Where Nightmares Ride

by R A Baxter

  “You’d better watch yourself, boy!” Lynch stepped closer to Damien and sneered. “Learn from Miss Sherry what happens to defectors in this business. For your information, the threats are far worse than you’re willing to admit. I don’t buy Clara’s act for one second. We want the essence fogging increased on her until she dreams about this camp or dies resisting it.”

  “Unbelievable!” Damien shoved his chair, letting it roll across the room and slam against a waste basket.

  “You’re right about the Bowman boy, I’ve already instructed my forces to eliminate him.”

  A lump formed in Jack’s throat. He needed to warn Taylor immediately, but how? There was no way out of the room without getting caught.

  “Still, we all know that Katie is no threat,” Damien said.

  “She’s the biggest threat of all! Open your eyes. Her father kept a housekeeper for three years before discovering she was a spy. She was communicating with the girl’s mother! How she managed to circumvent your constant surveillance of Katie, I’ll never know. Who can guess what she told her? Had she not blown her cover stopping Katie from overdosing on pills, we’d probably never have known she was a spy. I’m sorry that it’s so inconvenient for you, but the girl’s mind must be adjusted.”

  Fenton gave Damien a sympathetic glance and turned to Lynch. “How are you planning to get them into the lab without Avard finding out?”

  “Avard will be busy guarding the south grounds tonight. If we cannot convince the kids to come voluntarily, we’ll have to release the sleep-inducing agents into their cabins.”

  Fenton nodded. “They’ll wake up not even knowing why they’re singing praises to the Intershroud.”

  Jack cringed. He looked down and discovered a familiar newspaper lying next to him in a trashcan. The Essential Expositor. Whoever had placed the warning note under Katie’ pillow had used that same newspaper. The headline read, Camp Farley—Intershroud Recruiting Station Poses as Innocent Summer Camp!

  Whoever wrote that is an ally, Jack thought. He slid the paper from the trashcan, gently folded it up, and slowly tucked it into his pants pocket.

  Lynch looked at Farley’s office door. “Incidentally, why is Farley so certain another attack is possible? Nightmares won’t attack the camp with the lights working. The transformer Sherry damaged was repaired and is much less accessible.”

  “There are other ways to cut the power,” Fenton said. “The power lines used to short out all the time when the camp first opened. The lines running over the research facility touched every time a strong wind blew. There were blackouts every other month until someone tied something between the lines to keep them separated.”

  “We’ll need guards on the roof then,” Lynch said. “I don’t want the power going out during the assimilations.”

  “You don’t have to worry about that,” Fenton said. “The building’s generator will kick in. Besides, I don’t see how anyone could get to the roof.”

  “I suppose I should be discussing this with Avard,” Lynch said. “Why don’t one of you do Farley’s job and find someone to watch these monitors.” Lynch left the room.

  Fenton started to pat Damien’s shoulder, but Damien shoved his hand away.

  “If anything happens to Katie, I’ll never forgive any of you.” He stormed out.

  Fenton watched his son leave and took a deep breath. He glanced at the monitors, just missing the footage of Jack pulling the trap door closed under Katie’s bed. Fenton pulled a tin of mints from his coat pocket and popped one into his mouth before sauntering out the door.

  Jack darted to Katie’s monitor and grabbed the mouse. He set the video to overwrite the footage of his escapade into Katie’s room, then searched for a way to change the time code. He couldn’t figure out how to do that, however, and decided just to be grateful that no one would know who messed with their footage.

  His mind spun. He left the room, rushed down a hallway and passed through a door that led into the boys’ sleep lab. He charged through the lab and slipped through the door into the lounge. The game had changed now. Jack had all the proof he needed to convince the outside world what was happening here. Tonight, they were escaping Camp Farley, no matter what it took.

  Below an overcast sky, Jack leaned forward against a short spruce tree with his foot pressed against the tall gray posts of the palisade. He’d found the highest point from which to observe the campground. He peered over a multitude of spruce boughs to study the green metal roof of the research facility. Two power lines sagged low from one end of the roof to the other, held apart only by a thick stub of wood wrapped with green nylon rope.

  He slapped at one of the mosquitos buzzing around his ears, shoved himself away from the pine tree, and started working his way through a maze of low-lying scrub oaks that covered the northern hillside. He crossed a narrow trail that led to Katie’s cabin and spotted Taylor climbing it toward him.

  “Dude, where’ve you been? You missed Derek’s lying competition. Clara’s cabin won. You wouldn’t believe how good she is at lying.”

  “Sorry I missed it,” Jack said.

  “You’ve had way more important things to worry about, dude. That video you took is creeping everyone out.”

  “So, you passed my phone around to everyone? And Ming’s note?” Jack hiked down the trail and Taylor followed him.

  Taylor slid Jack’s phone from his back pocket and handed it to Jack.

  “Dude, just touching that phone makes me feel sick now. I showed the notes and video to everyone I could. They were as freaked out as I was. Barbara almost threw you phone on the concrete when she saw that weird thing in the glass container, but I grabbed it from her. The yellow blob freakin looked like nausea in a jar. What was that?”

  Jack frowned. “All I know is it was spraying something at our heads at night. It makes me want to take out my brain and scrub it off. At least we finally have the proof we needed. They all agreed to escape with us tonight, didn’t they?”

  “Definitely. No money on earth could’ve bribed them to stay once they saw them dead dudes in the freezer. Ming almost fainted. Travis looked pale, too. Marina thinks they control people’s thoughts by sending something from those dead people’s heads into ours. How gross is that? Don’t worry, dude, everybody’s on board now. We’re all going to need therapy after seeing that.”

  “What did Katie say about it?”

  Taylor shook his head. “Couldn’t catch her or Clara alone. Katie seems to think I’m trying to send her messages from you.”

  “We have to get it to her. We can’t just leave her here. Are you sure no one saw you?”

  “I located a lot of surveillance cameras this afternoon, so I’m pretty sure I stayed out of view. Carl and Tony don’t know anything. They think I stole your phone and showed the others embarrassing videos of you. So, what’ve you been up to?”

  “I’ve been trying to plan our escape. I hoped there’d be a way to short out the power on the roof of the research facility, but it’s impossible. There’s a retaining wall on the north side, but we’d have to jump more than twenty feet. This is so aggravating.”

  “You’re getting too worked up, bro. It’s dinner time. Let’s get some food. You’ll think better with something in your gut.”

  “You’re right. Also, we need to sneak as much food as we can. Who knows how long we’ll be hiking through the woods?”

  “How are we going to do this? Guards are everywhere now, and they’re armed.”

  Jack shook his head. “It does seem impossible, but that doesn’t matter anymore. We have to find a way.”

  “I think our best hope is the south gate. It’s shorter than the rest of the fence, and no one’s guarding it directly. If we can take the power out, the camera there won’t be a problem.”

  The clearing across from the lodge came into view and Jack turned toward the eating area. He searched for Katie and found her sitting at a table between Damien and Clara. The approaching thumping of feet warned hi
m someone was running up to him from behind. He turned and found Marina and Barbara. Marina looked serious and Barbara’s eyes were wild with fear. Neither girl wore their I.D. lanyard around their neck.

  “I’m totally freaked out right now!” Barbara grabbed Jack’s arm. “What was that? Frozen old dead people! What was that thing under our beds? I almost threw up.”

  “Don’t forget that Alison died, and they lied about it,” Marina said.

  “You find a way out of here, we’re in,” Barbara said. “I won’t be able to sleep tonight anyway. I’m not sleeping another night with that gooey yellow monster under my pillow.”

  “I don’t see what we can do,” Marina said. “The camp’s as bright as daylight at night and there are guards everywhere.”

  Jack shook his head. “You heard Lynch. He’ll force us to do the labs if he has to. We’re in danger no matter what we do.”

  Jack slid his hand into his pocket to search for his lighter and brushed against a wrinkled piece of paper, still moist from when Damien dunked him in the lake. He pulled it out and read the words again: KATIE, DANGER, TRAILHEAD, DUSK.

  “That’s it!” Jack grinned and dangled the note in front of Taylor and the girls.

  They each returned blank stares.

  “Don’t you see? Somebody left this note on Katie’s bed! They’re trying to help her escape! We have help from the outside! The trailhead starts at the south gate. We just need to get there by sundown.”

  “That’s the only hope we have right now, dude,” Taylor said. “It’s really overcast, though. I’m not sure we’ll know when dusk arrives.”

  “Let’s just plan on being at the south gate around nine o’clock,” Jack said.

  “I don’t know,” Barbara said. “Whoever wrote that note is probably behind all the attacks against Farley. Lynch’s people will be looking for them.”

  “She’s right,” Marina said. “It’s too dangerous.”

  “You all can do what you want,” Jack said, “but I’m going to be at the foot of Mount Farley Trail at sundown, whatever it takes.” Jack headed for the buffet table. Taylor, Barbara, and Marina followed him.

  Jack and the others loaded their plates with hot-baked chicken, rice and gravy, peas and carrots, rolls, and peach cobbler. Taylor piled rolls onto a second plate and when Jack noticed what he was doing, he did the same. Jack found Ming and Travis at a table, then led everyone to sit with them, but he couldn’t take his eyes of Katie. She sat across the floor, laughing with Clara at something Damien had said.

  “Don’t worry about her, man.” Taylor took a seat next to Travis. “Even if you can’t warn her, her dad will protect her.”

  “We don’t know that.” Jack sat down and flattened out a napkin on the table. “Does anyone have a pen?”

  Ming pulled one from his shirt pocket and handed it to him.

  Jack scribbled a long note.

  “What’s that, dude?” Taylor grabbed at the napkin, but Jack slammed his hand over it.

  “It’s for Katie. I told her if they force her to do the lab, I’d try to take the power out so she can escape out the door to the generator room. I told her about the stairs to the compartments below our beds and to join us at Farley Trail.”

  “How are you going to give it to her without Damien seeing it?”

  Before Jack could answer, Derek climbed onto a table near Katie and pressed a microphone to his face. “Everyone listen up. I’ve got some bad news. The dance scheduled for tonight has been cancelled. I’m sure you’ve noticed the increase in security around camp. We’ve learned that the attacks on Mr. Farley have been coming from outside the camp and we’re expecting another one tonight. For your safety, everyone will be confined to their cabins for the rest of the day.”

  The sounds of disappointed campers coursed through the area.

  “We deserve a refund,” someone yelled.

  “It won’t be that bad,” Derek said. “Think of it as an opportunity to play some cards or board games and get to know your cabin mates better. We just want to make sure no one is underfoot while we prepare for tonight. If you need to leave your cabin for any reason, we’ll have escorts for you.”

  Derek jumped down from the table and looked around. No one was leaving.

  Avard stepped forward. “Weren’t you listening? The man said get to yer cabins!” He kicked a rear leg of a chair from under an unsuspecting boy, pitching him onto his back with a thump. Everyone watched in silence as the boy pushed himself up from the concrete.

  “This place is ridiculous,” Barbara stood and walked over to gather two handfuls of rolls. Grumbling campers gathered into groups and made their way to their lodgings.

  Jack pulled his cellphone from his pocket and searched for the video of his experience in the research facility. He wrapped his napkin message around it, his eyes fixed on Katie, Clara, and Damien.

  Taylor grabbed his hand. “Dude, what are doing? It’s too risky. That phone’s our only evidence.”

  “I won’t leave her here. I know she’ll come with us.”

  “Dude”

  The moment Katie stood to leave, Jack shook his hand away from Taylor, rushed behind her chair, and slipped his phone into her bag.

  Bright lights flickered on below a sea of dark clouds, causing the beige curtains of Jack’s cabin to glow like lanterns. Jack sat on his bed reading the single-page newspaper he’d found in Farley’s wastebasket, shaking his head. He folded the paper and tucked it into his pants pocket. Taylor leaned cross-legged against the backboard of a bed across the room, in a circle with Travis, Carl, Ming, and Tony, cards in their hands.

  “I’m out,” Ming said.

  Taylor grinned at the whining of the other boys and Ming pushed a small pile of butterscotch candies toward him.

  “You cheat.” Carl tossed his cards on the bed, then stood and dropped on his own bed across the aisle from Jack. “We can’t leave the cabin, so we might as well go to sleep. If you guys had any brains, you’d go do the sleep lab.”

  “We’re not doing the sleep lab.” Jack walked to window and brushed aside the drape. Through the trees, he made out three men in army fatigues standing guard on the roof of the research facility. Nine o’clock had passed fifteen minutes ago, but armed guards were everywhere, and the grounds looked like daylight below the new stadium lights. There was no way to get to the south gate unseen.

  Jack dug his fingernails into the wooden windowsill, gritted his teeth, and glanced up at a light fixture in the corner of the ceiling where he knew the Intershroud had concealed a camera and microphone. He’d endured three hours, trapped like a caged animal in this cabin, unable to discuss anything with his friends. Jack jumped when he became aware of Taylor suddenly standing next to him.

  “What was that paper you were reading?” Taylor handed him a piece of yellow candy.

  “I found a newsletter in the trash in Farley’s room.” Jack spoke quietly, hoping the microphones wouldn’t detect him. He pulled the paper from his pocket and handed it to Taylor. “It’s by an underground group that’s trying to expose you-know-who. They must have spies here because it says a lot about the things I saw in the research facility.”

  Taylor read the heading. “Essential Expositor, published by Cable and Martin Rook.” He handed it back to Taylor. “What did it say?”

  A loud knock on the door brought all the boys to their feet. Jack rammed the paper into his pocket.

  Derek walked in, brushing between two men decked in army fatigues, standing motionless outside the door. The guards faced away from the cabin and their gloved hands clasped tight around the pistol grip and hand guards of their rifles. Derek tucked a pink box under one arm and held the door open with his other hand, allowing entrance of two huge, long-haired soldiers whose bulging arms, stern faces, and thick necks were smothered in tattoos of dragons, snakes, knives, snarling wolves, and writhing chains.

  Jack had never felt more intimidated or confused. He looked at Taylor who offered him a wry grin.
The buxom torsos of these soldiers suggested, against all other indicators, that they might be women.

  “Taylor Bowman, come with us!” The gruff voice of the bigger of the two soldiers gave no clue as to the owner’s gender.

  “He’s staying with me!” Jack darted to his friend and grabbed his arm.

  “Not tonight,” Derek said.

  “If he goes, I go!”

  “Same here,” Ming said.

  The two soldiers snarled and shoved Carl and Travis aside on their way to Taylor. Derek held his hand up to stop them. He walked up close to Jack.

  “I’m sorry, Jack. I really am. If it were up to me, things would be different, but I have no say against Mr. Lynch. Taylor wasn’t invited to this camp and Lynch is demanding that he go.”

  “Then I go too.”

  Derek shook his head. “You signed the papers promising to complete this program.”

  “Sue me then. I’m going with Taylor.”

  Pain shot down Jack’s right arm and vice-like hands twisted it behind his back. The slightest movement increased the pain. The larger soldier secured Taylor in a similar fashion and pushed him toward the door.

  “Let him go! Where are you taking him?”

  “He’ll be fine,” Derek said. “They’re taking him to the airport where they’ll put him on a plane and send him home, probably first class. I don’t know why you’re so worked up. From what I’ve seen, you hate it here.” He motioned for the soldier to release Jack’s arms. Jack yanked his arm down and massaged his aching shoulder.

  Jack’s eyes brightened. “Why can’t he drive home in his car? You can fly me home later.”

  Taylor stared at Jack for a second, then smiled. “Yeah, man, why can’t I drive home in my own car?”