Suspended In Dusk (28 page)

The twins linked arms and grinned.

The camera clicked.

And then the music started.

It was faint at first, almost a whisper, but it grew steadily louder—a whine of synth and a driving beat. The sisters took a few steps toward the sound.

Maddy recognized the music first. She turned to Viv and said, “I love that song!”

Viv gave her sister a blank look.

Maddy snorted and said, “It’s Split Enz, dummy. From the eighties?” She scrunched up her nose and added, “Doesn’t matter—let’s check it out.” Maddy turned and walked in the direction of the noise. She belted out the chorus to “I Got You” as she picked up the pace.

Viv had to jog to catch up.

They followed the music to the base of the Robot Ride Guardian and stopped.

The area beside the robot’s leg shimmered and shimmied with waves of distortion. It looked like pebbles thrown into a reflecting pond. As the seconds ticked by, the waves grew more violent and then the image tore in two. A sliver of blackness grew in between.

The rift opened wider, as if to welcome them.

Viv gripped Maddy’s shoulder and leaned on her. Her legs had gone weak and wobbly.

Suddenly, cold neon blinked and glared out of the hole—first pink, then orange, then green. A whiff of popcorn and sweet toffee wafted through.

Maddy shook off Viv’s restraining hand and moved toward the light. “Holy shit! Do you know what I think this is?”

Viv shook her head.

“I think it’s like a door in time. Viv, I think this goes back to the park’s past.”

Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” blared from somewhere inside the rift.

Maddy squealed and clapped. “Can’t you hear it? Won’t you come see?”

A chill crept down Viv’s spine. Her limbs went heavy and numb. But, yes, she could hear the music—and underneath that—the sound of metal rumbling on metal. It was the unmistakable plunge and rattle of a roller-coaster. The delighted screams of riders provided harmony.

She loved that sound. She feared it too.

Maddy picked up a chunk of rock and tossed it through the rift. The air shimmered and then the rock landed with a dull thud. Nothing else happened.

“We have to go through,” Maddy said.

Viv shook her head. “No way. Why the hell would we do that?”

Maddy gaped at her. “To avoid a lifetime of regret? To say “yes” to adventure? To experience magic—like all those kids we envied from stories? Or how about a chance to have some fun?” She pointed to the rock. “See? It’s safe. And we don’t have to go far, right? I just want to see what happens. Please?” She took a step forward.

Viv hesitated.

Maddy shrugged. “Suit yourself. I’m going.” And she stepped through.

The hazy glow obscured her form for a second, but she made it. Maddy stood on the other side, spread her arms wide, and laughed. “It’s amazing!”

Viv took a step and stopped. She looked at Maddy, then closed her eyes and ran forward. She felt a harsh bite of cold, a kind of curious folding sensation, and then the warm body of her twin.

Maddy hugged her. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down,” she said.

* * *

The robot stood tall and proud—whole again. Maddy and Viv both measured up, well above the minimum height requirement for riding.

The rift had stabilized. It stood wide open. Viv could see the decaying future through the door.

Around them, the park’s past buzzed with activity.

Nobody noticed them. The crowd broke just before it reached the rift. They flowed around it like a stream washing around rocks. The twins and the entryway were as good as invisible.

Maddy waved, pulled faces, and gestured at patrons as they passed by. Nobody even blinked.

The twins linked hands, nodded at one another, and merged into the park’s traffic.

At first they took cautious steps, kept glancing back at the rift every few seconds. It held steady, and remained unnoticed by all but the two of them.

Maddy whirled around in a tight circle. “I want fairy floss!” She stopped. “Wait, no, let’s go on some rides. Or…”

Viv held up her arms in surrender. “Okay, okay. But damn, girl, take a breath. You’re going to bust a blood vessel. Let’s just take it as it comes.”

Maddy grinned and said, “Lead on.”

All around them colored lights winked and spun. The air was filled with music, happy voices, and the constant whirr and groan of the rides. Fried dough, cinnamon, roasting nuts, and other tantalizing scents tempted them. It was the best mix of all the fun of an amusement park.

The crowd was a kaleidoscope of neon bright patterns, popped collars, and big teased hair. It was too authentic, too varied, to be a costume parade. Maddy elbowed Viv. “Told you! Time travel.” She made a little fist then popped it open, spreading her five fingers wide. “Mind. Blown.”

Viv nodded and reached for her camera, but came up empty. She groaned. It was back on the other side. She’d left both it and her smartphone on top of the cooler. Maddy wouldn’t have one either. She never carried it when she was with her sister.

There goes proof
.

“Come on, Grumpy. Let’s try a ride. Please?” Maddy’s tone held the same musical note she always used to wheedle and cajole.

Viv wanted to cave in, but had to be practical. “With what?” she said. “It’s not like we can use our money or credit cards.”

Maddy pouted.

“Hey, pretty ladies! You can ride this one for free!” A man working the Scrambler waved and smiled. He was wearing a purple flight suit—it seemed to be the basic uniform of the park.

The twins jumped back in shock. He was the first to have noticed them.

“No strings attached.”

Maddy peered at him. “Who says? I mean, won’t you get in trouble?”

The Scrambler-Man laughed. “Pretty and nice. You’re quite a prize.” He bowed. “I’m the Night Manager, at your service. I say who rides and who doesn’t. I run the park.”

Viv opened her mouth to ask a question.

He pointed to his uniform. The words NIGHT MANAGER were embroidered on his right breast in gold thread.

Viv swore they hadn’t been there a second ago.

“C’mon. What are you waiting for?”

Maddy bit her lip, but succumbed. “Thanks, man!” She pulled Viv toward the ride.

Maddy had been dragging them into adventures from the time they could walk.

Why fight it now?

Viv laughed and said, “Race you!”

They were swept up and away in a whirl of motion. After that it was all height, spin, speed, and sugar.

They saved the rollercoaster for last.

It pulsed with simulated starlight. It hummed with promise. The twins made their way into their seats and held hands. For luck.

* * *

Viv started to regret their choice to ride the coaster the moment their car made it to the apex of the first rise. The view was beautiful, but Viv shivered. Her mouth went dry and her breath caught in her throat. She looked down. They’d been suspended above the park for far too long. Something had shifted.

Maddy squealed and raised their arms in victory.

The car plunged forward and down.

The speed was exhilarating and wind whipped through their hair. They were mashed into the seats and then they floated, at the mercy of physical force. They twisted, turned, and went upside down.

They screamed, half in terror and half in delight. The sound was matched by other cries. When the ride stopped the girls fell silent.

But the screams went on.

The park filled with them.

Viv and Maddy struggled in their seats and fought against the safety harness. They didn’t know what was happening around them, but they didn’t care—not in that moment. Nothing mattered except getting free. Viv pounded against the restraint. Finally, the automatic unlocking mechanism fired and the bars popped up in every car.

The twins leapt out.

Metal screeched and there was a tremendous crash somewhere in the distance. A huge fountain of flame shot up into the air. The stink of burning plastic and fuel filled the park.

The screaming continued.

The platform stood firm and still, but the noise punched forward. Any peace they had sheltered in would shatter on contact.

Viv and Maddy looked at one another, pointed toward the exit, and nodded.

The teenage couple from the car directly behind them came up to stand by the twins. The boy said, “That was totally rad. We’re going again!”

Viv whirled. She was about to ask him how he could say that when something awful was obviously going on in the park but her words died on her tongue. The skin of the boy’s face sagged, melting down his face to pool and jiggle at his jawline. His lips had sloughed off to reveal a wad of purple chewing gum lodged in his braces. He grinned and a fat yellow worm wriggled out from a hole in his cheek.

Viv gasped and Maddy made a whistling, moaning sound.

The teenage girl winked. “Too much for you, huh? Chicken!” She snorted with derisive laughter. Her breath was hot, thick with peat and the cloying sweetness of rot.

Her eyelid had slipped off and sat on her cheek, mired in a thick layer of base and rouge. The girl’s clumped lashes, heavy with navy blue mascara, stood stiffly at attention. Her naked and staring eye rolled around with lazy oblivion.

The twins didn’t answer. They just ran.

* * *

Some kind of switch had been thrown. The pleasant hum of one impossible and magical summer’s night had become a whirlwind of violence and fear. It was as if every terror, every disappointment, and every calamity that had darkened the history of Professor Future’s Fun-Land had come home to roost all at once.

The girls ran, their fingers white with the strain of holding on to one another’s hands so tightly.

Viv prayed that they could find the robot. She prayed the rift was still open. She prayed they could make it there in time to get through the door.

The black night burned orange in the distance. Pockets of darkness held sway when bulbs burst. Gunshots popped and echoed over by the Ferris wheel. A gunman stood poised before it. He picked off passengers at his leisure. A body dropped from the height of the ride. Viv couldn’t tell if the person had been trying to escape or if they’d fallen victim to a bullet. It didn’t matter—the gunman hit the body twice as it fell.

All around them, the crowd turned to corpses. The stench of decay and the copper tang of blood hung heavy in the air. Some of the people had wounds—stabs, slashes, and punctures. Some were burned. Others were covered with dust and debris—probably victims of the tornado that had howled through one spring afternoon.

Viv was sure that so many couldn’t have died in the park while it was up and running.

Her heart stuttered in her chest.
What if they had died after? What if they too had walked through the door and had been trapped?

“Faster, Maddy!”

Maddy was wheezing, but she found more speed. “Viv! What the hell is happening?” she gasped.

“Worry about that later. Now? Run.”

Behind them, the roller-coaster screeched and moaned. A section collapsed and plummeted to the ground with a deafening crash.

Viv regretted glancing back and took the next turn as fast as she could. She remembered the snow cone stand and its floating astronaut mascot. She recalled the pleasure of the sugary sour lime cone she’d feasted on a half hour before and had to swallow a sudden surge of nausea.

“Almost there, Maddy!”

Her sister squeezed her hand.

They turned another corner. Viv could see the robot. It was still on guard duty. The rift shimmered, marking the doorway home. It was smaller now, dimmer, but it was there.

A hitch had developed in her side, a stabbing pinch of pain, but she powered through it. She ignored the heat in her left calf, was determined to deny the possibility of cramp.

Her sister wasn’t so lucky. She lurched and nearly fell. Maddy let go of Viv’s hand so she could clutch her leg. Her face twisted in pain.

“We’re so close, Maddy. Don’t stop now.”

“I know Viv, but it’s seized up.” Her voice rose in panic.

Viv hauled her sister to her feet, and half-carried her as they inched forward.

They’d almost made it to the rift when a voice cut through the chaos. “Hey, pretty ladies. Where do you think you’re going?” It was the Scrambler man—the Night Manager. He eyed the pair of them and spat onto the ground. It was a casual, almost contemplative gesture.

Viv was surprised there was no visible damage on him. Not a single a spot marred that purple flight suit.

Lightning struck the carousel fifty meters away. The terrified cries of children mingled with the calliope music. The air smelled scorched. Meaty.