Lord of the Shadows by Darren Shan Read Free Book Online Page A

qualifier,” I reminded Harkat. “Steve couldn’t have engineered that — even the Lord of the Vampaneze has his limits!”
    “You’re right,” Harkat laughed. “I really am getting paranoid!”
    “Let’s forget about Tommy,” I said. “What about Darius? Could he have got in without us seeing him?”
    “Yes,” Harkat said. “It was impossible to identify . . . everyone who entered. A child could have easily . . . passed without us noticing.”
    “Then we’ve got to go inside and look for him,” I said.
    “Steady on.” Harkat stopped me. “Although your friend Tommy’s being here is most likely . . . nothing to worry about, let’s not tempt fate. If you go in, your hood might slip . . . and he might see you. Leave it to me.”
    While I waited outside, Harkat entered the tent and patrolled the aisles, checking the faces of every audience member as the show got under way. More than half an hour passed before he emerged.
    “I didn’t see him,” Harkat said.
    “Maybe he isn’t able to sneak away from home,” I said.
    “Or maybe he sensed we were . . . suspicious of him,” Harkat said. “Either way, we can’t do anything except . . . keep watch the rest of the time we’re here. He might come sneaking around . . . by day again.”
    Although it was anticlimactic, I was glad Darius hadn’t shown. I hadn’t been looking forward to threatening the boy. It was better this way, for all concerned. And the more I thought about it, the more ridiculous our reaction seemed. Darius had certainly known more about us than any child should, but maybe he’d simply read the right books or found out about us on the Internet. Not many humans know about the true marks of a vampire, or that Little People exist, but the truth (like they used to say on that famous TV show) is out there! There were any number of ways a clued-in kid could have found out the facts about us.
    Harkat wasn’t as relaxed as I was, and he insisted we stay outside the entrances until the show finished, in case Darius turned up late. There was no harm in being cautious, so I kept watch throughout the rest of the show, listening to the gasps, screams, and applause of the people inside the tent. I slipped away a few minutes before the end and collected Harkat. We hid in a van as the crowd poured out, and only emerged when the final excited customer had left the stadium.
    We gathered with most of the performers and backstage crew in a tent behind the big top for the post-show party. There wasn’t a celebration after each performance, but we liked to let our hair down every once in a while. It was a hard life on the road, driving long distances, working doggedly, keeping a low profile so as not to attract attention. It was good to chill out now and then.
    There were a few guests in the tent — police officers, council officials, wealthy businessmen. Mr. Tall knew how to grease the right palms, to make life easy for us.
    Our visitors were particularly interested in Harkat. The normal audience members hadn’t seen the grey-skinned Little Person. This was a chance for the special guests to experience something different, which they could boast about to their friends. Harkat knew what was expected of him and he let the humans examine him, telling them a bit about his past, politely answering their questions.
    I sat in a quiet corner of the tent, munching a sandwich, washing it down with water. I was getting ready to leave when Jekkus Flang pushed his way through a knot of people and introduced me to the guest he’d just led into the tent. “Darren, this is the world’s best goalkeeper, Tom Jones. Tom, this is my good friend and fellow workmate, Darren Shan.”
    I groaned and closed my eyes. So much for the luck of the vampires! I heard Tommy gasp with recognition. Opening my eyes, I forced a smile, stood, shook Tommy’s hand — his eyes were bulging out of his head — and said, “Hello, Tommy. It’s been a long time. Can I get you something