Excerpt: Tangled Dreams

Everything around me was misty and gray. To my right, I could see the sun shining and the garden gate of Ea in the distance. To my left, the dark forest of the Shadowed Veil sat, spider webs glinting beneath the thin sliver of a crescent moon.
Looking toward Ea, I could see the spectral form of Ryan. He was too far for me to make out the details of his face, but I knew it was him. I heard his voice in my head, You cannot come here, Nadia. You must go back.
But you can come here, another voice said in my mind.
Though I did not recognize the second voice, I knew it came from the Shadowed Veil. I turned away from Ryan and the garden gates of Ea and peered into the shadows of the dark forest. I couldn’t see anything but spider webs.
Come, little one, the seductive voice said silkily, and I found myself drawn to it. My friends will show you the way.
I heard the familiar scattering sound that had appeared in my dreams so many times in the past. Without seeing them, I knew the spiders had come.
Come, my love, the silky voice said. You are dearest to me, and I have missed you so.
Run, Ryan’s voice sounded in my mind, shattering the hold the other voice held in my mind. Run!
Without hesitation, I turned toward Ea, and ran.