Wolf Trap by Benjamin Hulme-Cross Page A

get to Mr Blood. The people gave them strange looks.
    As they were making their way to the front, Anne blocked Edgar’s way. He lost his balance and fell over.
    Anne helped Edgar up.

    As she took his hand, she slipped him a piece of paper. There was panic in her eyes.
    Edgar guessed that she didn’t want anyone else to see the note. So he closed his fist on it and walked on towards Mr Blood.
    The Sheriff was trying to calm the angry people in the crowd.

    Mary tapped Mr Blood on the arm. He leaned down.
    â€œThere are no children on the island,” she hissed. “Did one werewolf kill them all?”
    â€œI don’t think so.” Mr Blood looked worried.
    Edgar looked down at the piece of paper. He gasped. He handed the note to Mr Blood. It was a warning.

    This is a trap!

Get to a boat

as fast as you can

Save the children
.

Chapter 5
Blood Moon
    â€œI was afraid of this,” said Mr Blood. “We need to escape.”
    â€œBut what does it mean?” Mary asked. “I don’t know what’s going on.”
    â€œThere is no time to explain now.” Mr Blood was worried.
    â€œThere are some horses tied up outside the barn,” said Mr Blood. “We’ll need to take two horses and get back to the beach.”
    They turned back to face the crowd.
    â€œSheriff,” said Mr Blood. “I am going to unlock the door to let the children outside. They are afraid of what will happen here.”
    The Sheriff’s face was pale. His eyes seemed bigger than before.

    â€œIf you think that will help you,” he growled. “Do as you wish.”
    Mr Blood unlocked the door.
    All the people in the barn fell silent. Through the doorway Mary and Edgar could see a bright full moon. Its silver light shone down on the faces of the men and women. They all stood still.
    It seemed as if the people were all waiting for something.

    Only Anne moved. She pushed her way through the crowd with a hand over her eyes, and dashed for the door.
    â€œStop her!” shouted Mr Blood. He pulled out his crossbow.
    â€œBut she helped us,” cried Edgar. “She wrote the note.”

    Anne made it to the door and ran out, into the moonlight.
    As the light of the moon entered the barn, all the people fell to the ground.
    They rolled around on the floor, wailing and growling.
    Their shoulders began to swell. Arms grew longer. Legs grew shorter. Eyes burned yellow.

    Human faces twisted into the faces of savage wolves.
    â€œQuick!” shouted Mr Blood. “We must escape! They are
all
werewolves!”
    Edgar, Mary and Mr Blood ran through the door. Mr Blood locked it behind them and bolted it with a large piece of wood.
    â€œEdgar,” snapped Mr Blood. “Take a horse, ride to the beach, and get us a boat. Mary, you ride with me. I’ll need both my hands free.”
    He put an arrow into the crossbow as they got on their horses. The barn door shook as a werewolf tried to break it down.
    Mr Blood, Edgar and Mary sped away on horseback. Behind them, in the barn, forty werewolves howled with rage.

Chapter 6
The Howling
    They had ridden for less than a minute when they heard the barn door smash open.
    The horses galloped for their lives. The howling grew louder.
    Edgar heard a howl behind him and turned to look. He saw Mr Blood reload his crossbow. He had just shot a werewolf.

    Mary shouted at the horse to make it go faster.
    As Edgar reached the beach, his horse reared up. Edgar fell off, and rolled on the sand.
    A huge wolf stood between him and the boats. He waited for it to attack.
    But the wolf just nodded its head towards the boats.

    That werewolf is Anne!
thought Edgar.
    The wolf nodded at the boat again. It was telling him where to go.
    Of course
, Edgar thought.
Werewolves can’t swim
.
    He ran to the nearest boat and began to drag it into the water.
    Looking back, he saw the horse carrying Mary and Mr Blood skidding down the hill to the beach.
    A pack of