Freda loved to hold Halloween parties. At the age of thirty two, three times divorced and after receiving three generous divorce settlement, she could afford extravagance and, as she supervised the caterers preparing for a grand buffet, she confided to her PA, Elaine, that she already had her eye on husband number four.

Elaine gasped when Freda mentioned Jonathan Bliss, a rich divorce lawyer. 'But he's engaged!'

Stepping out through French windows onto a large, Romanesque patio, Freda laughed as she tipped four kilos of Granny Smith apples into a Jacuzzi, the size of a small swimming pool.

'What are you doing?' Elaine asked, watching those apples bob about like green headed babies.

'It's Ducking Apple Time,' Freda told her and, casting a glance of distain at her skinny companion, added, 'Hope you've got decent underwear on.'

Blushing, Elaine stared into the Jacuzzi. 'I'm afraid of water,' she said.

'That's not water,' Freda scoffed. 'That's best Chillean wine.'

Then voices behind announced the arrival of her guests so there was a lot of air kissing to be done.

Jonathon Bliss, after telling Freda how beautiful she looked, introduced her to his fiance, Ruth. Smiling, Freda asked with a hint of distain, 'Didn't I see you working at Bellingham's Specialist Fruiters, this morning?'

Ruth nodded, mentioning in a timid voice, that she owned the shop and lived in the flat above.

After her guests had eaten, Freda led them outside, saying, 'It's time to duck apples.' Stepping out of her designer dress, like a refined stripper, she displayed an exquisite body adorned in brief, sexy linergerie.

Tipsily, her guests undressed and, one by one, got into the Jacuzzi. 'No hands,'Freda said. 'Keep them above your heads.'

Laughing, they dipped their heads into bubbling wine, snorting, gasping as they tried to catch those elusive apples.

Then Freda jumped up and down, an apple clenched in her teeth. 'Take the first bite,' Ruth suggested. 'It's said you'll snare the one you deserve.' Surprised by the meek suggestion, Freda happily complied.

Later, after her guests had left, Freda, reclining on her bed wondered what Jonathon saw in Ruth but her wondering came to a stop when painful scratching began in the depths of her stomach.

Minutes later, the scratching travelled upwards into her throat and, in horror, she saw her flesh writhe from pelvis to chest.

Screaming, Freda fell off the bed but the snake, shooting out from her mouth, slithered after her, its jaws extending to accommodate all her limbs, torso and head.