Banquet for the Damned

Sitting around drinking Scotch through the afternoons and evenings of his first week has also begun to create a series of grisly reactions in his stomach. After Nigeria, his sleeping and eating patterns are still off-kilter, and the whisky only serves to make his insides feel hot and loose. It is still unwise for him to venture too far from the bathroom. Landing amongst the early tremors of what he instinctively feels is an impending quake of night-terror activity aggravates his stomach further. Thwarted, he's waited out two days, drinking, while his mind winds itself through stages of anxiety, excitement and disappointment on an hourly basis.

Licking his lips and smoothing his beard away from his mouth, Hart rises from the couch and hovers by the hospitality cabinet. He steps forward, slides the glass door open and places his hand on the neck of a new bottle of Scotch. Releasing it, he stands back. Then repeats the motion. The third attempt at resisting the whisky fails, and Hart's hand returns from the cabinet clutching the neck of the fresh bottle. 'What the hell,' he says, and breaks the seal. He takes three long gulping slugs, gasps through the afterburn and then reclines on the sofa, feeling dizzy. He places a fresh tape in the Dictaphone and begins recording:

'Occult history of the Northern Hemisphere must be looked into. Conduct research in the university library on the possibility of relevant occurrences in this locale. No epicentre appears to have formed for the recent activity. Early indications suggest the attacks to be random and occurring across a wide area. Check on Mike Bowen from Dean's Court —'

The phone rings. He drops the Dictaphone and speeds across the lounge to the phone, mounted on the wall in the reception. 'Hey now, Hart Miller.'

'Have you seen Maria?' The voice is surly.

'Maria?'

'You know who.'

'Who's this?'

'Her boyfriend, and I want some answers.'

'We got something in common.'

The man goes silent. Hart prompts him: 'I'm not prepared to discuss my investigation with anyone not directly —'

'Oh, come on. You're not even a proper doctor. No wonder my girlfriend lost it. She's stressed out and you should have known better, instead of filling —'

'Hey listen up, buddy,' Hart barks, feeling whisky-brave, his pride stung by the kid's attitude. 'I haven't even seen Maria. She blew off her interview. So chill.'

For a few seconds, there is just the sound of two men breathing across the static distance.

'I can't find her.' The young man's voice is about to break around the edges. Hart hears him clear his throat.

He softens his tone. 'When did you see her last?'

'It's been two days now.'

'Maybe she's with a friend or something.'

'I've seen her every day for three years. She never goes anywhere without telling me first.' The man has become impatient again; the volume of his voice rises and his tone becomes shrill.

'OK. Right. Cool it. You keep shouting and my phone goes down. You hear me, buddy?'

Silence.

'Can't hear you,' Hart says.

'Yeah,' the voice replies, still petulant in tone.

'Now who are you?'

There is a pause. 'Chris.'

'So, Chris. You're looking for someone to blame. But I'm not responsible here. I've been in town like five minutes. But there's one thing I do know: people like your girlfriend have suddenly begun to experience nightmares. A special kind too. Like nothing they've known before. They get frightened, they behave strangely. Maybe you even stop recognising them. That can happen. A few individuals have been to see me. But your girlfriend was not one of them. She called for an appointment, sure, but she never showed up. And hasn't answered my calls either. I'm concerned too. Got me?'

Silence.

'I take that as a yes. So allow me to get things straight. Maria takes off a few days back and there's no word since. Am I right?'

'Yeah.'

'Would she go home?'

'No. She left her door open and all her things are still in her room. Her neighbour heard her leave after midnight, on Monday night.'

'Go on.'

'With someone.'

Hart presses his forehead to the wall. 'Any ideas who?'

'Maria would never fuck around. And I'd kill whoever took advantage of a sick girl.' Chris's voice is rising again, to something mean.

'Dude, I never said she would. This is something totally beyond anything that Maria would ever do. You two are close and she tells you everything.'

'Right,' Chris says, putting his voice back together with an effort.

'And you have no idea where she could go.'

'No.'

'She been sleepwalking?'

'She said so. She asked me to watch her, but I couldn't. She doesn't understand. I have things to do.'

'Sure. This is not your fault. She was frightened and unless you have suffered this first-hand, you cannot understand what these dreams are like.'

'Come on, mate. We're talking about dreams here. They're not the cause. She's bulimic. That's how this started. You can't help.'

'Don't hang up,' Hart says. 'Tell me where you've looked.'

Chris sighs, exasperated. 'I've checked out her friends. Then I phoned her home and frightened her mom. The police said she doesn't even qualify as a missing person yet.'

Hart speaks quietly but firmly. 'Chris. Listen to what I have to say.

Don't freak out. Just listen up.'

'What?'

'Have you had a nightmare recently?'

'No,' he says, irritated by the question.

'Good.'

'Why is it? I told you, this dream thing is ridiculous.'

Hart interrupts. 'Did you attend any of Eliot Coldwell's group meetings?'

'What's that got to do with anything? My girlfriend's gone missing and —'

'Just answer me. Did you go?'

'To that load of bollocks? You got to be joking.'

Hart takes a deep breath. 'Might still be a good idea for you to leave town, Chris. Just for a while.'

'What?' the man bellows.

'Leave town, yes. There is evidence to suggest…' Then Hart gives up and moves the receiver away from his ear.

The verbal barrage continues from a distance. 'My girlfriend goes missing and you say I should leave! Why would I leave? What exactly would that achieve? Who'd find Maria then? Waste of time! All you Yanks are the same! You're all full of shit! And if I find out that Maria's been there, you're dead.' The phone clicks down at the other end.

Hart exhales. He is unable to be angry. He drinks another four fingers of Scotch and settles back on the couch, feeling more impotent than ever. But as he ponders Maria's disappearance and tries to decide whether he should speak with the university authorities, the phone rings again. Standing up too quickly, he staggers across the sheepskin rug in the lounge. Tiny red flashes fall through his swooping vision. He snatches the phone from the cradle and prepares for more abuse. 'Hey now.' His voice is thick. His mind inflexible.

'You the nightmare guy?'

Hart breathes a sigh of relief; it isn't Maria's boyfriend. 'Yessum.'

'I need to see you.'

'Sure. What's your name?' he asks, excited now, feeling the spirit of the investigation suddenly reanimate in the flat.

'Oh yeah. Rick.'

His words slur. 'When's good for you, Rick? How about now?'

'I can't. Not today. I got something on.'