Cage of Dreams by Rebecca Schaeffer

Author:Rebecca Schaeffer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2023-08-21T00:00:00+00:00

19

The Nightmare Phantom and I are supposed to meet in Victoria Park, the largest park in Newham, midafternoon.

It wasn’t always the largest park, but most of the others have either been torn down to make way for construction or destroyed by Nightmares—one became a toxic waste dump after a radioactive slime Nightmare crawled through it—so now only Victoria Park is left.

It’s a nice park, I guess, with big leafy trees that are currently patterned red and orange, and a carpet of leaves blanketing the pathways throughout. I’ve never really been a nature person, I prefer the careful order and containment of the city.

Also, I might have a few bad memories of this park. I haven’t been back here since a traveling carnival set up in the open space when I was fourteen, and my aunt and I came to see it. The carnival turned out to be evil, and we ended up fleeing, chased by a homicidal clown through a tunnel full of horrifically mutilated guests who’d been fused with various attractions in grotesque nightmares of a different sort.

Ah, such charming memories.

The Nightmare Phantom is waiting for me right where he said he would be, in front of the turtle pond. He’s got a loaf of bread and is ripping tiny pieces off and tossing them into the pond for the turtles to squabble over.

I pause before approaching, my expression softening at the scene. Maybe the Nightmare Phantom isn’t so bad.

Then I see the sign next to the turtle pond. The one that warns that anyone who touches the water will be turned into a turtle.

The pond has an awful lot of turtles.

Some poor sap was turned into a turtle pond in their nightmare, and now they’re forever doomed to turn strangers into turtles to swim in it. I wonder if they’re still awake and aware in there, just looking out over the world, immobile and unable to speak, only to make people into turtles.

The Nightmare Phantom has had some real fucked-up ideas over the years.

He looks up at me, his ethereal white hair catching the sunlight and glittering like crystal. He rises, dusting the bread crumbs off his hands.

“Ness,” he says. “I wasn’t sure you were coming.”

“I’m not that late.”

All things considered, it’s amazing I made it here close to on time at all. Priya and I had a devil of a time getting off that roof, mostly since after we broke down the roof door, we found the interior of the building filled with carnivorous plants that attempted to grab us and drag us down into the dark, moldy interior of the building and eat us.

We closed the roof access door and used the fire escape instead.

The Nightmare Phantom smiles, his teeth sharp and pointed. “No, I wasn’t sure you’d show up because you failed last night.”

I wince. “You know about that already.”

“The Mayor has been quite active today. It wasn’t hard to surmise.”

I slump onto the bench next to the turtle pond, a healthy few feet between us.

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