Dream Tracker (The Beginning)

By J. Lee McPherson

What made Adam Stillwell suddenly start seeing glimpses of the future in his dreams? How does he handle the situation when he finds out that someone he befriended is a cold blooded serial killer? When he thinks one problem is solved another one arises worse than the one before. Just when he thinks he is beyond controlling the deadly dreams he stumbles on to something that blows his mind. However when a psychopathic maniac takes out his vengeance a little too close to home Adam Stillwell is put to the test of eye to eye contact with the smiling demonic face and will have to put all his courage to the test. What makes Adam have these futuristic dreams that show him what is about to come in only a matter of hours? The answer is inside and before the story ends you'll feel like you've made a friend with Adam Stillwell.

• Language: English
• Publisher: J. Lee McPherson
• Release date: Nov 24, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465899019

J. Lee McPherson

Hi folks. My name is J. Lee McPherson and I live in the southern part of Missouri. My hobby has been mostly singing and playing my guitar at local jam sessions as well as writing songs until encouraging words from my family uncovered in their eyes another talent of mine I didn't know I possessed. I've always liked putting words to music and my family saw something in the way I wrote so encouraged me to try my luck at writing books. Now when I'm not jamming with my friends I'm busy writing fiction novels. In my later years of life I decided to take my family's advice and to try my luck at writing. So in a short span of time I came up with 'The Shadow Dog of Jeremiah', a Christmas story called 'Bobba Long the Bowlegged Snowman', 'Stars of Ivondale' and another Christmas story called 'The Magic Snowball'. Later I wrote a science fiction novel called 'The Storm Shelter', another fiction novel called 'The Legend of Zinnia' and then 'Dream Tracker (The Beginning)'. Now I figure I've finally found my niche in life and I plan on writing as long as I can take the pictures from my mind and with a little imagination put them to words. All my books have been published to Smashwords and some can also be purchased in print. To see all the books that I've completed and that has been published go to my website at: htttp://www.jleemcpherson.com I will hopefully have more books in the near future. J. Lee McPherson

Book preview

Preface

If we could remember everything we dream in detail, doing a complete evaluation, what would we find? Our dreams tell us many things. Sometimes they relate to our failures in life and other times they reflect the joy of everyday living. We wake up at times wondering what caused such a foolish dream as this. I've wondered myself about dreams and how many levels or paths they take gathering information. The paths we take in life are all of a sensible nature but what about the trails we follow in dreams? Could it be that deep in the crevices of our brains there are receptors that are seldom used and could it be that this fine lined frequency is capable of receiving signals from the future? Is it possible something similar to a computer virus somehow infiltrates that part of the brain scrambling signals, thereby opening the door to things unexplained? Even in Biblical times, kings and other important people in the world relied on interpreters to reveal the meaning of dreams to see if they held information on forthcoming battles and other matters of great importance.

Read how young Adam Stillwell follows the trails of the future while asleep, possibly intercepting signals on minute receptors hidden somewhere in the deep crevices of his brain.

**

Prologue

It was in the spring of 1986. The large double entrance doors of the hospital slid open and Mrs. Clara Stillwell was taken from the ambulance and wheeled into the emergency room where she was immediately taken to surgery. She was eight months pregnant and hemorrhaging. Ben Stillwell was at her side, sobbing, telling her everything would be alright.

The nurses told Mr. Stillwell he'd have to wait outside in the waiting room and they would do everything they could; assuring him she was in good hands.

Two hours passed and Mr. Stillwell was frantic with worry. Finally the doctor came out and shook his head and Ben Stillwell knew then that his son was dead. Their little baby boy was gone after all their prayers to God to give them a son and now He had just taken him away.

Doctor! Doctor!

Ben Stillwell heard the nurses calling the doctor’s name from surgery. The doctor turned around and asked, What is it?

Doctor, we've got a heartbeat. The baby's going to be alright. It's like a miracle. We gave up after several minutes of resuscitation and then noted the time of death. We were in the process of writing it down when we heard the baby whimper and then cry out.

Well Mr. Stillwell. It looks like you've got a son after all. I don't think he was out long enough to cause any brain damage. We'll let you know shortly when you can see your wife. What a grand day it is. We might thank the good Lord above for looking down on this little one.

Oh, thank you doctor. I'm going to pray right now and thank God for saving our son.

"Ben Stillwell went into his wife's room later and saw them both lying there and it reminded him of Mary and baby Jesus. There seemed to be an aura surrounding these two creatures of God that brought tears of joy to Ben's eyes and he knelt and kissed his wife and child, thanking the good Lord once again.

We did it, Ben. We've got a beautiful baby boy. Our prayers were answered, said Clara staring into her husband's tear filled eyes.

That we did my darling Clara. With God's help we now have our beautiful baby boy.

**

Chapter 1

He awoke to the light of the rising sun coming through the slit in the drapes. He lay there for a minute, and then sat up. He reached over to the night stand and picked up what was now his most prized possession. He held the 9mm semi automatic pistol in his hand admiring its craftsmanship. He had always wanted a weapon like this one and now he was holding it in his hand.

As he sat on the edge of his bed in the dingy motel room he thought about how he acquired the pistol and the way it changed his whole way of thinking. He thought about the night before when he stepped out of his motel room to get a pack of cigarettes from the car. It was at that moment when he saw the two cars barreling down the street at a high rate of speed. He heard the high pitched noise of the siren and saw the bright flashing lights, but the lead car had no intention of slowing down.

Both cars came flying under the overpass of the freeway right past where he was standing. As he watched, feeling the excitement flow through his veins, he saw something being tossed from the passenger side of the sedan. Whatever the object was landed in the weeds next to the road not fifty yards from where he was standing. He ran toward the place where he thought it might be. Without disturbing the weeds, he carefully let his eyes sweep the area and then he saw it.

Back in his motel room he marveled at his discovery. He knew it was probably stolen, but didn't care. The gun that he held in his hand was not only a weapon with ammunition but was also loaded with self esteem, added strength and control. For a bonus it had an expensive silencer attached that only changed its size slightly. For the first time he felt like he had charge of his life and nobody was about to take that feeling away. He went into the bathroom and looked into the cracked mirror on the wall above the wash basin. The person that stared back at him was now somebody. No more would he hear the words, 'loser, freak, maggot or scumbag'.

He posed in front of the mirror with the gun in his hand doing impressions of gangsters he'd seen in the old films. One of the gangsters came to mind and he said aloud, You dirty rat! You snitched on me one too many times. Bam, Bam! Take that you lousy snitch!

While looking in the mirror, he pictured himself as a gangster and thought, 'I could really use a shoulder holster and some more ammo. What's a gun without ammo?'

He then decided to shower, shave and put on his best clean shirt and slacks. An hour later he checked out of the motel, got in his crappy excuse for a car and pointed it down the street with no idea where he was going. He just knew he wasn't too crazy about down town Memphis and decided to hit the road.

After driving a couple of miles, he saw a pawn shop just on the outskirts of Memphis. He pulled into the parking lot just before nine and noticed that the closed sign was still on the door. He decided to wait a few minutes, but then saw the owner inside flip the sign around. He went inside and began looking around.

Can I help you with something, young man? said the owner.

I'm just looking right now, thanks.

Well, just yell if you need help.

He saw a lot of used holsters and straps in one area of the store. After looking at several holsters, he found a complete shoulder holster setup that he thought might just be the ticket. Making sure his back was toward the owner he snuck the pistol from his jacket and slid it into the holster. It was a perfect fit. He quickly put the gun back into his jacket and took the shoulder holster to the counter.

I could also use some 9mm ammo if you don't mind, he said.

You know. All of a sudden I've got a bad feeling about you. I don't know what your intentions are young man but somehow I think you are up to no good.

You going to give me the ammo or not, mister?

I just decided I don't need to be selling to bums like you. Now take your money and get out of my store!

Well, you're right about one thing. You don't know what my intentions are, so you're about to find out. Nobody gets away with calling me a bum now or ever again. he looked around in all directions and, seeing that no one was in sight, pulled the pistol from his pocket and pointed it to the man's head.

Wait a minute, young man. I didn't mean what I said. Why, I was only joking. I can see that you are a decent looking fella. What do you say we forget the whole thing ever happened?

He got right up in the man's face and said, Well I'd be willing to do that mister but, callin' me a bum was the wrong thing to do and, I just don't forget those kinds of things. Now bend over here and I'll tell you a secret.

The man bent over the counter and put his head up next to his and said in a trembling voice, Well, what is the secret, young man?

Well, if I told you it wouldn't be a secret now, would it, and put the gun between the man's eyes and pulled the trigger. The gun made a low cracking noise but left a large hole in the man's skull. He crashed back against the wall where all the ammo was kept and slid to the floor leaving a trail of blood behind and then creating a small pool beneath his head where he lay on the floor.

He grabbed a pair of thin leather gloves hanging on the wall. He put them on then threw a few boxes of 9mm ammo in a box then stepped over the body and took all the money from the cash register. He saw a nice looking 12 gauge pump shotgun so grabbed that with a case of shells. He was getting ready to leave when he saw a .223 varmint rifle and thought it might come in handy for long range. He grabbed that, as well as some .223 ammo, and headed for the door.

He felt alive driving down the highway toward Tunica. He pulled into an empty parking lot on the way and threw all the guns and ammo into the trunk except for the pistol. He counted the money that he had taken from the register and was surprised to see that there was close to eighteen hundred dollars. He took three hundred and put the rest in the trunk. An hour later he walked into one of the big casinos in Tunica. He walked out winning almost four hundred which added to his ever increasing narcissistic behavior.

Things were sure looking up, he thought as he unlocked his car. Opening the door he was just about to get in when he heard a voice say, That’s far enough. Now step away from the car. I saw how much money you cashed in and I decided that would be enough to get this old boy high for a week so hand it over, pal and be quick about it.

He saw that the man was holding a snub nosed revolver and knew they weren't accurate beyond twenty feet. Then he saw the butt end of his pistol sticking out from beneath the seat and decided there was only one thing to do.

Holy crap, he said in a loud voice looking over the man's shoulder.

The man was took off guard for only a second. That was all that he needed. He grabbed the gun, and then fell to the ground rolling over while blasting two shots into the man's chest with a soft popping noise. He took the man's gun and pushed his body beneath a pickup truck parked in the next space.

No one was in the vicinity of the parked cars, so he got in his car and pulled out slow and easy just like nothing had happened.

Cruising down the highway he said, Man, I'm good!

Things did seem to be in his favor until he came around a turn and straight ahead were two highway patrol cars parked nose to nose on the highway directly in front of him. He knew he had no choice but to hit the accelerator and bust through the barrier. He was somebody now and nobody could take that away from him. Not even the law.

He was doing over ninety when he hit the cars and heard a few shots but was in the clear, or so he thought. He looked back for an instant, laughing at the way he left the cops humiliated as if their pants were around their ankles. He then turned his eyes straight ahead and a bulldozer was parked with the blade staring him in the face. He hit the brakes and let out a scream, sliding toward the big blade at over seventy miles an hour. He heard a loud crash and yelled out, waking himself up from the nightmare. He was lying on the floor of his bedroom with the night stand lamp next to him.

Adam, are you having another bad dream, dear?

Yeah mom, I guess it's the finals that have been bugging me.

You'll do fine, dear. Have you made any plans as to what you are going to do with your life after high school? You know the years fly by without even realizing it. You could help your father at the grocery store until you make up your mind.

Yeah, I might do that, mom. I just want one summer without worrying about tests every day and whether I'm going to graduate. You know what I mean?

Yes I do, Adam. You need to just enjoy being young this summer. I'm not so old that I don't remember the things that you're feeling.

I know you're not old, mom. You're the best looking mom in this neighborhood, that's for sure. Even grandma's pretty for her age. You must have inherited it from her.

That's sweet, Adam. Mother is a very pretty lady, I must admit, but why they ever moved to Tulsa I'll never know. Well, I guess I do know and that's because his old army buddy talked him into it. Still, I wish they were closer. I miss having them around to see you grow into the fine gentleman you are becoming.

Adam's grandparents on his mother's side were Charles and Janet Myers and it was true that Charles had befriended a fellow soldier in Vietnam. It was also true that they swore an oath that if they ever came out of the war alive they would go in business together. The problem is that Charles's friend Dan Barclay didn't make the job offer to Charles until just five years ago when they were both approaching sixty. Charles accepted the offer, however, and was now a very successful partner in a small aircraft parts manufacturing company.

As far as Ben Stillwell's parents, the subject wasn't discussed much. Adam already knew the story of his other grandparents on his father's side and knew it bothered his father to talk about it.

It wasn't because Ben Stillwell wasn't proud of his father because he was. He had gotten killed in Vietnam giving his life to save some of his buddies. Staff Sergeant James Stillwell threw himself on a live grenade that landed in a trench where he and his fellow soldiers were holed up. He knew he had no choice and didn't even hesitate to sacrifice his life, his friends had said later.

The bitter memories that were harbored in Ben Stillwell's mind was the fact that his mother Charlotte was having an affair at home while his father was in a foreign country fighting for his country. He knew his father was thinking of her in the dismal moments of silence on the battle field and that tortured Ben Stillwell's mind and so tried not to think about it and asked the family not to bring it up.

Adam wanted to know more about his grandfather who was a fallen hero but honored his father's wishes. He didn't care to know about his grandmother who ran off and married the man she was having an affair with. To Adam his father Ben Stillwell was his hero and he loved him dearly.

I appreciate you thinking I'm pretty, dear. Spoken like a true gentleman, I'm sure, said Adam's mother and they both laughed.

Now tell me what the dream was all about, Adam.

Ah, I think I'm too fascinated with all the old gangster movies. I dreamed I was a gangster. Well, not really a gangster. Actually, I was a cold blooded killer. I'm kind of glad I woke up and I'm sorry for knocking the lamp over. At least it wasn't broken.

Oh, that's alright, dear. We’ve all had our share of accidents. It's not like you did it intentionally.

The Stillwell's lived in a little town not too far from Springfield, Missouri called Cradle Rock. Ben Stillwell ran one of three grocery stores in town called 'Stillwell Grocery' and Adam's mother Clara retired after working twenty years at a large sports equipment distribution center in Springfield. She had started working there knowing they had good retirement benefits and at only thirty nine she was getting a pretty decent monthly pension. Like Adam said, she was the prettiest mom in the neighborhood. She still had her young girlish figure with blonde hair and blue eyes that still drew men's attention wherever she went. Ben was forty one and still looked pretty good for his age also, even though his dark hair was beginning to recede a little. He exercised every morning before going to work and the whole family would sometimes go on long jaunts with their mountain bikes on weekends.

It was 2003 and, in a few weeks, Adam would be graduating from Cradle Rock High School. Adam's father had always been infatuated with the old gangster movies and Adam became an addict himself after spending many hours watching the old films with his father. He'd watched so many that now he was seeing them in his dreams where he became the gangster himself. Adam thought the dream he had last night was the worst. He had never been a cold blooded killer in his other dreams. A few times he even played the detective role but last night was more like a nightmare. He hoped he didn't have any more dreams that went