Nightmare - A Novel Part 18

"Oh no," Ara groaned. "Not you, too."

"The Real People believe the same thing," he continued. "I have to help if I can."

"This isn't an adventure, Kendi," Ara said. "It's b.l.o.o.d.y and gory and it's going to be unpleasant."

"I already saw it once," Kendi countered. "I'm still here."

In the end, Ara let herself be persuaded. They went back to Vera Cheel's house and found it empty. The technicians had completed their scans and left. Outside, dirty clouds had gathered, obscuring the sun and cooling the breeze. The red roses on the coffee table made a sharp, colorful contrast with the dreary sky. Ara wondered where Vera's body had been found, then decided she didn't want to know. Linus Gray was nowhere to be seen, and Ara a.s.sumed he was out canva.s.sing the neighborhood. There was a certain tension in the room. Ara herself still held reservations about involving Kendi. Kendi, she was sure, was nervous, and Tan was probably anxious to get on with it.

"Let's. .h.i.t the Dream," Tan said, confirming Ara's suspicions. "I'll take the easy chair, if you don't mind."

"The couch is fine with me," Ara said tightly. "Kendi usually stands."

Kendi had brought his spear and dermospray. The dermospray was red instead of black, indicating it belonged to a student."Does this count as a practice session?" he asked with a grin. Tan snorted and some of the tension eased.

"I suppose it does," Ara laughed. "Your dermospray will still transmit the fact that you used a dose of medication back to the dispensary for your practice record. The dispensary computer doesn't care why you used it. Kendi, since you're new to this, you probably can't leave the Dream unsculpted, so we'll have to meet on your turf. That'll be easier."

Tan sat, Ara lay down, and Kendi positioned himself on his spear. A triple thump thump went through the room as three dermosprays shoved the medication home. Ara let the colors swirl around the inside of her eyelids for a moment, then opened her eyes to a pleasure garden. A carpet of gra.s.s lay thick and green beneath her slippered feet, and a stone fountain tinkled musically behind her, the sound mingling with the ever-present whispering of the Dream. Orange and pear blossoms scented the soft air. Ara wore a green robe with a close-fitting hood. The garden was her own safe place, and she liked it a great deal. But there was no time for personal enjoyment. She closed her eyes and cast her perceptions into the whispers around her until she found Kendi's voice. Once she caught his whisper, she gathered her concentration. She was went through the room as three dermosprays shoved the medication home. Ara let the colors swirl around the inside of her eyelids for a moment, then opened her eyes to a pleasure garden. A carpet of gra.s.s lay thick and green beneath her slippered feet, and a stone fountain tinkled musically behind her, the sound mingling with the ever-present whispering of the Dream. Orange and pear blossoms scented the soft air. Ara wore a green robe with a close-fitting hood. The garden was her own safe place, and she liked it a great deal. But there was no time for personal enjoyment. She closed her eyes and cast her perceptions into the whispers around her until she found Kendi's voice. Once she caught his whisper, she gathered her concentration. She was here here but she wanted to be but she wanted to be there there, and she would be there now now.

Ara released her expectations of reality. There was a slight wrench and she opened her eyes in a large, dry cave. Kendi stood a few steps away. His mind, however, was everywhere, pressing against her, unconsciously ordering her not to dictate reality here. Ara obeyed, though it was difficult. To distract herself, she glanced about curiously. She had only been in Kendi's cave a couple times and she found it a very interesting starting point.

"I do like this place," she said. "It suits you."

"Weird," he said, tugging at the white shirt he wore. "When you appeared like that, it felt like I was in a swimming pool and someone threw in a big rock."

"You're very sensitive to other people in the Dream," Ara said. "Some Silent can barely detect another person's presence." She gave him a critical look. "Father Ched-Hisak told me you usually wear a loincloth or even appear naked here. Why the shorts and shirt?"

Kendi flushed. "I-I don't-"

"You can wear whatever you like on your own turf," Ara said seriously. "Dream etiquette. And you're expected to dress the people who visit your turf in whatever you deem appropriate. This robe I'm wearing is fine for my pleasure garden but is a little impractical for spelunking, don't you think?"

In response, Ara's robe changed into a khaki explorer's outfit. Kendi's clothing, however, remained the same. "I'll keep what I'm wearing for now," he said, a little less embarra.s.sed.

And then Inspector Tan was there. For a moment, she appeared to be wearing an embroidered yellow robe, but it quickly changed into brown khakis similar to Ara's.

"I felt her coming," Kendi explained.

Tan gave the cave a quick glance. "Nice," she said. "Let's go."

They followed the exit tunnel up to the Outback. The desert lay before them, filling the world from horizon to horizon.

"Let's teleport to a blank s.p.a.ce," Tan said. "It'll be faster than having our host let go of the world."

"I ...don't know how to do that," Kendi said. "Teleport, I mean."

"Take my hand," Ara said. "I'll move you."

Kendi obeyed. Ara was here here but she wanted to be but she wanted to be there there, and she would be there now now. Another wrench, and the Outback vanished, replaced by a flat, empty plain. The Dream whispering was loud here. The moment they appeared, Kendi released Ara, dropped to hands and knees, and vomited. Alarmed, Ara knelt beside him. His Dream body flickered, semi-transparent for a moment, then solidified. Kendi threw up again.

"Kendi," Ara said. "Kendi, what's wrong?"

Kendi looked up at her. "I'm sick. All life-it's like bad flu. Oh G.o.d." He vomited yet again, a thin, clear fluid.

"The teleportation," Tan said. "He wasn't ready for it."

"The nausea will pa.s.s, Kendi," Ara said. "Just wait a moment."

Kendi spent a fair amount of time in dry heaves. Ara remained on the ground next to him while Tan waited with scarcely-disguised impatience. Finally Kendi got to his feet, face a bit green. Ara held out an empty hand. There would be a gla.s.s of cold water in it, and there would be one now now. One appeared, and she handed it to Kendi, who accepted it gratefully. He rinsed out his mouth, spat, and took a long drink.

"We'll work on this," Ara promised. "Are you ready to go on?" He nodded. "Then let's get started. I want you to close your eyes and empty your mind, as if you were going to meditate, then concentrate on what you remember about the murder. I'm going to be building a scene using your memories as well as those of the solid-world minds around us. You have to allow me to read your mind, all right?"

Kendi nodded. The sickness had left his face entirely. Ara put her hands on the sides of his head and he closed his eyes. Ara concentrated on the whisper, now nearly a shout, that was Kendi's mind. Images and sensations swirled around her. (Blood, blond hair, chains, a number, fear, horror, pain.) (Blood, blond hair, chains, a number, fear, horror, pain.) Ara widened her senses to the greater whispering around her and gathered images from that as well. Ara widened her senses to the greater whispering around her and gathered images from that as well. (Shadow-faced man, tidy house, shattered gla.s.s, b.l.o.o.d.y finger.) (Shadow-faced man, tidy house, shattered gla.s.s, b.l.o.o.d.y finger.) Carefully but with swift skill, Ara arranged the images into a picture like a archaeologist arranging a fossilized skeleton. Carefully but with swift skill, Ara arranged the images into a picture like a archaeologist arranging a fossilized skeleton. (Hot anger, cold love, metallic gun.) (Hot anger, cold love, metallic gun.) When it was done, she released Kendi and opened her eyes. When it was done, she released Kendi and opened her eyes.

The three of them were in Vera Cheel's patchwork living room. Varieties and styles of furniture clashed and melded. Vera sat on a sofa, chatting with Ched-Balaar Ara didn't recognize. A part of Ara that was beginning to think like a detective mused that they would have to track the alien down for an interview. This scene was clearer, far clearer than the first one Ara had recreated for Tan. Ara could feel Vera's contentment. She was sure of herself in the Dream, confident of her abilities. And she liked her strange living room.

As Ara watched, the Ched-Balaar vanished. Vera ran her hands through short blond hair, started to stand, and came up short. Mystified, she raised a hand. It clinked. Her wrist was bound with a black wristband and chain that extruded from under the sofa cushions. So was her other wrist and her ankles. The air turned cold. Fear rose in Vera's chest. She hadn't created the chains. They would be gone. They would be gone now now. But they remained. Ara's heart started to beat faster.

A blackness touched the room. Suppressed rage mixed with desire and ...love? A door opened, and a man dressed in black entered. A wide-brimmed hat hid his face in shadow. He strode toward Vera, who screamed. Vera tried to gather her concentration to leave the Dream, to escape, but the couch moved beneath her and the cushions themselves folded themselves about her body. More chains snaked out and wound tight and cold around her body. Terror swept over Vera and disrupted her concentration. A knife appeared in the man's hand and he loomed over his victim. He bent down and said something to Vera, who only screamed again. Rage swept over Ara in waves, and he slashed quickly. Blood flowed, and Vera cried out. It went on and on. Ara was vaguely aware of Inspector Tan vaulting over the furniture, trying to get behind the couch so she could get a look at the man's face.

And then Kendi was there-another Kendi. Ara glanced at her student to make sure he was also still beside her. He was, eyes wide, lips compressed. The man cut off Vera's finger just as she died and wrote a b.l.o.o.d.y number on her forehead. Ara felt a tiny blank moment, a barely-discernable flicker as Vera's Dream form vanished and was replaced by the power of the man standing over her. Dream Kendi swore, and the man lunged for him. Ara watched them struggle, saw the furniture erupt into movement, felt Dream Kendi's own fear and terror. Finally Dream Kendi crashed through the window and disappeared. The man stood in the window for a moment, then howled once and vanished. Vera's living room went with it, leaving Ara, Kendi, and Tan alone on a blank plain. Tan was breathing hard.

Ara stood stock-still. Her mouth was dry as salt and she felt weak as a dishrag. A quick glance at Kendi showed he felt the same. His skin was ashen.

"I didn't see his face," Tan reported. "I don't think he has one in the Dream."

"We need to get out of here," Ara croaked. "Kendi, you go and I'll make sure you get out before I follow, all right?"

Kendi only nodded. A moment later, he vanished and the Dream energy around them rushed in to fill the empty s.p.a.ce. Without another word to Tan, Ara herself let go of the Dream.

Kendi sat shakily on the couch next to Mother Ara after she sat up. Rain pattered gray tears against the windows. Kendi's hands shook and nausea oozed in his stomach. He had thought he could handle seeing it all again, but he had been wrong. This time he had felt the emotions of both people involved. Vera Cheel's fear, terror, and helplessness stayed with him, mingling with a horrible mixture of rage and love. It made him sick and scared all at once, and he felt horribly alone.

An arm came around his shoulder and drew him into a motherly embrace. Kendi buried his face in Mother Ara's shoulder and for a moment pretended she was Rebecca Weaver. Everything was going to be all right. He wasn't there. The Dream wasn't real. After a while, he became aware that Mother Ara was saying these things aloud to him, and he let them sink in. Then he broke away, eyes wet with tears he didn't remember shedding.

"Are you okay?" Mother Ara asked. Her face was drawn and concerned. "I had no idea it would be that strong, Kendi. There's no way I would have let you-"

"It's all right," he said. "I'll be okay. But all life-it was horrible."

"And we need to discuss it," Tan put it from the armchair. "Now. Before we forget any of it."

"I don't think I'll forget any of it for as long as I live," Mother Ara said. "Aren't you upset by any of this?"

"I'm upset that the killer is walking free," Tan said grimly. "Let's go over it. Talking about it may make all of us feel better, in any case."

"Kendi," Mother Ara said, "why you don't you go and-"

"No," Kendi interrupted. "I want to help. He did awful things to her, and I don't want him to do it again to someone else."

"Let's at least go somewhere else," Mother Ara insisted. "Maybe get something to eat. It'll help us to concentrate on our bodies and dampen the emotions."

The three of them decided to meet at a nearby restaurant. The canopy of talltree leaves kept them reasonably dry as long as they stayed under the branches, but they had to dash across the open s.p.a.ces between the trees. They arrived at the restaurant damp and breathless.

It was a little early for lunch yet, and Tan got them a booth at the back where they could talk in privacy. The restaurant was warm and dark, and the server was friendly. Mother Ara refused to let anyone discuss the case until their food had arrived. Once they had all eaten a little, Tan put her recorder on the table, and they described what had happened. Kendi was glad to discover that Mother Ara had been correct-it was easier to remain level-headed about the entire thing with some food in him.

"My earlier suspicions were correct, then," Mother Ara said. "The killer has a very strong will, and he can attack people by forcing a new shape on the turf in Dream. That's hard to do."

"Agreed," Tan said. "Most Silent simply aren't this powerful, just like most people don't have the physical strength to kill someone with their bare hands. Good thing, too. Otherwise Dream killings would be far more common."

"He knows the victims," Kendi put in. "I think he even ...loves them? Or thinks he does. I felt that."

"So did I." Mother Ara sipped thoughtfully at her drink. "Though he may not know them personally. He may be stalking them without actually meeting or talking to them first."

"My research tells me that most serial killers do stalk their victims," Tan said. "If this one can find his women in the Dream, it means he may have touched them in the real world. That, and the fact that he's doing his little finger trick, means he's somewhere on Bellerophon. A relief."

"A relief?" Mother Ara asked.

"Yes. It'll make him easier to catch." Tan tucked a stray strand of black hair back into her braid. "Imagine if he were on another planet. We'd never have a hope."

"What was the number fourteen?" Kendi said. "He wrote it on her forehead."

"He wrote the number twelve on the forehead of Iris Temm," Mother Ara pointed out.

"Is he numbering them-his women, I mean?" Kendi asked, startled. "If he is, there must be a number thirteen our there somewhere."

Tan gave him an appraising look. "We were thinking the same thing yesterday. Pretty smart."

Kendi felt his face grow warm at the praise and he hid behind his juice gla.s.s.

"There have only been three other Dream murders." Mother Ara put her elbows on the table. "Prinna Meg, Wren Hamil, and Iris Temm."

"Which means there are either a lot of victims we don't know about-and they aren't necessarily on Bellerophon-" Tan said, "or maybe he isn't numbering his victims but is doing something else. Maybe he's using only even numbers for some reason."

"I think there's a dead body somewhere that no one's found yet," Kendi said. He took a long drink of fruit juice. It was slightly tangy, just as he liked it, and he wondered about the strangeness of it. Less than a day ago he had watched a woman murdered and today he was drinking fruit juice. Vera Cheel would never drink fruit juice again, and that made him sad and angry, even though he had never met her. Not really.

You're being stupid, he told himself. You don't even know if she liked fruit juice You don't even know if she liked fruit juice. Still, the feelings remained. He pushed the drink aside.

Mother Ara sipped from her own gla.s.s again. "What do the women have in common? We've been over it before, but is there something we've overlooked?"

"Female, adult, Silent, a.s.sociated with Children of Irfan." Tan ticked her fingers. "Ages have varied from young adult to middle age. There doesn't seem to be a pattern to where they live, either, or to the dates or times he kills them. If he was friends with all four of them, we should be comparing lists of people the victims were acquainted with."

"We need more information." Mother Ara glanced at her fingernail. "It's early yet. Maybe I should take another look at the murder scenes."

"You?" Tan raised her eyebrows. "You're a consultant, Mother Ara, not an investigator. And Kendi here is just a witness."

"I can help," Mother Ara said. "I know how the Silent mind works-"

"And I don't?" Tan said.

"Your partner isn't Silent," Mother Ara pointed out. "I'm another Silent you can bounce ideas off and who might catch something you miss. It can't hurt to have me along."

"Me, too," Kendi put in quickly.

Both women turned their gazes on him. "Kendi," Mother Ara began, "you can't think-"

"You just said that I'm an important witness," Kendi interrupted. "And you said that if the killer finds out about me, my life could be in danger, right?"

"Right," Mother Ara said warily.

"So it would be safest if I stayed in the company of the police-Guardians," Kendi said.

"I could a.s.sign someone to guard you," Tan said.

Kendi winced and tried not to show it. The idea of someone following him around all day and night-no. For one thing, it would be difficult to talk to Ben. "I can help, too. I saw things no one else did, and I felt some of the things-" a cold shudder pa.s.sed through him and he tried to hide that, too "-some of the things the killer did. I might notice something the two of you miss."

They argued further, but in the end, Tan agreed that it couldn't do any harm for Kendi and Mother Ara to look around the murder scenes. Tan paid the bill and got up.

"Since you're both so eager," she said, "let's start with Iris Temm's house."

"She died a year ago," Mother Ara said as they left the restaurant. The rain had let up, though the heavy clouds remained. "Hasn't the place been sold?"

Tan shook her head. "Only living relative was a sister. Woman can't bring herself to go into the house yet or have someone dispose of the stuff inside. It's stood vacant."

The trip to Temm's house involved three slippery walkways and a gondola ride. Kendi rested his chin on the gondola rail and watched green forest coast by below. The air smelled of rain and leaves. A bit of excitement grew inside him. Ben would probably be impressed that the Guardians had taken Kendi into the houses of two murder victims in one day, and Kendi could hardly wait to tell him. Then a bit of guilt stabbed him. These women were dead, and all Kendi could think about was impressing Ben? All life, he was selfish. Still, he found himself looking forward to going back to Mother Ara's house and seeing him.

They finally arrived at Iris's tiny house. The windows were shut and the door was locked. Wet, dead leaves were scattered about the porch. Tan pressed her thumb to the doorplate and the lock clicked open. Kendi took a deep breath and followed Mother Ara inside.

It took his eyes a few moments to adjust to the gloomy interior. The air was stuffy and smelled faintly sour. After a moment, Kendi made out a living room filled with second-hand, mismatched furniture and an upright piano. A patina of dust coated everything. Kendi half expected to see a skeleton lying on the couch and chided himself for being ridiculous. Temm would have been buried long ago. Still, a vague feeling of unease crept over him. This was a dead woman's house, and it had been left just as it was on the day she had died. The Real People told ghost stories, and he shivered at the thought of encountering a pale, angry Iris Temm with a number twelve dripping scarlet down her forehead.

Tan opened a couple windows. The fresh air helped clear away some of Kendi's unease but didn't entirely erase it. "Look around," she said. "You can touch anything you want-the techs have been through half a dozen times."

Kendi poked about the living room but saw nothing that caught his eye. A small foil-wrapped box sat on one of the wooden end tables and he took off the lid. A dozen chocolates, though an empty s.p.a.ce gaped like a missing tooth. The remaining ones were covered with a white film. Kendi made a face and replaced the lid. Mother Ara, who was drumming her fingers on the piano, gave him an odd look but didn't say anything. When Kendi moved away from the table, Mother Ara also reached down and took up the box.

Next Kendi tried the bedroom. The dust made him want to sneeze but he held it back. It seemed disrespectful somehow to spray saliva in a dead woman's bedroom. He opened a window to let in air and the smell of rain, then looked around. The bed was normal but had been stripped of its linens. Had Iris been on it when she was ...? No. Mother Ara had mentioned that the body was found in the living room. Night stand, lamp, dresser. Nothing out of the ordinary.

What were you expecting? he thought. he thought. A big box with the word "clue" written on it? A big box with the word "clue" written on it?

A bit of thunder rumbled in the distance. Kendi reached for the closet, then hesitated. The k.n.o.b was cool under his hand. Various childhood fears came back to him. This was a dead woman's house, a dead woman's closet. More thunder grumbled. Ghostly images loomed in Kendi's mind, spirits reaching for his throat with hands that showed b.l.o.o.d.y stumps of missing fingers.

"This bugs me," came Mother Ara's voice from the living room, "but I can't say why."

Her words broke the spell. With a snort at his own silliness, Kendi flung the door open.He saw a perfectly ordinary closet. Dresses, robes, and blouses hung from hangers, all neatly placed. A series of shelves held sweaters. Several pairs of shoes made a perfect row on the floor, and several more were jumbled together in a heap. A bunch of scarves drooped from a set of hooks, one to a hook, all grouped by color.

Something struck Kendi as wrong. He stared into the closet trying to figure out what it was. He looked harder, then stepped back to get the full picture. Something was out of place. Something- It was the shoes. Kendi knelt on the floor to get a closer look. Most of them were in a row, but a bunch were heaped up.

And then Kendi had it. Everything in the closet was perfectly neat and tidy, including most of the shoes. The jumbled ones were the only messy part of the whole closet, and their presence didn't make sense. He was reaching for a sandal when something made a slamming noise from the living room and Mother Ara cried out. Kendi jumped up and rushed out, heart pounding.