Nightmares

It wasn’t the fact that there was a dead body on the ground that shocked Audie, or the blood making a small pool below the torso. No, it was the fact it was Audie himself whom he saw standing above it. Torn T-shirt and jeans were stained with rough dirt. His face was slack, and his blue eyes dull and glassy. A bloodied knife held so tightly in his hands, the knuckles were white. His victim’s hair sprawled around the head like a bloody crown.

Audie shot up on his bed, pale faced, a cold sweat covering his forehead and brows.

Strange as that was, Audie could still hear the heavy thumping of large feet on the ground, the threatening growl echoing in his head, and the hard clap of thunder and lightning.

He turned toward the window and realized the thunder was coming from outside. A shuddering breath overtook him as he wiped a hand over his face. And it happened again. The nightmares came back. He swallowed a lump in his throat, trying to forget the dreams that unnerved him each night— hour by hour through the dark.

“Easy, now.” He told himself. “It’s fine. It’s all over now.”

The clock on the bed stand read a little after 3 AM, or some other ungodly time like that. Glancing around their little motel room, Audie caught sight of his father Silas sleeping on the rough, sitting chair. His small, old notebook with psychological notes about patients lay abandoned on his lap in peril of slipping from his limp hands.

Audie flipped off the reading lamp; it’s dull light ceased to illuminate the small room. ‘He must’ve fallen asleep reading,’ Audie thought, getting up to throw covers over him and picking up the book.

Audie looked bewildered at the text. He scarcely made out of his father’s chicken-scratch hand, but the words seemed to shift and drift off the page, becoming “halluci…” and “nigtm…”

Squinting in the dark, Audie could make out an ominous, dark thundercloud drawing with lightning strikes taking up an entire page. The black ink seemed to droop of the page as though it were still wet. The clap of thunder hit overhead looked out the window to see a dark, cloudy sky.

The weather was strange, because Audie thought the sky was supposed to stay sunny for a while after the summer. Another flash and he shut the curtains completely.

Climbing back onto the full-sized bed, he still couldn’t shake the nightmare. It was—to put it simply—a dismal, living with these chronic nightmares that often lingered into killer morning headaches.

But the worst part was knowing Audie couldn’t do anything to make them stop,

except wait for the sun to show.

“Another dream?” His father poured Audie the milk—the milk he so-clumsily forgot—in his cereal bowl. They were at the Breakfast Center in the motel. The Rigg’s Motel is in Marietta, Ohio, the town they just moved into. Just until Silas can find a new place. Again. It’s been a way of life for Audie that they move to a new town every two or three years. Audie knows it’s his issue with middle school. Or more like the middle school can’t deal with his issues or his “mental situation” as Silas preferred to call them. He doesn’t understand it—his father can be very evasive for reasons Silas says he will explain to Audie when he’s older—and, when it comes to explaining, it’s unlikely Silas’ reasoning will.

Audie muttered, “how’d you guess,” over his steaming cup of coffee, grabbing a fistful of sugar packets.

Getting his own tea and toast with eggs, Silas took a seat. He shook his head, “We need to set another appointment with someone. The nightmares are getting worse, aren’t they?”

Audie squinted his eyes in confusion. “Someone?— You mean with Dr. Joyce?”

“No. She had to go for a family emergency—“ Silas waved his hand dismissively “—or something like that.”

“Oh.” Audie said, trying to hide his disappointment. He had been getting used to Dr. Joyce, and she had been the closest to having him open up.

“Don’t worry,” his father gave him a encouraging glance, taking a sip out of his tea mug. “We’ll get someone new.”

“Great!” He cringed. Audie’s pretend excitement came out pathetically faux.

Silas must’ve seen Audie’s deflated expression, because he then said, “We can—” his father looked at him with soft, dark brown eyes “—we will get through it, Audie. Y’know,” Silas grinned, “as a family.”

Audie caught Silas rub his forearm, and his eyebrows rose in alarm at large scratches.

“How did you get those?” Audie asked, eyeing them. They were red and pink, so they must’ve been fairly new.

Silas followed Audie’s eyesight, but showed hardly any emotion on his face. “Oh! I tripped on my way to work… on asphalt.”

Audie frowned at the injuries that didn’t match with a simple fall. They looked a lot more serious.

Silas smiled, trying to get Audie to look at him and not the scratches, “Hey, I’m okay.”

Audie found comfort in those eyes, and he gave a small smile and nodded in response.

Audie then remembered. “Did you hear the thunder storm last night?”

Audie glanced at his father whose eyes turned strangely dark. “You heard thunder?”

“It was an intense thunderstorm,” Audie noted.

His father didn’t answer, and it was silent at their table. And Audie, itching to make conversation, decided to ask about last night.

“What were you writing in your notebook?” Audie asked.

“I wasn’t wri—” Silas cleared his throat and rectified himself. “You always ask too many

questions.”

“No, I don’t.” Audie objected. “You write some things. And there was a picture of a

thundercloud.”

Audie watched as Silas looked at him in confusion, internally frustrated by Silas’ never-ending cycle of evasion.

Silas opened his mouth. Probably to change the subject. “It’s that old therapist of yours. She’s getting you to believe things that aren’t true.”

Audie stopped him, “Dad, don’t— Don’t just talk to me like—like I’m crazy or some nutcase—”

“Audie!” Silas hissed.

“Just— Just… Don’t avoid the question, dad.” The thirteen year old pleaded.

At Audie’s determined gaze, Silas sighed and gave him a withering look. Then he answered simply and swiftly, “There were no drawings in my book, Audie.” And he showed him the same page Audie had seen last night, except for no dark thundercloud in black ink.

“You haven’t been getting enough rest have you?”

Audie finally looked to face his therapist. Actually, his new therapist. His old one went missing or on a trip, so his father had to assign him Dr. Tanner.

“I’ve been sleeping,” Audie lied, quickly averting his eyes to the window that presented the suspenseful, stormy sky—which has yet to rain—but continued to thunder its warnings.

“Oh, come now. We both know that’s a lie, Audie.” Dr. Tanner looked at Audie with a piercing gaze; her stare pinned him down to his seat. Audie shifted in his chair as she continued to stare and pulled at the loose string at the hem of his blue T-shirt. Despite the odd, glassy eyes, Dr. Tanner followed his every movement attentively. Like a large cougar.

Audie had a mild—no—intense distaste for his therapist. He’s had this abhorrence for her for many months now, but when asked by his father why he hated her so much, Audie just couldn’t admit that he was afraid of her.

Plus, he couldn’t disappoint his dad by not participating in the appointments he scheduled. Silas had enough on his plate, working over time and taking care of an insomniac son. Audie just needed to tough it out for a little while longer.

He could feel her predatory gaze boring into his scalp as he continued to keep quiet. She had a narrow head with dark eyes in slits like a hawk. She licked her thinly pressed lips and stared, like she did so often. “Would there be any other reason for you falling asleep in class?” She probed.

Still, slightly embarrassed and slightly angry, Audie kept quiet and tried to avert his gaze to anywhere but his therapist.

“Was it your nightmares?” Dr. Tanner asked in an effort to gain his attention.

‘What else could it be?’ It was always the nightmares.

Not waiting for Audie’s affirmation, Dr. Tanner asked again, “What was your dream about?”

Audie hated that Silas thought he needed this. His dreams never bothered anyone but himself. Audie can handle himself.

“But can your father handle you?” ‘Did she hear me?’

Dr. Tanner’s expression wasn’t at all what he was expecting: her fury quickly diminished, and a cold smile replaced it.

“Freakish, boy,” Dr. Tanner laughed and it came out like a guttural growl from the back of her throat.

“What?” And when he said that, there was the biggest thunder crack he’s ever heard. He saw the lightning flash again, and looking outside once again, Audie saw no rain.

‘What the hell is going on with this weather,’ he thought.

“There is nothing wrong with the weather, Audie.” Came a voice that sounded like someone was in dire need of a Halls cough drop.

“What do you- What the hell!” Audie jumped and fell back from his chair that fell with him and broke. Audie watched what used to be his therapist jump on her desk on her hands and feet and obtain a raised height and a dark tone, reaching ebony skin with dark patches of fur, and grow long, rusty-colored nails and a curved back. Large feet with backwards legs, sickly satin red tongue, and horns extending out of its head, contorted and twisted with anger.

Blood red eyes stared at him, and Audie with utter horror recognized them immediately.

The lightning flashed again, bringing to light the large looming figure before him, and the violent thunder rumbled soon after.

“Can your father handle much more of you?” The being’s musings came as a deep rumbling sound.

Audie yelped as he backed closer and closer to the door.

“Oh! You don’t know real or not, do you?” When she laughed it sounded like multiple voices all yelling at the same time. “Your dreams explain it all.”

Audie spotted the stray, broken leg of his wooden chair. The end was thinner than the other side, and the larger side was dangerously frayed with pointed and sharp edges.

‘Why the hell not,’ he thought and grabbed it, hiding it behind his back.

Audie couldn’t speak or move except for the little that moved his hand to the doorknob, shaking and twisting the bolted door in vain.

“Where are you going? The party’s hardly even started!” The monster continued to creep up to Audie. Then as quick as the lightning, she slammed a large paw on Audie’s chest and pushed him to the door with great force. He cringed as the sharp stick was positioned uncomfortably behind him.

“You don’t even know my name yet,” she said.

Her claws were long enough to dig under his chin. Her mouth curved into an unnatural, wolfish grin.

“It’s Tannin.”

She opened her large mouth, great jaws lined with sharp, canine teeth. The stench of rotting flesh filled Audie’s nostrils and he held back vomit.

As she dove down, Audie brought up the chair leg and drove it up her neck. The sharp object stuck, and Tannin screamed—all the voices screamed—as she staggered back.

A large inhumane wail rang throughout the room. Audie ran out of the way to try another door.

He shook the knob violently, ramming into the door in an effort to break it. Closing his eyes, he knew he would wake up soon.

It didn’t budge.

His ears started ringing. He could hear that and his heart beating crazily. Following that, a shrilling cry of a woman. Audie finally opened his eyes and the room was clear. There was bright sunlight pouring from the windows into the cerulean room. The furniture was beautifully polished. The only disorder in the room was the broken wood chair and the sticky red painting the immaculate cream carpet.

Dr. Tanner, wholly human, bleeding out on her own carpet. Audie could only stare in shock as the woman choked on her own blood.

Audie heard loud footsteps run to his direction, and the door busted open, revealing Silas,

looking disheveled.

“I—I didn’t—I don’t know what happened.” Stammered Audie, pale-faced.

Silas looked at the therapist, who was very much dead on the ground. He sighed, scratching his head, not looking as bothered as Audie expected him to be. He muttered something to himself, pulled his notebook out and wrote something down.

Tears started to spill down the boy’s face as he came upon a realization with a soft “oh.” It was a nightmare again. Audie will have to wait until he wakes up.

“I’m dreaming.” Audie assured himself. “It’ll be fine. It’s not real.”

“It’s not a dream.” Silas said.

“Yes, it is.” Audie blubbered, “I would never hurt someone—”

“You would. And you have. Several times.”

Audie shook his head. “No. No. No, I—I wouldn’t— couldn’t.” Audie looked into the eyes of his dead therapist and the stick of wood in her. ‘How did I do that?’

Silas gripped Audie’s shoulders. Staring him in the eye, Silas said, “Listen to me, son. This. Has. Happened. But your mind makes you forget every time. I have done my best to protect you from people who would take you away from me, and well, my hands are as clean as yours.”

Audie looked at Silas in realization, “Dr. Joyce…”

“She found out. Found out everything we did. Killing. Moving everytime. Repeat.”

“You took her out to coffee…”

“My plan had to resort to a rather unpleasant trip in the woods.”

Audie stared at Silas with horror, “You—You…”

“Yes. You know why.”

“You’re a killer.” Audie whispered. “You’re going to kill me.”

“I will not!” Silas screamed, stilling Audie’s shaking. “I protect you. You will always be safe from the real monsters that want to take you away like they did your mother. I would never, EVER let that happen. I am not evil… I’m a father.”

Audie was silent.

“We need to leave, Audie.”

Audie didn’t respond. Silas tapped him again, “Audie. You’re not gonna get in trouble. Not as long as I’m here. So trust me like you’ve always done before. Can you do that?”

Audie’s head was spinning, but Silas’ voice kept him grounded. Audie stared at his hands, crusted red from where the blood dried.

“Okay.”