by Don Aldrin
About the Author
Don Aldrin is one of your brand new multi-genre authors and he has written articles for several online publishing firms. He loves Sci-Fi, Computers, Mystery, Comedy and even Romance, sometimes even combinations of some of these. This is his first mini-novel and we hope that you enjoy reading.
He dedicates this book to his wife, mom, sister, family and friends, and of course, the readers as well.
Please be reminded that the names, places, events and the entire book, basically, is fiction and any similarities in real-life are just coincidence.
Please feel free to send Don Aldrin a message at [email protected] should you have any questions or suggestions. You can also visit our website at http://donaldrin.wordpress.com.
We would really appreciate your support. Enjoy!
Table of Contents
About the Author
Chapter I: The Double-Edged Trance
Chapter II: The Awakening
Chapter III: Mistaken Identity
Chapter IV: Headhunter
Chapter V: One Mean Racing Machine
Chapter VI: Star Struck
Chapter VII: Living the Dream
Chapter VIII: Finders Keepers
Chapter IX: Breakthrough
Chapter X: All For Love
Chapter I: The Double-Edged Trance
One rainy evening, an old gray car passed by along the mountain road towards a rest house and on a tight bend near a cliff…
“This is where you get off.”
A man, in his 40s, pried the passenger door open and kicked his passenger and the young lady fell down the steep cliff. The lady died on the spot. The driver continued driving. There were no witnesses except for one, but he was nowhere near the crime scene.
The next morning, Trance Weaver, a detective from Small City woke up from a dream where he saw the killing of a young woman on a mountain road. He went immediately to the headquarters.
“Captain, a woman was murdered.”
“Of course, Trance. Well, a report came in this morning at around 8:11 am from the beachfront. Two girls were playing and at the foot of the mountain, they saw blood. And then, they saw the body of a young lady who we identified as a Henrietta Silva. She was 27. She’s a real estate broker.”
“Do we have a primary suspect?”
“Well, there were a couple of names that popped up but there were two that stood out. Both of them were clients and according to her calendar, she met both of them yesterday. The first one was Ken Paul, 36 years old, who was with our victim at around 1:15 pm. The other one was Brian Kramer, 45 years old. He was with Ms. Silva at around 4:43 pm. You think it’s either one of them?”
“Hmmm… I don’t know. Who’s at the crime scene now?”
“Lieutenant Mulroney is there with the rest of the crew.”
“Okay. I’ll go ahead and check it out.”
Trance leaves the police station and heads out to the crime scene.
“Trance, it’s nice to see you here.”
“Hello, Eva. What have you gotten so far?”
“Well, the body was found here near a tree by the foot of the mountain. She had multiple fractures and severe head and body trauma.”
“I believe she was not killed here.”
“Why do you say so?”
“Look at the bushes and the plants on the cliff. It looks like something had fallen from the top that led exactly to where the body was found. She fell from the road above.”
“Quick thinking there, Trance.”
A police officer shouts.
“Hey, we found torn clothes that we believe belonged to Ms. Silva. They also found a set of tire tracks.”
The torn clothes were found on the bushes on the way down the cliff. The break they needed was just at the base of the mountain.
“Eva, the road at the base of the mountain has cameras, right?”
“Of course! You’re right. They record the vehicles that come in and out of the mountain.”
“What did they make of the tires?”
“They’re Toyo Tires Open Country which is mainly used for SUVs.”
“That’s great. Anything else?”
“Yes, Trance. The girls said that last night, the body wasn’t there. They were there at around 8:00 in the evening.”
“Good. So that means that the crime occurred sometime between 8:00 in the evening until this morning.”
“Yes, and based from the CCTV records, there was only one SUV that came through last night. A gray Cadillac Escalade.”
This is where our protagonist ties in his gift of dream clairvoyance.
“In my dream, a lady was kicked from the passenger seat of a gray car. It was all fuzzy, but I can make out most of it. It was at the corner on a road atop the mountain. The assailant opened the door and kicked the lady as they were passing the corner. There, the lady fell off the cliff. So, there should be a clear blunt on the left side of her body. Too bad for him, he was wearing this one-of-a-kind basketball shoes. A Reebok Question.”
The Small City PD team went to the assailant’s house to arrest the suspect. Lt. Mulroney knocks on the door.
“Mr. Brian Kramer. This is the Small City Police Department. Please open the door.”
Brian Kramer, one of the two primary suspects in the murder of Henrietta Silva comes out the door.
“Yes?”
“Mr. Brian Kramer, you are under arrest for the murder of Henrietta Silva.”
“What are you talking about!?”
“Mr. Kramer, you were arguing with Ms. Silva because she sold the property to somebody else. It was a petty reason, but you murdered her anyway. Your Cadillac Escalade is pretty new with Toyo Tires Open Country tires. It matches the tire tracks where Ms. Silva fell from.”
“So? That’s doesn’t mean I did it.”
“What nice shoes you have. That’s a rare and very expensive shoe. Unfortunately for you, it matches the one found on the left side of the victim’s body.”
“So what? Anybody could have that shoe. It still can’t prove that I was with her when that happened.”
“Of course, Mr. Kramer, but the CCTV clearly shows you with Ms. Silva entering the mountain road last night and as soon as you left the other side of the mountain, she was no longer with you.”
Everybody shook their heads, especially Lt. Mulroney.
“What in the world? Trance, you could have started with that one and we all didn’t have to scour the mountain road down the cliff to the beach!”
Brian Kramer laughed so hard.
“You sure are a good detective, but you’re a little slow sometimes, well, most of the time.”
The team arrested Brian Kramer then the team went back to the station.
“You sure do have that great gift of having the ability to see events through your dreams. But sometimes… hahaha!”
The entire police department laughed so hard at Trance. Everybody called it a day.
That evening, Trance had the same dream again. It was a cold night with clear skies in Small City. Trance is seen running the streets so fast and he didn’t care whomever he bumps into. He is really in a hurry.
He entered an office building a few blocks away from the police station and he heard a woman screaming for help. He followed it through the dark hallways. At the end, he heard several footsteps atop the spiral ladder.
The building had at least 15 floors. The elevators didn’t seem to work so he ran up as quickly as he could until he reached the top floor. There on a corner stood a slim young woman who seemed to be crying.
“Hey! Stay away from the ledge! Wait for me!”
Trance sprinted as fast as he could toward the
silhouette. But as he got closer and closer, he realized that what happens next is inevitable. He was about to reach the young lady. He was just a few meters away. The young lady leapt from the ledge and the detective woke up sweating heavily.
“Mr. Weaver, are you okay?”
Trance sat up. He was sweating hard and breathing really quickly. His heart was racing. Slowly, his breathing started to normalize and he began to take deep breaths.
“Yes, Beth. I’m fine.”
“The same dream again, Mr. Weaver?”
“Yeah. And Trance is fine. It sounds weird calling me Mr. Weaver. You’re not a stranger anymore.”
Beth laughed.
“If you say so, Mr. Trance.”
“Nevermind.”
Trance stood up and looked at himself on the mirror in his bathroom. He’s getting tired of having the same dream over and over again. Unlike the clairvoyant dreams he has wherein it leads to a real-life situation, this dream kept on repeating and he was not really sure if it already happened or not.
The dream was the same as it was the first time it happened. It was hazy and the face of the young lady weren’t that clear. It was just a blur as soon as he wakes up.
It was a new day. Trance prepared for work. He drove his cool Nissan GT-R that he got from an import car distributor. He’s a detective at the Small City Police Department as a consultant and reports directly to Capt. Pickett.
It was just an ordinary day. There were no big cases to solve at the moment. Almost every cop in town was in the station relaxing and drinking coffee and donuts. Well, just a few of them though. Most of them were busy doing paperwork and chatting with one another.
Trance headed straight to the captain’s office.
“Captain, any news today?”
“Well, thank God it’s a relaxing day. No big crimes today, but our officers are out responding to small public disturbances and petty crimes. How about you? How are you?”
Lt. Eva steps into the room.
“The same dream again, Trance?”
“Yes, Lt. It’s the same dream every time. Not a single detail has changed. Even the length of the dream. The entire sequence starts at the same area at the same time and then ends after the young lady leaps. I know my dreams help a lot of cases, but I can’t seem to recall a case similar to this dream. Well, it’s no use worrying about it for now. The good thing is it’s a safe day in the city.”
“You got that right. Feels good to just relax and…”
An officer barged in the door.
“Captain! Captain! You’ve got to see this!”
The captain, Lt. Eva and Trance got out of the room and there seemed to be a commotion near the television of the station.
To their relief, it was Bridgette Heart, the most famous actress, singer, stage-play princess and she was having an interview and she mentioned that she will be visiting Small City soon for a fund-raising concert for the benefit of the poor.
“Hey, hey, back to your posts. Yeah, yeah she’s coming, but not anytime soon.”
The captain then changes the channel to the local news.
“This is Emily Frisch for Small City Daily news reporting to you live from Small City, City Hall. Mayor McCarthy has formally announced that he will personally open the Small City founding anniversary celebration next month. It will be held in Small City Park and it’s open for everyone. There will be food, dancing, a mini-carnival and performances from your local artists.
We’ve also got a scoop that if all negotiations go well, a special guest will grace our celebration and who that is, is still a mystery. But until then, we’re still a month before the celebration and some of the preparations have already been started. This should be a great day for us here as we celebrate the 125th foundation year of Small City.
From Small City Daily News, this is Emily Frisch at your service.”
Capt. Pickett turns the TV off and heads back to his office. Meanwhile, as he was about to leave the station, Lt. Mulroney talked to Trance.
“Hey, Trance. Care for brunch at the deli?”
“Sure?”
“You busy or something?”
“Oh, all right.”
The two went to the deli around the corner.
“So, Trance, what do you think about your dreams lately? Have you found out why you have this special gift that you can see crimes in your dreams and they turn out to be the real thing? And if so, what about the dream that you keep on having? You know, the girl on the ledge of a building?”
“I have no idea, Eva. I wish I knew why I have this ability. But I’m thankful for it. It really helps me a lot in my work.”
“But what about those cases that you haven’t dreamed of?”
“Good question. Well, I usually don’t get involved in those cases. All of the cases that happened in my dreams are big cases and it just so happens that I always get involved with them.”
“What if you are in a case and you haven’t dreamed about it?”
“That hasn’t happened yet. If I get a case that I haven’t dreamt of yet, I will dream about it that same night.”
“I see. It’s creepy. It’s like it has a mind of its own and activates when there is a case for you. What if there’s a microchip in your brain that the captain switches on and off if you have a case?”
Both of them laughed loudly and continued on with their meal.
Chapter II: The Awakening
“Thank you for calling Small City Utilities. This is Cindy. How may I help you today?”
“Hello, Cindy. How are you today?”
“I’m doing fine. How about you?
“Oh, I sure am fine. I’m talking to Cindy, for crying out loud.”
“I’m not sure about that, sir.”
“Oh, yes, I am. Care to be my date tonight?”
Cindy became confused.
“Who’s this? This is Small City Utilities. What number are you trying to call?”
“Do you like to watch movies, Cindy?”
“I’m not joking. Who’s this? I’m going to call the cops.”
“Wrong answer. You die tonight.”
Call center representatives sometimes receive prank calls. Some are just funny, but some are really serious, especially if a threat was made.
The caller slams the phone down and Cindy was shaken. She stood from her desk and went to her manager and told him about what happened. Her manager reported the incident to the security personal and in turn, reported what happened to the local PD.
Lt. Mulroney’s team went to Cindy’s home and watched her overnight. There were four officers on duty. Two of them were inside their police car just in front of the main door to the house. The other two were inside the living room inside the house. As soon as Cindy chooses to sleep, the two officers inside the house would have to go out and stay in their car too, which was parked two houses down.
At 10:00 pm, Cindy went to sleep and the officers stayed outside to watch her house. The next morning, the officers began to worry because it’s already 9:00 in the morning and Cindy doesn’t seem to be up yet. The officers go to the front door and knocks several times.
“Ms. Cindy? This is Officer Smith. Please respond.”
“Hey, do you think she’s okay?”
“I don’t know.”
“Maybe we need to break into the house.”
“Okay. Let me ask one more time. Ms. DeMarco, if you won’t respond in the next 10 seconds, we will be forced to enter your house. We are worried here.”
Cindy didn’t answer so the officers pried the door open and they went straight up to her bedroom. To their surprise, Cindy is lying lifeless on her bed.
Lt. Mulroney went there immediately. The place was packed with cops, investigators and media.
“Nobody came in and out, lieutenant.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, ma’am, the four of us were there. We were watching the entire time.”
“Okay. This is becoming really confusing.”
Then, another officer shouted.
“Hey, guys. There are some marks here on the window sill. It’s mud from the lawn.”
“Good catch, officer. But that doesn’t tell us who the assailant was. We know he or she came in from the window and then ran out the other window.”
They’re back to square one, until the lieutenant’s phone rang.
“Hello.”
“Lieutenant, this is Trance.”
Eva’s aura seemed to be a lot brighter. This might be regarding this case and Trance could have dreamt about it.
“Yes, Trance. How can I help you?”
“I had a dream last night.”
“What was it about? Was it about a call center agent?”
“No, it was about the dream that I usually am having.”
Eva clearly was disheartened because they’re still on square one.
“What about that dream, Trance? Please make it quick. We’re on a case right now.”
“Well, in my dream, the building we ran into was the West Gold Tower. It’s the one a few blocks down the road from the police station. Not sure how significant that was, but that’s something new from my dream.”
