Chapter 11: Sanctuary

Friday evening, Danny was working on a door. It was a solid door made from the finest English oak. He hung the door on heavy brass hinges and installed a large brass doorknob. Underneath the knob was an old-fashioned lock plate with a large keyhole. And, mostly for decoration, there was a brass knocker. It was like the kind with a Lion’s head, but instead of a lion, it was Hibbit’s head, horns and all. He had a large brass ring in his mouth, with a ball resting on the brass knocking plate. When Danny was finished polishing it, an inscription appeared at the bottom. It said, “Thank you, my Lord.”

Shortly after, Robert came back down the stairs. He stood there for a minute, wondering why Danny was putting a new door in for the workshop, before finally approaching Danny.

“Can you help me out, bro?” Robert said, “I need to get to the garden to see Aisling. It’s been three days since I’ve talked to her. She’s going to think I don’t like her anymore!”

“Relax, bro!” Danny said. “You can use this door.”

Robert turned the knob and pulled the door open.

“Is this a joke?” Robert said, “It’s just a brick wall!”

“Hold on,” Danny said, “let me finish.”

Danny turned to face Robert. He closed his hand and held it out in front of himself, fingers up. Then he opened his hand. There was a ball of light floating just above his palm. Danny raised his hand slightly, and the ball of light floated up and toward Robert. It went into his chest, making him jump slightly.

“That almost felt like an electric shock,” Robert said, “but it kind of tickled.”

“Here,” Danny said, “this is for you.”

Danny handed Robert a key. It was an old-fashioned key, the kind most people call a skeleton key. The key was four inches long. On one end, the blade had four teeth of various lengths. On the other end, the bow was shaped like a rose. Then, Danny closed the door and stepped back. He gestured for Robert to step up. Robert looked at him skeptically but moved to the door anyway.

“Now put the key in and turn it one full turn to the right,” Danny said. “Now remove the key, then turn the knob and open the door.

“Robert did as he said and opened the door. This time the brick wall was gone. Now, it was the area with the grand gate.

“Come with me, and allow me to explain,” Danny said.

They stepped through and closed the door. They were in a sort of bailey. There was a wall behind them with the new door that Danny had just made. The wall appeared to run a half a mile in either direction and had an open archway every two hundred yards. Danny explained that all of them lead into the inner maze. He further explained that since a labyrinth was really a prison, only one path would take you out. The rest just led you back here, and all the paths changed randomly.

Across from that wall was another wall, and it was about fourteen yards from them. There were dead trees everywhere. The only living tree was near that wall, by the grand gate which was right in front of them. Robert noticed that on this wall, there were smaller gates. These gates were also spaced two hundred yards apart, but none of them were in front of an archway. They fell about halfway between.

“These,” Danny explained, “are other gardens. You can also go in and out of these gardens through the main garden, but only if you have the proper key. This is the one you want, The rose gate.

“Danny walked through the gate, as Robert followed. There were no fruit trees here, but there were more flowers. There were roses, irises, orchids, and lilies of all varieties and colors. Instead of cobblestone, the paths were grey marble, with a white marble border on either side. About halfway down, off the left side of the path, there was a small open area with a tree in the middle. Hanging from a large, sturdy branch was a swing. The swing consisted of two ropes and a short plank. One end of each rope was tied to the branch. The other end of each rope was put through a hole in the plank and knotted at the end.

To the right of the tree, there was another area with a fence around it. It was a white rail fence made completely out of four-by-four posts and rails. There was an open gate on the side facing the path. The only flowers in that area were roses. In fact, other than the round bench in the middle, the only thing that was in there were roses.

“This is the garden where Aisling will meet you,” Danny said. “Simply pick an Easter Lily and place it on the swing. She will know you want to see her.”

“Thanks, bro,” Robert said, “I owe you big time!”

Then, he picked a lily and placed it on the swing. A minute later, Aisling stepped out from behind the tree. She picked up the lily and smelled it. There was something different about her. It wasn’t too obvious, but there was a difference. She looked to be 5’11”, 195 lbs., with red hair and green eyes. She was wearing a green and white flower print summer dress, and her feet were bare. Her face was round. She had dimples and light freckles on her nose and cheeks. Then, they noticed the difference. She seemed to be a little thicker in the middle, and her hips had more of a flare.

“It’s about time you show up,” she said. “I was starting to think you forgot about me.”

“I could never forget about you,” Robert said. “ You’re my dream girl. And now you’re more of a dream! Did you do that for me?”

“No,” she said, “I was trying to catch your eye before, but now that I know you like it, I don’t have to change.”

As Danny left the garden, Aisling and Robert were holding hands, walking further down the path. Danny didn’t really need to use the door to get back, but he did anyway. When he got back, he texted Emily to meet him in the workshop when she was ready for their date. In the meantime, he stepped into his office to get a few things. When he came back out, Emily was coming down the stairs.

She was wearing a simple yellow sundress with flowers on it and sandals. She barely did her makeup and wore her hair down. It was more than enough to take his breath away. Emily noticed and smiled. As she got to the bottom of the stairs, Danny took her hand and kissed it. Still holding her hand, he led her out to the open floor. He gracefully spun her around like they were dancing, then he pulled her close and kissed her. Now it was her turn to catch her breath, and Danny smiled.

“This is for you,” Danny said.