The sounds of Hades suddenly changed. Although there were still loud, piercing sounds, the screams of human beings had disappeared. Instead, there was a steady, rhythmic, high-pitched beep that continued incessantly in his head, more annoying than scary.

Jack was surprised that the heat was gone, and he didn't feel it at all. He must have been having some sort of break, which was unexpected in hell. Everything felt nice, almost too good to be true.

He started to climb higher, being lifted and airborne without any effort on his part. However, he soon realized that something was happening. The fog in his mind was being cleared, sweeping away the darkness and making way for other senses, like smell and sound. Gradually, his vision started to clear too.

The darkness lifted slowly, with some effort, and then fell again. This continued until finally, it stayed away, and he saw only light. It was piercing, and his eyes reacted for a few seconds. When they finally opened, Jack realized he wasn't dead, nor was he in hell.

He was in a hospital, and the beeping sound of a monitor made him aware of it. He smelled the antiseptic and tasted the dry aftermath of emergency treatments that had been pumped through him. He was lucky to be alive and given a second chance, even though his body ached.

However, when the door across the room opened, Jack no longer felt lucky.

Instead, he felt like he had been pushed into a termite's hole with no means of escape. Peter, Sarah’s other suitor, walked in, smiling at him. This was the man that Sarah had been seeing… or had she?

"See who's back from the dead," Peter said, smiling as he came up to Jack's side. "You almost left us. We were worried. But you'll be fine. Can't say the same for your car though." He laughed at his own little joke.

Jack's ears picked up something else. "'Us'?" he croaked, not liking how his voice sounded.

Peter nodded solemnly, the smile gone from his face. He looked like he was thinking hard about something. "Funny story, but she said a deer... No, a fawn led her to you."

Jack swallowed what felt like a painful lump. "A—a fawn?"

Peter nodded, still looking lost. "She was on her way back to the lounge yesterday night and had to slow to a stop when a fawn came out of the woods to stand on the road. It wouldn't move on but stood watching her even after she had turned off her headlights. She got out of her car and somehow the little thing coaxed her to follow to where your car was crumpled in a tree.” He chuckled again, the sudden switch annoyed Jack even more.

Jack was too stunned to say anything about that little story, but that was by the way.

"Where was Sarah coming from?" he asked because that part of the story had lights flashing all around it.

Stolen story; please report.

Peter inhaled sharply and raised his head as though making a decision. "Here," he said. "She had been here for a while... Secretly, of course."

Jack closed his eyes briefly, hurt. "She had been coming to see you, hadn't she? All those times I was in town and after? You both had been seeing each other?"

Jack's mind raced, a whirlwind of emotions threatening to overwhelm him. Relief at being alive warred with the ache of betrayal he felt imagining Sarah with Peter.

But something didn't add up. The Sarah he knew, the woman who had shown him a different way of life, wouldn't engage in a secret affair. As Peter began to speak again, Jack forced himself to listen, to push past his jealousy and fear. There had to be more to this story, and he was determined to uncover the truth, no matter how painful it might be.

"It was vital that she did... Yes..." Peter hesitated a second and then frowned. "Mr. Harper, I hope you are not thinking that..."

Jack looked him straight in the eye. "You and Sarah are having a secret affair? That you are the reason she won't be with me?"

Peter stood mouth agape for a moment, but then he laughed. He laughed so loudly that Jack thought he would disturb the other rooms.

"Mr. Harper..."

"Call me 'Jack'," Jack corrected.

"Jack, look, you are getting it all wrong. I haven't seen Sarah as happy as those weeks you were in town. She was always cheerful and her blood pressure was all the better for it.”

"She likes you very much. I've tried countless times to break free from the confines of our doctor-patient relationship and make her see me differently, but I have failed. Jack eyed him skeptically, still uncertain about his words. "I'm being sincere with you, man. Honestly, from one man to another you are a lucky man. Sarah has not let anyone that close since her parents passed. And then with…”

Jack's heart skipped a beat. "And then - what?"

Peter's face shattered. "I am sorry, I thought you knew. I can’t discuss her condition."

Jack forced himself to speak, to say something to the man he had seen as a rival, but who was, in truth, trying to help him—albeit indirectly. His throat felt parched, and everything suddenly seemed skewed and wrong again. He licked his lips and tried.

“Please,” he whispered hoarsely, barely able to muster the strength. “Where is she? I have to see her.”

Determined, Jack gritted his teeth and swung his legs over the side of the bed, ignoring the pain that shot through his body. But Dr. Peter stepped in swiftly, his expression firm. “Jack, you can’t. You need to rest. You’ve sustained serious injuries.”

Jack’s eyes flashed with frustration. “I need to see her.”

“Listen to me,” the doctor insisted gently, placing a hand on his shoulder to steady him. “You’re not in any condition to leave right now. You will make things worse.”

Jack’s shoulders slumped as the words sank in. His body trembled with the effort to stay upright. His desperation softened into a weary plea. “Then... can you just let her know I’m worried about her?”

The doctor nodded, his smile reassuring. “I’ll do what I can, Jack. But for now, you need to rest.”

Reluctantly, Jack eased himself back onto the bed, the fight draining out of him.