Waking Dream

Chapter Three

Dream allowed Anubis to help her from the cab. She lifted her pack onto her shoulder. After paying the fare, she stepped next to him. The people walked around them. Dream swallowed. Crowds made her nervous.

"Where to now?" she asked, stepping closer.

"Follow me."

He moved into the crowd and headed for the runways. Dream kept pace with him, looking around for security guards. Surely someone would stop them. She had never been to the runways. As a kid, she had run that way once, but a burly guard had caught her. When no one stopped them, she sent a curious glance at him. Without looking at her, Anubis found an overhang. He lifted a hand and touched the construction above him. The wall in front of them shimmered. Dream gasped as the beautiful garden from her dream appeared.

"What is that?"

"That is a portal." He told her. "It leads to the Garden of Eden. Very few can open this specific portal."

"Why are we going there?"

"I told you." He turned to her. "We are going to see my mother. She will help us find the necklace." He held out a hand. "Ready?"

Dream bit the inside of her cheek. "Yes." She put her hand in his. "I'm ready."

His long fingers closed gently over hers. He pulled her to his side. The portal shimmered slightly. Dream took a deep breath before walking through the opening. Anubis turned when they were on the other side. He waved a hand across the shimmering entrance. The airport scene disappeared. Dream looked around and found the tree with orange leaves. The woman called Sable was standing there watching them. She smiled before running over to them. Dream stepped away as Anubis hugged his mother. Sable's small frame seemed to disappear within his arms. Her laughter floated through the garden. The sound was infectious and had Dream smiling.

"Hello, Mother." Anubis greeted.

"You, my son, have been a very mysterious man," Sable chided. "You have been absent for a long time."

"I know, Mother. I apologize."

She smiled and put a hand to his face. "You are forgiven. Now, what is it that I can do for you?"

"I need a little bit of information." He said. "Gremlins visited a friend of mine looking for a necklace."

"A friend? I assumed that you had found the medium."

Anubis shifted. "I did." He motioned to Dream. "The gremlins found her apartment."

Sable looked at Dream. "Hello, dear." She smiled. "Nice to see you again." She looked back at Anubis. "You know the rules. I cannot tell you anything of consequence."

"All I am asking for is a general direction. I want to know why the necklace is important."

She shook her head as she walked over to the tree. Anubis and Dream followed. Dream shifted the bag on her shoulder. Sable looked at her.

"There is not much I can tell you. The necklace will be given to you when you are ready." Sable told her. "Until that time it is imperative that you find the key to unlocking the necklace. Without the key, the necklace is useless."

"How can I find the key, if I don't have the necklace? Don't I need to fit it into the locket?"

Sable gave her an indulgent look. "The key is not a real key, my dear. It comes from within you."

Dream clenched her fists in frustration. The woman's cryptic answers were getting on her nerves. Everything about the day was frustrating her. Nothing was making any sense. Demons and magic existed outside of books, she was marked for death, and someone wanted a necklace from her. She turned away from the tree and walked toward the shimmering lake. A waterfall fed cool water into the lake. Dream watched the clear water. The sound of the falling water helped soothe her ragged nerves.