Chapter 85: Punishment For Her Grief
When Samantha regained consciousness and still found herself in the perpetual valley, her bleary gaze moved from left to right, slowly taking in the blurriness of the environment she was in till it became vivid before her glossy eyes. Heaving a shuddering sigh, she forced her weak limbs to move as she pushed herself up into a comfortable position, whilst she rested her back on a rock that was behind her, and only then did she take notice of the warmth that enveloped her, as it appears someone had made a fire to keep her warm.
Her dispirited gaze lingered on the burning woods for some minutes, quietly listening to the crackling sounds made by the fire as it glowed up her face, and after trying to get her disoriented mind working, the young maid looked at her palms as if shocked to find herself alive. Undoubtedly, anyone would be over the moon under the circumstances of finding themselves alive after that fatal fall, but the same couldn’t be said for Samantha who looked aggrieved to find herself back in a world that despised her, whilst her palms shook under the tremor as she kept staring at it.
Everything that happened came flooding into her muddled head, and she involuntarily hugged herself with her knees up, feeling utterly vulnerable and frightened of what else could be in store for her. The words of the caretaker kept singing in her head like a dreading tune that tore her fragile heart into two.
"He’s dead!" The caretaker had said. "Do not blame me for the bad luck in your miserable life!" He said. "You’re just a useless little bitch!" He said.
It was painful, but it was the truth.
Her life was a ridiculed mess, an unrepairable one, and she has known this all her life whilst she never complained. She didn’t mind it since she believed her pathetic life was worth living for others that mattered to her, and that was the life of her brother, whom she sacrificed so much for while they grew up. She promised him a good future, she didn’t mind doing three jobs at the same time back in the village as long as her brother would be the one to stand out in her family, someone needed to make them proud at least, but presently, all her efforts now seemed like broken glass that cannot be fixed.
"What do I do now?" She uttered as if confused on what step to take next. Everyone that mattered was leaving her alone in this unfair world, with no guidance, and there was no one she could possibly turn to for help. They were either gone, forgotten, or she was not worth helping at all.
Wasn’t she supposed to be dead?? If she had died maybe things would have been better... So how is she still alive?
Samantha didn’t believe in miracles since miracles never existed in her dictionary, but finding herself alive after that fatal fall had turned out to be a mystery on its own.