Another odd dream. Rae tilted her head to the side and tried to envision it with a shrug. "One of those dreams that tried to fool you into a false sense of security," she mused. Rae herself hadn't had one of those, but her mind, for the second time, wandered back to the dream interpretation book she'd read, the one she'd told Silas she'd bring. "Gardens in dreams signify tranquility," she pointed out. "You were at peace, then? In the dream? Even when you couldn't open the door, I mean..."
"Only kind of," she joked. "I kind of think he's an alien sometimes." It was an ongoing joke from when April and Rae were younger, that Lucas, and most boys, for that matter, were aliens. She smirked at her cousin. "Confusing. Sometimes even smart," she shrugged. Rae had no illusions about being a brain. She wasn't stupid, but she wasn't brilliant, either. "Don't be sorry. You're awake now, and that's what's important, okay?" she tried a comforting smile, but her exhaustion probably pulled it down short.
The mention of the woman who'd wanted to pull the plug made Rae's nostrils flare with anger. "Don't worry. I told her where to go and how to get there. Even packed a bag for her," she said, turning her head to look at the door. "I asked Zach and Talia not to send her in here anymore. Or to Silas' room. Because I can't guarantee she'll come out of further meetings with me with all her body parts intact." There was a dangerous seriousness in Rae's tone that she hadn't used in quite some time.
Rae nodded her head. "It sounds like the door represented your consciousness, maybe," she mused quietly. She wasn't an expert, or anything, but it was a hobby she'd been interested in since reading the book. "Well, I'm definitely glad you got through the door," she added.
Shaking her head no, she squeezed her cousin's shoulder. "If we were all allowed to blame ourselves for things like this, we'd never stop feeling guilty," she pointed out. "If we're going to blame anyone, it should be the person who did it to you." She hoped her voice was reassuring. She didn't want April blaming herself.
She shook her head once again. "It's what cousins are for," she said with a smile. "If you need anything, tell me, okay? I'll get it."
Chuckling, she nodded. "Probably a little bit. But if it goes beyond the little bit, I'll kick them in the teeth, how's that?" she smirked. "And I'll make sure it's one of the good ones."