Chapter 3
Sarah sat silent for a minute wondering how she could put this, what to leave in and what to leave out. She gave a mental shrug and figured she may as well tell all. At least up to a certain point. "It wasn't long after I got back form the Labyrinth. Three weeks after if you want to be exact."
***
- 4 years ago -
Sarah jumped as the doorbell rang. It was probably Karen or her dad, late as usual on one of their trips out. Usually it didn't worry her when they eventually turned up hours later but this time they had Toby with them and that made all the difference.
Opening the door Sarah blinked at the two police officers standing there.
"Miss Williams?"
Sarah nodded. Instantly a horrible ball of terror grew in the pit of her stomach and she suddenly wasn't too sure if she could stand up for much longer. She heard herself speak as if from a distance.
"Yes?"
***
Sarah looked away from the Goblin King and stared into the empty fireplace, unwilling to see his reaction to her news. "It was in a crash with a truck up on the main highway. They told me Karen died instantly. Dad was taken to hospital but he died a few hours later." Sarah felt her throat tighten. Why did it still hurt after all these years? She pushed the emotion away. She would not cry in front of the Goblin King.
"Sarah? What about the child?"
Sarah tore her gaze away from the grey ashes and stared straight at Jareth. Somehow their roles had been reversed. Emotion flared within his mismatched eyes, the Goblin King was gone and in his place was someone who could feel sorrow, empathy, sympathy. The painful emotions Sarah had felt second ago were no longer a threat and her eyes conveyed the nothingness she felt inside.
"You mean Toby." Sarah gave the fey a humourless smirk that made his skin crawl. "They lied to me about him."
***
Sarah sat on her bed staring at herself in the mirror across the room. Still dressed in black from the funeral that morning she saw her face reflecting back at her. Gaunt, white and eyes so dark that they possessed a depth that had no end for sorrow. And dry, she hadn't cried at all. Not when the police told her of the accident, not when relatives and friends gave their sympathy and not when they lowered the coffins into the ground. Not even when the smallest of the three was covered in by dirt.
Gone. Her family was gone. Karen and Toby dying instantaneously in the crash and her father a few hours later. Never, ever, coming back. Never to see Toby again. She had defeated the Goblin King when he had stolen Toby and got him back. But this time there was no labyrinth to beat no villain to face. Toby was stolen form her once again and there was no way to get him back.
She stood and numbly walked out of her room and started down the steps where everyone had come after the funeral. She stopped as she heard voices coming from Toby's room. Anger flickered somewhere in the bottomless pit inside of her. How dare they go into his room! Placing her hand on the door handle, something made her stop. She listened.
"It was so horrible. you can't tell anyone about this. Especially not Sarah, she doesn't need to know" a woman sobbed from the inside.
"It's alright. Tell me what happened" came another female voice.
"I was there at the accident. I was called and I got there as fast as I could. Karen died on impact, like they said, but not Toby. Toby was still alive, he. the windows had shattered. Oh, God. the glass had gone into him. He was screaming, screaming so loud. They couldn't get to him and he just kept screaming and then. then he just stopped. And I knew that he was. he was."
"Shh. It's alright."
"God. I can still hear the screaming. so much screaming."
Sarah sat silent for a minute wondering how she could put this, what to leave in and what to leave out. She gave a mental shrug and figured she may as well tell all. At least up to a certain point. "It wasn't long after I got back form the Labyrinth. Three weeks after if you want to be exact."
***
- 4 years ago -
Sarah jumped as the doorbell rang. It was probably Karen or her dad, late as usual on one of their trips out. Usually it didn't worry her when they eventually turned up hours later but this time they had Toby with them and that made all the difference.
Opening the door Sarah blinked at the two police officers standing there.
"Miss Williams?"
Sarah nodded. Instantly a horrible ball of terror grew in the pit of her stomach and she suddenly wasn't too sure if she could stand up for much longer. She heard herself speak as if from a distance.
"Yes?"
***
Sarah looked away from the Goblin King and stared into the empty fireplace, unwilling to see his reaction to her news. "It was in a crash with a truck up on the main highway. They told me Karen died instantly. Dad was taken to hospital but he died a few hours later." Sarah felt her throat tighten. Why did it still hurt after all these years? She pushed the emotion away. She would not cry in front of the Goblin King.
"Sarah? What about the child?"
Sarah tore her gaze away from the grey ashes and stared straight at Jareth. Somehow their roles had been reversed. Emotion flared within his mismatched eyes, the Goblin King was gone and in his place was someone who could feel sorrow, empathy, sympathy. The painful emotions Sarah had felt second ago were no longer a threat and her eyes conveyed the nothingness she felt inside.
"You mean Toby." Sarah gave the fey a humourless smirk that made his skin crawl. "They lied to me about him."
***
Sarah sat on her bed staring at herself in the mirror across the room. Still dressed in black from the funeral that morning she saw her face reflecting back at her. Gaunt, white and eyes so dark that they possessed a depth that had no end for sorrow. And dry, she hadn't cried at all. Not when the police told her of the accident, not when relatives and friends gave their sympathy and not when they lowered the coffins into the ground. Not even when the smallest of the three was covered in by dirt.
Gone. Her family was gone. Karen and Toby dying instantaneously in the crash and her father a few hours later. Never, ever, coming back. Never to see Toby again. She had defeated the Goblin King when he had stolen Toby and got him back. But this time there was no labyrinth to beat no villain to face. Toby was stolen form her once again and there was no way to get him back.
She stood and numbly walked out of her room and started down the steps where everyone had come after the funeral. She stopped as she heard voices coming from Toby's room. Anger flickered somewhere in the bottomless pit inside of her. How dare they go into his room! Placing her hand on the door handle, something made her stop. She listened.
"It was so horrible. you can't tell anyone about this. Especially not Sarah, she doesn't need to know" a woman sobbed from the inside.
"It's alright. Tell me what happened" came another female voice.
"I was there at the accident. I was called and I got there as fast as I could. Karen died on impact, like they said, but not Toby. Toby was still alive, he. the windows had shattered. Oh, God. the glass had gone into him. He was screaming, screaming so loud. They couldn't get to him and he just kept screaming and then. then he just stopped. And I knew that he was. he was."
"Shh. It's alright."
"God. I can still hear the screaming. so much screaming."