The Dream Catcher

By Allen R. Remaley

Every so often, one picks up and treasures a lucky charm, a talisman which, for the holder, works a magic spell. Neither science, common sense nor religious conviction deters that person from sticking to the notion that the trinket they possess might have some inexplicable power. The Dream Catcher is a story about a young, attractive, combat-trained hospital nurse who, while looking for love, receives a gift from an old American Indian seller of jewelry and relics. The gift, she is told, can bring about healing in a very mysterious way. Rachel Collins, the nurse, can blow you a kiss and say, “Sweet dreams!” If you have been good, wonders can take place. If you have been bad, a different blend of the medicine could result in a nightmare.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 22, 2020
• ISBN: 9781665511544

Allen R. Remaley

Allen R. Remaley has written fifteen novels, collections of short stories, letters and professional articles. While most of his novels are categorized as fiction, some are bathed in actual experience. He is a four-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps, a thirty-seven -year teacher at the elementary, secondary and graduate-school levels of education. He holds a doctorate in French and in the Teaching of Foreign Languages. Dr. Remaley no longer skydives, but he does play pickle ball and strums the banjo. He lives with his wife in Saratoga Springs, NY and in Scottsdale, AZ.

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© 2021 Allen R. Remaley. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  12/18/2020

ISBN: 978-1-6655-1155-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-1154-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020925176

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Prologue

1 New Faces, New Friends

2 A New Start

3 The Artifact

4 The Gift

5 The Call to Arms

6 The Tete-a-Tete

7 Sleep Tight!

8 Revelations

9 Reignition

10 A Kiss to Build a Dream On

11 The Birthday Party

12 Climate Change

13 Turnabout

14 The Proposition

15 The Hummingbird

16 The Respite

17 The Journalist

18 Fake News

19 Jiminy Cricket and his Star

20 Fake News Redux

21 Favors

22 Recognition

23 Executive Privilege

24 Dinner at the Mansion

25 Respect and Appreciation

26 A Kiss to Build a Dream On

Author’s Note

Prologue

I sn’t it interesting? Even with our access to high-powered telescopes and our far-reaching satellites, we still cling to the belief that we are somehow unique in this cosmos of planets, suns and asteroids. In spite of the fact that we can detect millions of other planets, we are hesitant to admit that there are things out there beyond our comprehension. That just might explain why we tend to believe in and promote the existence of the supernatural, magic and the occult. In our societies, the practitioners of voodoo cast spells on others, and we look on in disbelief. But we do not walk away from the scene. We are drawn to it like moths to a street light. We observe palm readers who predict with uncanny accuracy the events in one’s future. Mind readers seem to possess special insight when focused on those willing to be the subject of mental scrutiny. The holder of special talismans is sometimes able to produce magical and miraculous effects, and these, too, hold us like a spell because of our inability to comprehend and clearly understand that there are things beyond our comprehension such as far-away planets which might support life. This tale is about one of us, a woman, who inadvertently accepts the gift of a special totem and brings it to life. This is the story of Rachel Collins, The Dream Catcher.

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1

New Faces, New Friends

O ld things, whether inanimate or living, attract our attention and sometimes they beckon to us. Those who have wandered into an antique center stroll along and admire those things discarded or no longer used, and they wonder in amazement how our ancestors managed with such tools, doodads and implements. We tend to ponder what these dated things, flesh or bone, have encountered during their journey through time. Our fascination with the unknown knows no bounds and perhaps dates back to survival techniques perfected millions of years ago. Rachel Collins, until her decision to vacation in Arizona, had no idea what was waiting for her.

Rachel had just turned thirty. She was what the French would term, bien bati, and her attractiveness was matched with her having earned a master of science degree in nursing. No easy task. To pay her student-loan debt, she enlisted in the military and was accepted as a Navy nurse. Within four years, she reached the grade of lieutenant. Those two bars drew the attention of superior officers all of whom but one were rejected as suiters. She had fallen for a young Marine Corps lieutenant while serving as a combat nurse. Both Rachel and her fiancé went on patrol in Afghanistan, and during a surprise attack, her fiancé was killed in action. Rachel was wounded in that same battle. She resigned her commission in the Navy and needed an escape from military life. Her lover’s death caused trauma. Rachel needed something to keep her mind occupied and time to grieve. She answered an ad for a nurse with an advanced degree from the Upstate New York- community of Saratoga Springs. She was given an interview and hired on the spot. The next day, she put a down payment on a two-bedroom, two-bath condo and went straight to work. Almost immediately, her ability and her mature beauty attracted others in her hospital. Too many others.

Newcomers, like undocumented aliens, are not immediately welcomed into any community with open arms. To those who were born and grew up in the living space, a home-town setting, dues had to be paid, acquaintances had to be made, and a way of doing things had to be followed. Tradition is like blood; it’s hard to change either one. Rachel had to pay her rights of passage. She was made aware of that her first day on the job.

She arrived early for her shift. Because of her education, military experience and recommendations, she was put in charge of two entire floors of her hospital, and she asked for and was given special permission to work in the children’s wing. Rachel had a special spot in her heart for children. While she never told anyone, it was during the brutal attack on her unit that she lost the baby she was carrying. Her fiancé was not aware that the woman he loved was pregnant with his child. Now, he would never know. It was Rachel’s job to see that each floor was covered, that her nurses were on time, on task and on call at every minute of their shift. She was the fuel for this ever-pumping task force, and she had to supply the energy for an efficient and well-oiled machine. In doing so, Rachel soon realized that mental sabotage was taking place. One of the nurses who had been passed over for Rachel’s job, Alice Parker, a three-year veteran RN at the hospital, resented this out-of-stater coming in and taking over. Before Rachel’s first week on the job had ended, during time-out breaks, in after-hour get togethers and in the supermarket with colleagues, Alice spread rumors about Rachel being dishonorably discharged from the Navy, that she might have had an affair with a married superior officer, and that she sometimes smoked marijuana. Without knowing it, Alice was allowing her hatred for a woman she knew nothing about to burn out her insides as sure as if someone had introduced hot acid into the linings of her stomach. Rachel caught bits and pieces of conversations, but never once did she accuse any of her colleagues, especially Alice, of wrongdoing. She had learned in the Navy that individual personalities played roles in everyone’s life. Sometimes, such things had to be overlooked. But every so often, magic dust is sprinkled over one’s head, and a Jiminy-Cricket-like entity enters one’s life. Enter Cynthia Dash.

Cynthia liked Rachel from the get go. There was just something about this newcomer which made Cynthia know that there was that special thing about her new supervisor. Cynthia was a black American whose father had flown in the Red Tails, a combat flying unit of the Tuskegee Airmen. Cynthia’s father was a devout Christian who had married a white woman and raised seven children with her. Love was part of each member of the Dash’s family, and Cynthia was about to play a role in Rachel’s acceptance to the community.

Hospital nurses are on their feet most of the time. They cater to calls for help, tend to those in pain, administer medicine and make an effort to assist in healing. When they get a break, they take it seriously, and the staff cafeteria is not only an escape, it is a refuge from those seeking around-the-clock care. Rachel’s fifteen-minute repose found her seeking a table where she could compose herself for the next round in her shift, and she found a table alone in one corner of the breakroom. One other table was occupied with other nurses, some emergency doctors, and Alice Parker was whispering something to her table mates. Rachel ignored them, sipped her coffee and contemplated some papers she had brought with her. She heard someone say, Hey, girl. Mind if I share a table with you? Rachel looked up at one of her nurses and recognized Cynthia Dash. Rachel responded, Hi, there, Cynthia. I could use some company. That started what was soon going to turn into a mutual-admiration friendship.

–Miss Collins, I…

–Please, Cynthia, call me Rachel. We are colleagues, and we work as a team here, and I’m glad you’re on it.

–Thank you, Rachel. But I have a question to ask.

–Sure. Anything. Go ahead.

–Do you drink wine?

–Do fish like water?

–OK, today is my birthday. My family is busy and away visiting relatives. I need a night out. Could you join me for a glass after work?

–What a great idea. When and where?

–The Old Firehouse Restaurant has a nice tap room, and around five o’clock, there will not be a crowd. What do you think?

–It might take me a minute or two to change out of my uniform, but I will be there.

The two finished their coffee, went on with their day, and got ready to meet later at the Old Firehouse for a coup de rouge. Both Rachel and her soon-to-be new friend, Cynthia, found out that they both had studied a little French in high school and college, and that little but similar knowledge would