Jimmy's Dreams: Some Dreams Are Nightmares

by Saxon Andrew

  Summer’s eyes widened, “They have to be millions to one.”

  “I did the work and the odds are more than a trillion to one that it happens by chance.”

  “What are you saying, Jimmy?”

  Jimmy looked up in the darkening sky, “This is no accident and if I inform the government what is coming and they discover they will be prevented from stopping it, panic will ensue and we can probably add a nuclear war in to the mix.”

  “What do you mean, ‘prevented’?”

  “Summer, those asteroids didn’t arrive here at the same time by an act of nature. Someone moved them here and set up their trajectories. Whoever it is, they want us off the planet so they can take ownership.” Summer’s eyes flew open wide and her mouth fell open. Jimmy tilted his head, “Whoever is doing it will not allow any space vehicles to interfere with those asteroids. They are going to hit and there’s nothing we can do to stop them.”

  Summer started weeping and Jimmy took her in his arms and rocked her slightly, “Shhhh, Shhhh, we’re not going to just sit back and take it lying down.” She looked up at him with wet eyes and Jimmy smiled, “You are going to start your graduate work on high energy particles. I need you to find a way to build a laser, blaster, or some other powerful energy weapon we can use. Can you do that?”

  Summer stared at him and nodded. Jimmy smiled, “You’re the perfect one to do it.”

  Summer wiped her eyes and asked, “Why do you say that?”

  “Because I’ve seen you when you feel like someone is taking something that you think is rightfully yours. Earth is ours and someone wanting to take it should really tick you off.”

  Summer’s eyes narrowed slightly and changed into little more than slits, “Damn right!”

  Jimmy hugged her and said, “That’s my girl. I’m going to need you to help me make this plan work.”

  Summer heard him say she was his girl. What followed was lost to her. Her mind was in turmoil but she knew somewhere deep inside that even if he didn’t mean it the way she took it, he was right.

  Chapter Eight

  Alem smiled, “I thought you had forgotten me. I spent the thousand dollars you over paid.”

  “I figured you would. I’m going to pay another three-thousand and maybe offer you a full-time job if you’re open to it?”

  “Depends on the pay.”

  “We’ll negotiate it but first I need to have a conversation with Sol Abram.”

  “Well, you know the drill. Buckle in.”

  Jimmy closed his eyes and saw devastation all the way out to the valley and realized that some time had passed in his dream. The ashes on the ground were mixed with snow. They flew closer to the valley and he saw the ever-present white clouds over it with his eyes opened or closed. Alem fought the winds and finally managed to land the helicopter in a clear space close to the red and white farmhouse. Alem looked at Jimmy, “I’ll stay with the bird. Sol and I don’t get along.”

  “Why is that?”

  “He claims I charge too much.”

  Jimmy chuckled, “Imagine.”

  Alem gave him a frown as he stepped out of the helicopter. He walked toward the farm house and saw an old man standing at the door. “I’ve paid my taxes!”

  Jimmy smiled, “I’m not here from the government.”

  Sol stared at him and said, “Why are you here?”

  “I want to talk to you about something.”

  “It’s not for sale!”

  Jimmy smiled, “Mr. Abram, I’m pretty certain you don’t have much company out here. Let’s sit down and talk.”

  Sol looked angry but he opened the front door and stepped in. Jimmy followed him and Sol nodded toward a rocking-chair beside a potbellied stove, “Do you drink tea?” he asked gruffly.

  “If it’s no trouble.”

  Sol took a kettle off the top of the stove and poured two metal cups with the steaming water. He took two teabags and put one each cup. He handed Jimmy a small rag and said, “Be careful, the cup is hot.” Jimmy took the rag and gripped the cup’s handle. He held it carefully waiting for it to cool. Sol started rocking in his chair and Jimmy started rocking with him. Twenty minutes passed in silence and Sol took an exploratory sip of his tea. He pushed it away; still too hot. Sol finally took a sip and sighed. He looked at Jimmy and said, “Aren’t you a little young to be renting helicopters?”

  Jimmy took a sip of tea and nodded. He remained silent and Sol said, “I thought you said you were here to talk!”

  Jimmy smiled, “Why is it there is no snow on the ground here during December?”

  Sol shrugged, “There’s never snow on the ground.” Jimmy tilted his head and Sol chuckled, “You noticed the wide stream that flows through the middle of my valley.”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Well the temperature of the water is a constant eighty-five degrees’ all year.”

  “How does that happen?” Jimmy asked.

  “I’m not sure. The farmer I bought this land from said it was always that way. If comes out of the base of the mountain to the north and rushes into a large waterfall that disappears into the mountain to the south.”

  “I see you have some crops growing next to it. Is the water full of sediment or minerals from a hot spring?”

  Sol smiled, “Now that’s a smart question and the first thing I did when I considered buying it was to have the water tested. It’s actually purer than the water that runs off the mountains around the valley. Don’t ask me how it gets so warm but I can tell you it doesn’t come out of a hot spring.” Sol stared at Jimmy and said, “You’ve come here to buy it, I can see it in your eyes. It’s not for sale!”

  Jimmy smiled, “Have you always lived out here by yourself?”

  “No, I was married but my wife up and left ten years ago and went back to her family in Zurich. Told me I was a fool for buying this desolate place.”

  “Do you get visitors?” Jimmy asked. Sol started laughing and Jimmy smiled with him, “What do you find so humorous?”

  “You came in by helicopter; did you take a look at the road leading into this valley?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Well if you did you would have seen that you take your life into your hands to try and use it. Most people can’t afford a helicopter and those that can have much better things to do than come here to see an old man.”

  Jimmy tilted his head, “How do you get supplies to farm.”

  Sol chuckled, “Come with me.” He walked around to the side of the house and pulled a tarp of a vehicle. “This is ole Sarah. She’s got four-wheel drive, three hundred horse power, a sixty-gallon gas tank and can carry more than three hundred pounds of animal hides. I go hunting up in those mountains and when I have enough hides to sell, I take them over the mountain and trade for what I need.”

  Jimmy stared at the vehicle and noticed that it was narrow with only one seat. “This looks pretty narrow, Sol.”

  “Look at the road and you’ll think differently.” Sol grabbed the tarp and Jimmy helped him cover Sarah.

  They went back inside and Jimmy said, “I know you have no interest in selling your place but out of curiosity, what do you think it’s worth?”

  Sol chuckled, “With the road and difficulty getting here, some real estate idiots would say it’s only worth about seventy-thousand Euros. It’s five miles long from end-to-end and that price is ludicrous.”

  “It sounds like someone made an offer.”

  “Right after Sarah left a smooth talker showed up. Said he had an appraisal done on the land and said he’d give me sixty-thousand to take it off my hands. I showed him the door and the barrel of my shotgun!” Sol laughed, “Boy he moved faster than I thought he could!”

  Jimmy laughed with him and then took a sip of tea. He looked at Sol and said, “If you did the appraisal, what would you place the value at?”

  Sol shook his head, “The stream out there that allows farming all year is worth its weight in gold. Sure, this place is isolate
d, but that insures privacy and you can’t put a price on good privacy.”

  Jimmy looked at him, “How much?”

  Sol shrugged, huffed a moment, looked around the room and said, “It’s worth every bit of two-hundred thousand Euros.”

  “How much did you pay for it Sol?”

  Sol stared at Jimmy for a long moment in silence and then he shrugged, “You’ve been nice to converse with and you have something most people don’t.”

  “What is that, Sol.”

  “Manners. I’d normally be asking you to leave but I can see you’re interested in Old Sol’s story. I paid sixty-thousand Euros for it and when Sarah left me for Zurich, she took the remaining thirty-thousand Euro’s out of my bank account as her share in the divorce settlement. She said I could keep the worthless valley to die in.”

  “I’ll give you two and a half million Euros for it.”

  Sol stared at Jimmy like he hadn’t heard anything. Jimmy took a sip of tea and continued to rock back and forth. Suddenly, Sol burst out laughing and started slapping his leg, “Boy, you had me going there.”

  Jimmy smiled and said, “And if we can complete the sale within a week, I’ll pay an additional half a million Euros.”

  Sol’s smile vanished and his eyes narrowed, “Have you found something of value on my land!?”

  “No, I haven’t, though the warm stream is interesting. I’m a student at MIT and I need an isolated place where I can build a deep chamber in the side of a mountain to see if I can prove the existence of Gravity Waves.”

  “WHAT?”

  “I want to build a facility that can conduct scientific research.”

  “And you’ll pay two and a half million Euros for my land.”

  “I will, Sol. And though you stated it’s not for sale, I can give you a good reason to do it.”

  Sol tilted his head, “And what could possibly make old Sol sell it?”

  “I think showing up in Zurich in a find automobile and showing Sarah that you made the best decision of your life when you bought this land and it’s such a shame she acted stupid and left you.”

  Sol stared at him and started laughing hysterically. After he managed to catch his breath, he stuck out his hand and said, “You are so right! But if it takes longer than a week because of you and not me, I expect the other half a million.”

  “Do you have the deed along with proof of identity?”

  “I do.”

  “Where is the land registered”

  “Zurich.”

  “Then if you will pack a bag, I’ll take you in my helicopter there now and we’ll make the transfer.” Jimmy reached inside his jacket and took out a Cashier’s Check for two and half million Euro’s. “I’ll sign this check over to you just before you sign the final document and take you to my Bank and give you another check for the half a million or pay you in cash.”

  Sol looked around the room and sighed, “I’ll take what I want and leave the rest. Just consider it part of the property.” Sol looked at Jimmy, “Why does it have to done within a week?”

  Jimmy smiled, “I have to get back to school.”

  • • •

  Jimmy arrived in Boston two days before Christmas. He left from Boston to go to Europe without seeing his mother, there just wasn’t enough time if the sale were prolonged. He landed and decided to stop by the high-energy lap to check on an experiment before he went to the dorm. He entered the lab and found Summer there working alone. She smiled when she saw him, “Some experiments need to be done without anyone around. I came back early to avoid Professor Keplar’s scrutiny.” She walked over and hugged him, “It’s good to see you back. How did it go?”

  “Better than I thought; it cost us three-million Euros.”

  Summer smiled, “That’s not much for land that’s priceless.”

  “I know.”

  “Do you feel bad taking it from him?”

  Jimmy sighed, “No, Sol told me on the way to Zurich that he’s eighty-two and I can tell that he’ll be long gone before anything happens, although he will have time to enjoy the money from the sale before he goes.”

  “Jimmy.”

  “Yes?”

  “I want you to take me to meet your mother.”

  Jimmy’s eyebrows came together, “Why do you want to meet her?”

  “That’s the other thing.” Jimmy stared at her as Summer took his hand and led him to a couple of chairs. “Take a seat, please.”

  Jimmy sat down and said, “What’s going on Summer?”

  “I’ve had some time alone to really think about all that has happened and try to come to an understanding of what’s taking place around me. While I put things in perspective, I saw something that helped to clear things up.” Summer paused and looked him in the eyes, “Why did you see me in that dream when you were five?”

  “Actually, I saw the building. You just happened to be there.”

  “Have you ever seen the building in a dream again?”

  “Well, no.”

  “Have you had any more dreams with me in them?” Jimmy was silent and Summer said after a few moments, “It’s not that hard of a question.”

  “Well, every time I saw you in class, I would close my eyes and see things you’d be doing later that day.”

  Summer smiled, “Sort of like keeping track of me to make sure I was safe.”

  Jimmy’s head tilted as he thought about it. After a moment, he said, “I guess you could look at it that way.”

  “I listened to you recount all the dreams you’ve had growing up and as an adult, when you told me what was coming. All of them had a purpose of some sort that directly involved you, right?” Jimmy nodded, “Jimmy, your dream was not about the building, it was about me.” Jimmy’s head went back and Summer smiled, “I remember you said you told your mother that I made an impact on you even when you were five years old.” Jimmy’s eyes went wide and he suddenly saw she had to be right. Summer smiled, “That dream was telling you that I have a purpose in your life, Jimmy.”

  “But you’ve hated me from the first moment you met me, Summer.”

  “No, I didn’t hate you. I never have. I’ve just been so envious of all the talents you have, along with your intelligence, that it made me pout whenever I was around you.” Summer lowered her eyes, “Don’t you find it strange that even though you thought I hated you, you told me what was going to happen. You must admit that you trusted me despite your feelings and now, here we are working together to try and save humanity. It took me a while but I have finally seen that you and I belong together.”

  “But Summer…”

  “Jimmy, I am not Audrey. I don’t tell you this out of some ulterior motive. I’m telling you this because I’ve never wanted to spend my life with anyone…until now.”

  “Summer, we’ve never even kissed or held hands or…”

  Summer suddenly leaned forward and put her hands on his cheeks as she pressed her lips on his and kissed him softly. She broke the kiss and smiled, “We can hold hands later.”

  When Jimmy closed his eyes during the kiss he saw Summer in a hospital bed holding a baby and saying “He has your eyes, Jimmy.”

  He opened his eyes and smiled. He stood up and pulled her up out of her chair, “We need to get moving.” Summer tilted her head and Jimmy smiled, “The drive to New York during Christmas takes a while and we have to be back in two days to use the lab before the others come back.”

  Summer smiled and pulled a bag out from behind a table. She looked at him and said, “I was hoping you would see it my way; I hope you haven’t unpacked.” Jimmy laughed out loud and pulled her into his arms. Life was changing and he realized that the dream about the building was only now happening. He might have a little more time than he originally thought.

  • • •

  Jimmy and Summer arrived in New York and he called his mother, “Mom, is our second parking space available?”

  “Yes, why do you ask?”

  “I’ll be using it in
about ten minutes. I just wanted to make sure.”

  “JIMMY!!! TOM, JIMMY’S HERE!!” The call abruptly ended and Jimmy pulled up to the sixth floor in the parking garage and saw his mother and Tom waiting in the parking space. Jimmy smiled and shook his head, “Mom has never been one to sit back and wait for things to happen. I didn’t mention you.” Summer nodded and opened her door as Candice opened Jimmy’s door before he could shut off the car and wrapped her arms around his neck. Her tears were there and Jimmy said “What’s wrong, Mom.”

  “This would have been our first Christmas apart. Now here you are!!”

  Jimmy’s eyes narrowed and he realized she was right. Tom walked around the car and smiled, “Hello, my name is Tom Heller.”

  “I’m pleased to meet you; my name is Summer Reynolds.”

  Candice didn’t see Summer before she dove into the car but she heard Tom talking to her. She backed out of the car and looked across the roof. She smiled and said, “I’ve been wondering when you were going to show up.” Both Jimmy and Summer’s heads went back at the same time. Candice saw them and said, “Don’t act so surprised. Jimmy was dreaming about you at five years old. I figured it was just a matter of time until the two of you came together.”

  Jimmy stared at his mother and said, “You never told me anything about this.”

  Candice snorted, “Hey, you’re the dream expert in the family. You should have seen it on your own. Even Ray Charles could have seen this one coming.”

  Jimmy and Summer laughed and Jimmy looked across the roof of the car, “Summer, this is my mother. Mom, this is Summer.” Candice ran around the car and wrapped her arms around Summer, “You are just more beautiful than the first time I saw you!” Summer looked confused and Candice said, “I was there when Jimmy found the building and told me about the four of you walking past us.”

  Summer closed her eyes slightly and said, “Were you wearing an orange and red blouse with black scarf and black tights?”