Dreams of Reality (3 page)

“Trust me, Mr. Newman, we wouldn’t approach a man of your position in the community if we didn’t think Fats would be highly interested in you. You’d be a great contact and he’d be positively gullible to your every request, without getting suspicious,” Sergeant Nolan explained.

“No, of course not. You’d have two choices: talk or we can provide you with a sleep-induced agent, which we believe has only a raggedness side effect to the chemical we believe she could be taking. Meaning she’d awake with a hangover or grogginess.”

“And how many sessions would this require?”

Craig answered him, “Four to five is the maximum. Once a week. Maybe even less. We want to first try to get information out of her. When Fats feels things are going well, the contact we have at his side now, can go in with a wiretap and discuss the arrangements he has with you. We’ll have the discussion on tape and we can hold him on solicitation of prostitution. We need some substantial way to retain him so he won’t flee the country, which we feel he might do if he knows we are on to him with proof. We will draw a sample of her blood and some other tests to find out her history, her identity and a try to find out exactly how she was chosen and how the drugs really work. She of course will be asleep. Once we establish we won’t need her anymore or she doesn’t test positive for the GHB substance, we will leave her alone.”

“Throw her to the curb?”

“Sort of. Hopefully when this is all over, if the drug we suspect they’ve given her really does what we’ve heard, she won’t be mentally disturbed. We do ask that you be careful and remember the woman probably does not know what she is doing.”

Thaddeus couldn’t believe it all, yet the more they spoke so real about it, everything seemed to be slowly sinking in. “How does the drug control anyone? I must know.”

Sergeant Nolan tried to give more details so Thaddeus could understand. “Somehow, it easily controls a female. We’ve had experts come in and try to explain the possibility and at first we were even doubtful about it, yet there were too many stories coming back to us from secret informants about these strange experiments. Women had started turning up dead on the street with GHB running through their system and the ones that we did find alive were so out of it, they couldn’t tell reality from dreams.” He paused a moment, shaking his head as if trying to get the horrible scenes out of his head. “We haven’t discovered the true details to all of this and like you said this is really all hearsay and predictions, because even the doctors we have on staff say that a lot of chemists have thought of the possibility of a mind controlling drug, but no one's been successful at creating it.”

“Well, there’s truth serum and other things that prevent us from lying,” Craig said. “But the doctors said the idea was so farfetched they couldn’t fathom it being produced.”

“We’re obtaining our own Neuro-Psychologist soon, then we can all better understand exactly what is going on with these women,” Sergeant Nolan said confidently. “If this is possible, innocent, unsuspecting women in our community could be devastated by the effects. We want to stop it before it becomes widespread and we really need your help, Mr. Newman.”

Thaddeus didn’t think twice and nodded. “I will help.”

Craig sighed relieved. “You won’t regret it, Thad. The precinct is willing to agree to take all responsibilities so any individuals won’t sue you.”

“Well that’s reassuring.” His tone was surly.

The sergeant pulled out an envelope. “We’ve set up an apartment at the River Place Towers in Downtown. We’d like you to reside there. We’ve rigged the apartment with special microphones. Now we know and understand your privacy and we respect it. There is a green button on the bottom of the remote, which mutes the room you are in, but we do request you leave this on at all times when having any discussions with the woman. Especially when you’re trying to get information from her. We have a van surveying out in the parking lot if any strangers come there unannounced and we’ve practiced getting to your apartment in less than eight minutes from our positions.”

Thaddeus nodded feeling only slightly reassured, while Craig relaxed a little more. He didn’t think Thaddeus would be at all susceptible to the idea.

Sergeant Nolan handed Thaddeus a brown envelope. “This envelope contains the different keys you need for your apartment—each one labeled, the legal papers we’d like you to drop in the mail and the first payment we know Fats will probably request. Don’t negotiate, accept his terms.”

“How will I meet him?” Thaddeus asked.

Craig explained, “The inside contact will tell Fats you’re interesting in unique entertainment. You’re wealthy, single and just looking for a little fun every Saturday. Someone you don’t have to scope for and someone you don’t want to share. You’re willing to pay heavy for it if he can give you what you like.”

“What will I like?”

“That’s up to you. We prefer requesting the same girl and we hope the first one pleases you.”

Thaddeus looked at Craig. “Do you think the contact could relay this? Pick out a decent one? I can deal with a lot of things but stupidity and ignorance will be very hard to tolerate.”

“We’ll try,” Craig answered. “He will do all the arrangements for you, but I can’t guarantee you will like what you see. According to the contact, he thinks he’s seen the next victim they are going to procure and you should be pleasingly appeased.”

He shrugged it off as if the woman didn’t matter. “Fine. When is the first meeting? Soon? This week?” There was impatience in his voice. He really wanted this over and done with.

Sergeant Nolan shook his head. “No. Give us a week to get the ball rolling, but we would like you to move in by tomorrow. If need be, any of your numbers can be switched or rerouted on a moments notice.”

“This should not be problem. My mobile phone and pager are usually my real numbers outside the office.”

“Good.” The sergeant stood up. “Craig will be our go to man, but we suggest waiting until he makes contact with you. If perchance the police happen to take you in on solicitation and we aren’t around, ask for Mr. Aggie Smith as your public defender. Never contact Craig or I unless there is a life-threatening situation that regular law enforcement couldn’t understand. “

Thaddeus again nodded his understanding of the matter. “It was never my intention to speak to Craig again.” He shot his friend a vicious glare clearly stating with his glowing reddish-hued cinnamon eyes, ‘I’ll get you later.’

Craig knew Thad was kidding, but only because he’d known him for so long. And if he wasn’t kidding, Craig hoped that Thaddeus’ injury was acting up too much to try to chase him. A man of his size and girth should not go around with a frown on his face. It sent all the wrong messages.

“Well if there is nothing else,” Craig said breaking the suppose tension and giving his blood brother a look of disgruntlement. “Your contact name is Pooh.”

“Like the bear?” Thaddeus asked sarcastically, amused watching them leave the office and squeezing a stress ball tightly.

Standing in the hallway outside of Thaddeus’ private office door, waiting for an elevator to go to the parking structure, Craig chuckled.

Sergeant Nolan gave him a skeptical look. “What do you think he will do to her?” The sergeant asked once they were enclosed alone in the elevator.

“And not see him killing himself over breaking the law?” he asked, fighting to keep a straight face, but he couldn’t for long and broke into laughter.

The sergeant didn’t find anything funny. Although Craig knew his blood brother well, the sergeant didn’t, and knowing that the young man would be highly upset didn’t sit too well on his conscious.

If Thaddeus did decide to go after Craig, that would suit him and a couple of boys at the precinct just fine. Craig had pissed a lot of people off on the force with his loud mouth, sarcastic remarks, and arrogant overly playful attitude. The young detective probably needed a good beat down for a change.

Sergeant Nolan didn’t think Craig would be able to withstand a tackle from Thaddeus, although the young man’s demeanor would not suggest he could ever get that violent for no just cause. Thaddeus’ college days were quite well known to collegiate football fans. He had a great season before the last game that ended his career as a defensive lineman. He could get to a quarterback faster than lightening and everyone had predicted that he would be at least second round draft pick. Too bad that accident had ended what could have been a very successful career in the NFL.

Yet people were still proud of him. He had come back and made a real estate redevelopment business into a multimillion-dollar business then expanded to construction. Already he’d received several government and private contracts this year and Fortune magazine predicted by the end of the year his business would be worth over a hundred million dollars with the casino deal he had struck with MGM Grand and Motor City Casino.

Yes, the young man would be a success and when this was all over he would be a hero to the city of Detroit. Wiping out Fats would be a great asset to many community groups since his corrupt operations within them would be shut down.

Chapter 3

She awoke instantly and looked at the clock. It was nine in the morning. Jumping out of bed, she ran to the bathroom and washed up. The appointment with Dr. Ryan Carter was in twenty minutes.

This was a catastrophe. Damn her for staying up late to work and then taking her thick hair out of the corned rolled braids. As she tried to find out style for her thick honey brown mane, she felt like her scalp was going to come off, but finally settled on yanking it back into a tight upside down French-roll that created an attractive frame for her oval face and exotic mauve eyes – if she didn’t wear her glasses.

But in the past few years, Skye had started wearing the reading glasses all the time to serve almost as a pacifier when she was out in public. The glasses made her feel like a safe wall was there to hold her in check and in place. They made her feel almost normal and not out of sorts like she always felt on the inside.

In five minutes she was washed up. As she brushed her teeth she also noted how her glasses threw people off on the nice features of her face. She didn’t mind that at all. She didn’t want attention from men because that would… There was no use in that kind of attention for her. Not from anyone!

After e-mailing her work to her clients she rushed off to the clinic, arriving ten minutes late.

Dr. Carter was waiting in the room for her and seemed glad to see her. He wasn’t cute as Dr. Himes, but his tall “Michael J. Fox” appearance made her a little uncomfortable especially the way his green eyes were sizing her up from head to toe as if recording her measurements and stature.

They made quick introductions. He had read her charts from prior psychiatrists. Immediately, he asked her to speak about her feelings concerning her rape and how she would feel now if she ever becomes involved sexually or emotionally with a man.

Her insides fluttered speaking about this, but she tried to remain calm with Dr. Carter. “I really don’t know how I feel right now. I don’t think about what happened to me in the past any more in details only as a moment that happened. What happened was so long ago and seems so far away. I don’t questions the whens or whys.”

Taking a deep breath she made the cutest twinge of her nose deep in thought. “I don’t involve myself with anyone right now, not because I’m afraid or anything. I mean, I had acquaintances, friends, and sorts, but living here I’m working all the time and I’ve been cooped up. My only contacts are my e-mails from my employees and associates on the web.”

She began to rub the back of her neck nervously feeling a panic attack surfacing. “No reason. I-I mean they say I’m healthy physically, but I don’t engage because I haven’t been... attracted, you could say, to anyone.”

“What holds attraction for you?”

She closed her eyes and immediately started remembering the picture of Thaddeus Newman in the newspaper. “A strong face and personality. Self strength more than anything attracts me.”

“You are beautiful. I am surprised men have not approached you.”

“They do and have. I just don’t talk much except for business. I don’t know why, but just the idea of talking with them and engaging in personal conversations give me panic attacks.”

“Panic attacks?” he questioned scribbling on his pad.

Skye nodded. “Sever panic attacks. It’s like when I’m not conversing with them face to face on a personal level I’m fine. Some of my clients are men and I have no problem speaking business, but as soon as it gets personal, I can’t concentrate. My pulse races and I feel trapped.

“You have tried drugs?”

“Yes, but they only made me sleepy or annoyed. I hated feeling the way they made me feel and I hate taking drugs of any kind in general.”

“Even if they made the attacks lessen?”

“Even then. The idea of being dependent upon a chemical makes me feel weak and I don’t like feeling like that emotionally not when every day it feels like a struggle to get by naturally for me. I tried them all and I didn’t like that. I did have a dog and that helped a lot when I went out in public, but she died a year ago and I just never got another one because losing something felt awful and I didn’t want to lose another one. I have an easier time going out in public and having Shelby helped me make this decision to come to Detroit. If she had not been in my life, I wouldn’t have had the inner strength to move here by myself. I know once I get over her death, I’ll get another puppy, but right now, I have my work to keep me busy and a new house to finish up.”