Dreams of Destiny Pt. 04

“What is it that is so terrible,” asked the president.

“The documents implicate you in statutory rape, incest and possibly murder. “

“But this is outrageous. Who on earth could have dreamed something up like this? Where did you get them.?

“From a female American tourist. She doesn’t yet know that I have taken them from her possession? I haven’t yet questioned her.”

“How did you get the papers away from her? No, never mind,. That’s not important right now. Let me see what you’ve got. He grabbed the papers from Juan and started to read. An angry vein throbbed in the president’s temple. Who cooked this stuff up, that’s what I want to know.

“Who has his fingers on almost every dark act that occurs on this island,” Juan asked bitterly. I thought things were a little quiet from Esteban’s camp lately. Last night I saw him at the Paradisio Hotel looking like the cat that swallowed the canary. I’d bet my pension Esteban is behind this.”

“But why would he put the papers into the hands of an unknown third party. Or is she a spy for him. If she is I want her ass hanging higher than...” Bring her in now, Juan. I want her arrested and questioned immediately.

“Hold up a moment, uncle,” said Juan. I don’t yet know if she is aware of the seriousness of her actions in bringing these papers here. The package had not been tampered with when I took possession I have a suspicion that she’s innocent in this matter.”

“Why on earth would you think that,” said Pietro.

“She’s not the type to fall in with Esteban, for one thing (Juan hoped desperately he was right in this assessment.). For another, she has no ties to the island. There is no political reason for her to involve herself in affairs of state. She’s a GS-15 American government attorney over the age of forty. Why in Gods name would she risk her career, her livelihood, her pension and her freedom to bring this stuff here?

“And she doesn’t seem terribly devious -- not for a lawyer, in any event. I don’t think we should take a heavy hand with her, nor yet, anyway. If we don’t anger or scare her we might be able to use her to trap Esteban.”

“Now that’s a good thought,” said the president. But I want her brought in and questioned right away.

“That might be a problem, uncle, Rodriguez said.”

“Why?”

“She seems to have disappeared.”

“Disappeared? What do you mean disappeared? Weren’t you watching her” president Rodriguez shouted.

“Well, no. I didn’t expect her to leave. I’m not even sure if she left by her own auspices” When I woke up this morning she was gone. All here things were in here room including her purse, her hotel key card and the package. All her money is still at the hotel..”

“Wait a second. Let me get this straight. You woke up in her hotel room this morning and she had disappeared. What the hell were you doing, protecting my country with your dick? You slept with her knowing she was a spy -- knowing she had these documents with her?.”

“I wasn’t sure she had the documents last night. And she and I, I don’t know, somehow just connected when we met.”

“I’ll say. Like two dogs you connected.”

“Give it a rest Pietro. There’s something different about this woman. I don’t know. I haven’t felt this alive in years. And somehow, its like we have known each other forever and had been searching for each other over the ages. Have you ever felt like that uncle?”, Juan wanted to know.”

Si,” Pietro said sadly. “A very long time ago. And I lost her. So maybe I understand a little. This is the same woman you mentioned to me yesterday, is it not? You haven’t been much fun for the fairer sex since Nicky died. Has this women found a chink in your armor”

“Perhaps she has, uncle. She is extraordinary.”

But she’s also a witness, if not an accessory to fraud. What do you mean she was gone when you woke up?”

“I woke up with her cell phone chirping in my ear. I answered the phone. There was no one on the line. I looked around. Destiny was gone without a trace. No one I asked remembered seeing her leave. I just don’t know what to think.”

“Do you have any ideas.”

“Yes. One. But its so crazy I will spare you the details. I need to get home soon and get some sleep.

“Try me,” his uncle encouraged him.

“Maybe later. In the meantime, I want to talk about the allegations. I know this is an invasion of privacy, but I think its important for me to know anything you might know about the situation.

Juan continued, unconsciously taking the pose he took at formal criminal interviews. He lounged easily in one of the chairs in the office. His face was devoid of emotion, his eyes were dark and flat -- unreadable. His jaw was clenched. His movements and speech became more exact. He was an imposing interrogator with a reputation for ruthlessness.

“I’m going to tape this conversation with you permission, sir, “Rodriguez announced.”

“Yes, fine, get on with it.”

“The documents in my possession allege you had an affair thirty years ago with a 13 year old girl named Katerina Mendez. They say Katerina was your cousin, and that she became pregnant. They accuse you of having her spirited away to have her baby, and abandoning them without financial resources. The documents say that Katerina bore a girl named Camellia Mendez.”

“Apparently Katerina was killed several years later in a suspicious car accident. This happened when Camellia was 10 years old. She was adopted by a middle class family in Miami, Florida when she was ten years old. It was then that she started to look for her father. The papers claim she was given access to your name on her 21st birthday, in 1981. Since then she has supposedly become obsessed with the idea of harming you personally and professionally. They say she blames you for her mother’s death.

“I don’t buy any of this, “ Juan continued” but there are a few things that trouble me. I do remember Katerina. I was pretty sexually aware at age 16 and she was a knockout with all that red hair and deeply tanned skin. We were formally introduced during one of my school breaks, and I almost choked on my heart when she smiled at me. I wasn’t around enough during that time to know what she might have been into. Was she living at the mansion?”

“To be honest Juan,” the president said, “I don’t even really recall the girl. As you say she was thirteen. I was 36 years old. I don’t want to appear vane, but with my looks, my reputation and my high rank in the army I could have almost any woman I wanted. What would I have wanted with a child?

“I have a vague recollection of a red headed girl visiting one summer. I was very busy those days building my political power base. I was rarely home. There was a lot of political unrest and I was trying to gel support from a number of factions. I was only interested in my career. I wasn’t celibate but I had no affairs. I had neither time nor interest in establishing a relationship. I set up assignations to fulfill my needs. I don’t play with children Juan, you know that. And a cousin! That would have been political suicide.

By the time he finished reading the documents his face was beet red. “I’d like to personally wring the necks of the persons responsible for this, this, bullshit,” the general thundered He banged his fist on his desk. Juan quickly went to the sideboard and poured the president a stiff whiskey.

“Here, said Juan, “drink this. “I know its too early but I don’t want you to have a stroke on me. I’m not ready to fill your shoes yet. What we need to do now is to figure out a course of action for exposing the plot and discrediting Esteban. My instinct tells me he already knows we have these documents. I wasn’t as discrete last night regarding my whereabouts as I should have been. And this morning, whoever called Destiny’s room, heard me answer the phone. So they know something is up. Damn it, I just wish I knew where Destiny has gone.”

“How did you get the documents.”

“They were in her purse. She certainly wasn’t hiding them. She knew I was head of security so it looks to me that she thought the package was legitimate. She’s going to be furious that I took them without talking to her.”

“You have a job to do. She knew your position the island, didn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“Then she should have had the sense to come to you with the documents. The fact that she didn’t makes me suspicious.

“You have a point. But on the other hand, maybe she just didn’t know who to trust.”

“She trusted you enough to fuck you, didn’t she? Or was that part of her plan. Maybe its Esteban’s sick way of really sticking it to you.”

“No. I do not believe Destiny capable of such a thing. Besides, she was surprised when she met him at dinner last night. Hr reaction was not that of someone trying to hide an acquaintance.”

“She met Esteban at dinner? Dias. “How did that happen. What the hell is going on? What did he say? What did he do??

“What’s wrong? We were finishing up dinner and Esteban slithered in. As a matter of fact, later I think Destiny indicated she thought Esteban was snakelike. In her room Destiny told me she thought she had met him before. She described him as a pervert, and a murderer

“I truly believe that Esteban has somehow tricked Destiny into playing the role of messenger. Now we have to figure out where she is and what to do with these documents. I’d wager that Esteban already knows I have this copy. If that’s the case, Esteban will not be looking for her.

“My guess is that Esteban was setting Destiny up to meet a hungry journalist with the documents. That having failed he’ll probably take a different approach.”

“We’ll be a jump ahead of Esteban if we can find Destiny and get some answers. I don’t even know where to begin to look.

“Where was she when you last saw her?”

“In bed. We were both rather tired and it was late. I slept long and soundly. When I awoke she had left without taking her belongings.

“Then she’ll have to go back to the hotel. If for nothing else, she needs money and her passport. She can’t have gotten far with out them.

“Well, I’m not too sure that’s true, Uncle,” Juan said with some hesitation. “I’m going to fill you in on what’s been happening to Destiny and I but I want you to keep it confidential. Hell, you probably won’t believe any of it anyway. No one in their right mind would believe it. But I’m not crazy, and I’m pretty sure Destiny is as sane as I am.”

You are one of the sanest men I know, Juan,” said the president. Why don’t you tell me what’s gotten you so upset?”

“Its going to take some time.?”

“I have time. Pietro stood and walked to the side board. Have a drink and tell me your story. What can I fix you.”

“I’ll have Stolly on ice with a whisper of dry vermouth and a twist of blood orange. Its my own personal morning drink. I call it a rising sun. I hardly ever drink in the morning but when I do, I like something with a bite.”

The president fixed Juan’s drink and poured himself another whiskey. “You probably haven’t eaten yet today, have you?”

“No. I forgot about breakfast.”

“I’ll go get Alicia to put together breakfast. Alicia was Pietro’s cook.” He did so and came back and sat down. So, tell me your story.”

“Its very complicated and if revolves around Esteban, Destiny and me. You also are involved as are several other collateral players.

“I guess you know I couldn’t stand Esteban from first sight when I was age six and had just arrived on the island from Ireland. The feeling was mutual. Esteban was a nasty, sneaky, sniveling brat, and a bully of the worst sort. But he always managed to manipulate things and people to get his way.

“In the two years before you intervened and got me off the plantation Esteban made my life miserable. I would always end up with the shit end of the stick no mater what I did. Most often good, beautiful Esteban would be hurt and poor him, a motherless bastard.

I was told I had to look after him because I was so much bigger than he was. I “had the advantage they all said. Poor little Esteban. Little Esteban lapped that shit up. He lived on it. He’d set the stage, pull some crazy stunt, find a way of pinning it on me and walk away laughing through his crocodile tears. If I tried to set the record strait I’d just be called a coward and beaten for carrying tales abut my poor little brother.

“I was ready to kill him the day you came and got me out of there. He was taunting me.; trying to enrage me. I think now that if I had lost control and killed Esteban it would have been a great victory for him. I feel like I am walking a path I have walked before. Only this time things are much clearer. The puzzle pieces are finally starting to fit.

“It reminds me of a chess game. The pieces are all the same but the execution is different. I feel like I’m learning crucial lessons as I travel this tangled road.

“That’s pretty philosophical,” Pietro said.

“I know, but its important. And then there are the dreams....”

“Dreams?” Pietro’ dark eyes became hooded as he gazed at his nephew. His concentration was intense. “What kind of dreams?”

Juan was uneasy about unburdening himself to his uncle. They were comrades, but Juan had never considered his uncle a confidant. He decided to take the plunge.

“I’ve always had a wild dream life, but my dreams have become more and more vivid lately. And I’ve been retaining stronger memories of the creams. They linger and trouble me.”

“Sometimes in a dream I awaken myself by force of will. I’ve always been able to do that but now,” John paused for breath, “but now it seems like in reality I am beginning to be able to awaken myself back into dreams at will. This talk is crazy, isn’t it? It sounds ludicrous to my ears. Yet there is evidence that I cannot deny that my dream life and my so called reality are more intimately entwined that is imaginable. You can call the funny farm for me now if you want.”

“I’m not quite ready to do that yet son. Why don’t you tell me about the dreams.”

“They started when I was about 18 years old. Before that there were snippet of dreams, --some lovely, beautiful, sensual and exotic. At about age 18 I began to dream about a girl with a face that was always in the shadows, or covered by her long dark hair. She was vibrant and so alive!

“Always she is terrified by someone or something. Sometimes she is running away desperately as if for her life. She is prey for some evil entity; a hunter who is hungry, and especially hungry for this girl. The power of the entity is ferocious and angry. She often wears either a red or a blue evening dress. Sometimes she wears a white night gown. One time she was naked. That time she was bleeding from a terrible wound in her chest and I couldn’t reach her though I was running hard.. Viscous, swampy mud impedes my progress.”

“Sometimes she is driving a red car. Taking turns frantically at a high rate of speed as the entity follows in a large black vehicle. I’m following in a motorcycle. I see the entity bump his car into the girl’s car, trying to run her off the road.

“If he succeeds, she gets out of her car and runs into the marsh with him in pursuit. The entity is armed and rabidly dangerous. I’m armed as well. It’s always drippingly hot. We’re in a mist or a fog. The plant life is succulent, dense and exotic. It slaps us claws us and dowses us with slim as was run.

I follow and try desperately to catch up. My heart is pounding. I know she will be killed if I cannot run any faster. To have her die would be a tragedy of monstrous proportions. The mud sucks at our feet and hinders our passage. If I could just get my two feet free I could fly over the marsh and carry the girl off to safety but the going just gets worse. I see the girl fall. I am always impotent, unable to assist her.”

“I watch in horror as the entity laughs and raises a great big knife up into the air. The moon catches the knife and it glistens evilly in the night. I cry out. The entity hesitates. He starts to turn. I can just about see his face when BAM, I’m back in my bed, or where ever I have fallen asleep.”

While Juan was talking the house keeper brought in steaming plates of breakfast food. The president devoured eggs benedict, bacon, home fries, fresh fruit, three cups of coffee and 16 ounces of orange juice. Juan opted for a bagel with cream cheese and fruit cocktail. “How you’ve avoided a heart attack all these years is a mystery to me,” said Juan. “You eat twice s much as you should, smoke innumerable cigars, drink like a fish, and manage to look 15 years younger than you really are. What is your secret?”

“I refuse to let health concerns rob me of my dignity and freedom of choice. I have an excellent sex life and I work out when no one is watching. That is how I remain superman,” the president said jokingly.

Juan started to think out loud about their problems. “What if Esteban has perverted Destiny to his side. I don’t think I can save her from harm if that’s the case. What if there is a dream line I can’t remember yet where Destiny becomes Esteban’s toy and they try to bring down your presidency? If you stop the coup, would you imprison Destiny and Esteban as traitors?

“What if Esteban takes control of Destiny and of the republic? What if Esteban and Destiny convince the public that you did have an affair with your 13 year old cousin, abandoned her and her baby and later murdered her? Where does that leave us? You know how unbalanced Esteban is. He’d be a disaster as president regardless who supported his regime. Moreover, most of his money comes from dirty sources. With his connections to drugs, gun running and organized crime, the island would be at the mercy of pirates and drug lords. All our work to make this an island paradise would have been for naught.

“And there’s the other reality to consider. I’m still very hazy on what’s been happening in Florida and Washington. Last night I dreamed I was a, John Rodgers, a DC cop. I met Destiny Lysander for the first time in court. Later we ate lunch at a restaurant near the Courthouse. She seemed to be the same Destiny who had Esteban’s documents, but she’d never worked for the federal government.

“Destiny seemed to be a little older than the woman I encountered here. She recognized me at once as Juan Rodriguez, a character in one of her dream fantasies.

“During lunch Destiny and I both experienced a dream shift that sent us back to 1985 in Florida. In that dream line Esteban is a killer of the worst sort. His name is Stephen Williams. He’s fixated on Destiny. My later self in DC has been tracking Stephen for some time as a serial killer.

“Stephen dropped out of sight in Florida a few years ago. Several murders with his signature have occurred in DC over the past several years. That’s why I transferred from West Palm Beach Homicide to DC’s Youth Division.

“It may be that he only wants Destiny. But I think he is angling for bigger fish. He’s always been a political creature, If he’s political here he’s probably been biding his time and building a power base. Destiny and I traveled back to the restaurant in DC together . Although we were in Florida for at least 9 hours no time had passed in DC. When returned we were sitting just as we had been before the shift. Destiny had bruises on her wrists where I grabbed her during the pull through the vortex.

“There are other dreams. There is a recurring dream where John Rodgers is a police officer in West Palm Beach. The dream takes place in an amusement park.

“A shadowy figure dressed in black takes a redheaded woman into the house of horrors. A dark haired woman follows them in. Then I hear a loud scream. I go in after the dark haired woman. I hear another scream. I run up to the second floor of the exhibit. I feel like I am running through matter so thick and viscous that just to move takes all my strength and will. I pass out on the second floor of the exhibit just outside the chamber of horrors.