Lorraine Henderson gasped suddenly. "Did you hear that?" she asked.
"What?" asked Pietro Hernandez.
"There!" she cried. "Can't you hear it?"
Pietro frowned. "All I hear is some growling. Probably the black bears."
"I know. But they sound strange," Lorraine replied. She listened again. "They sound as if they've gone crazy or something."
Another growl broke through the serenity of the park. Lorraine shook her head. "It just doesn't sound right," she declared. "Let's go see."
As they sauntered toward the cliff overlooking the bear enclosure, Lorraine saw her father, Jason Henderson staring over the edge of the cliff. When he heard Lorraine's footsteps, he turned abruptly.
Something's wrong! Lorraine thought. Something's extremely wrong!
Her father held up his hand. "Stop Lorraine!" he bellowed. "Don't come any closer!"
Lorraine kept running. "What's wrong, Dad? What's the matter with the bears?"
"Just stop, honey!" he yelled, "You don't want to see it, believe me!"
"See what? Dad, what is it?"
Dodging her father's outstretched arm, Lorraine raced past him and peered over the edge of the cliff.
At first, all she saw were some uniformed park workers, standing in a cluster at the bottom of the cliffs. They shifted their weight from foot to foot and glanced around tensely.
Nearby, she saw a huge lump of meat.
"You're right, Dad," she murmured. "I wish I hadn't seen that meat– it's pretty gross. But how come the workers are down there? And why are you so upset?"
"Because that isn't meat, Lorraine. It's . . . " Henderson swallowed hard. "It's what's left of Oliver."
"Oliver? But..." she stopped as her father's words sank in. "No!" she whispered. "Oh, no!"
As she stepped away from the cliff edge, she felt the blood drain from her face. A sharp crack ricocheted through the night.
Lorraine screamed. She recognized that sound.
A gunshot.
Another shot rang out.
"What's going on?" Lorraine shrieked. "Dad! What's happening? Why is somebody shooting?"
"I called the wildlife officials," Henderson called back. "The bears are in a frenzy. So they're shooting them with tranquilizer darts to calm them down!"
Pietro nudged her shoulder. "It's the meat," he told her. "The human meat. Now that they've had a taste of it, they want more."
The park would be open tomorrow, Pietro thought. The place would be packed with people.
He grinned.
He could have a lot of 'fun' in a crowded amusement park.
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The night of the opening of Scream Park arrived.
The line at the admissions booth seemed to stretch for miles. Clowns roamed the walkways, handing out free balloons. The scent of hot dogs and hamburgers and cotton candy filled the air.
A carousel with the most charming wooden horses spun around and around. A long line of people stood next to the giant Ferris wheel. Among them stood Lorraine and Pietro.
