Iris laughed. “It’s not necessarily where, but when.”
“When?”
“We’re in a place where time has no value,” Iris answered, spreading her arms wide. “I’ve been here forever, and I just arrived.”
Sarah shut her eyes, shaking her head, unable to wrap her mind around what was happening. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“I know.” Iris smiled sadly and then placed her weathered hands on Sarah’s shoulders. “You ended a travesty that started with my family, and for that, I can’t thank you enough. I’m finally with my daughter.” Tears welled in her eyes. “We’re together, and there is no more pain, and that is all because of you.” She smiled sweetly and then wiped her eyes.
“But,” Sarah looked around. “Where is everyone?”
That sad smile returned to Iris’s face, and she cupped Sarah’s cheek. “You have one final choice to make, Sarah. One that will not be easy for you, though it might seem that way.”
Sarah only frowned in response, and then Iris stepped back, and two doors appeared on either side of her.
“The door to my left will take you back to the mortal world, and back to Dell, who you saved with your actions. But you will awake in pain, and there is no guarantee that you will survive your wounds. If you die after you are returned, the witch’s powers will consume you, and your soul will burn in hell with her just as she promised.” She pointed to the next door. “This door will take you with me, and you will live for eternity with your family. You will feel no pain, you will experience no hardships.”
Sarah kept her eyes on the door to the right. “My parents are there?” Her voice made her sound like a little girl.
Iris smiled happily. “Oh, yes. And they’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”
Sarah looked back to Iris, skeptical. “Is this some kind of test?”
“No, Sarah. No test, no tricks, no hidden agendas. This is simply an offering for you to choose what path you want to take. It’s a choice that you were never really given, and it’s something that he wanted to give you now.”
“He?” Sarah arched her eyebrows and then looked up, where again there was nothing but endless white. She looked down and stumbled, blinking rapidly. The place was disorienting. “When do I have to decide?”
“Now,” Iris answered, and then she shrugged. “Or never.” She laughed. “Time doesn’t matter in this place, remember?”
Sarah nodded. “Right.” But her tone suggested she still didn’t understand. She gazed at the two doors, mulling over her options. She had so many questions for her parents. But most of all, she wanted to feel the touch of their hands on her face. That was the earliest and only memory that she could ever recall about her parents. It was something that she clung to as a child, but while she didn’t think of it as much as an adult, the desire was still buried, waiting to be rediscovered.
But then her eyes drifted to the door on the left, and a mixture of terror and fascination took hold. There was still so much that she wanted to do, so much that she wanted to feel. If she walked through the other door with Iris, then she’d never be able to act on those realities. But if she did walk through that door, there was still the chance that she could die, and the witch would burn her soul for eternity.
And yet, even with all of those consequences staring her in the face, she couldn’t help but wonder what tomorrow would hold. What unexpected adventures were just around the bend.
Iris laughed, and Sarah turned to find her at the door on the right, hand on the knob as she cracked it open.
“What are you doing?” Sarah asked. “I haven’t told you my decision.”
“I told you when I met you that I could read people, Sarah. And your desires are written all over your face. Good luck. And tell Dell and my grandson that I’m sorry.”
And just like that, Iris was gone, and the door shut. But as Sarah stood there, both doors remained, and in the echoing silence and sheer vastness of this place that she found herself, Sarah couldn’t help but smirk. Curiosity always did get the better of her.
90
It was the touch on her face that woke Sarah, and for the briefest moment she thought that it was her father waking her from a bad dream. But the moment ended quickly and that warmth on her cheek quickly turned cold, and she trembled.
“Sarah, just hang on. Help is on the way.”
Sarah glanced down and saw a pair of hands, bloodied, on her stomach. She widened her eyes in terror, and she glanced up to the face that the hands belonged to. It was Dell.
“Everything is going to all right,” Dell said, though his voice was shaking and his eyes were becoming red and wet. “Just stay with me, okay? Stay with me.”
Sarah rested her head back down on the bed, and she realized that she was in the same position where she shot herself. The white sheets were soaked with blood, but the orb had disappeared.
Footsteps and shouts echoed from somewhere down the hall, and Dell turned his head toward the door while keeping pressure on Sarah’s wounds.
“UP HERE!”
A few seconds later and there were more faces hovering above Sarah, who then forced Dell to step away. She tried to follow where he went, but he was quickly lost in the crowd.
“Ma’am? Can you hear me?”
“Gunshot wound to the abdomen, doesn’t look like the bullet went through. We need to get her moved. Let’s go. On three.”
Sarah was suddenly weightless and moving. She blinked, the ceiling that passed blurred and dark. She was vaguely aware of her trip down the stairs, but the longer she stayed awake, the more cold she became. She just wanted to close her eyes and sleep. She
