Here’s another sneak peek. The theme of smoke appearing in her dreams haunts Kat. She tries to ignore the sensation but fails and struggles at work. Her boss suggests taking some time off and doing something for herself. Planning an escape to visit family puts the wheels that were already in motion unbeknownst to her…closer. She should’ve flown. No spoiler here. Enjoy!
Chapter #2 – Off the Wheel
The extra hot spray of the shower failed to wash away the mysterious dream events of the night before, and the only two facts that lingered did nothing to provide solid answers. As she shampooed her hair, she tried to break things down and place the smell of smoke…if she had smelled anything at all. She knew whatever it was; it reminded her of the wood-burning fireplace at her parent’s home or a campfire she remembered from a gathering of friends on a camping trip. It smelled distinctly like a wood fire regardless of when, where, or how, and it flooded her senses. Working in the conditioner into long black hair that flowed thick with water down her back between her shoulder blades, she leaned into the spray and decided it made no sense to worry anymore.
Later that morning at work, her project team met first, and Kat found herself hard-pressed to concentrate on the regular Monday progress briefing. At 28, Kat was the youngest of four senior-level Project Managers. Her role shifted to limited participation now that her portion of the deliverables in the current phase had been completed. Being in the meeting seemed more like a courtesy than a necessity; regardless, they were a team, and she felt it necessary to participate even though her mind wandered well off the agenda. She stifled a yawn and tried to concentrate on a flip chart graphic someone attempted to explain. She struggled to remain focused, eyes open and seeing nothing. The meeting lasted the better part of an hour and upon ending, Kat got up to head back to her cubicle. As she turned to leave the conference room, her boss called for her to hang around for a minute.
“Kat, are you okay?” Casandra McBride, her boss, Project Lead, and Transition Team Director, asked, her face showing concern. “You looked like you were a hundred miles away during the meeting.”
Kat turned and replied, “Oh, Cassy, yeah, I’m so sorry.” She paused and looked down, breaking eye contact. “I’m okay. I was just a little distracted by…umm…” Kat hesitated further, unsure how to explain what had happened earlier that morning.
“Okay, out with it. Distracted by what? Or should I say WHO?” challenged Cassy. “C’mon, let’s go down to the cafeteria and grab a coffee.”
Despite being her boss, Cassy had earned Kat’s trust enough to be a sounding board safe enough to share things beyond routine work demands.
“That sounds good,” replied Kat nodding. “Maybe that will lift this fog I’m in.”
They chatted over coffee and split a toasted bagel with crème cheese. Kat’s two memory fragments about her dreams offered little to discuss, but Cassy leaned in thoughtfully and listened.
“You mentioned smoke,” said Cassy for clarification. “Like cigarette or cigar smoke?”
Kat shook her head, “No, more like a wood fire you’d smell at a campground or from a fireplace. Hah!” she laughed, “Who knows, it may have been me on fire and…” She paused mid-sentence, falling into thoughtful silence with a worried look, and slowly shook her head. “Seriously, I’m concerned about not knowing details. I put a lot of stock in dreams and need to know where they come from or, better yet, what they mean. You know? What’s the meaning I’m missing from those dreams? I know in my gut I’m missing something. What is it? Maybe it’s my OCD, but I can’t shake this feeling that there is a connection wrapped up in what I remember and even more in what I cannot.” Kat became agitated, and worry lines creased her forehead.
Cassy reached and placed her hand over Kat’s. “Yeah, there is that possibility, my friend. I mean you being on fire, that is. You’ve been working a lot of weeks straight without a break. You are truly burning brain cells. Now, I don’t know what flaming brain cells smell like, but you’re definitely burning your share.”
Pausing, Cassy sat back for another sip of coffee and nibbled at the bagel before continuing. “You know, this phase of the Transition Project is ending, and your deliverables are complete. Why don’t you take a few days of PTO before you lose them? Go somewhere. Get out of town. Disconnect. Refresh. Focus on yourself for a change!”
Kat breathed out like she had been holding her breath, and the stress that lifted her shoulders relaxed. “I think you’re right, Cassy. It’s time to enjoy some downtime…some me time. I’ve actually been thinking about heading out to Phoenix to visit my big sister, Madeline.”
Cassy smiled and agreed, “There you go. That’s only a short flight from DFW, so go for it. Take a few days and have some fun. This project’s next phase won’t start for at least a week, and your role will be essential, so being fresh will be good for all of us. I’ll need you on point for at least the first two weeks on the phase coming up next.”
Kat held up her hands in mock protest, “No planes for me. I want real quality downtime, and that means slipping behind the wheel of the limo,” she said, grinning.
The limo, as she referred to her car, was a completely renovated 1968 Chrysler Imperial gifted to her by her grandfather. The vehicle was an absolute beast: jet black, tinted window glass, suicide rear doors, plenty of chrome, well over a ton of steel, and abysmal gas mileage. The car looked like it could lead a parade ferrying a dignitary to a special event at the UN or something equally presidential. The only things missing were the little flags mounted on the front fenders. She loved that car, which made her feel safe from anything that might occur on the open road. The beast was her personal limo, a sanctuary of sorts, but it was more like a personal tank.
Cassy laughed, “To each her own! I’d fly before driving through the desert in August in a tank…sorry…a limo.”
They both laughed, and Kat felt remarkably better knowing her boss had suggested some time off. It was indeed time to get off the hamster wheel at work. Honestly, it was not work she needed to escape from or that she felt like a hamster sentenced to run on the corporate wheel; it was the dreams. How could an event in 1864 have anything to do with her? Something had to be there that she could not explain, and not knowing haunted her and enflamed her OCD. She did not do well when details of any part of her life had loose ends, especially with an unclear future.
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Chapter #3 – The Plan
When she returned home that evening, Kat wasted no time reaching out to her older sister, Madeline, who was the older of the two by six years, but being 28 or 34 did not make that much difference. The call from her little sister pleasantly surprised Maddie and they fell into easy conversation.
“It’s funny you called Kat because I was just thinking about you. It’s been too long. Geez, eight months, maybe? We’re overdue to see each other and do something extreme. Let’s go someplace Mexican…oh…and yes…have too much tequila.”
“Agreed!” said Kat quickly. “That’s exactly what we need. You know how much I miss seeing you barking at the moon on all fours in the parking lot,” remembering a previous rub with too much tequila.
Maddie pushed back, “Hey now! True, I was indeed on all fours, but I was on the ground looking for my sunglasses…and I was NOT barking. I was cursing. You better get your accusations straight, little sister. Plus, there was no moon that night. You are totally mistaken.”
Plans eventually came together to meet in Phoenix for a couple of days after they sparred good-naturedly over a few more false accusations and embarrassing moments. When Kat finally got to the heavy parts of her call, she began to share the details of the previous night’s dreams…starting with the mysterious state of arousal.
Maddie remained silent and rolled her eyes at the thought of hearing Kat recite the details of another one of her bizarre sex dreams until she heard Kat say, “…and the unexplained smell of smoke.” The possibility of a good mystery had just piqued her interest.
Maddie wasn’t worried about her little sister’s dreams because some of them had been quite entertaining, but this time, it felt different, and her voice carried signs of worry. “Smoke? That’s scary. Have you had dreams like this before?”
Kat said, “No. These came out of the blue. I’ve had other bizarre dreams, as you know, but never one where I’m mysteriously aroused enough to feel it when I awaken and then have no memory and can’t remember a thing. BUT…then I smelled smoke from a wood fire. You should’ve seen me bailing out of bed in a panic to search my little place for a fire. I even went outside my apartment to see if there was a fire elsewhere. It was too real to be a dream. Too real. I know what wood fire smoke smells like, and my apartment has no fireplace or any other sources that could create smoke. That smell has stayed with me. Even now, if I think about it, it’s as pungent as in the dream.
The second dream is the one I’m most concerned about because it had smoke, too. More shockingly, I witnessed a multiple homicide, three to be exact, somewhere in northern New Mexico in 1864.”
“Whoa…okay, hold that thought string right there,” said Maddie, “explain what witness means to you because, to me, it means you witnessed, as in really saw something with your own eyes. Like, maybe you were there to see it…in 1864?” Maddie flipped her hand like she discarded the whole dream premise and said, “C’mon, you were asleep, sweetie, and your eyes were shut.”
Kat persisted, “I’m telling you, it happened, but I admit it does make for a good story, especially for a dream that was more vivid than anything I’ve experienced, and the story was very involved, and it all happened in less than eight minutes.”
Maddie exclaimed, “Yikes! Give me more. I need details, please.”
“Not now; too complex with multiple implications, plus I’m about a minute away from needing to answer the call of nature.”
Maddie complained, “Great! You stir up my interest, and now you have to pee and will leave me hanging.”
“We can talk more when I get there, but I swear I couldn’t shake it off even after going to work and zoning out in the project briefing. My boss noticed my distraction and pulled me aside after the meeting for a chat. I thought I was busted for daydreaming, but she’s good people and took the time to learn why I had zoned out and told me to take some time off since my part of the project was complete.
She even suggested taking a short flight from Dallas to Phoenix. That was sweet, but I don’t want a short flight anywhere; I want the therapeutic value of ground travel and look forward to the downtime driving the limo.”
Maddie approved; she loved her grandpa’s car as much as Kat.
“I’ve got to run, like right now, so text me when you want to see my smiling face,” Kat said with renewed urgency. They both looked forward to seeing each other and said their goodbyes.
Kat loved her older sister because she always had an ear to listen. Little did Kat know how much she would have to share and the extreme nature of what she would experience in the next few days. If Kat knew what was coming, her trip would have consisted of parking the limo at DFW airport and grabbing a two-hour flight to Phoenix.
They loved each other and were long overdue for a visit. Their relationship had improved since their mother passed, with mutual promises to stay in touch and engage more in each other’s lives. This trip was an opportunity to engage and possibly test the limits of their spirit of mutual commitment, but neither knew just how much of a test it would become.
Copyright 2025 – All Rights Reserved
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I hope you enjoyed these two chapters. I’ve decided to share this story as it is being written, and I will offer chapters as they end and after I get sick of editing them. The story is consuming me at the moment, and I’m embracing it willingly. What started as a 2,800-word short story has blossomed into over 18,000 words so far, and according to my Relentless Wench Muse, who manages to remain just out of reach, there’s considerably more to tell. I’ll share more as the editing frenzy continues.
If you have any thoughts to share, ping me at gdogwise@live.com
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Merry Christmas!
Peace! G.