'd both fit, but it is surprising how small you can make your- self when you have to. Wanda pulled the door closed. It wouldn't click shut properly, but she held it so that it stayed closed and then we both kept really quiet . . . And listened.
Scuffle . . . Sniff . . . Scuffle . . . Sniff. The werewolf was really loud now. It was right outside the cupboard. It snuffled a bit, sniffed a bit, and rustled the dog biscuit bag. And then it started to scratch on the cupboard door, which would have been all right if at that point Wanda hadn't decided for some crazy reason to try and burrow into the back of the cupboard. Suddenly there was nothing behind us--and we both fell backward into the dark.