Read Online Bad Dreams by R.L. Stine - Free Book Online

night—thinking about Dawn, thinking about the dream, and wondering if there was any connection.
    Inside the house, she saw her mother moving in her bedroom. Maggie waved and tried to smile.
    She got off the swing and started making her way along the row of scrawny shrubs that bordered the yard. She pulled off a few early red berries and squished them in her fingers, making a bloody pulp.
    Come on, she scolded herself. You’ve
got
to shake this. Think about something else.
    But that was hopeless. She couldn’t switch her mind off. What was the old game? You told someone not to think about an elephant. And then she couldn’t think of anything else!
    She sat down and leaned back against the smooth trunk of a white birch tree. Gazing up, she could see the sky through the budding branches. A gentle wind blew the clouds slowly by.
    So peaceful. So quiet.
    Before long, Maggie fell asleep.
    A restful sleep with no disturbing dreams. No knives. No girl in pink.
    And then a hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes with a startled gasp.
    And saw a frightening-looking man reaching for her throat. “This won’t take long,” he rasped.

chapter

11
    M aggie pulled away with a terrified cry.
    The man jerked back, his gray eyes wide with surprise.
    â€œSorry. Didn’t mean to scare you,” he said. “I—I asked if you’ve been baking long?” He pointed up at the sky. The late morning sun was climbing higher, heating up the backyard.
    â€œYou could get a bad burn today, even though it’s spring,” the man said. “I thought I’d better wake you.”
    â€œUh—thanks,” Maggie choked out. As she stared up at him, he came into sharper focus.
    He was old, with a heavy white stubble on his leathery, creased face. He wore a battered orange cap and had a toothpick wedged in his mouth. His smile revealed uneven yellow teeth.
    He held a hand out. It took Maggie a while torealize he was offering to help her up. Reluctantly, she took his hand and climbed to her feet.
    I am so jumpy and stressed out, she thought, scolding herself. I think everyone in the world is out to get me!
    â€œMilton Avery,” the old man said in his harsh voice. He nodded and raised two fingers to his cap. “I’m your neighbor.”
    He held out his right hand to Maggie. Maggie shook it. The old man held on to her hand a moment longer than Maggie would have liked. His skin felt like old paper.
    â€œYou haven’t told me
your
name,” Mr. Avery said.
    â€œOh, sorry. Maggie. Maggie Travers.”
    â€œMaggie Travers,” the man repeated. He nodded thoughtfully. “Nice name.”
    Maggie smiled. “Thanks.”
    The man smiled back warmly. He removed his cap, revealing a head that was bald except for a fringe of scraggly white hair. He scratched the top of his head, then put the cap back on. He looked up at the house. “It sure is nice to have this house occupied again,”
    Maggie stared at the house too, as if she hadn’t seen her own house before.
    â€œIt was on the market a long time,” Mr. Avery said.
    Maggie felt her spine tingle. “Was it?”
    â€œA
long
time” The way he said it, Maggie wanted to ask just how long he meant. Years? Decades? He obviously could remember back a long way.
    Mr. Avery went on. “I didn’t like having an emptyhouse next door. Kind of gave me a dead feeling every time I saw it. Know what I mean?”
    Maggie knew exactly what he meant.
    Mr. Avery took his cap off again and used it to point at his house. “I even took to keeping the shades down on this side of the house. So I wouldn’t have to see yours.”
    Maggie glanced at the still-drawn shades as another thought rolled through her mind. “Did you know the people who used to live in my house?” she asked.
    Mr. Avery didn’t answer right away. “Not really. They didn’t live here very long. Terrible story.