Carnival Oddity
With a wrenching metallic noise, the carousel horse broke free. Someone screamed and I reached out blindly, groping for Sammy’s hand. It was clammy like mine and I felt an absurd sense of relief that I likely wasn’t the only one whose heart beat too fast, fear choking my throat and making my tongue dry.
“What’s happening?” I whispered to her as the horse, carved wooden muscles bunching obscenely, leaped over the nearby park bench. It ran jerkily, stiffly, like it still didn’t have control of itself. My brain couldn’t seem to grasp what was happening, the sheer wrongness of the scene in front of me overwhelming me. Still frozen in stiff, carved poses, the remainder of the horses continued on in endless circles, the tinny music filling the air around us, perfectly normal except for the gaping hole where the horse had ripped free.
“I don’t know.” Her voice shook.
A second metallic squeal ripped through the air and Sammy and I both shuddered as a second horse came alive. I whimpered and pulled Sammy to me, needing her closer. Around us, the crowd jostled and surged, some people pushing closer to see, others trying to flee. Mass chaos was about to break out soon and I glanced around, trying to get my bearings. Instead, I saw brightly colored cheap stuffed animals jumping down from the midway games, lurching toward us with an awkward, lumbering gait.
“I’m scared, Angel,” Sammy whispered as a third horse broke free with a wrenching noise and strangled whinny.
“Me too,” I grudgingly admitted. I didn’t want Sammy to feel alone though. And who in their right mind wouldn’t be afraid of whatever the hell was going on right now? We’d gone to the park, expecting carnival rides and sugary elephant ears and gotten a nightmare of Stephen King proportions.
A cartoonish laugh echoed through the air and I shuddered.
“Oh God, not a clown. Please, don’t let it be a clown,” I begged under my breath.
I fucking hated clowns.
I glanced to my right as a fourth horse leaped down, the jerky movements becoming more fluid and lifelike. I finally spotted a break in the crowd and a small wooded area that would hide us from view as we worked our way toward the parking lot and, hopefully, safety.
I tightened my grip on Sammy’s hand and dug my heels into the ground.
“Run.”
Please visit the flash fic group on Facebook and check out the links to the other authors’ flash fics for this week! I really loved Theo’s this week.
I look forward to seeing you next Monday!
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