Dreams of Destiny Pt. 05

There was one possibility that Destiny and John had not considered. Could they convert Stephen back to the higher planes.

No. Not possible. Destiny’s mind cried out against the possibility. But what if were possible? Destiny wondered.How could it be accomplished?

He loves me, Destiny thought,that’s something I can use. Maybe if I put the weapon on him I can force him to take me out of his realm. No. He’s too damn slippery. He’d get hold of the gun and then all would be lost. He’d use me badly for punishment if I tried something like that and failed. So, what should I do?

“Destiny, you always make your decisions by not making decisions,” a voice in her head whispered.Who told me that? Destiny wondered.Oh, yes, it was my old college lover Cross D’Arbry. And when I finally make a decision, SPLAT! The shit usually hits the fan.

Destiny felt like her mind was on a treadmill, going around and around with the possibilities, none of them acceptable.

Play along with Stephen and kill him in cold blood -- Yuck!

Acquiesce to Stephen’s desires and wait for a chance to get away -- too costly and too risky.

Refuse Stephen’s advances and remain prisoner -- NO! I JUST CAN’T, and he’d force me in the end, anyway. He wants me too much to leave me alone.

Turn Stephen to the higher plane? HOW? He’s been in the lower realms for so long. It would mean spending time with him. I couldn’t bear it. I’ve never dreamed that possibility she realized. Stephen’s too far gone.

Damn it, damn it. Destiny started to become angry, furious, inflamed! She began to pace the room.

POUF!! Destiny turned into a brightly. burning pillar of orange, red and blue flame, right there in the middle of the room.OH MY GOD!!! Destiny realized what happened.I ‘morphed into a pillar of flame. I can’t alter matter in Stephen’s realm, but I can alter myself. I wonder how long the effect lasts? What else can I do?

Destiny tried to calm herself down. It was exhilarating being a flame! What power she had! And she was so hot! She wanted to consume something, anything. The sound of the fire was ferocious, the sensation, ravening. She wanted to fling herself out of the room and go on a rampage, letting loose all of the pent-up emotions she had ever felt in every one of her lifetimes. Greed, envy, rage, hatred, lust, need, desire, all were at the heart of the flame. How long could she maintain the spark she wondered? Long enough to fry Stephen into Hell permanently?

She was losing control. She could burn out in minutes like this she realized suddenly. This was not the answer.Cool out, Destiny, she told herself.Chill. Calm down. Think of rivers, oceans, ice, you are not a flame. You are Destiny. She concentrated on being human, she tried to breath, tried to feel her heart beat. Slowly the flame died down and Destiny became herself. She sank to the floor, exhausted and trembling. She realized she was starving. It took a lot out of her to metamorphose. She wondered if she could do it again, in a different form.

What form should I take? Destiny considered the question.Something fast and unexpected for Stephen. Something that can fight. Something with good instincts that can see in the dark so I can get through the tunnels and out of here. Something close to my weight so I can maintain the change for a while. A panther! Perfect. Destiny decided to try the idea on and see what happens.

She thought about looking like a panther. No result.Damn. Maybe the flame thing was a fluke. Then she thought maybe it wasn’t looks that mattered, it was feelings. She thought about what it would feel like to be a panther Hungry, fierce, intent on finding prey, athletic, sleek, comfortable in that rangy beautiful body, powerful sense of smell, acute night vision, it all came together. Destiny became a lovely black panther. She was five feet long; rangy and mean. And she was starving!

The little part of her mind that remained Destiny wondered how long she could maintain this form. It took so much effort to make the transformation! Maybe she should stay this way and wait for Stephen.God, no, she thought.If I stay like this too long I might loose touch of myself. I could devour Stephen. That’s not what I want. Slowly she let go of the panther and reached out for her humanity. The shape shift was quick and fluid.

Destiny sat back on the bed and looked at her watch. More time had passed than she thought. It was almost noon already.Good, she thought.Stephen will be here any minute. And boy will he get a surprise! Destiny made sure she had her gun in her skirt pocket, and lay down to wait for Stephen’s arrival.

As if in anticipation of the coming events, Destiny curled up cat-like at the foot of her bed. She closed her eyes and thought about being formless, saving her energy. At five of twelve Destiny decided it was time. She gathered her forces and drew herself into the panther shape. Then she waited to the left of the doorway.

Stephen was anxious to have Destiny again! She had had the night and the morning to consider her plight. She knew he was holding the trumps. She had had no company and no food or water for more than twelve hours. He thought she would be ready to talk. They would have a meal. She would listen to his plans for her. He would be kind and reasonable. She would welcome his civility in light of all that had occurred in the past between them. They would come to an arrangement. She would open her arms to him, he was sure of it. He had dreamed this scenario so many times! The children the would have! The dynasties they would build!

Stephen dressed carefully in a gray morning suit with a black silk shirt. He checked himself in his full length, gilt mirror. His cravat was white. His black patent leather shoes were polished to a high shine. His nails were perfect. His hair was glorious: gold streaked with red. The reddish gloom of the caverns made the golden glow of his skin even more spectacular. Steven stepped out of his lair and walked gracefully towards Destiny’s chambers.She will not turn me away. He was sure.

He arrived at the chamber. He didn’t knock. He owned the place! He opened the door and called her name. Totally unexpectedly, a great black beast jumped on him, ran him over and exploded into the great cavern where his guests and visitors were lazing! What was it?! Stephen didn’t have a chance to see, it all happened so fast.

“Destiny!” Stephen yelled, as he got up off the floor and began to sort things out. “Destiny, where are you?” He looked all over the cave. She was not there.How did she get out? She couldn’t escape the cave. I made sure of that. What the hell happened? And what was that beast? OH HELL!! Stephen realized what must have happened. It was the only explanation. Destiny must have morphed into that -- whatever it was and headed for the nearest exit.

How much time has she had? Can I head her off? Can I stop her? I’ve go to try. Stephen looked frantically around the large cavern to see which way the beast had gone. He was furious! She had gotten away! Stephen stormed to the dream gate and stepped through. He was on the snowy mountain that preceded his caverns. It was early evening. Destiny was nowhere in sight.

Destiny had made the best of Stephen’s confusion. The minute she won free of the cave she found a table laden with food. Up she pounced, startling the entities gathered nearby. She feasted on the roast beef and pig, filling her empty belly. With a snarl, she leapt off the table and headed for the nearest tunnel. She didn’t know if it would get her out of Stephen’s realm. She didn’t know much of anything. Destiny was rapidly losing her humanity. The beast was taking over quickly.

She ran through the tunnel mindlessly. All there was to her universe was the padding of her four feet, the thumping of her heart, the air flowing past as she ran. The ghastly red tunnel seemed to go on forever. She ran and ran and ran. Then she sensed a change in the light. It was bluish. The air was colder. She started heading upward. She continued to run. Then she reached the end of the tunnel. She stepped through a gate.

The panther burst out of the cave about two thirds up the same mountain Destiny had entered Stephen’s realm from. She was free! Her panther form melted away and Destiny stood in the snow wearing the split skirt and short sleeve top she had selected from Stephen’s closet earlier. It was early evening on the mountain, where ever the mountain was.

Destiny stopped to take stock. She had benefitted from the meal she had eaten as a panther. Her stomach was full. She had the gun in her right hip pocket. But she couldn’t stay here long.It’s cold, and I’ll bet Stephen’s on my tail. What should I do? Destiny wanted to scream with frustration.Think, girl, think! I haven’t come this far to give in. How did Stephen get me here? Through a vortex. I’ll have to look for another vortex. Where would it be? It could be anywhere. God, I’m tired, Destiny thought. What if I just lie down here and dream myself out of this mess? Can’t I just change reality by force of will now that I’m out of Stephen’s realm? Wait a second. Whose dream is this anyway? If its mine, I have control. I can will a vortex into being.

Destiny reached inside herself as she had when she morphed into a panther. This time she envisioned a diamond shaped vortex in the space just ahead of her and thought about the other side beingwhere? where do I want to go? She didn’t have time to think.Court. flashed through her mind. A fissure opened. Destiny peered through it but could see nothing. She stepped into the diamond shaped opening. Destiny stepped out of the vortex and into the lawyer’s lounge in DC Superior Court.

It was 1:00 p.m. The lounge was crowded with defense attorneys preparing for preliminary criminal hearings. “Hey Destiny,” a colleague greeted her with a smile. “Are you appearing in Court in that get up?”Oh shit, Destiny thought. I’ll never live this down.But I’ve got to get out of here. Stephen will be here for me any minute. I have to get some protection, and find a way to end this madness. And I’ve got to find John.

Destiny decided to find Judge Raven’s courtroom.Elaine might know where John is Destiny thought with. She stopped at the information booth to learn that Judge Raven was in courtroom 517 that day. Destiny decided to take the elevator for a change. It went up three floors and suddenly everything came to a halt. Oh no! Destiny thought. A summertime blackout. Of all the horrible places to be stuck in a blackout! Destiny sat down hard. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. All she could do was wait. As time passed it became warm and stuffy in the elevator. Destiny shut her eyes and fell asleep...

Chapter XXIX

It was a beautiful afternoon on San Angeles Island. Destiny awoke naked in the king sized bed where she and Juan had spent so many pleasurable hours feeling like she had just run the Boston marathon. Her leg muscles hadn’t been so sore since the last time she took ski lessons. She yawned and stretched. Then she rolled over and put her pillow over her head. She thought better of going back to sleep and sat up.

Skiing?! she thought.What on earth is going on? What time is it? 1:00 p.m.? God, have I been asleep all this time or, if not, what have I been doing? Where have I been? Skiing, and in some pseudo hell with an obsessed demon. She remembered her rape with a shudder. And Juan’s not Juan, he’s a DC cop, and did I break up with Nathan years ago or am I going home to him in a few days. Where is Juan, anyway? OH CHRIST, does Juan know about my package? I’ve got to tell him about it before he finds it and thinks I’m a spy for Esteban. Is Esteban a demon? Oh God, I’m thirsty! With that, Destiny rolled out of bed, taking the sheet with her for cover, and headed for the wet bar. She stopped, dead in her tracks. There, lying flat out on the floor, unconscious, was Juan.

“Oh my God, Juan,” Destiny cried. She ran to him, and quickly felt for a pulse. Oh please let there be a pulse, she prayed silently as her fingers searched first his wrist and then his neck.YES! there was a pulse. OKAY, calm down. What do you do? Call the desk and ask them to send a doctor immediately. It’s an emergency. Tell the clerk he may want to keep it quiet because it’s the chief of security who seems to have injured himself somehow.

Thank God he’s dressed,Destiny thought wildly.I can just see the papers. American spy seduces head of security then attempts to murder him to save self from prison. Oh God, where’s my purse? Destiny looked around the room. She realized it had been searched while she was asleep. Her purse was open, her ID was all missing, as was the little package.OH SHIT! Now what am I supposed to do?

Stop thinking about yourself. Call the desk. Destiny made the call. her voice wavered. “Hello, do you speak English? Good. This is Destiny Lysander in room 415. There’s been an accident. I need a doctor. No. My guest has hit his head and is unconscious. Please send the house doctor. You don’t have a house doctor? Christ! Send for an ambulance. Please. Yes, of course it’s an emergency. I don’t care if you put it on my bill! Jesus! Just do it. Thank you.”

Destiny checked Juan again. There was no change. He had a nasty bump on the back of his head. Otherwise he seemed unhurt. Destiny cradled his head.Oh Juan, what happened to you? This is terrible. She wanted to cry.

Then she stood up. She realized she’d better make herself decent pronto. She didn’t want any jokes or smirks about her and Juan. No one knew he’d stayed with her last night.What’ll I tell them, she wondered.He came by to say hello, and tripped and fell. Or I came into my room and found him like this. But where was I and why was he in my room if I wasn’t there? I know. I’ll just say it’s a matter of national security and they will have to discuss it with him when he comes around. That way we won’t be telling conflicting stories.

With that decided Destiny stepped into the bathroom and quickly changed into a blue and green shorts set. She brushed out her hair and re-braided it. She was just finishing her makeup when a knock came on the door.

Destiny opened the door. The hotel manager was standing outside with a crumpled little man carrying a black bag.

“I take it you found a hotel doctor?” Destiny said coldly.

“Si, senorita. It does not look good to have ambulances coming to the doors of my hotel. What problem do you have? Lets us in so we can look.”

“Go ahead. But I think he needs to be in a hospital. He has a bad lump on his head and he’s been unconscious for a while.”

“”How long has he been unconscious” the doctor asked in a concerned voice?

“That’s the thing. I don’t know. I went for a walk on the beach. When I came back he was here on the floor. My passport and wallet are missing. I don’t know what happened. Maybe he startled a burglar.”

“You know who this is, do you not, senorita?”

“Yes, yes, I do. He’s Colonel Rodriguez. We had dinner together in the hotel last night. You can check on that.”

“What was he doing in your room this morning?” The hotel manager asked pointedly.

“I think you’d better wait to ask the Colonel that question. He is the chief of national security, is he not?” Destiny retorted.

“Si all right. I am not the police. I will not question you. But I am going to call the police now. They will want to know everything.” The manager threatened.

“Why don’t you wait until he comes around and see what he wants to do?” Destiny suggested.

As if on cue, Juan gave out a low groan of pain.

“He’s starting to come out of it” Destiny said happily. She rushed over and sat down beside him. She didn’t care for the moment what the hotel manager thought of her relationship with the officer. “Juan, Juan? Can you hear me? It’s Destiny?” She looked down at him with concern and watched as he opened his eyes and tried to bring the room into focus.

He started to sit up, then grabbed at his head and lay back down. “Madra Dios,” he said. “What hit me?”

“I don’t know, Juan,” Destiny said. “You were flat out on the floor when I found you. My wallet and passport are gone. Maybe you saw an intruder going into my room and tried to stop him but he got the jump on you.”

Juan shook his head in puzzlement. “I don’t think so. God! It’s all so fuzzy.”

“Do you want to go to the hospital?” Destiny asked. I could take you in a cab. We wouldn’t have to bother the good manager and his doctor friend any further.”

“No, no hospital. Doctor, I’m okay, aren’t I?” Juan asked the doctor.

“I don’t know.” the doctor said fussily. “I think you should get your head x-rayed. You were unconscious for quite a while. You have a concussion, maybe a fracture. It could be dangerous.”

“Tell you what, doctor. What would be dangerous would be me not getting to the bottom of this quickly. I don’t have a lot of staff and I have a huge headache. Why don’t you just give me a prescription for some good old fashioned pain killers? I’ll have nurse Lysander here watch over me for the next day or so and everything will be okay. Is that acceptable?”

“Okay, the doctor said reluctantly, but no sleep for more than half an hour at a time for the next twenty four hours. If the pain gets worse or your vision becomes blurry go straight to the hospital. And don’t sue me if you die.”

“We all die, doctor”

“You know what I mean. Here’s your prescription,” the doctor said gruffly. He pulled Juan to his feet as he handed over the prescription. Take good care of him, he admonished Destiny. He’s a good man, which is a rare commodity in this country.

The hotel manager and the doctor exited the room, leaving Destiny and Juan with each other and their questions. It was an awkward moment.

“So,” Destiny began, “are you really okay? I mean, I almost had a heart attack finding you on the floor like that. I thought you were dead. What happened?”

“I don’t know, Destiny. One minute I was in here looking around, the next I was flat on my back and it was two hours later. I don’t know what hit me.”But I have a pretty good idea who did, he thought.Esteban’s up to his little tricks again. And where were you, anyway?

“Me? I was here. I woke up here at around one p.m., after the damnedest dreams! I was confused. I got up and was going to get a drink when I found you on the floor. I checked to be sure you were alive and then called the hotel manager. I wanted him to get an ambulance but he thought better of it. I didn’t go anywhere.”

“Yes you did,” Juan said. I woke up this morning and you were gone. No note, no nothing. I had things to do so I left. I had breakfast with my uncle. We talked over a few things. Juan omitted the part where he searched her purse, opened the package and discussed the contents and its ramifications with his uncle. I decided to come back here to see if you’d reappeared,” he said. “Do you have any idea why someone would want to steal your id?

“Why don’t you tell me about it, Destiny? Was there something else of value in your purse that is missing. Anything that might be of interest to me?”Here is, Juan thought, she either tells me now, or I tell her and bring her into question her. God, I hope I don’t have to do that. I think I’d be playing right into Esteban’s hands. He wants us to be at odds, I know it! Talk to me Destiny!

He knows about the package. Destiny thought. Maybe he’s even got it and is trying to trap me. What should I do? But what if I’m wrong? Maybe it has nothing to do with island security. It’s just a coincidence that my room was broken into and my id taken along with the package. Bull! It’s all connected. Juan can help me sort it out.