In My Dreams (5 page)

“Can I help you find anything?” I tried to ask politely, but my words sounded a bit cynical.

“No thank you,” the fatter of the two replied. “We’re just looking.”

They’d been looking for almost fifteen minutes now, but it felt like fifteen hours! On a normal day this would have been fine, but not today. I wanted them out!

After another five tormenting minutes, the thinner of the two chose a small wooden plaque with the Lord’s Prayer hand painted onto it. They stood together at the counter yakking away. I quickly rang up her purchase, threw it in a bag, flashed another fake smile, and escorted them to the door.

A red Ford sedan pulled into the parking lot. This was definitely not my morning. I ran to the back room and found Lucy Crow standing, slipping back into her parka.

“Wait… Miss Crow… please don’t leave. You have to tell me what happened to Michael! I need to know. Please!” I begged her, hands folded, practically on my knees, when the bell clanged as two more customers entered. A lady and a little girl headed towards the dolls.

“Lizzy,” Lucy said grabbing my shaking hands. “I have to go now.”

“But why… please wait. Please! Just a few more minutes,” I pleaded.

“I have young ones at home, and a husband who is waiting for me. I live many hours from here. It is a long drive and I must be on my way.” She steadied me holding onto my shoulder’s looking directly into my eyes.

“Michael wanted me to give you a warning. You need to be careful. The man that murdered him is very dangerous. He’s crazy. He stole Michael’s wallet, and he knows that Michael has a large amount of money in the bank, and he also knows that you have access to it. He has pictures of you… from Michael’s wallet. He knows what you look like, and he is already looking for you. Please, be very careful Lizzy. Promise me.”

“I promise.” My world was spinning out of control. I wondered if the man in my dream was the murderer. He had a picture of me, and knew what I looked like. That was a horrifying thought. And all I had to go on was a dream. But how did he know I had access to Michael’s account? This was all too much!

“Lizzy, I need to pick up some medicine for the sick ones in my village. Do you know of a place, close by, where I could find those kinds of things?” She asked politely.

“Aren’t you supposed to be a healer?”

“Yes,” she laughed. “The elders in the village come to me for the ancient methods, but the younger ones would rather… pop a few pills. They say it works a lot faster and I don’t blame them,” she said amusingly.

I gave her directions to Walgreen’s, which wasn’t too far from the shop.

“I’ll be with you shortly,” I called to the customers wandering around the store.

“No problem,” the mother answered. They were still wandering.

I quickly grabbed one of Mrs. Kelly’s business cards off of the front counter, and wrote my name, home, and cell number on the back and handed it to Lucy. I walked her to the door, where she pointed out an old tan truck parked alongside the street. There was a young man with his head leaned against the passenger window, sound asleep.

“That’s my nephew. My sister made him come. He’ll like to go into the store. That will be worth his trip. I’ll buy him a candy. He loves chocolate and it is hard to get where we come from,” she smiled widely. “Now just remember Lizzy, Michael will be with you. Keep your mind and heart open and you will see that you can communicate with him. He will be with you.”

“Is there any way I can get in touch with you – you know…if I needed to?” I asked.

“Well - Getting in touch with me might be rather difficult. My village has one phone at the hall, but the younger ones tend to keep the line in constant use,” she stated, raising an eyebrow and shaking her head.

“Oh,” I sighed. “How am I to get into contact with Michael without you?”

“Lizzy, you won’t need me. Just open your heart and look for the signs. Michael will give them to you.” She paused again, and then came close and whispered in my ear. “He said he came to you… last night… in your dreams.”

I gasped.

“When you sleep, it is the easiest way for them to communicate. He wants you to know that he will meet you in your dreams again… tonight.” Her cheeks blushed in a warm pink hue.

All words had eluded me. I didn’t know what to think. I was excited, but also apprehensive. This was totally off the wall for me to even remotely comprehend, being the skeptic that I was.

So, Michael did have something to do with my dreams. He had to have. That was the only logical explanation. Right now, I really didn’t care. If there really were a way to be with Michael, I would take it, even if it was in my dreams.

Lucy pulled a black leather cord from around her neck and gently placed it in my hand.

“Lizzy… I want you to have this. It is an amulet of protection made by my great-great grandfather. It is said to be magical and gives the wearer the strength of its object.” I carefully studied the intricately carved piece in my hand. It was of a polar bear, and polar bears were strong.

“This is beautiful.”

“It’s carved from ivory. Walrus tusk,” she noted.

“I can’t take this. It’s a family heirloom,” I said, pushing it back.

“Please, Lizzy. It is a gift from me to you. It is very rude to refuse a gift from a shaman and definitely not good luck,” she demanded with a sly smile.

I decided not to argue and graciously accepted the amulet. She leaned in and gave me a warm hug. She suddenly stiffened and stepped back.

“What’s the matter?” I asked.

“You have the gift, Lizzy,” she whispered.

“Huh?”

“You will see. In time you will see.” She smiled and left me with that. She turned and walked towards her truck. This was all too overwhelming.

“Thank you so much, Lucy.” I called to her. “I’m so sorry for any trouble that you had to go through to get here.” I felt bad that she had traveled so long and so far, but I was also glad that she did.

“I was given this gift to help people. It is no trouble at all. It’s just that your boyfriend woke me up in the middle of the night, and wouldn’t stop bothering me,” she smiled.

She was right. Michael was persistent and usually got his way. It was part of his charm. I waved her goodbye, and carefully attached the cord around my neck, tucking the amulet into my shirt.

I had a feeling this wasn’t the last time I would see, or hear of Lucy Crow.

I tried hard to keep my mind focused on the customers as the seconds slowly ticked by, but Lucy’s words kept ringing in my ears… Michael will give me signs to let me know he is with me. But what kinds of signs? She also said I had the gift. What gift? It was all so mysterious and intriguing, but scary.

I tried to think back to the few ghost investigation shows I watched with Emily. I remembered that they heard bumps, footsteps, and saw little glowing things called orbs, which to me looked like little dust particles or bugs flying around the room.

Once in a great while they actually caught, what sounded like, a voice on a little recorder. The investigators somehow managed to find words to fit the obscure sounds, which I thought didn’t sound remotely close. It seemed so fake to me. Yes, I was a skeptic and a huge one at that. I liked to keep my head level and my feet grounded. That’s why it was so overwhelming to think that Michael’s spirit was trying to make contact with me. But, because it was him, I really, really wanted to believe. I wanted this to be real... more than anything else.

I was glad that he made contact with Lucy Crow, and also that she came to let me know that he was still around… watching over me. Now, the only thing on my mind was meeting him in my dreams. Butterflies did somersaults throughout my stomach just thinking about it. What was becoming of me? I couldn’t wait to get home and fall asleep. How pathetic is that? But right now… I didn’t care if I was going crazy. I’d take any chance to see him again.

The bell on the door clanged loudly as Emily came prancing into the store, almost at the same time as Mrs. Kelly’s old black Cadillac rumbled into the parking lot. It was five minutes to two. My shift was almost over.

Emily ran over and gave me one of her biggest bear hugs. She was never one to give out token hugs… even if she’d just met you.

“I am so, so sorry, Lizzy - about Michael. I’m here for you. You know that right? You can count on me. If you need anything… anything at all… just let me know… kay? You’re my girl,” she said solemnly, her face saddened.

“Thanks Em.” I muttered with a half-smile.

“So… you ready to roll? Mrs. Kelly just pulled in.”

I nodded.

“Em,” I whispered. “There’s something I really need to tell you; something that happened to me this morning… something supernatural.” I grabbed her arm, pronouncing each word very slowly.

I knew that those very few words had instantly penetrated her indulgent mind. She wouldn’t be able to suppress the anticipation for an explanation for any given length of time. I could see the wheels in her imaginative brain turning like mad. She glared at me.

“Okay… Wait!” she said as she dashed toward the break room, hurriedly gathering my things in her arms, dropping my keys on the way back.

The bell on the door clanged as Mrs. Kelly came in. I could tell that she had heard the news by the look on her face. She looked at me sadly, then walked straight up to me and gave me a big, warm hug.

“Oh Dear. I heard what happened to Michael this morning,” she said softly, patting my hand. “I was at the Dr.’s office this morning, and ran into Chief Cross’ wife. She asked me if you were working today, and then told me what had happened. I had no idea, Lizzy. I’m so sorry. You should have called me. I would have told you to stay home.”

“Oh, no. I’m alright. Don’t be sorry,” I said warily.

“I want you to take as much time off as you need, and just let me know when you’re ready to come back. Here, and I want you to have this… just a little something from me to you. You’re always there for me and I appreciate it.” She placed an envelope in my hand and gave me another squeeze.

I looked at the white envelope and could see money in it. I couldn’t take her money. “No, Mrs. Kelly,” I said handing back the envelope.

“Please Lizzy, take it,” she insisted, softly pushing my hand away from her.

I had just learned from Lucy Crow, not to reject a gift.

“Thank you,” I said, fighting back tears. I hugged her warmly.

Mrs. Kelly had been a mother figure to me when my own mother had failed. She never had children but treated me as if I was one of her own. She’d drop off groceries, bring me freshly baked pastries, and invite me to her home on special occasions to eat her wonderful home-cooked meals.

She wasn’t the only one that made sure I was well taken care of. Both Michael and Emily’s parents also made sure I was well fed and well taken care of. I had never lacked anything with all those loving people around me.

Emily followed me back to my cottage, where I dropped off my Jeep and jumped in with her. She’d recently bought a brand new Audi A3. It was white, and fast, just like her mouth. They were a perfect match.

When I jumped into her car the smell of new leather hit me. Flashes of Michael and the dream I’d had played through my mind. My eyes instantly started to tear. I quickly turned towards my window hoping Emily wouldn’t notice.

I felt sick, again realizing that Michael was gone. I didn’t feel like going out and just wanted to be alone. I wanted to find out if he really could contact me, and having anyone around was a distraction. But Emily was a good friend, and I know I’d sparked her interest. She wouldn’t relent unless I talked to her. I would have to get through this and try to get home quickly.

We pulled into La Fiesta, an authentic Mexican restaurant, hidden in town. It was just a hole in the wall, but the food was good. It wasn’t a listed “hotspot” so I knew we’d at least have some privacy. We sat at a small table at the back of the restaurant. An older waitress came out and took our order. She gave us a basket of freshly fried tortilla chips and salsa to snack on while we waited for our chicken enchiladas.

“So Lizzy, are you going to tell me what happened?” Her voice was cautious, not wanting to offend me.

“It’s killing you…isn’t it,” I said teasingly with a grin.

“Duh – you know me… And please tell me everything… and I mean everything. Don’t leave any parts out,” she said as she raised her elbows to the table. Her head rested in the palms of her hands, intently watching my face with her wide green-grey eyes.

I took a chip, cracked it in half and whirled it in the bowl of salsa. Then slowly put it to my mouth and crunched away.

“Mmmmmm,” I hummed with my eyes closed, knowing I was driving her crazy. I could feel her eyes boring a hole straight through my forehead.

“Lizzy, you’re killin’ me here,” she said impatiently watching me finish my chip. Her fingers annoyingly thumped on the table.

“Alright, alright… This is something you are going to love,” I admitted.

“Well, get to it then!” she blurted.

I guessed I should just start from the beginning. She’d probably be the only one I’d tell anyway.

“Well… it all started last night while I was waiting for Michael, and fell asleep. I had this crazy dream about him. I thought it was real. I mean… I remembered waking up in his car smelling the new leather, his cologne. I felt his touch, and it all seemed real, but I had a feeling something just wasn’t right. ”

Her eyes didn’t blink during that whole sentence. She was intently listening, her mouth gaping, so I continued.

“Then, all of a sudden a phone started ringing. It wasn’t mine or Michael’s. The ringing came from nowhere, but… everywhere. I don’t know. It’s hard to explain. Michael kept telling me, over and over, how much he loved me and that he’d always be there for me. Then, that stupid phone kept ring, and that’s when Michael told me to wake up. When I did, my house phone was ringing. It was Michael’s dad. He told me that Michael had been in an accident… and…. died.” As the words escaped my mouth, my stomach and heart ached. I fought the stinging in my eyes. Tears welled, but I wiped them before they dropped. I didn’t want to make a scene. I took a few deep breaths; trying to suppress my emotions.