The Hideous Dream

 “Hey mate you ain’t wanna stay out in the open for the night. You ain’t gonna survive the cold. We have to find some shelter for the night.” Pat was rather not interested in the discussion. He was just enjoying riding his horse and looked nowhere but forward and went onward. Ryan, being the more concerned, again reminded him by saying, “It ain’t gonna do this way mate. We have to talk over it.” This time Pat seemed to get offended and just replied; “Yeah! Yeah! Don’t worry so much mate we will find some motel on the way and surely I have enough to pay for it.” Ryan was rather not convinced by the answer but reluctantly agreed to what Pat had told him as he already knew that it wouldn’t be worth to tire his vocal cords trying to reason with this obtuse individual. It would rather be better for him to stick around and try to speculate and try to guess the probable problems that they could face. Ridding, ridding, ridding through the marshlands, they did ride meeting all the people who were staying nearby and Ryan being the more descent one even lowered his hat for certain people wishing them a good day.

It had now started getting dark, Ryan had started getting tensed thinking about their shelter for the night. Pat was still on his ridding and enjoying every moment of it and singing to the rhythm of the trotting horse “ta rum da dum da um……..the older I get, the more I can see, how he loved my mother and my brother and me……..”. “STOP SINGING! We must find a place for the night,” shouted Ryan. “Calm down mate, can’t you see that mansion with the dim light? Maybe not a motel but of course we can ask the owner to provide us with a place for the night,” replied Pat. “Oh yes! I am much relieved,” sighs Ryan.

As they came closer to the mansion they saw an old lady, not having seen her face and having concluded from the hunched back that she had, covered with a black shroud, her head having been covered, carrying a candle she was headed towards the forest. The men found it really weird to see an old lady at such time of the night. Just that moment, a beautiful young woman standing in front of the mansion asked Ryan, “It’s quite some time of the day I think you have come here for shelter. I own this inn but I would want you to pay in advance. ” “My friend here Pat will pay you all that you need”, replied Ryan. Both the men went into the mansion and were given a common room with two beds. The mansion seemed to be really old and there were spider webs all around the room, being in the nature of men they didn’t care much of the conditions that existed in the room. By now the young woman had already left; asking them to make themselves comfortable for the night.  They had their dinner from what they had already brought with them and then went off to sleep.

Suddenly, “Thak! Thak! Thak!..............Thuk Thak Thuk!”, There was some strange noise from the attic and this had woke up Ryan and he had already taken up the rosary and started praying. He then saw that same old lady whom they had seen outside with the black shroud and the candle but this time she had revealed her face, it being half-burned and the part of the face that was not burned had the same features as the young lady who had proclaimed that she owned the inn. By now even Pat was awake not by the sounds in the attic but by all the shakes he received from Ryan. Ryan by now was extremely scared and didn’t know what to do. The old lady, with her blue half-burned eye gave an evil smile to both the men. At that moment John screamed and woke up realizing later that it was just a dream that he had just experienced. Panting and sweating reached out for a glass of water, after he felt a little better he went back to sleep again hoping to experience a better dream this time.