The Days Ahead

Sarah opened her eyes only to find herself looking into the concerned eyes of her grandfather. She was shocked to see the haggard face of her grandfather whose age seemed to be more pronounced that she last remembered. She saw surprise flash across his face before she heard him let out a sigh of relief.

"Sarah. You're finally awake. It's been three months since your accident. How do you feel?"

Sarah felt sluggish, as she tried to sit up, her body was slow to respond, and she looked over to her grandfather who quickly noticed her plight and helped her sit up. Her mouth felt a little dry but after a slight cough, Sarah felt she could talk normally and rapidly asked.

"Gramps, what do you mean three months? I have been in a coma for three months? What happened to me? To my job?"

"Slow down, we tried our best to keep your muscles massaged and in shape, but it is still no replacement for active exercise. Here, have some water first." As he handed Sarah a cup of water.

Sarah quickly drained the cup of water and only then realised how dry her throat was and looked up at her grandfather, awaiting his response. This situation oddly felt nostalgic as she was reminded of those sleepless nights of her childhood when her grandfather would read a story to her before she

went to bed.

"Don't worry Sarah, if there is one thing that Mark is good for, it's that he made sure your job is safe. Plus, I wasn't going to let your efforts go down the drain, even if you stayed in that coma for the rest of your life, I would have made sure that job remained yours."

"Oh, thanks Gramps, but what happened, how did I get here?"

She saw her grandfather hesitate slightly at this question before he once again let out a sigh.

"It has to do with your story you were investigating. You should not have gone to find Elaine and Kate. Elaine is just as dangerous. Would you believe it if I told you, she is the head of an international drug cartel? Well they do dabble in side jobs, but the point is, you weren't being careful enough, it appears the Boss is onto you."

Sarah was surprised to hear that her grandfather knew the names of the people she had been looking for. However, the revelation that she had met with a gang boss left her speechless, after all browsing through her LinkedIn profile and meeting her in real life gave Sarah the impression, she was a self-made businesswoman. Which now in hindsight seemed oddly appropriate.

However, now that she knew she had been found out by the Boss. His ruthless decision to have her killed, instead of making her afraid to continue investigating, it stimulated her sense of adventure. It was validation that she was on the right track, if not close to finding out something substantial.

"Sarah, I need to ask you. Why are you so dead set on uncovering this particular story? After all there are plenty of other things you could investigate. Stories that are much safer. People that are less dangerous. I have seen you grow from a curious little girl to the brilliant woman you are today, but your sense of curiosity has always been too much."

Sarah was touched to see her grandfather's immense concern for her wellbeing. However, even though she had died before, she could not see it in herself to walk away. Instead she felt more invested, after all she had lost her life for this, if she did not find out the truth than what was the point of coming back.

Although she had been wracked with pain and not fully conscious of the consequences of accepting Athena's proposal, she had been pushed to accept a new lease on life purely because she wanted to know the truth. The time she spent in the Underworld gave her plenty of time for introspection and she deeply regretted not knowing who had killed her and for what reason. She regretted not knowing the full story behind the Southern Mafia Boss and the Police Minister. These regrets pushed her, prodded her towards accepting whatever Athena proffered, even if it would lead to a life of slavery.

Hell, Sarah believed that even if it was reincarnation or whatever other method to ensure she could return and find answers to her questions, she would have accepted without a thought. As such, although she did not know Athena well, she was grateful at the very least that she did not take advantage of Sarah's situation and demand a lot. But then again, Sarah was not so naïve as to believe that there was nothing more to being her Champion than Athena had outlined.

Sarah knew her answer would not satisfy her grandfather, but it was the best answer she could give. She was unsure if he knew that she had died, but she figured he would most likely know of it. With strong determination Sarah held her grandfather's hands and looked into his eyes.

"Gramps, I died. I felt it. I know it. It was scary, and I was angry. I was full of regrets. What I regret the most is not knowing who killed me, how I died. Why I died. I know it must have something to do with what I am investigating. You even said it. So, I cannot stop, otherwise why did I come back?"

David Longford had not expected such a raw and powerful emotion to erupt from his

granddaughter. It was only then that he fully realised that she had experienced death and what it meant for her. She had truly experienced death and come back. Although she was a grown adult, she was still human, and what any sane person feared the most in life was death. After all it was final. The be all and end all. However, here she was bought back to life and what for?

In his time spent building up his empire he had encountered all sorts of people, heard of all manners of people and fought many types of peoples, yet there were always rumours of a mystical group that he just could not identify. He knew the world was not a simple place, there was no black or whites, it was a world of many shades of grey. Arguably there were many instances during his rise to power where it was a kill or be killed situation.

Although David at the age of seventy-four could be considered to have lived his life well and fully and should be prepared for death. It was still a concept that scared him. Not because his life would end, but because of those he would leave behind. The pain he would cause them. The hole he would leave in their life. His wife's passing had left an irrecoverable scar on his heart, casting a deep shadow in his mind, yet he had others who could try to fill the gap, such as his granddaughter Sarah.

But who would Sarah have if he passed on. She had her brother, but he had a life to live, he could not always be coddling his younger sister. Her father? David always knew his son would not make a good father, he was too much of an intellectual, he had no patience for people he could not engage with on that level. As a result, the relationship between the father and daughter pair had been warm and cordial but not very close, more so after the kidnapping incident. After Sarah's graduation, her father had felt she had fulfilled his duties as a father bar marriage and quickly moved out.

As for her mother, that was an entirely different can of worms. Her level of remorse had only grown worse over the years. Where once it was only blame for having endangered her family as a result of work, now it was the culmination of missed birthdays, events and simply being an absent mother all taking a toll on her. David had seen how this burden had only grown throughout the years. A demon that simply could not be exorcised and a vicious cycle which she could not break out of. At first, he had been supportive of his daughter-in-law's acceptance of diplomatic posts overseas, as he knew they needed time to work things out. However, as the gulf of time grew from a visit every couple months, to once a year, he knew that things could not continue.

He had once arranged for the entire family to meet to try and work things out in a way that would not lead to the breakdown of his son's marriage and family. However, his intervention was met with open disapproval by his son and through the efforts of his wife, he had managed to ensure that there was some semblance of routine, of family for his grandchildren, Steven and Sarah.

However, Sarah's mother's shame could not be overcome so easily and she threw herself ever more fanatically into her job.

As a result, David and his wife had taken every opportunity he had to make sure that their grandchildren were well provided for and loved. Her brother Steven had her father, but Sarah only had him, especially after his wife's death.

David knew that only through taking up this task and finding the truth would Sarah be able to stop this incident from destroying her life. He knew she would not be able to move forward and could quite possibly find herself trapped in the same cycle as her mother.

David looked at the vulnerable girl who tried her best to hold back her tears and wrapped her in a hug. He could feel the tears wet his shoulder but all he did was pat her on the back and comfortingly whisper

"There, there. Everything will be alright. Wherever you go, whatever you choose, I will always be right behind you, Sarah."