Dreams of Destiny Pt. 04

It took him about an hour to find his way to his cavern. This area was his. It had been carved out over the ages out of what looked like marble or smoky crystal in shades of red and white and black. There were natural fountains of hot, flowing water which made it misty and humid. In the far end of the cavern Stephen had fashioned a life sized chess board. He had created dream beings to play the parts of the various piece but it had become tedious. The creatures were too stupid to understand the game and Stephen lacked the patience to teach them.

Stephen was tired now. His adrenaline high from the hunt had worn off hours ago. He had made a large comfortable bedroom in an alcove that was off to the left side of the cavern. Natural pools and running water provided sanitation. He eased into a hot whirlpool where he relaxed for a while. Then naked and dripping he went off to sleep in his favorite nest....

Chapter XXII

John closed the door to the motel room behind him as he followed Destiny in. He hit the light switch that provided illumination for the shabby square of space that housed a double bed, a dresser with a large television perched on top, and a small table with a couple of uncomfortable looking chairs.

The room smelled vaguely of mildew and disinfectant. The air conditioner sounded slightly asthmatic, but was effective in keeping the air cool and eliminating any natural odor which might try to make its way in from the bog beyond the swimming pool on the other side of the parking lot. John though a little night air might help the atmosphere of the room but of course the large picture window next to the door was permanently sealed.

The picture over the bed was standard motel fare and did little to add cheer to the decor. Management made a half-hearted attempt to interest guests in the offerings of Summit, Florida, by leaving advertising pamphlets of various attractions on the table top. There was a list of local restaurants and shops, an ad for Fair View Park that was a couple of years old, a TV guide, and another pamphlet describing movies available through the front desk at a price. John had to laugh at some of the titles of the adult films the management was offering.

“I need a long hot shower. I still have blood on me,” Destiny announced. Take which ever side of the bed you prefer. I’ll try not to wake you when I slip into bed.” With that, Destiny walked into the bathroom and shut the door, leaving John to his own devices.

Destiny took great pleasure in discarding her blood soaked jumper and tossing it into the trash. She striped off her tube top and panties and turned the hot water on full blast. She fiddled impatiently with the temperature controls until she was satisfied.

The room became a sauna and she stepped into the shower with a big sigh of pleasure. She purposely made her mind a blank as she let the hot water ease her scalp and her neck. Then she turned and let it hit her full in the face. She used one of the small soaps provided by the motel to scrub what was left of the red head’s blood off her arms and chest.

On the other side of the door John tried to set his feelings aside and let his exhaustion take over. Them moments he had spent making love to Destiny on the island had been exquisite -- extraordinary. He felt opportunity slipping away like grains of sand through his fingers. The thought of Destiny naked in the shower just a few feet away from him was agonizing.

As he took of his shirt and jeans he looked at his reflection in the mirror on the closet wall. Who am I? he asked himself. Am I John, the police officer on holiday from West Palm Beach, the older John, DC Metropolitan Police Youth Division officer, or am I Juan Rodriguez, head of security and right hand to the president of San Angeles Island? John became disoriented as three figures split apart in the reflection in mirror. The only thing he remained sure of was that he wanted, no, needed Destiny at that moment.

He stepped back from the mirror.

The figures remained fractured. He pulled his tee shirt over his head and shed his briefs. As he opened the bathroom door steam from the shower came billowing out. John stepped into the bathroom quietly and closed the door behind him. He watched Destiny’s silhouette for a moment through the door on the shower. Fully aroused, he slid the glass door open and stepped into the shower behind Destiny.

She tensed briefly, then relaxed and leaned back, taking comfort from his embrace.

His pelvis fitted well into the small of her back. His hard cock pressed against her behind. His left arm encircled her and he stroked her right breast, while his right hand caressed her pelt and the lips of her vulva.

Destiny started to speak. “Shh, John said. Its just me. Remember how it was at the Paradisio earlier? We’re just picking up where we left off. Do you want me to speak to you in Spanish? Let us make love and then sleep together. Hopefully our dreams will become intertwined.”

Destiny’s knees became week as need and excitement coursed through her. The earlier interlude with Juan had been an overture. She knew now that she had wanted the full orchestra from the moment she saw John step out of the House of Horrors. Destiny turned and faced John. She moaned as she pulled him to her.

They kissed in the spray of the shower. Their hips were pressed together and they took turns soaping each other. First Destiny’s hands, then her mouth took John to the brink. The water began to turn chilly. “Stop now,” John laughed. He turned off the water and opened the shower door. They wrapped themselves in towels and made for the bed.

They took their time exploring each other’s bodies and made love as night made way for dawn. And then they slept. The landscape dissolved. The reality of the days events became no more than a dream....

Chapter XXIII

It was a beautiful spring morning on San Angeles Island. The chirp of Destiny’s cell phone woke Juan from a deliciously, restful sleep. There is no sleep aid on earth like great sex Juan thought with satisfaction as he rolled over and stretched. Then he realized that he had awakened alone.

Juan picked up the phone. “Hello.” Nothing but the sound of the phone being disconnected on the other end. I wonder who that was, Juan thought. Juan looked around the room. Destiny’s belongings were still there but she was nowhere to be found. That’s odd. She left without her purse.

The purse was just sitting there beckoning him. He’d already had the room searched. What harm could there be in a little further investigation.? I have to do my job, damn it, he reasoned. There’s a matter of national security at stake. Destiny never did give me a proper explanation for her trip to the store last night. If there is something, I’m sure she will have a reasonable explanation for her involvement.

Juan made his decision. He opened Destiny’s purse and dumped the contents out onto the table by the French doors. There was nothing unusual about the contents. A wallet with money, credit cards, drivers license, passport, DC Bar card, library card, ATM card. An address book. A check book. Sundry cosmetics. Pens, lost of lose change. And a nice, anonymous 4” by 4” package wrapped in brown paper that could contain anything or nothing at all. She’ll never forgive me if I open this without asking her permission. On the other hand, I have no idea where she’s gone. She could at least have left a note.

Maybe she went for a swim. That would explain why her purse is here. No. Her swim suit’s here. Hell, here’s her room card. Where is she? This doesn’t make any sense. What time is it anyway?

He grabbed his watch. 8:00 a.m. already. I have things to do today anyway. I’ve got to find out what’s in the package. If I step on her feet, well, she’ll just have to understand.

Juan dressed quickly and went into the bathroom. He doused his face with water to wake himself up.

When came out of the bathroom he pulled out his pocket knife and sliced through the wrapping on the package. The contents were of great interest and considerable concern to Rodriguez. As they would be to his uncle.

The package contained copies of notes, letters and memoranda that ostensibly dated back as far as thirty years. If what was contained in the documents was true it was extremely damning to President Rodriguez. And dangerous to the stability of the government itself.

The documents purported to be proof that President Rodriguez was the father of a female child by his cousin . There were claims that the affair had taken place in secret and that the cousin had been whisked out of the country as soon as it was learned she was pregnant. The girl was only thirteen years old at the time. Rodriguez had been more than twice her age. According to the documents the girl had born a perfectly healthy daughter who had been placed for adoption.

According to the documentation, records were kept which were supposed to have been destroyed. As the story went, at age 21 the daughter, who knew she was adopted had started looking for her real parents. She had found evidence of the incestuous relationship and begun a vendetta against her father. Her mother, she learned, had died in a car accident several years earlier.

Juan knew of a cousin who had died at a fairly young age in a car accident. Beyond that, he had no knowledge of whether the documents were authentic or the allegations true. He was certainly glad he had gone ahead and opened Destiny’s package. He was sure Esteban was behind this somehow. It was beyond him how Destiny fit into the picture. At best she was an innocent dupe being used to deliver poisonous documents she had no business having possession of to dangerous people she didn’t know. At worst she was working with Esteban to discredit the President. But he didn’t believe that. She’d seen her reaction to Esteban at the restaurant last night. She couldn’t be working with him.

But if she was she was in deep shit. There would be not protecting her from charges of espionage if that were the case. He’d give her the benefit of the doubt for the time being -- at least until she resurfaced. Then she’d have some explaining to do.

In the meantime, he had to get over to the President’s mansion. He hated the thought, but he was going to have to confront his uncle with the contents of the package. His uncle was a private person and could be very stiff necked. But Juan had never had reason to doubt his uncle’s integrity. He tried to figure out the time frame. Juan was eight when he went to live with his uncle. That was thirty eight years ago. So he would have been sixteen when the affair took place. Almost the same age as the cousin his uncle was supposed to have been involved with. Juan thought back. He was very sexually aware at sixteen. His uncle would have been in his mid thirties. Over the years President Rodriguez had had many mistresses, but Juan was not aware of any that had become permanent fixtures for more than a year. The president didn’t hide his relationships, but he didn’t flaunt them. Juan felt pretty sure he would have known about the president’s affairs at that time.

On the other hand, Juan had been away at school a lot. It wasn’t inconceivable that things had gone on which he was not aware of.

This wasn’t getting him anywhere. The best course of action was to take the damn documents to his uncle and talk to him about them. .

Destiny’s telephone started to chirp again. Juan felt like throwing it out the window. Where are you Destiny? “Who is this?” he barked into the telephone. No response. Just a click of the receiver. Its probably the fucker who wants Destiny to deliver the documents. Well, now they know I’m here, or at least they know Destiny has a male companion. That ought to give them something to think about, he thought with satisfaction.

Juan ran his hand over his face. He felt rumpled and dirty. I need to shower and shave. I also need to brush my teeth and change my clothes. I’m going to give up on Destiny for the time being and head home. I’ll leave a note for her here and at the desk with my numbers. That’s the best I can do. She’ll be pissed when she realizes the package is gone but that’s her tough luck. She should have stayed and faced me this morning. Juan was definitely feeling out of sorts.

Juan pulled a piece of hotel stationary out of the dresser drawer and began to write: Destiny. I woke up and you had disappeared. Please call me. Its urgent. He left his office and cell phone numbers.

He grabbed the documents and shoved them into the inside pocket of his jacket. He didn’t feel like waiting for the elevator so he took the steps two at a time on his way down stairs. As he was making his decent an unobtrusive looking man wearing gloves got out of the elevator and headed to Destiny’s room. Receiving no answer to his knock, he pulled out a key card and quietly entered Destiny’s room. He made a quick and thorough search, including Destiny’s purse and luggage. Nothing. He used Destiny’s cell phone to make a call.

“Yes. I’m in her room now. No one. No. No sign of her. All of her stuff is here. No, I don’t know where the package is.” The man shrugged and put the phone down as he heard invective hurled at him from the other end of the connection. He left the room as he had found it and rode the elevator back down to the lobby. He missed Rodriguez by about five minutes.

Juan left a message at the clerks on his way out of the hotel. It was almost nine o’clock by the time he got home. He owned a beautiful, stately mansion that was perched at the of one of the highest hills on the island. It was about seventy five years old and had been built during the opulence of the American roaring twenties.

The street snaked around and up the pinnacle of the hill where there was a driveway. The drive was a semi circle. The House was white washed and had four lovely columns at the front entrance. To the left was a great lawn which was well kept even though the soil was sandy. At the back of the house there was a patio and swimming pool.

The lawn was level and ended with a cliff to the ocean at the back of the house. There was a pool house and sauna on the right of the pool. Past the patio there was more lawn which stretched to a marvelous stone fence which protected careless walkers from tumbling down the cliff to the beach below. At the end of the fence on the left was a stone staircase down to the beach. There were big casks used as planters which were filled with tropical ferns and flowers. The planters were placed here and there on the patio. The patio sported an open grill for large barbecues.

Juan parked his car in front of the house. He headed straight to the bathroom ignoring the graceful beauty of the interior he had designed. The large foyer had a large and intricate hardwood parquet floor. The walls through the house were white with just the hint of blue. The living and dining rooms were ideal for entertaining, which Juan did rarely these days. The kitchen was a professional chef’s dream The stairway to the second floor also hardwood and polished to a glossy sheen.

Most of the bedrooms were on the second floor. The master bedroom was really a suite, with a sitting room having a balcony and a fireplace. The floor was covered with hand woven wool carpets. The balcony gave a broad view to the beach and the crashing surf far below.

The bedroom furniture reflected the owner’s masculinity with clean lines and bold colors. The bed was brass and had a thick downy olive green and white comforter. The sheets were light green raw silk. There was a walk-in closet, which was wasted upon Colonel Rodriguez as he wore his uniform most of the dime. He did have his share of sophisticated evening wear including two masterfully tailored tuxedos.

The also closet contained two dozen clean, starched white shirts and a couple of shirts in just about every pastel shade . His cashmere sweaters were in storage boxes on high shelves in the closet Someday, he hoped, he would have a chance to wear them in his beloved Ireland.

Sundry dress slacks and suits were carefully stored and hung in the closet. There was a full shoe tree and a tie rack which sported relatively few choices considering the man’s powerful position. Nicky had challenged him, laughing, one day to broaden his horizons by buying him some ridiculous ties at a street vender’s cart. He had discarded them with everything else in the mansion that brought back her memory.

The bathroom was opulent, with a huge tub and Jacuzzi, and a separate shower stall. The sink was marble and its wood cabinet was beautifully carved. Juan was a great believer that sanitation and transportation were two hinge pins of civilization. So Juan happily helped the cause of civilization by driving a jaguar and having a decadent bathroom.

Juan decided to spend ten minutes in the Jacuzzi before showering. While he was soaking he contemplated what he was going to tell President Rodriguez regarding the documents.

It was a pretty sticky situation, Juan thought. If the documents were as Juan believed, false, Pietro would be incensed and rightly so. They would have to find out who was behind the scam and decide what course of action to take. Destiny would at the very least be an important witness. Juan was hoping that Destiny had been an unwitting dupe in bringing the documents into the country. If her involvement was deliberate, she would be prosecuted and probably jailed. Juan didn’t want to think about the possibility of Destiny in jail.

As to the veracity of the allegations, Juan would like very much to meet the lady in question and have her undergo paternity testing. That would resolve the matter. But the immediate publicity of such a charge could be devastating the to republic. Especially when it comes out that the mother died under suspicious circumstances, whatever that means. The press would have a field day. That’s exactly what Esteban wants, I’d bet on it. thought Rodriguez.

Juan stepped out of the Jacuzzi and into a bracingly cold shower. He stayed under the water only long enough to wash his unruly mop of black her. Then he shaved standing naked next to the sink. Finally he put on a fresh uniform and picked up the keys of his car on the kitchen table where he had left them when he came in. He put the top down on the car, looking forward to a fast, refreshing drive to the President’s mansion. After he belted himself in he used his cell phone to alert his uncle he was coming for a meeting.

The air was still cool and refreshing and the ocean breeze made the drive a delight. He took the switch backs at a high speed, handling the car like a lover. He pressed his foot to the accelerator and steered into the curves as they came up. I would have liked to be a race car driver Juan thought. The car ate up the road as he careened around the hills of the island. He arrived at the President’s mansion just in time for breakfast.

Juan was ushered into the dining room by the house keeper who had been with the president for as long as Juan remembered. He greeted her cordially. “Don’t get up, uncle” Juan to his uncle as he entered the room.

“So, what brings you here today? I thought you had better things to do” .

“Something has come up that needs immediate attention” Juan said. He took a deep breath and got ready to plunge in.

“You look so serious. What is this about? asked the president.

“Pietro, you took me in when I was eight years old and raised me like a son. Never once have you given me reason to doubt your integrity. I have obtained documents I have obtained documents that impugn your honor. The documents could be very damaging to you personally and professionally if they fall into the wrong hands. I have no doubt that they are false but they are very good fakes and purport to tell a believable story.”