by Kim Hornsby
Tina spun around to face him. “Shut up. There is nothing wrong with my dog.” Lumps come and go all the time. Taking a deep breath, she let her arrow fly. “If what you say about intuition is true, then you must know that I don’t like you, Jamey, and that I only agreed to meet with you tonight so Katie wouldn’t feel bad.” Katie had been trying to fix them up with about as much subtlety as an orangutan. “And if you can read my mind, then shame on you because that is a gross invasion of privacy.”
“Let me help you, Tina.”
Jamey was too close and she shoved him as hard as she could. “You don’t get it!” Her voice rose to a level she hadn’t used in years. “I don’t like you and I don’t trust you.” She waited for that to sink in. “Obi’s lump is nothing. You hear me? So stop talking about it.” He must’ve seen Obi’s underside, but how did he know she couldn’t take her dog to the vet?
“I’m not talking about his lump. I’m just telling you something I feel about you. You’re the one who won’t take him to the vet.”
“Shut up!” She poked him again. And again. “You are sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”
Jamey grabbed her shoulders, pulled her in and hugged her. “I can take him to the doctor, if you like. Please, let me do something for you.”
Tina pulled back to see concern flash in his eyes. Genuine. They stood staring at each other, and when he leaned down and kissed her lips, it felt like something left over from years ago—tender, beautifully familiar. Dammit.
And it lasted only long enough for Tina to realize it was her second stab at physical intimacy in forty-eight hours. Breaking away, she stepped back. She was pitiful, letting men all over Maui kiss her. “I need to go home,” she said, disgust trailing her words.
Jamey moved in front to block a getaway. “Wait. Hear me out. I read dreams. I want you to know that before this chance is lost.” She swerved to go around him.
He caught up to her. “That’s how I think I might be able to help you the most, Tina. Not diving.”
They were now standing between a noisy mashup of two different songs coming from two hotels. Her head was full.
He took several steps towards her and lowered his voice. “I read dreams.”
She stopped. “Oh come on, Jamey. First you say you read minds, now dreams. Which is it?” Tina stared hard into his face, trying to determine the truth from lies. As much as she wanted to walk away, the word “dreams” had her attention.
“I am an expert on dreams. I swear.” He looked like he believed what he was saying.
Her shoulders slumped. “I’m not saying I believe you but if you’re not telling the truth, I will never speak to you again.” “I’m telling the truth. I swear on my life, Tina. I read dreams.”
Revealing her dreams to this man would feel like letting him watch her undress. If he was a philandering adulterer when she met him, why would he be telling the truth now?
“You have nothing to lose but the privacy of the dream, and I promise I can keep a secret.”
“Oh, I know you can keep secrets.” She didn’t intend to sound accusatory.
“This is what I do with my life now,” he added.
Wasn’t he a soldier in Afghanistan? “In the army?”
“Yes.” He seemed to be measuring his words. “For the military in Afghanistan.”
Jamey interpreted dreams for the army? Was she supposed to believe that?
“I know this is a lot to take in, especially because you once knew me, but I am a dream expert.”
What the hell? “Did you know how to do all this when…we knew each other…before?”
He nodded. “But it’s developed.”
Tina considered how well she knew him before. If she pretended to trust him, she could withhold personal information and hope his intuition wasn’t as good as he said. Just because she was angry with him didn’t mean he might not be able to help her. The only lights on the beach were those from the massive hotels of Kaanapali behind them and she lowered herself to sit on a mound of sand, the remains of a fallen castle from someone’s day at the beach. “It’s a long story.”
He sat down beside her and waited. Recounting the dreams about the cave, the shark and diving without scuba equipment was like opening a wound she’d bandaged poorly. All the work in denying the dreams was now undone as she slowly, methodically, described how she’d dived with Hank to a cave.
“Hank turns into a tiger shark and disappears inside a cave?”
“Yes, and sometimes he’s just himself.”
“And you think you wake up but it’s still the dream?” Jamey’s voice had reached a pitch she’d never heard before. He sounded like he had heightened interest, not just heightened intuition. “Your first dream about Hank might be what the experts call “WILD,” a wake induced lucid dream. Relaxation exercises took you into the dream. It’s called the holy grail of lucid dreaming because you took yourself to a dream state from fully awake.”
Her mistrust dissolved. Slightly. He knew what he was talking about.
After asking about Hank, her usual dreaming patterns, and what she saw during the dive, Jamey was silent.
Resting her chin on her knee, Tina watched a group of night divers exit the water at Black Rock. Not Dave and his class. They’d gone to Airport Beach.
“Here’s what I think: you suspect his body is in an underwater cave and that you might subconsciously know the location. Is it possible that your mind is hiding a known location?”
“I’ve never done this dive before, I’m sure of that.”
He continued. “Did Hank ever mention a dive like this? Is it possible he dove on the morning he disappeared, not surfed?” She shook her head.
“I’m wondering if this cave exists. As for the continuation of your dreams when you think you’re awake, that’s not uncommon, but you’re dreaming so vividly that it’s confusing you. Tying the ribbon to Obi’s collar was a stroke of genius.” He twirled a stick in the sand. “And Hank turning into a shark is your worry that sharks have taken the body from you and essentially Hank has become part of a shark.”
She wasn’t sure what to say next. Jamey seemed to be miles away. The silence hung over them until Tina was embarrassed. She’d opened her heart for so little in return. “I better get back to Obi in the car.” Tina had to wonder what she’d expected. She’d opened the wound and he didn’t have a good enough first-aid kit. Maybe she’d wanted the reassurance that Hank was alive and hiding on another continent.
“This isn’t over. For me to help, I need you to keep a journal of your dreams for the next few nights.” Jamey looked serious enough for Tina to nod.
“I don’t dream every night.”
“I want to know when you do and at what time. Even the dreams you already told me about from the past week. The dates and content. Everything. Put it all in there.” He seemed excited at the prospect of studying her dreams.
“Alright.” She would. But now she had to get back to her truck. Obi would be asleep in the passenger seat, waiting. “I need to go.” She didn’t like leaving her dog this long. Especially now. Jamey stood and reached out to help her to stand.
Tina stood and shook the sand from her skirt. “Can you read my thoughts now?” She was thinking that Jamey had always had such gentlemanly manners. “Can you?” If this new revelation was true, it would be unnerving.
“Not really. Just that you appreciate me helping you, which is obvious.”
Tina’s brow wrinkled. “That’s enough.”
Walking through the bar and restaurant, they crossed a wooden bridge over a koi pond into the Whaler’s Village Shopping Center. The kiosks were closed up for the evening. “If you notice the obvious, what’s obvious right now?” Tina asked.
“You want to get back to Obi and you’re embarrassed about the kiss. You’re sorry you told me so much because you think I wasn’t much help.”
Oh, my God. He was right. She wanted to get away from Jamey and re-think everything she’d ever
said to him. Obi must’ve caught her scent because when they got close he sat up in the seat and stuck his head out the window. Someone had left a note on her truck windshield saying that she shouldn’t leave a pit bull in a truck with the windows down.
She opened the truck door and let Obi jump out. Jamey leaned against the car, his arms folded across his chest. “He’s a great dog.”
“Can you tell if he’s sick?”
He waited for Obi to return from the bushes and then put his hand on the dog’s underside. Obi licked his face. “I don’t feel anything threatening.”
Tina stared at him petting her dog. “It’s an unbelievable claim, that you read minds.”
“That’s exactly why I don’t tell anyone. Why I never told you before. Even if you don’t believe me yet, please keep my secret. Katie doesn’t know, for obvious reasons.” He almost smiled.
She thought about telling him more, like her hope that Hank was still alive, but the trust wasn’t there. “Did your wife know?”
He nodded. “I used it during her pregnancy to see how the fetuses were growing.” He looked at Tina long and hard. “It’s not always amazingly accurate. I know you are very mad at me, but I can’t get a handle on what I did to make you this upset.”
She jumped into the truck cab and put the key in the ignition.
“I think it has to do with me leaving you, marrying, having kids, but there’s something more to it.”
“Well then, you’re not that good, are you?” She backed out of the parking spot, leaving Jamey staring after her.
Noble was at the deck railing when she got out of her truck.
“I’ve been waiting for you.” He looked agitated.
“I see that.” Tina took a deep breath and steeled herself. “Do you have a boyfriend or something?” He followed her into the house.
Tina stopped in her tracks. “Did you see me with Jamey?” Noble folded his arms across his chest. “Who’s Jamey?” She stared at him. Jealousy didn’t suit Noble. It wasn’t his loyalty to Hank that brought this on, and she had only herself to blame.
He waited for her answer.
“Why are you doing this? If you are here waiting for me because you’re upset that I met up with an old friend, this proves it was wrong…what we almost did the other night.”
“No.” He moved in and hugged her. Feeling trapped, she eased away.
“It’s okay,” he added. “We’ll figure it out. I know you’re not ready.”
Something had changed between them, like they’d almost headed down a glass-strewn path in their bare feet and turned around. She couldn’t have a baby with Noble. He had feelings for her she couldn’t reciprocate.
“We’ll get back on track.” He nodded.
“Noble...” Tina couldn’t find the right words. Anything she thought to say would sound patronizing. “You mean so much to me.”
His expression was concerning.
“We will get back on track, but now I have to go to bed or I’m going to drop on the spot,” she said.
They hugged and she walked into her bedroom as Noble descended the back stairs. Was there any hope of regaining their friendship, or had everything already changed too much? At least all this drama was distracting her from the worry that she might be going crazy.
She switched her bikini top and pareo for an old T-shirt of Hanks. What had Jamey told her tonight? He was psychic…hyper intuitive, he said, with the ability to read dreams. Maybe he was a weirdo.
Ten years ago, she’d only known him a few weeks, but he definitely did not seem crazy then. But now, as a soldier on leave, she had to wonder if he had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She’d overheard him say that he wasn’t involved in combat. He was on some type of leave, though, and she had to wonder what had happened to give him three months off. She’d seen him in swim trunks for the last two weeks, with no sign of recent wounds.
Rubbing Obi’s tummy, she picked off two ticks from her dog’s exposed underside. Her hand lingered on the lump. Jamey could have noticed the lump while petting him. Considering that she’d once been prepared to give Jamey her heart, it was surprising to think that now she wasn’t even comfortable telling him the whole truth about her dreams. Burrowing into the covers, she adjusted her pillows, closed her heavy eyes and finally fell into a deep sleep.
Tina found herself floating, sinking in the cool water. She remained motionless, happy to let the current carry her. In front was the coral-encrusted wall. As usual in her dream, the water was incredibly clear. She drifted towards the cave. The shark hadn’t appeared. Tina remained alert, with the wall on her right, like scenery passing from a car window, thinking she must remember to tell Jamey about this lucid dream.
And then, there it was. The shark. Flooded in sunlight. Its body was gray and sleek. Its eyes were cold, exactly as she remembered from before. Just a shark. Tina grabbed the wall and stopped her momentum, her pink nightgown continuing to drift forward.
What if the shark wasn’t Hank and attacked her? Tiger sharks were unpredictable like that. Wasn’t this a dream? How painful would an attack be in a dream? Then the shark turned and began to spin in a circle, faster and faster. Tina held onto a knob of rock and watched the transformation from shark to man.
When it stopped, Hank stood before her. The whole Hank she’d known and loved. Not the ghostly apparition of a battered body. She was only a few kicks from her husband. This Hank had laugh lines and kind eyes that beckoned her to follow him, just like before. Tina’s heart was heavy with the repetition of the dream’s purpose. As much as she wanted to go to Hank, she needed to ascend and identify a landmark above ground, just in case the dream was telling her something. Instead, when he waved her to him, she accepted the invitation to follow.
Hank led her to the cave’s black opening and, before disappearing inside, turned and blew her a kiss. Typical Hank. Tina always pretended the kiss landed on her breast and would give him a look like he’d been a naughty boy to plant it there. But this time when she looked up reproachfully, he was gone, the cave opening a gaping, toothless mouth, black and still, with no sign of a recent visitor.
Looking to the surface, Tina weighed the options. She kicked her way up thirty feet, turning in a slow circle to keep her eyes on approaching dangers. As her head cut through to air, the last thing she saw was a stony beach in the distance, with large rock formations leading into the ocean. Then she fell into blackness and was quickly sucked backwards at a preposterous rate.
***
An hour into the paperwork that had piled up on her desk, Tina was interrupted by her friend, Pepper, walking through the shop to the back room. “What are you doing up so early, Pepper? It’s only 7:30.” Pepper usually worked until midnight and never woke before noon.
“I’m still up from last night.” Pepper hugged Tina tightly, as was her custom, and hung on long after Tina would’ve let go. Her small group of good friends had protectively surrounded her after Hank’s accident. But after ten months of helping her through the doldrums, the friends had thinned out, most had backed off. Pepper, however, continued to check in every day.
“I had exciting news last night.” Pepper looked exhilarated, not exhausted.
Tina needed good news, even if it was someone else’s. “What is it?”
“Goldy and Burn were at the Ritz last night, and she offered me a job singing backup on her next tour.” Pepper’s eyes widened. “They leave in a month and one of her singers just backed out!” Pepper gave a little scream.
“Oh, my God!” Tina’s hands flew to her heart. This was exciting news for Pepper. Singing on tour with Goldy, the international rock star, would be a fantastic opportunity for her friend. “Are you kidding?”
“No, I’m leaving for Los Angeles in two weeks to rehearse with Goldy.”
Pepper divulged the particulars of Goldy wandering into the Ritz lounge specifically to hear Pepper sing, knowing she’d just lost one of her backup singers. The rock diva and her husband Burn sat at the back
of the room in the shadows, with their drummer Nick. A man who Pepper had a huge crush on with good reason. They’d hooked up months ago, or almost. Pepper would leave soon for almost one year touring with the hunky drummer. She’d have to think about that one later, Pepper said. Tina was happy for her friend. Maybe good news rubbed off on people and she was next. “We must celebrate.” The words felt strange coming out of Tina’s mouth, considering all that was going on with her.
“We will. On my next night off. Is Mr. T selling his house?” Pepper asked.
“Yes. Isn’t that sad?”
Pepper searched Tina’s face. “Kind of, but he’s old and probably tired of keeping up the house.”
“You’re right. It’s probably a good thing.” Why did Tina think of it as defeat?
“Do you hate me for having the guys take the shop sign down? I made an executive decision.”
“Another good idea. Thanks.” Tina tried to smile
Pepper made an apologetic face just as Jamey walked through the alleyway door with to-go coffees in sleeves.
Tina made introductions.
“Hello,” Pepper crooned, like she wasn’t already interested in Goldy’s drummer. Pepper extended her hand flirtatiously, with no idea that Jamey and Tina had once been lovers.
Familiar with Pepper’s moves, Tina was amused to watch Jamey squirm.
“I’m sorry I didn’t bring enough coffees,” Jamey said. “If you like drip with milk, you’re welcome to this one.” He held out a cup and handed Tina the other one. “Or maybe Tina will give you hers with ten sugars.” He grinned and offered the second cup to Pepper.
“No thanks, I’m going home to sleep. And I couldn’t possibly maintain this body if I drank coffee with all the sugar Tina uses.” Pepper’s flirt factor had ramped up to high. “But you owe me a beverage. You can buy me a drink tonight at the Ritz. I sing in the lobby bar from nine to midnight.” She batted her eyelashes at Jamey and he laughed.
A pang of jealousy invaded, thinking of Jamey and Pepper at the lobby bar, getting to know each other. She sipped her sweet coffee to keep from saying anything. “I’m diving tonight,” Jamey said. “Sorry. Maybe Tina and I can come see you another time.”