Avon Fantasy Reader No. 8 — page 62: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

5g 8 | FRANK BELKNAP LONG, ]R- A tremendous experience! | picked out a deep pool where I could hide. Hunger. Saw man on beach. . The police suspect. I must be more careful. Why didn’t I take the body out to sear Horrible incident. Young lady artist. I almost caught her, but she stamped on a leg. Smashed it. Horrible pain. I certainly must be more careful. | Great humiliation. Little boy hooked me. But I gave him a scare. The er varmint! I glared and glared at him. I tried to catch him, but he ran too fast. I wanted to eat him. He had very red cheeks. I hate women and children. Of course they suspect. Little boys always babble. I wanted to eat him. But - I gave them all a good scare, and I got a man. He came down after me in a diver’s suit, but I got him. I took him-to pieces. I mean that—literally to pieces. Then I let the fragments float up. I wantéd to scare them. I think I did. They ran for their lives. The authorities are fools. I got back. But it wasn’t easy. The thing fought and fought. “I’m master!” I said, and it gulped. It gulped and gulped and gulped; and then I got back. But my hand was smashed and bleeding! That fool clerk! Why did he take so long? But he didn’t know how hungry his red face made me. The thing came back without the ray. I was standing before the counter and it came back. | sprang at him. I was lucky to get. away. Terrible trouble. I can’t keep it from coming back. I wake up in the night, and find it spread out on the bed and all over the floor. Its arms writhe and _. writhe. And its demands are insatiable. Every waking moment it demands food. Sometimes it completely absorbs me. But now as I write the upper portion of my body is human. * This afternoon I moved to furnished room near beach. Salt water has be- come a necessity. Change comes on more rapidly now. I can’t keep it off. My will is powerless. I filled the tub with water and put i some salt. Then I wallowed in it. Great comfort. Great relief. Hunger. Dreadful, insatiable © hunger. I am all beast, all animal. Rats. I have caught six rats. Delicious. Great ' comfort. But I’ve messed-up the room. What if the old idiot downstairs should suspect? . : She does suspect. Wants me to get out. I shall get out. There is only one ie refuge for me now. The sea! I shall go to the sea. I can’t pretend ’'m human any longer. I’m all animal, all beast. What a shock I must have given the old hag! I could hear her teeth chattering as she came up the stairs. All I could _ Be do to keep from springing at her. ’ — Into the sea at last. Great relief, great joy. Freedom at last! A ship. I ran head on into it. Six arms gone. Terrible agony. Flopped about ~~ kee for hours. ; : ; Land. I climbed over the rocks and collapsed. Then I managed to get back. A ae SSE St aE a 225 aes ees 3 Pas Bs i BSc s % comilebooks.com