Chapter Thirty-Three: A Better World

"It is a curious thing, the death of a loved one. We all know that our time in this world is limited, and that eventually all of us will end up underneath some sheet, never to wake up. And yet it is always a surprise when it happens to someone we know…" -Lemony Snicket Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid

Everyone stared at Sami as she had her head hung low. "So, Patricia was really the one who died in the car crash?" KT asked.

"Yes, she died. But she lives now and I'm dead," Sami responded.

Eddie shook his head, he couldn't believe it. Patricia had been dead before? He couldn't even imagine his life without Patricia, but it was almost happened. If Sami hadn't given herself up, he wouldn't have Patricia in his life.

"Can I ask a personal question?" Nina asked Sami.

"Shoot," Sami said. She could handle the questioning of an eighteen year old.

"Did you ever regret giving up your life for Patricia?" she asked.

"No," she responded. "I was the one who was supposed to die, not her. She was innocent and paid the price for me." She paused for a moment. "However, I was curious once and went to see what the world would have turned out like if I hadn't saved Patricia."

"What was it like?" Eddie asked. He wanted to believe that the world was better because Patricia was in it. His world was definitely better with Patricia in it.

"If Patricia had not lived, the world would be much worse," Sami began to tell them of a world without the beloved Sibuna member. "By the time you guys would have found out about Joy missing, you wouldn't have had enough time to stop evil. Rufus would have gotten the Elixir and eventually would help Senkhara take over the world. They would have had an awful rule," Sami paused for a second when she saw their faces; they looked horrified. "Patricia has pushed Sibuna to succeed. Without her, there wouldn't be much of a world to save anymore." Eddie smiled; this made him happy. He knew that once Patricia heard this, she wouldn't feel so bad.

Eddie turned to leave the cellar so he could go see Patricia, she would need someone through this and he related to her problem. Hopefully, she would accept his help. Sami stopped him before he could leave. "Wait, Eddie."

He turned around, "I want to talk to Patricia," he said.

"I know you do, but I have a feeling that she wants to be alone right now," she said.

"Why?" Alfie, KT, and Eddie all asked at the same time.

"This is a lot to take in," Sami explained, "I mean she just found out that she died, and came back to life, three years ago. She feels bad because she doesn't understand my view of the situation yet. She thinks that everything would be better if I was the one who lived, not her."

"Which is exactly why I want to talk to her," Eddie complained loudly. "I want to tell her what you just told us. I want to tell her that the world's better."

He began to walk out again but Sami stopped him again. "Eddie, she's angry," Sami finally said. "She feels like she took Fabian's glory. She feels like she stole my life. She's angry at herself. She thinks that, somehow, she's responsible for all of this. She thinks that as a family, we would have been happier without her. She thinks that you guys would have been happier without her. She's angry; not really at anybody except herself. If you go in there you may force her to say something that she doesn't mean."

Sami paused for a second, took a deep breath and continued, "For her sake, leave her be for a minute." She looked at her watch and said, "I have to go. She'll understand eventually. Just give her some time, Eddie." Sami disappeared and was nothing but a ghostly memory.

They all went out from the cellar and sat on the couches in the living room. No one had anything to say; they just sat and stared at each other for a while. They weren't sure what they were supposed to do. Soon Victor came back and yelled at them for breaking curfew. Eddie tried to convince him that since it was Saturday, they should get to stay up until eleven, but he wouldn't listen. The Sibunas went off to bed. KT and Nina quietly entered their room and saw that Patricia was already in bed, fast asleep.