The Nightmare People

Did monsters watch TV?

What would she say to it?

If she didn’t pretend, if she treated it as the monster it was, what would she say to it?

Was there anything she could tell it, anything she needed to ask?

What did she really need to know? “Hello?” Bill’s voice said in her ear.

Her voice burst from her. “Why?” she asked it, without thinking. “Why did you kill him?”

For a moment there was only silence on the line.

Then Bill’s voice asked calmly, “Have you ever wondered about the nature of evil?”

Chapter Six:

Sunday, August 6th

1.

The tall, sixtyish woman in the flowered dress who had answered the door was undoubtedly A

“Hi,” Smith said uncertainly, “I’m Ed Smith.”

“Come in, Mr. Smith,” she replied, “We’ve been expecting you. I’m A

Elias Samaan and Maggie Devanoy were already there, sitting at either end of a rose-patterned couch, not talking to each other. A dark young man with straight black hair sat silently on a nearby chair.

“I think you know Maggie, and Elias,” A

Smith nodded, and Saad nodded back.

“Have a seat, Mr. Smith,” A

Smith took the remaining armchair and looked about.

A large window at the back gave a view of a small fenced yard ablaze with roses and gladioli; an archway on one side opened into a tidy little dining room where crystal glistened in the sun. Mirrors hung over the couch and the dining-room buffet, reflecting each other into infinity, a myriad of Maggies and Eliases in the lower corners of every second image.

“Mr. Smith,” Khalil Saad said suddenly.

“Yes?” Smith replied, startled.

“You have seen the things without their masks? Maggie said you had?”

The man had a slight accent, Smith noticed. “Yes,” he said. “I’ve seen them.”

“What is it they look like?”

Smith considered. “Well, the first time I saw one, I thought I was asleep and dreaming – having a nightmare. I think of them as nightmare people, because of that. They have grey skin, like old grey leather, and needle-sharp silvery teeth, and red eyes.”

“I have glimpsed the eyes and the teeth,” Saad agreed, nodding.

The doorbell rang, and A

A

Before the introductions were complete, the doorbell rang again, and A

Names were pronounced once more, and the newcomers found seats – the regular living room furniture was not sufficient, so more chairs were brought from the dining room.

When everyone had a place, A

Smith took his cue and rose.

“My name’s Ed Smith,” he a

All eyes turned to him; his audience was attentive and ready.

Smith told his story, begi

And Sandy Niklasen sat back and stared at him, face calm and unreadable, the entire time.

When he had finished, Smith simply stopped. He had no rousing conclusion.

“I saw them again last night,” he said, “Outside my window at the motel – the one with my voice, and Bill Goodwin behind it. They saw I was awake, and ready for them, same as always, and they went away. And that’s all; that’s all I know about them.”

Alice Newell stood up suddenly, long hair flouncing prettily. “Is this a joke?” she demanded, frowning.

“No,” Smith said mildly. “I know it all sounds pretty stupid, but it’s not a joke.”

She looked around at them all, and saw no one smiling. “Look,” she said, turning back to Smith, “I came here because Maggie called me yesterday and asked me if my father had been acting fu

Elias snorted.

Smith looked at Alice for a moment, and then said, “Ms. Newell, I know the whole thing sounds unbelievable, but it’s true. Everything I’ve told you is the truth. Maggie and Elias have seen for themselves that the creature pretending to be Bill Goodwin isn’t human; I had hoped that everybody here already knew that their friends and family are gone. If you don’t know that, don’t already believe it, I’m not going to try to convince you. You can leave, if you don’t believe, or if you don’t want to get involved, or you can stay, and maybe help avenge your father’s death – because he really is dead.”

Alice stared at him, then turned on her heel, without a word, and marched out the door.

Her sister looked after her, looked around the room at the others, then whispered, “I’m sorry,” and ran after Alice.

“Mr. Smith,” A

Smith considered carefully before replying, “No, Ms. McGowan, I’m not sure. I’m not sure of anything any more. Maybe I’ve gone mad and imagined the whole thing. I know that those things appear to be wearing the skins of the people they replaced, and I know I saw blood and bone in that basement, so I made some assumptions – but I don’t know they’re all dead. Fair enough?”

A

Elias snorted again, and Maggie leaned over and slapped him lightly across the ribs. He looked at her, startled.

“Ms. McGowan, the police aren’t interested,” Smith explained. “They know all about the disappearance, but they’ve written it off as a prank – and what hard evidence could we show them? You know that thing isn’t your sister-in-law, but how could you prove that to the police? They aren’t equipped to handle this – at least, not unless we can come up with something clear and definite enough that they’ll accept it as proof that a crime has been committed.”

“You could show them what’s under the skin of one of these creatures,” Elias suggested.

“I could?” Smith asked. “How?”

“It seems simple enough,” A

“But what’s the thing going to do while you’re doing this?” Smith asked. “And what’s the officer going to do? After all, at first glance, it’ll look like you’re attacking an i