Jillian Spectre & the Dream Weaver

by Nic Tatano

  "Sounds like something you'd do. Can I see that book a minute?"

  She sends it across the table. "Knock yourself out. It's a helluva lot more interesting than the so-called classics we're reading in Modern Literature class."

  "Speak for yourself. I'm almost reading. You can borrow the Cliff Notes."

  I turn the book around and start to read.

  Sirens are often portrayed as a combination of women and birds and are known for their beautiful but hypnotic voices. Their song can be enchanting to men, as they are said to have lured sailors to steer their ships into rocky coasts, where they would shipwreck. However, Odysseus managed to sail past he sirens by having his crew fill their ears with wax. A siren's song has no effect on females.

  They are sometimes known as muses of the underworld since their motives are anything but benevolent. But they are not as powerful as the traditional muses. Legend has it that Hera conducted a singing contest between the sirens and the muses. The muses defeated the sirens so soundly that they plucked the feathers from the sirens and fashioned them into crowns, which they wore in triumph.

  "Okay, so a muse can defeat a siren with song. Can you sing?"

  She shakes her head. "I'm really awful. The first time I sang in church the priest came up to me after Mass and told me that God gives everyone gifts, but a good singing voice was not one I'd received."

  "That bad?"

  "I think he was worried I'd shatter the stained glass. Seriously, you wanna hear Ave Maria with my accent?"

  "Not particularly."

  "Then there was the time in Florida when I was outside by myself and started to sing. All the mockingbirds flew away. That's why I only sing when I'm alone in my car."

  "Well, I don't think quality matters in this case. All Ms. Cruise did was hum and it sent the guys into a trance."

  "True. But even though a muse trumps a siren, I can't hypnotize a man by singing."

  "How do you know?"

  "Tried it with Jake and it didn't work. He just begged me to stop. Said he loved me but that I made fingernails on the blackboard sound like Pavarotti by comparison."

  I bookmark the page and slide the book back to her. "You do know what this means, don't you?"

  She nods, suddenly turning serious. "Yeah. If we're gonna defeat the bitch, I'm the one who's ultimately going to do it. Do-re-mi."

  I'm not at all wild about what's about to happen as I materialize next to Ryan outside the amphitheater. The halls are empty since class is in the middle of the period.

  "Are you okay?" I ask.

  "Yes, Miss Spectre," he says in a robotic voice. "Do with me what you wish. I am at your service."

  I gently slap him on the arm. "Stop it, this is serious."

  "Just trying to lighten the mood, Sparks. Don't worry, I got here after she was done with her singing, so she hasn't turned me into a pod person. But I wasn't kidding about letting you do whatever you want to me."

  I lean up and give him a kiss. "I'll take you up on that later, Mister."

  It's good to see Ryan getting back to his normal relaxed self despite the seriousness of the task at hand. I think my playing Jewish mother for Trip and Aspen has put him at ease. While Ryan's a confident guy, I can see how any man would see Trip Logan as a threat, especially after seeing me wrapped around him like a party bimbo at the dance. (Hey, if I saw him making out with a babe like Aspen, I'd probably react the same way.)

  But right now I'm the worried one, as he's about to read the mind of Ms. Cruise, since his powers have been "altered" according to Sebastien. The Council is hoping Ryan might have better luck than the female mind readers they sent. And even though they had no ill effects from visiting the class, I'm playing it safe by being here just in case he needs to be healed.

  I peek through the window and see the teacher holding court, men in a trance as she paces back and forth. She stops walking, hops up on the desk right in front of Jake and crosses her legs. Her skirt rides high on her thigh as the men begin to drool. Jake's eyes bug out and I can tell he's under her spell.

  "Let's do this before she goes all full metal cougar on Jake."

  He nods and peeks through the window. "No kidding."

  "Before we start, let me ask you a question. Do you find her attractive?"

  He shrugs. "She's okay. I mean, she looks damn good for her age but I've never been into older women. Though I can see how she could turn into a praying mantis if she were a shape shifter."

  "Interesting way to put it."

  "She mates, she kills. If we're done discussing my lack of attraction to age-inappropriate women, I'm ready."

  "Okay, but the minute you feel anything out of the ordinary, stop."

  "Don't worry, I will."

  "Yeah, right. You always think you're bulletproof."

  "I take after a certain redhead."

  "Funny. C'mon, let's get it over with."

  He moves closer to the door so the teacher will be in his range, peeks through the window, and I take his hand. He turns to me with a reassuring look. "Sparks, I'll be okay."

  "Just in case you need a dose of life force, I wanna be in place."

  "Sure. Okay, let me concentrate."

  He closes his eyes and I squeeze his hand tight while watching his face. If I see any reaction, I'm pulling the plug on this operation. But his expression doesn't change. He nods slightly, keeping his eyes closed. I can tell he's getting something. I begin to relax my grip. He squeezes my hand and smiles. After a few minutes he furrows his brow and starts to grow pale.

  "You okay, Ryan?"

  "Shhhh. Fine. Let me concentrate."

  I shut up, but keep a close eye on him. A minute later he opens his eyes.

  "Okay, done. See, no side effects."

  I give him a strong hug. "Thank God." I pull back, look up at him and see the worry in his eyes. "I can tell you got something bad."

  "Yeah. Sebastien's right, my abilities must have slightly changed. That was a really clear reading. She's different than anyone I've ever read."

  "How so?"

  "It's almost like part of her mind has a wall up that I can't get through. Still, I made some progress."

  "Well, don't keep me in suspense."

  "It'll take me quite a while to tell you everything, but I got two big things. It turns out that your mother was right. She's a siren."

  "Makes sense. But that's not what upset you. What's the other biggie?"

  The color drains from his face.

  "What? Ryan, what did you see?"

  "It's really hard for me to tell you this, considering Rox is your best friend." He takes my shoulders and looks into my eyes. "She once killed a muse."

  It's the biggest collection of people I've ever seen in one room at The Summit. Sebastien is here with the entire council, as are Roxanne, Jake, my mother, Fuzzball, and me. Ryan is in the hot seat, that throne-like chair I was in when they first questioned me. The serious looks on the faces of the powers that be tell me we're facing the same kind of trouble we had with my father. I guess I was naive to think we were over and done with the forces of evil once we committed him to the coma, but when you step back and look at the empire he built, it's only natural that he'd have his followers.

  Followers who apparently want to continue his work.

  And while we know his original plan was to destroy faith, we don't know what he planned to do afterward.

  As for Ms. Cruise and her history with muses, we haven't told Roxanne yet. Sebastien wants to deal with that later without the rest of The Council present. She knows something's up since I've apparently been evasive. But when you're worried your best friend might have to go up against someone so powerful, it's only natural that you'd seem different. To say I've lost sleep over this is putting it mildly. Sebastien assures me he'd never put her in danger, but by now you know Roxanne.

  "Let's begin," says Sebastien, who gets up from the long table filled by seven other council members. "Ryan, let's go through what you gathered fro
m Ms. Cruise, and don't leave out even the smallest detail."

  "Sure," says Ryan. "Right away I could tell she was different than anyone I'd ever read. I could only access part of her mind. Part of her subconscious seemed to be locked away."

  "Very well," says Sebastien. "Continue."

  "She definitely has the powers of a siren. She starts each class and any conversation she wants to control by humming, and the legend is true that she can only control men."

  "What is her objective?"

  "That part I couldn't get, but I did discover that she was working closely with Jillian's father and admired him a great deal. She wants to continue his work and is part of a group committed to doing that. Unfortunately I couldn't get any names, so I have no idea who she is working with. She knows who took down J.T. Decker, and she is determined to drive a wedge between us. But I don't think she knows Jillian is in contact with an angel, or that she can now tell the difference between dreams and reality. They still think they can manipulate her that way."

  "What about her abilities as a dream weaver?"

  Ryan shakes his head. "I got nothing, except the group feels that confusing dreams and reality is a good way to drive us apart. And Ms. Cruise is definitely going to try to seduce Jake."

  Roxanne cracks her knuckles, the sound echoing through the room. "Bring it, Mrs. Robinson."

  "Do you think she's the one who contacted Jillian's father?"

  "I didn't pick up anything specific. But she does know he's been contacted."

  "Any idea why?"

  Ryan shakes his head. "No. But they plan to do it again. And soon."

  Every member of The Council reacts, eyebrows going up, eyes growing wide.

  "What about the ultimate plan?" asks Sebastien.

  "This was the part that scared me, Sebastien. They feel confident they can finish what Decker started, using mind control. But the thing with the cell phone was only the first part of his master plan."

  "And the second part would be?"

  Ryan's face suddenly goes pale. "I don't know. But the phrase I picked up was, 'This will only be the beginning. And then we can fulfill Decker's dream.'"

  Fuzzball is next, and he pulls a bunch of manila envelopes from his briefcase. "As you know, Ms. Cruise is well connected in the area of politics, having served a couple of terms in Congress. She serves as an adjunct professor at the college and only teaches two classes. Which leaves her plenty of time for other activities." He moves to The Council's table, then hands each member a manila envelope. "This is her dossier from Homeland Security. Most of it contains things that are well known. She's still a close adviser to the governor and one of our United States Senators. What is most interesting are her activities that are off the grid." He smiles and winks at me. "Well, make that activities she thinks are off the grid."

  He moves to our table and hands out the envelopes. "A lot of this is political, her voting record, activities before and after she served in Congress. She participated in a lot of radical protests when she was in college. And she was involved with a lot of men when she was in Congress." I get the last envelope and pull out the folder. Fuzzball locks eyes with me and I know something bad is inside. "But if you'll turn to the back page, I think the photo will explain a lot."

  I flip to the back and the eight-by-ten black-and-white photo makes my jaw drop.

  A very young Rebecca Cruise, probably in her early twenties.

  Holding hands with my father.

  Mom is quiet as we sit in a conference room waiting for Sebastien. She hasn't said a word since Fuzzball passed out the folders. Obviously the photo of my father with another woman is bothering her, and I know the question that is going through her mind. Because it's the same one going through mine.

  Was the photo taken before he moved out?

  And if so, what was his relationship with the woman? I mean, it could have been anything, as the photo shows them sitting on a park bench. Not terribly close, not looking like they were in love or even friends with benefits, but holding hands nonetheless. Could be one person comforting another. Or something much more.

  Mom told me he wasn't the kind of guy to have an affair, that they were madly in love, but then again she never would've guessed the guy she married would turn out to be a deadbeat dad and disciple of hell.

  It only makes me hate the guy even more.

  He's close to someone who killed a muse. Of all the people with paranormal powers, muses are by far the most gentle, benevolent creatures in how they use their gifts to create such great beauty. If you're into fantasy, it's almost like taking the life of a unicorn.

  Meanwhile, Roxanne is about to be told the whole story about the siren from hell and that her life is most likely in danger. I'm sitting next to her, knowing she'll get emotional when she gets the news. Emotional good or emotional bad, we'll soon find out.

  Sebastien enters the room, looking upset, then sits down opposite Roxanne.

  She looks at his long face and knows immediately something is wrong. "What?"

  Sebastien folds his hands and rests them on the table. "Roxanne, legend has it that a siren can be defeated by a muse."

  "Right."

  "You must remember that some legends are merely that. Greek mythology is often what it claims to be."

  "Well, a muse is supposed to be a mythological creature and I'm not a myth. So it has some basis in fact."

  "Yes, very true. The same holds true for a siren. And now a dream weaver. But while the mere existence of those with such powers would seem to confirm legend, we do not know for certain if the stories concerning those are completely accurate. We do not know which are true and which are simply ancient lore. So we must be objective."

  "I'm not sure what you're getting at."

  Sebastien turns to Ryan. "Tell her, Ryan."

  Ryan bites his lower lip, looks at the table, then up at Roxanne. "Rox, there was one thing I left out when I told The Council about what I'd picked up when I read Cruise's mind. It's about you."

  "Yeah, you told us that she knew we were the ones who took down Jillian's father."

  "It's more than that, Rox," I say, taking her hand.

  "What?" she asks.

  Ryan exhales deeply. "It's not about you specifically, but about muses. The legend about the muses defeating the sirens…it's not necessarily true in real life. Cruise went up against a muse once before, many years ago."

  "And…?"

  Ryan looks at me, eyes filled with anguish, then back at her. "The muse didn't come out of it alive."

  I expect Roxanne's jaw to drop, for the color to drain from her face, but this doesn't happen. She says nothing and nods for a moment, processing what she just heard. Then she turns to Sebastien. "Well, then, I guess we need to find out who she killed and why the muse couldn't defeat her. Get all the specifics. Then figure out what we can do so it doesn't happen again."

  "You're kidding me," I say.

  "What?"

  "Did what Ryan told you even remotely register in that stubborn head of yours?"

  Roxanne nods. "Yeah. I get it. The woman is dangerous and has no qualms about killing people. I would expect that since she was in cahoots with your father, and he had no problem trying to kill us either. So I realize we need to be careful. What the hell do you expect me to say? That I'm afraid to take her on? Because I'm not. You're not the only girl in the neighborhood who can save the planet, you know."

  Finally Jake chimes in as he takes her hand. "Rox, I'm not prepared to lose you. We'll find another way."

  She shakes her head. "No. Suppose the only person who can defeat this particular siren is a muse? And suppose, since my talents have been slightly altered, that I'm the only muse with the power to do it? What then? We just let her continue what Jillian's father started? Sorry, ain't gonna happen."

  No one says anything for a minute. Sebastien leans back in his chair and rests his hands in his lap. “I know this is going to be an unpopular statement with this group, but I am inclin
ed to agree with Roxanne.”

  Chapter 8

  Ryan and I are headed to the coffee bar when we see them.

  Ms. Cruise (now referred to as Mrs. Robinson) and Jake.

  She has her hand lightly on his shoulder. Dressed in her usual age inappropriate short skirt and sky-high heels, it's clear what she has in mind as she licks her lips.

  He's wearing the deer-in-the-headlights look, in contact with the mother ship.

  They're heading in our direction, which is also the direction of her office. And, quite possibly, what I saw in my reading.

  I grab Ryan's forearm. "Ryan, we gotta stop this. Jake's not even in his body. If she gets him to her office—"

  "I know, I can see it too. I'm on it."

  Ryan picks up his pace as they grow closer. I continue slowly walking toward them, but try to blend in with the crowd and move close to the wall.

  "Hey, Jake!" yells Ryan as he trots toward them. "Dude, where ya been? Did you forget?"

  Jake looks at Ryan as if he doesn't recognize him. "Forget what?"

  "Tickets for today's Mets game." He takes Jakes arm. "C'mon, man, I paid a lot for these."

  Jake studies his face. "We've got tickets to the game?"

  Ryan raises his hand to his head, pretending to rub his forehead to hide the fact he's closing his eyes for a moment. It's what he does when he wants to do a quick mind read. "Yeah. What, didja get your dates mixed up?" He puts his hand down. "C'mon, let's go. Gotta catch the number seven express train." Ryan literally yanks Jake away from the teacher, who is left there dumbfounded. Then she looks pissed off.

  I immediately turn away before she has the chance to see me and head quickly out of the building. My cell gives its chime that indicates a text message. I pull it out, see it's from Ryan, and am directed to a meeting place.

  Jake is still shaking the cobwebs out of his head when I arrive at the entrance to the park across the street from the campus. "You okay?

  "I think so. I don't even remember how I got out of the classroom."