The Girl Who Could Not Dream

by Sarah Beth Durst

  Madison shouted, “Leave us alone!”

  “Oh, no, I cannot do that.” His laugh died. “I need you. I need your mind. All of this resisting is pointless. You think Sophie set you free. But she didn’t. She couldn’t. You’ll never be free.”

  And then the dinosaur began to fade. Through its translucent gray flesh, she saw Mr. Nightmare. He was holding one of the shop’s dreamcatchers to the dinosaur’s side. Next to him, the monkey with the fiery eyes jumped from foot to foot. It gnashed its teeth together, spittle dripping from its lips.

  Mr. Nightmare wore a smile on his face as the dinosaur vanished. The monkey charged down the stairs. Screaming, Sophie and Ethan ran across the room toward where Madison cowered, but Glitterhoof stepped forward.

  As the monkey reached the bottom step, the winged unicorn reared onto his back hooves and pinned the monkey down with his front hooves. He then jabbed his horn into the monkey’s fur, securing him to the floor.

  Passing them, Monster charged up the stairs. Sophie ran after him. “Wait, Monster, don’t!” What was he thinking? Mr. Nightmare had dreamcatchers!

  Launching himself at Mr. Nightmare, Monster buried his teeth into the man’s leg. Mr. Nightmare howled and slapped a dreamcatcher onto Monster’s back.

  Sophie grabbed on to Monster. She yanked him away, and he released his bite. Blood welled from a long gash on Mr. Nightmare’s calf. Sophie and Monster tumbled backward several steps, crashing against the side of the stairwell.

  At the top of the stairs, Mr. Nightmare had dropped down to the floor, clutching his leg. “So your ‘housecat’ is your defender. Very nice. But it won’t be enough.”

  “Looks like enough to me,” Monster said.

  Red stained his fingers, but Mr. Nightmare laughed. “You may think you’ve won, but you haven’t. You can’t save them. You can’t even save yourself. Sooner or later, the Night Watchmen will hear about you . . . Perhaps sooner, if I make a little phone call . . . And once they do, they will come for you. They’ll hunt you forever.”

  Sophie froze. Wrapping his tentacles around her, Monster pressed against her, but she still felt cold inside and out. “You wouldn’t . . .”

  “Only way to be safe is to let me protect you. You can be part of my family. You can be with your parents again, and we’ll all become rich together. How does that sound?”

  Monster sniffed. “It sounds like a join-the-Dark-Side speech.”

  “Think about what I’m offering, Betty. A chance to be a part of something great! Your parents think of themselves as noble, easing the nightmares of others, but what they do is theft. What we do is art. We transcend the petty concerns of the ordinary dream trade by truly making something out of nothing.”

  “You’re making killer monsters.”

  “For now,” he said, his voice smooth, “but if you join me, we’ll expand. There are buyers out there for the unique and beautiful. I happen to be fond of monsters, but the possibilities are endless, and the potential is immense. You can dream whatever you want, whenever you want. Think about it—the world of dreams, and you will be free to partake of any of it, without fear.”

  From below, Ethan called, “Don’t listen to him, Sophie!”

  “And what about them? Madison and Ethan? What about Lucy? Will they be without fear?” Sophie shook her head. She didn’t believe him, not for a second.

  “You can’t trust them. If we let them free, they will tell the world about you, and the Watchmen will hear. They will come for you and your parents. Your family is inexperienced at hiding. But I can help you. I know how to disappear.”

  “You want to shove me in a cage, like your monsters,” Sophie said. “You lied to them. And you’re lying to me.”

  “I’ll treat you and your parents like jewels,” Mr. Nightmare promised. “As I will treat my dear little dreamers, if you all come willingly. Didn’t you like your gilded cage, girl?” He directed the last question at Madison, who huddled with Ethan at the bottom of the stairs.

  “You tied me up!” Madison yelled.

  “Only because you squirmed.”

  “And gagged me!”

  “Only because you screamed.”

  Madison had tears running down her cheeks, but her hands were curled into fists and she didn’t wipe the tears away. She glared fiercely at him. “I’m never, ever going back!”

  “Oh, I think you are mistaken,” Mr. Nightmare said with a smile. “Once you have thought it through, you will come to the same conclusion. Let me help clarify your thinking: I have Betty’s parents, and I have the little girl. And monsters get hungry.”

  Monster howled. He positioned himself in front of Sophie, protecting her.

  “It is a simple choice, really,” Mr. Nightmare said. “Come willingly and live in luxury, or come unwillingly and live with the monsters.”

  “That’s a terrible choice,” Ethan said.

  “I will give you one hour to consider, and then I will return for your answer,” Mr. Nightmare said graciously. “Don’t try to run. Don’t imagine you can hide. Don’t think you’re free. If you call the police, if you run to your parents, if you tell anyone . . . the monsters won’t be hungry anymore.” Struggling to his feet, Mr. Nightmare limped away from the stairs. She heard his footsteps as he crossed the bookstore. “One hour,” he called. And then the bell rang as the door opened and shut.

  PINNED TO THE FLOOR BY THE WINGED UNICORN, the monkey sneered at them. “Wherever you run, he will follow. Wherever you hide, he will find you. You can cry to your parents or wail to the police, but in the dark of the night, when there is only you and your nightmares, Mr. Nightmare will come.”

  Madison’s face was flushed, as if she was about to scream or cry or both. Ethan was shaking. Grabbing another dreamcatcher, Sophie marched over to the monkey.

  “Getting rid of me won’t change anything,” the monkey said. “He can make dozens more, and they’ll come after you. You won’t be able to stop him.” He cackled. “Your life will become a nightmare, as your nightmares come to life.”

  Kneeling, Sophie held the dreamcatcher a few inches from him. “Tell me how to stop him.”

  “Three children, a pony, and a scruffy cat? You can’t.” He cackled again, as if he’d told the funniest joke in the world.

  Ethan came up beside Sophie. “Why did you help him? You could have run for it. I thought you wanted to be free.”

  “He promised my freedom, if I helped him this once,” the monkey said. “It was a no-brainer: my freedom, after revenge on the ones who left me behind. But it was I, I who was the fool for trusting him again. And you who will be the fool if you trust him now. He’s a lying liar who lies. He won’t wait an hour. He’ll return, you’ll see, as soon as he’s conned more monsters into helping him.”

  Madison joined them on Sophie’s other side. “He won’t get away with this.”

  “Oh, you poor, deluded child with a penetrating voice, he already has. Unless you want to be responsible for that sweet little innocent girl becoming monster food. It’s difficult to find good dreamers, but not impossible. He can replace you all, but he can’t leave you to tell tales.”

  Ethan swallowed hard. “So he’ll be coming back with more monsters.”

  The monkey fixed his flame eyes on Ethan. “Of course he will. He said as much. Haven’t you been paying attention? He’ll be back for you two. And you . . .” His gaze switched to Sophie. “The Watchmen will take care of you. Not to worry. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s already informed them about you, despite what he offered you and despite his ‘one hour’ deadline. He does like to have all his loose ends tied up, and he has no real need of you.”

  Monster rushed over to Sophie. He had flecks of blood in the fur around his mouth. Sophie wondered how badly he’d hurt Mr. Nightmare. How long did they have before he came back? “I won’t let them take you, Sophie. I swore to your parents—”

  “Her parents belong to Mr. Nightmare now.” The monkey cackled again. “You all belong
to him! You’ll never be free! Never, ever, never, ever—”

  Sophie shoved the dreamcatcher into his red fur, and Glitterhoof stepped away, his horn low and ready to spear him again, if necessary. The monkey kept laughing his shrill, wild cackle as he faded and then disappeared.

  Lifting his head, Glitterhoof shook his mane. Red fur clung to his unicorn horn. “How very unpleasant.” He sniffed.

  She stared at the spot where the monkey had been. He’d been telling the truth. Mr. Nightmare had them trapped as thoroughly as he had when the basement door was barred shut.

  “He disappeared!” Madison’s voice was a shriek. “How did you do that? You did it with the giraffe thing too. Are you a witch? What are you? What are they?”

  Sinking onto a stool, Sophie kept staring at the floor. It was hopeless. He had her parents and Lucy. And he’d called, or would call, the Watchmen. Dully, Sophie said, “He was made from a dream. Well, nightmare, really. So this turned him back into one.” She held up the dreamcatcher and braced herself, ready for Madison to shriek again.

  But Madison planted her fists on her hips and glared. “I so don’t understand. And you better explain everything right now, Freak Girl, or I’m going to start screaming and never stop.”

  Madison looked as if she meant it. Sophie felt like the monkey, pinned by her glare. She didn’t know where to begin, or how much to say. If she’d never talked to Madison, Lucy, and Ethan, then Mr. Nightmare never would have known about them. If she hadn’t given them dreamcatchers, he never would have guessed they had nightmares. They’d be safe.

  Ethan spread his arms wide and answered for her. “These are dreams, caught in bottles. They’re captured in dreamcatchers, then turned into liquid, bottled, and sold. If you drink a dream, you have that dream. If certain people drink one, the creatures in it become real. Sophie and Mr. Nightmare are those ‘certain people.’”

  Bristling his fur, Monster growled at Ethan. “You swore to keep her secret.”

  Sophie put a hand on his back. “It doesn’t matter now.” It was too late to worry about secrets. Mr. Nightmare was coming back, and there was nothing they could do to stop him. He’d already won.

  “Sorry. But it was kind of obvious.” Ethan waved his hands at Monster and Glitterhoof.

  Madison was shaking her head as if that would shake apart his words. “Wait, wait, wait. Those dreamcatchers you gave me . . . You expect me to believe they really catch my dreams? And then you bottle them and sell them?”

  Sophie shrank back. “Um, yes. I . . . I’m sorry.” As she said the words, she realized that she truly was, for all of it. She shouldn’t have taken their dreams and exposed them to this. She should have kept herself away from everyone.

  “I always knew you were a freak, but you’ve taken it to a whole new level of freakdom. You sell our private dreams to complete strangers?”

  “She also saved you,” Ethan reminded her.

  “Temporarily,” Madison said. “You heard the freaky monkey. He’s coming back! And if the monkey was right, he’ll be back soon.”

  Ethan nodded gravely. “I think it’s time to call the police. This is out of control.”

  “You can’t!” Sophie cried. He had her parents! He’d threatened them! If they went to the police, he’d feed them to the monsters. And Lucy.

  “You can’t!” Madison echoed Sophie, to Sophie’s surprise. “You heard what he said. We can’t call the police. Or go home. He still has that little girl.” She began to pace back and forth between the shelves of bottles. “This is all your fault, Sophie. You and your dreamcatchers. And I trusted you!”

  “You never trusted me. You hated me.”

  Halting, Madison drew herself up, as if she’d just been insulted. Her face was flushed as red as the band in Glitterhoof’s rainbow. “I didn’t—”

  “And you were right to hate me. This is my fault. If I hadn’t given you those dreamcatchers . . . If I hadn’t wanted your nightmares . . . And I did want them.” Sophie felt her eyes heat, and she blinked hard. She wasn’t going to cry. She was going to say these words. She needed to say them. “I was jealous of you. Still am. You might hate that you scare yourself at night, but at least you can do it. You can take yourself on adventures. You can mix up the real and the impossible. You can have conversations that never happened. Live lives you never lived. Die a thousand times. And I can’t!” Sophie took a deep breath, feeling the air rattle in her ribs. “I don’t dream. I can’t dream. I can never have a single nightmare on my own. But you, both of you, your minds are amazing. You make magic.”

  Stunned into silence, Madison stared at her.

  “And you just wanted to throw it away,” Sophie said.

  In a hushed voice, Madison asked, “You think my nightmares are amazing?”

  “Yes!”

  “Oh.”

  Ethan shook his head. “You don’t understand. It’s one thing to have a vivid imagination when you’re awake. Daydreams can be controlled. You always know they’re just in your head. But at night, it’s like being inside a pinball machine. All these thoughts hit each other, and you can’t stop them. And when you’re in it, really in it, you don’t know if it’s real or not.”

  Sophie looked at him, and he met her eyes—more serious and sad than she’d ever seen him, more than she thought he could be. For not the first time, she wondered why he had nightmares. “Believe me, Sophie,” he said, “you aren’t missing a thing by not dreaming. I’m jealous of you. There are so many terrible thoughts in my mind. At night, it’s like my mind is the monster.”

  Sophie slumped on the stool. “I’m the monster. I’m the freak. All my life, I’ve thought I was the only one like me.” Monster climbed onto her lap and curled up. She petted him. “And then it turns out I’m not, but the person who is most like me is worse than any dreamed-up monster.” She couldn’t see a way out of this. He’d left them no options. Sophie felt her eyes fill as she looked around the Dream Shop. This place had always been her sanctuary. She’d come here whenever she felt lonely or overwhelmed or bored or sad, whenever she felt ignored at school or separate from the world. But it had been invaded, and it didn’t feel safe anymore. Half the bottles were missing—either stolen by Mr. Nightmare or sucked away by the man with the mouth. The others were toppled over. The unfinished dreamcatchers were strewn across the floor, several trampled. Up the stairs, the door was busted, and the chairs they’d wedged there were broken. Hugging herself, she wished she could disappear like a dream into a dreamcatcher.

  “Enough,” Glitterhoof said in his booming voice. “All this self-pity is making my hide itch. Please, stop. You are all very special in your own special way. If you’d like to sing a song about our specialness, I will sing along. But if you aren’t going to switch to a more entertaining mode than simply moping . . .”

  “I’m not moping,” Sophie said without moving. “I’m explaining.”

  “Not very well,” Madison snapped. “Let me get this straight. One, dreams are real. Two, you collect them and sell them without telling the dreamer, specifically me. And three, Mr. Nightmare is . . . Come on, someone, fill in the blank here, please.”

  “A very bad man.” Monster shuddered, his fur ruffling all the way to the tips of his tentacles.

  Sophie hugged him as if he were a stuffed animal. “He’s a buyer. He came to buy dreams from my parents . . . but I guess he wanted more. His own direct source. And he found it.”

  Madison was frowning, a crinkle in her forehead, as if she were trying to force her brain to cooperate. “So he’s bringing our nightmares to life and using them for prizefighting?”

  “Monster Fight Club,” Ethan said.

  “It’s not funny.” Madison switched her glare to him.

  Ethan spread his hands to show his innocence. “I didn’t say it was.”

  “He wants you to dream up new monsters that he can sell,” Sophie said. “And I led him right to you, by giving you dreamcatchers.”

  Glitterhoof whickered. �
�All of this is very interesting, and I’m pleased to see your friendship blossoming through shared epiphanies and confessions of guilt, but it doesn’t change the fact that Mr. Nightmare will be returning soon, and he’ll most likely bring many more of his unpleasant creatures. We need a plan, if you don’t want our quest to fail.”

  Sophie shook her head sadly. “There’s no plan. He has my parents and Lucy. He’ll hurt them if we tell anyone. He’ll find us if we run.”

  Madison marched over to her and halted directly in front of her. “If you think I’m just going to meekly stay here and let him put me back in that room, then you don’t know me very well.” She poked Sophie in the shoulder. “There are things in this world that are stronger than you. Sicknesses you’re born with. Things that can’t be cured. But that doesn’t mean you quit fighting them. That doesn’t mean you don’t try. My sister has been in and out of the hospital since she was born. She should have died when she was six months and again when she was two and then four and then six, but my parents don’t give up. Even though it’s hopeless because she won’t ever get better. Even though it costs them everything else in their lives, they keep fighting because it might buy them one more day. And you’re saying you want me to give up? Meekly go back? Not try? Uh-uh, Freak Girl. Think again. If we can’t go for help, if you can’t hide, then we’re going to fight.”

  Sophie stared at her. She didn’t know what to say.

  “Very inspiring speech,” Glitterhoof said approvingly.

  “Thank you,” Madison said. She looked as though she’d eaten something sour. “Now, stand up, Sophie. You know how to get rid of monsters. I’ve seen you do it twice. You’re our best chance of stopping him.”

  Slowly, Sophie stood. Monster slipped off her lap. “You want me to stop him?”

  Ethan put his hands on his head, as if squeezing his skull would make him think better. “We don’t know how much time we have before he comes back—maybe he was telling the truth and maybe he wasn’t—but we do know that he is coming back. What if . . . while he’s coming here, we go there and rescue Sophie’s parents and Lucy?”