And with that, Endor and Miles disappeared.
I held her hand, and in that one touch, I knew what she had chosen.
It was not Heaven, or Hell.
Death would come for her one day, as it did for everyone, and when it did, she would be ready.
She chose peace, because that was what her power always had been.
She chose life.
Her life flashed before me, from her first breath, to dancing on her father’s toes, to her first dance trophy, to her mother’s cancer, to her first kiss.
The neural pathways tangled together with her soul, and I could see it all.
I could see her and Miles, together, standing at a beautiful altar.
Her sweat-slick face contorted in pain as she breathed deep through contractions.
I could see her running her first marathon, Miles beside her, with pride on his face.
And I could see the moment the darkness came for her, at the ripe old age of ninety-three.
She did not choose Heaven or Hell.Because she hadlivedthrough both Heaven and Hell.
She chose life, and in that choice, she would live forever.
Her lost soul would find a home again, and she wouldlive.
CHAPTER15
Endor
Miles wasshaky on his legs as we entered his patient room.It was but two rooms down from Mercy’s.All this time, they’d been so close, yet so far away, searching for one another.
Miles leaned on me as I helped him to his bed.
He looked far worse than Mercy.More machines, scratches still present on his face, but the biggest difference was the absence of his right leg and the bandages.So many bloody bandages.
But even though he was in stasis, hewas breathing.
“Why?”he asked, his breath catching in his throat.He looked up at me.“You don’t even know me...”
I sighed, feeling a strange sort of pull in my chest.There was no point in lying.
I knew when he woke up, he wouldn’t remember a thing.
Just as Mercy wouldn’t.
It would be as if it all were some fucked up, coma-induced nightmare.
So, I told him the truth, perhaps to soothe my own heart.
“Because you have the chance to experience the things I can’t.”
I settled him on the bed, noticing the sweat on his brow.His machines whirred and clicked as the alarms went off.His blood pressure was spiking.
“Because you have so much more to do, Miles.”
