Gaia Dreams (Gaiaverse Book 1) (44 page)

Harmony glanced over at her and turned back to
the road. "Look on the bright side. We got the papers signed by Mr. Johnson,
which means we have five whole cabins to use for people to live in right now.
Black is following Mr. Johnson out of town to be sure he's really going, but
like I told you guys before, there's really no need because there's no way Mr.
Johnson wants to stay in Cape Fair." She paused, and then said in bewilderment,
"I just don't get it, Jessica. Why did he get so crazy? He said he was having
the dreams, but for him it meant that the world was going to end and that evil
people would come here! That's just nuts!"

"I don't know why," Jessica said. "Maybe the dreams
are just too much for some people. Maybe it sends them over the edge. You're
lucky we got there in time."

"Yeah!" Harmony agreed. "Hey, thanks for
rescuing me!"

Sam spoke up from the back seat. "That's okay,
Harmony. I like you. But you have to thank Max. It's really 'cause of him I
knew you were in trouble."

"What?" Jessica said in surprise.

"Yeah, Mom, I wouldn't have even known about it 'cept
Max was talkin' 'bout how he didn't know if there would be room for him at our
house. And I was talking to him about all the different places in town people
were going to live--and then I knew about the cabins and where Harmony was and
she was in trouble, so yeah, Max is why I knew."

"So if you'd thought of Harmony on your own, you
would have known, too, right?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Hmmm, thought Jessica, I wonder if I even know
the right questions to ask her to understand how she is doing this. She pulled
up her shoulder-length, golden-blonde hair and twisted it into a knot at the
back of her head. She found the pencil she'd stuck behind her ear earlier at
the house and used it to anchor the makeshift bun. I'm fiddling with my hair
just like when I was a kid, she thought. Nervous about what John is going to
say--and oh god, what my mother is going to say! Mom can be a bit of a worrier
at times. The thing is I don't know why I brought Sam! It just doesn't make
sense, if I'm trying to guard and protect her, why bring her into a situation
like this? Sighing again she watched people come spilling out of the house as
they pulled into the driveway. Well, here goes nothing.

The Diner, Cape Fair

"At least we found a place to eat where Waldo
could stay with us," Andy said to Nathan as they seated themselves at a picnic
table outside the diner. It was a rather dilapidated picnic table, but the
waitress in the diner had told them to feel free to use it. Andy removed two
hamburger patties from their buns and tossed one to Waldo.

"Look at him!" Nathan said, laughing. "I don't
think he even chewed that--just swallowed it whole."

"Yeah," Andy said grinning. "He inhales food."

"So you can talk to him, or hear him?" Nathan
began, pouring ketchup over his fries.

Andy nodded, chewing on a big bite of his
chicken fried steak sandwich. After a gulp of coke, he said, "I'm still not
very good at it. I have to really concentrate. Lisanne says I have to 'open my
mind,' which I wouldn't even pay attention to, except that Merlin says the
same thing!"

"Lisanne--what's her story? You guys didn't know
each other before, right?" Nathan asked, throwing a French fry to Waldo.

Andy shook his head vehemently. "No! We didn't
know each other. Before, well, before I probably wouldn't have had the nerve to
approach her! She's definitely not like any of the women I'd go out with."

"But you guys seem like a couple, you know?"

Andy grimaced. "I know! It's the weirdest damn
thing. I don't know what's going on with us to tell you the truth. She drives
me crazy. Makes me mad. She's the most aggravating woman I've ever met."

"But..." Nathan said encouragingly, waving his
tuna melt sandwich at Andy, motioning for him to continue.

"But I can't imagine not being with her at this
point. If I ever get two minutes alone with her again, I'm going to see just
where things stand with us."

"She's avoiding you?" Nathan asked.

"Well, it's been kind of hectic. And it was so
intense getting here. Not knowing what we were running to or running from. But
there was a moment, in the motel, before we got here...."

"Ah ha!" said Nathan, grinning.

"Oh, nothing happened, but she was in this
unbelievably sexy, black silky thing and, well, let's just say that if we ever
get to that point, we're going to have to figure out what to do about the animals
first."

Nathan just stared at him for a moment and then
started to guffaw, bent over laughing. "The animals? No, you mean, they'll know
what you did, even if they aren't in the room?"

"How should I know?" Andy said, his tone
frustrated, but with mischievous eyes. "Those two--Lisanne and Merlin--are way
more connected than Waldo and me. I don't know just how much either animal
would know, but I'm for damned sure going to find out about it before I even
think seriously about sex with Lisanne!"

Nathan chortled.

Andy said curiously, "What about you and Alex?"

"Alex?" replied Nathan, surprised.

"Well, yeah. She is beautiful and you have been
living together in Africa for a year now. That's what you said, right? A year?"

"Yeah, a year. But we weren't 'living together'
in that way, not the way you mean. We were dealing with different parts of the
tribe, doing our own things. I don't know. I guess she is beautiful, but I
never really noticed that much."

"Never noticed? How could you not notice? Those
long legs and hair. She really is very pretty, Nathan."

Nathan admitted, "Well, yeah, she is. But you've
got to understand how it is with Alex and me. We are total opposites in some
areas--"

"Well, so are Lisanne and me!"

"But it's not just that," Nathan continued. "She's
like a sister, you know?"

"A sister. Huh," Andy said with raised eyebrows.

Nathan laughed. "Yes, a sister. We really do
have a brother-sister type of relationship. At first we were students together,
each dating different people. Then we were more like work colleagues, but after
a while over in Africa, it just sort of evolved into what it is now. I don't
think she's ever been attracted to me. And I honestly don't think I have been
to her."

"Well that surprises me," Andy said.

"Yeah, I guess it does seem strange," Nathan
said, stopping to sip at his strawberry milkshake. "Man, did I miss strawberry
milkshakes in the Kalahari!"

Nathan paused, and then said, "You know it's
strange how we all do that. Talk about 'before' like there is some kind of
dividing line. But it doesn't feel to me like we are in the 'after' phase yet."

"Yeah," Andy mused, "it's like we're in the
middle, the beginning of the middle. It's all so strange."

"You're right. It really is. And here we are,
trying to set up our community here, our enclave. With my sister's husband as
our leader...along with that cat, Perceval. It's important that we have a
leader, one that we can all live with. John seems to be it, by default. But I
think he'll do a good job at it. What interests me more is where his daughter
is going to fit into the picture."

"Samantha?" Andy asked, bewildered. "What are
you talking about?"

"Look, I don't know much, but from what I've
picked up on so far, Sam has information about the future. More than all the
animals, except maybe that Perceval. She knows about things that will happen,
things that aren't disasters. She knows things without having to dream them.
What will that mean for a society that develops around someone with those
skills? What will her function be? Her father is the leader of group, but will
he rely on her information about the future? Most governments, most societies,
at least in this day and age, don't have psychics on the payroll! Not for real,
anyway. And she's just a little kid. Do you realize what the implications are
for the future? Will she be the only one who has these skills? Or will all
children develop them? Will we eventually have a culture built around the
abilities of psychics? Will it turn into a kind of religion? Will we move from
a democracy to a theocracy? We just don't know right now where it's all going."

"Wow, I hadn't given any of that any thought.
But hey, wait a minute, you're a cultural anthropologist, right? This is right up
your alley. So, you don't have it all figured out yet?"

"Nope, not a bit. But I will say that it's
fascinating to watch and to be right in the middle of it, to see what develops.
What an opportunity!"

Wryly, Andy said, "I can think of several things
to call all of this besides an opportunity, Nathan."

Nathan laughed. "I can get carried away thinking
about it. I guess we should focus on what we came out to do today--the water
problem."

"Yeah. Not as interesting as figuring out the
future, but imminently more practical. I'll go get those maps of the sewer
system from the car. Here!" He thrust the last hamburger patty at Nathan. "You
get to become Waldo's best friend for the moment."

The Mall in Branson, Missouri

Rachel walked out of The Gap, struggling to fit
all her bags in one hand. Janine followed her out the door, still in awe at how
much money Rachel had just spent.

"Are you rich?" she asked tentatively, rescuing
a bag of lingerie from Victoria's Secret as it fell to the floor.

"What?" Rachel smiled. "No, not rich, but I have
credit cards and I'm not afraid to use them. Especially since they'll soon be
worthless--at least, according to my brother. I had a good-paying job and I have
good credit, so I guess I've got a lot of money to spend and a short time to
get rid of it."

Janine motioned to a bench a few stores down and
they walked over to it and sat down. "Whew! Shopping is a lot harder than I
thought it could be," Janine said. "I feel kinda bad about spending all your
money, Rachel."

Rachel waved a hand in the air. "Forget about
it. That's what I'm trying to do. Trying to forget about losing my job. Forget
about the fact I'll never see New York again. Never see a Broadway play again.
Never walk through the Museum of Modern Art. Forget about the fact they'll
probably have me peeling potatoes and cleaning fish before all is said and
done. Let's just be glad I have the money to spend. We've gotten some really
great stuff."

"I never had such good clothes before," Janine
said shyly. "I can't wear some of these to clean up after the horses. I mean
that sweater and the lacy blouse and the dresses! They'd just get ruined."

"Hmmm. Well, maybe you're right, but a girl has
to have some decent clothes when it comes time to dress up. And I'm sure
eventually we'll have those times. My mother will insist upon it! And the one
thing you have to understand about buying clothes is that you want to get good
quality, no matter what you're buying. It will last longer. And I think that
will probably become an issue for us." She frowned. "But you're right. We need
to get you some work clothes. Let's head over to Sears and get you some Levi's
and t-shirts. And I guess we'd better get some for me too." She stopped and
looked straight ahead into the store in front of them. "First though, we are
going right into that shoe store there and get us both some shoes."

"Do you think they have work boots there? And
cowboy boots?" Janine asked hopefully.

"Honey, this may be Missouri, but it's Southern
Missouri. We're in the Ozarks. In other words, we're still in the South.
Believe me, they'll have boots."

An hour later, Rachel happily paid extra to have
their shoe orders delivered to the house in Cape Fair. Actually, the mall had a
service to deliver from all the stores, but she'd only just found out about it.
Divested of bags, and ready to do more damage to her credit cards, Rachel
looped her arm through Janine's to continue the semi-argument they'd been
having in the store.

"I hear what you're saying. I've been hearing
you the whole time we were buying shoes. But, Janine, every girl needs a pair
of perfect black, strappy high heels. It's mandatory for every woman. And we
have to buy them now because who knows if they'll ever be made again, right?"

Janine nodded slowly. "I guess so. But we got so
many shoes!"

"Look, if there aren't going to be any more shoe
stores, we have to get them while we can! It's done. Settled. Let's move on.
Sears is just right up there."

Her cell phone rang. Rachel answered to hear
John ask, "Are you guys okay?"

Rachel said, "Sure we are. Janine and I are
shopping like there's no tomorrow. Which I guess is the whole point of
everything you've been saying. What's up?"

"Oh, we just had a bit of a scare with Harmony.
But she's fine. They're all fine," John replied.

"All? Did something happen? Is Mother okay?"

"Actually Gracie's at the same mall you're at. I
sent her out alone with my car, but I want you guys to hook up and stay
together if you can find her. We're having a meeting of everyone tonight. But I
don't want anyone out alone before then."

"John, you're scaring me! Is something going to
happen?" Rachel demanded.

"No, no, I'm just overreacting to a situation
that's already been dealt with. Go shop. Have fun. Wait--here's Jess. She has
some sizes to give you. Just be home by six for supper."

"Okay...Hi, Jess, let me get a piece of paper..."
and she began scribbling notes of clothing sizes and shoe sizes on the back of
a check.

Janine watched her new friend and felt like she
was in a dream. Never had she seen anyone shop like Rachel! She was a whirlwind
in the stores, grabbing clerks and within minutes having them all jumping to do
her bidding. She was always nice and polite, but there was an air of authority
about her as she ordered people around, a confidence that Janine couldn't
imagine possessing. And she was funny. She'd had Janine in stitches as she
imitated first her boss in New York, her mother, and then John. But she didn't
understand about the high heels. And Janine thought maybe she'd have to tell
her.