Three days slowly passed by, Maddie lying there in that hospital bed in a deep coma with no signs of improvement yet for the doctors to speak of. It was just a waiting game. The only thing they could do was wait. Wait, pray, and hope.

People came and went, flowers and cards being delivered to her room. Her room had been decorated now, the family having brought in things from home in an effort to cheer up her room and also to give them something to do. Maddie's weighted blanket had been brought in and was covering her, her teddy bear and the little plush pony that Rose had given her tucked in beside her. Her ribbons she had won at the Mustang Makeover and others she'd won from rodeos were hung up along with photos for them to be able to speak about. Any little thing they felt would help they did but by the time that day four had come around, they had nothing left to do except sit beside her and wait.

Sit beside her and wait, listening to the beeping of the machines and watching the rise and fall of her chest as the ventilator pumped air into her lungs.

Because it wasn't logical for them all to be with her every moment of the day, they had decided to write up a schedule and take it in turns to be there sitting with her. Cordell attempted to throw himself back into work to keep his mind off what was going on but knowing that he wasn't in any real condition to be on active duty, Captain James assigned him to stay at his desk for the meantime. On Liam's prompting both Stella and August went back to school and tried to carry on about their days the best that they could, heading straight to the hospital to sit with her once they got out of school.

Geri was on the schedule to sit with her, Captain James, Cassie, Trey and Micki having volunteered to come visit with her too. Cordell kept the night shift, choosing to stay to sleep with Maddie and though Abeline and Liam offered to take over so he could get some decent sleep at home, he refused. Though he knew that there wasn't much he could do he just wanted to stay with her as much as he could. How could they expect him to leave her lying alone there like this?

Friday morning came, a knock gently sounding on the door as Abeline kept watch beside Maddie. She looked over to see who it was, Jenny and her daughter coming into the room. 'I'm sorry-' Jenny apologized. 'I would have called ahead to see if us coming in was alright but I don't have anyone's number. And Rose-' She looked down at her daughter, Rose clinging tightly to her leg. 'Rose wanted to come in and see her.'

'That's alright, come in.' Abeline assured her, placing aside the book she'd been reading to Maddie.

'Do you want to go sit with Maddie?' Jenny questioned and the girl nodded soberly.

'Come here.' Abeline patted her lap, inviting the girl over. 'Come sit up here with me.'

Rose hesitated for a moment but upon seeing her kind smile, accepted the invitation and curled up in her lap.

'We brought these too.' Jenny continued, a bouquet of flowers and a get well card in her hand. 'Is there a vase around I could put them in?'

'I think the ones we have here are full. If you ask at the nurses station they might have more.'

'Alright.' She placed the flowers and the card down on the table next to Maddie's bed. 'Will you be alright here for a moment with Mrs. Walker, Rose?'

Rose nodded.

'I won't be long.'

Jenny left and silence fell except for the steady rhythm of the machines beeping, Rose taking everything in with her blue eyes. 'What-what's wrong with her?' She questioned softly after a time, Abeline's arms wrapped around her. 'Mama said she's sleepin but why does she look like that?'

'The cords and the machines?'

She nodded again.

'Well…' Abeline took a deep breath as she tried to think of a simple way to explain it to her, looking back at her granddaughter. 'The machines are helping Maddie breathe until she's strong enough to be able to do it on her own again. The other things, they are so that the doctors can keep an eye on how she's doing.'

'When will she wake up?'

'I-I don't know honey. Soon I hope.'

Rose looked up at Abeline. 'It's already been three days. Why can't she wake up?'

'Because she needs to rest so she can get better.'

That answer seemed to satisfy her for she nodded again. 'Can she hear us?'

Abeline nodded. 'She can hear us, she just can't talk back. Why don't you tell her a story or something? I'm sure she'd like that.'

'Okay. I can do that.'

Rose launched into a story about what she had been doing with Mika and her new pony during the week, Jenny arriving part way through. After Rose had finished Jenny informed her that it was time for her to go to school and after she had given Maddie a kiss goodbye, Rose turned to give Abeline a hug.

'Everything's gonna be okay.' Rose told her as she hugged Abeline. 'I just know it.'

Abeline smiled at the faith the little girl had.

'Come on Rose.' Jenny encouraged gently. 'Time to go.'

'Bye Mrs. Walker.'

'Bye Rose.'

'We'll come back to visit another time.' Jenny told Abeline on her way out. 'Hope she gets better soon.'

'Thank you.'

The door was closed behind her again and silence fell once more in the room, Abeline moving her chair over closer to her granddaughter and began to stroke her cheek gently. She just had to get better. She had to.

Maddie stood at the divider between this strange place filled with white light, looking on at the scene unfolding below. Time had passed, how much though she didn't know. Where she was, time was endless. There was no day or night. Just a brilliant white light.

'Still watching?'

'Yeah…' She replied softly to Amber, the girl having materialized beside her at the divider. 'Haven't got anything else to do really.'

'You could come play with the other kids.'

'There's other kids here?' She questioned in surprise.

'No Amber.' Emily too appeared out of nowhere. 'Maddie has to stay here for now.'

'Oh…' Amber sighed heavily, looking back at Maddie. 'Sorry. I forgot.'

'That's okay.' She replied with a smile.

'Maybe we could play together?'

'Some other time perhaps. I don't really feel much like playing right now if I'm being honest. '

The little girl appeared crestfallen for a moment then looked back at the scene in the room below them. 'I wish we could cheer them up.'

'Yeah…' Maddie agreed with a soft sigh. 'Me too.'

'Why don't you run along now?' Emily questioned as she looked down at Amber. 'I want to talk to Maddie.'

'Alright. I'll come see you again later, okay?'

Maddie nodded and then as quickly as Amber had appeared, the child had vanished. She looked back at the scene, the door opening in the room below again and Cordell walked into the room. Geri had been there most of the day and the two of them hugged, then Cordell placed a kiss gently on her forehead before taking a seat beside her bed once more. 'How-how much time has passed since I've been here?'

'There's no notion of time here, no day or night.'

'That wasn't the question.' She looked at Emily. 'How long have I been here?'

'Two, maybe three days?' Emily replied a little hesitantly. 'The days blend together here when you aren't bound by time.'

Had it only been that long? It felt so much longer than that with nothing to do other than to watch. 'Feels like a lifetime.'

'It takes a little while to get used to.'

'I imagine it would.'

Silence fell between the two of them as they watched Geri leave, Cordell left alone with Maddie's earthly form once more.

'Anything interesting happen?' Emily asked to break the silence. 'Most interesting thing I've seen lately was Stella and August being late for school. Again.'

Maddie chuckled softly at that. 'Those two are always late.'

'Yeah, I always had to remind them to make sure they had everything ready to go the night before. They never listened.'

'What's it like?' She questioned after a moment. 'I mean, being here, watching them and not being able to be there with them.'

'It hasn't been easy.' Emily replied. 'Especially seeing how hard it was for them to lose me. Cordell and I, we had our problems like any couple but seeing what he went through…' She shook her head, tears coming to her eyes. 'I was allowed to visit him on the occasion until he finally came to a good place. The hardest part about being dead was watching them grieving and not knowing the truth and me not having any way of being able to comfort them. To bring them closure.' She looked down at her. 'The time you've spent here so far. You would understand.'

'I do…' Maddie whispered, watching as Cordell held her hand in his. 'What are we allowed to do? I mean, we can't just sit here the whole time, can we?'

'It-it's kind of hard to explain.' She replied, trying to think of a way to tell her. 'You might have felt it with your mom. A soft breeze when there's no wind, the feeling of someone holding you when there's no one there. That's what we are allowed to do. We're a presence, we're there, able to see you but you can't see us. We can whisper things in your mind sometimes but that's it.'

Maddie nodded as she digested that information.

'You don't want to be here-' Emily looked down at the girl. 'Do you?'

'I-I don't know.' She replied truthfully. 'I mean, the time I've spent with my mom, being able to talk to her again, it's been one of the best things in my life. On the other hand…' Maddie turned back to the divider, placing a hand on the glass. 'That's my life. Down there. With them… How can I be happy here when they are hurting?'

'You will need to make a decision soon.'

'How soon?'

Emily shrugged. 'I don't know. When the time comes, you will know.'

Maddie nodded soberly. 'Until then, I guess I will make the best of this situation.'

'That's the spirit.' She encouraged, slipping her arm around the girl's shoulders.

'While I've got you-' Maddie started, looking up at her. 'What's it been like? Watching me become part of your family?'

'I was glad for them when you came along. You brought happiness to them, to all of them. You made friends with Stella and August, you were there for them. I saw how happy being around you made them. They've been able to move on and that's partly because of you.'

'So you aren't mad I came into your family?'

'No honey, no. Not at all. If anything, I think you've been one of the best things that could have ever happened to them.'

'You mean that?'

Emily nodded. 'I do. I know you've had it hard Maddie, I saw what you went through with your father. You deserve to have a family who loves and cares for you.'

'And I know they do.' Maddie said softly, tears coming to her eyes as she caught a little here and there of what Cordell was saying to her. 'And I love them too.' Silence fell again for a moment then she looked up at Emily. 'What's it like seeing Dad with Geri?'

'All I've ever wanted for Cordell is for him to be happy.' She replied. 'I don't want him spending the rest of his life alone pining for me. He deserves to be with someone who makes him happy and if it's Geri then well… I'm happy for him.'

'And there's not much you could do anyway if you weren't.'

Emily laughed at that. 'Yeah, unfortunately.'

'So, you mean you can't go back and haunt them?'

'No, not quite.'

'Man… What do you do for fun around here then?'

'Oh there's plenty that we can do.' She replied elusively then sobered again as she looked at the divider. 'I can't tell you what decision to make, Maddie. I can't tell you want to choose but you will have to make a decision.'

Maddie nodded, watching as Stella and August entered her room. 'I know.'

More time passed, day five coming and going while Maddie was yet to show any improvement. The family, though trying to hold onto hope, were worried when the doctors called them in to speak with them and their fears were confirmed. They told them Maddie hadn't shown any improvement at all and with each passing day without it, the less her chances of a full recovery were.

Maddie was in effect slowly, but steadily beginning to slip away.

A few days later, a little over a week since Maddie had gone in for surgery, Cordell was called into the office once more. The doctors revealed that they didn't hold much hope for her condition to improve, leaving the decision to turn off her life support up to the family. It was a hard topic for them to tell a parent that there was nothing else they could do for their child, that there was no hope left and everything earthly possible had been done. Cordell understandably was distraught at the thought of losing his daughter and it had been providential that Geri had gone along with him to the meeting. Geri stayed with him, trying to help him as much as she could but there was little that she could do to comfort him. There was little that anyone could do.

They had said it was like Maddie had lost the will to live.

That she had given up the fight.

Cordell refused to believe it.

Tears were in his eyes as he sat down beside her bed again, taking her hand in his once more. Geri slipped out of the room, closing the door after him to give them some privacy.

'Maddie…' He could barely get her name out, a soft sob escaping his lips. Maddie lay there still like she had the entire week, the only difference being that the bandages around her head had been removed. Her head was half shaved almost, a line of staples closing up the incision that had been made during her surgery. Gently he began stroking what was left of her hair as tenderly as he could, tears beginning to slip down his cheeks.

How could he make the decision to turn off life support?

How could he live knowing that he killed his daughter?

Cordell struggled with his emotions as he looked at his daughter's sweet face. How he wanted to see her open those beautiful eyes of hers once more. Oh how he wanted to hear her call him Daddy just one more time. The last words she had spoken to him had been not to worry about her. Even going into surgery her thoughts had been for him.

Why?

How on earth did the universe think it was far to take someone as sweet and good as Maddie from him?

Another sob escaped him and he drew his hand away from her head, clutching her hand tight in his. 'Maddie… Maddie, you-you gotta fight honey. The-the doctors say you won't make it but you have to Maddie. You have to.' He begged. 'I know you can fight. You have to live, Maddie.'

No response came from her, the only sound being of the machines and his gentle sobbing.

How could he break the news to his family?

How would he tell them it was time to say goodbye?

Maddie watched on, tears in her eyes as she heard her fathers sobbing. She wanted to do something, anything, but she was powerless on this side of the divide. There was nothing she could do. Being in the middle, hovering between life and death, she couldn't even comfort him with the essence of her presence like her mother had done and Emily was able to do. All she could do was stand there and watch, unable to take her eyes away from the scene unfolding before her.

Macey materialized beside her. 'I knew I'd find you here.'

'I-I just wish there was something I could do.' Maddie sobbed, her heart breaking as she watched her father crying. 'Something. Anything. Why can't I choose what I want to do yet? Why do I have to be stuck here in this horrible place between life and death?'

With a soft sigh, Macey placed her arms around her daughter. 'The time for you to choose hasn't come yet.'

'I just have to sit here and watch them suffer until it does? Even if I was dead I would be able to do more than I can now.'

'You have to be patient.' She replied gently. 'The time for your decision will come. Dry your eyes now. There is no need for tears. You have been brought here for a reason.'

Maddie swallowed back the lump in her throat as she wrestled her emotions under control again. 'What… what reason would there be to bring me here?'

'So we might be able to spend time together.' She turned away from the divider, holding her hand out to her daughter. 'Come. They will still be there when you return.'

After a moment of hesitation, Maddie went along with her. 'I-I'm so confused Mom.' She admitted as they walked through the white void. 'I-I don't know what to do. My heart feels like it's being torn two ways. I want to stay here with you but I don't want to leave them. I can't leave them. They have become my family.' She paused for a moment, looking up at her. 'But you are my family too. You are my mom. I've dreamed of being with you for so long and now that I am, I don't know what to do.'

'I know. That is why your time hasn't come to make a decision. You aren't ready to make one.'

'So you are saying I have a choice in when that time comes?'

'Yes and no.'

'Oh boy.' Maddie rolled her eyes in sarcasm. 'Got to love those elusive answers.'

Macey laughed. 'I see you still have that sass of yours.'

'It's improving with age, like a fine wine.' She laughed again, a loud, melodious laugh that Maddie hadn't heard in years.

'Oh, oh Maddie…'

Maddie chuckled softly. 'I always knew how to get you to laugh, didn't I?'

'Yeah, yeah, you did.' Macey replied when she had finished laughing, looking back down at her daughter. 'You always were a ray of sunshine during the darkest days.'

Silence fell again for a moment. 'Maddie…' Macey started softly. 'I'm so sorry you've had to grow up without me. I've seen how hard its been on you and I wish that things could have been different. I wish I could have been with you for your sixteenth, I wish I could have been there to protect you from your father-'

'Mom…' Maddie interrupted gently. 'You know I don't hold it against you, my father, right? I-I went through your journals and I understand why now. I understand why you stayed. You just wanted to be loved.'

'Doesn't everyone?' She sighed heavily. 'But my choices, my actions, they had consequences for you… I wish I could have gone back and changed things, I would have done them over-'

'But you can't Mom.'

'I know.' Macey placed her hand on the girl's cheek. 'I am so proud of the young woman you have become. Against the odds you have become a daughter any parent would be proud to have.'

Tears came to her eyes. 'You really mean that?'

'I do honey.'

'Even though I chose not to take up singing like you?'

'Maddie, your life, the path you are on, it is yours to decide what to do with as you see fit. All I want is for you to be happy. To do what makes you happy and seeing you… Seeing what you've been doing with those horses, seeing how happy it makes you, I can be happy too. I can be happy knowing my little girl is doing what she loves.'

'You mean that?'

'Of course sweetheart. Your destiny is in what brings you joy and happiness. Helping people. Helping horses. You have a kind and good heart, more so than I ever had. You are a light shining bright in the darkness. You've been through things to make you stronger and you are strong. You are a warrior.'

Maddie let out a soft chuckle. 'Uncle Liam told me the same thing.'

'You have to believe in yourself Maddie. You have to love yourself, find value in yourself. Your skin isn't paper, don't cut it. You aren't ugly, don't tell yourself that you are. You have a family that loves and adores you, love yourself like they love you.'

'This is sounding suspiciously like goodbye advice.'

Macey laughed softly. 'It's just plain, good advice my girl.'

'You know how hard I've tried to stop cutting.' Maddie continued after a pause. 'And I have for almost two months. I-I just feel so worthless sometimes, I hate myself and I know it's wrong but I just can't help it. What do I do?'

'That is what your family is for. Talk to them. Let them in. Let them help. Stop holding it all inside.'

'It's easier said than done.'

'I know.' Macey assured her. 'I struggled too and I was too proud to admit to any more than the booze and drugs. Don't let that be your story Maddie. You have the opportunity to change your destiny.'

'I know. I read through your journals. But you overcame that Mama. You beat those demons.'

'Not before they beat me.' She sighed softly. 'I am still dealing with the consequences of those decisions.'

Silence fell again and Maddie stopped, turning back in the direction of the divide.

'You want to go back?'

She nodded. 'I need to go stay with them Mom, even if I can't help. You understand, right?'

'I do baby.' Macey replied honestly. 'And believe me when I say they are lucky to have a girl like you in their family. I didn't realize just how much a treasure I had in you until I saw your love being given to another.'

'Mom… you aren't making any sense again.'

She chuckled. 'Never mind. Come on, we'll go see how things are going down below again.'

Cordell stayed with Maddie until Cassie arrived to take over, doing his best not to break down as he told her what the doctors had said. Cassie was stunned to say the least and expressed her concern for him, asking if there was anything else she could do. He replied that having her stay with Maddie was enough and that he needed to tell his family. He had to tell them that the doctor's said it was time to make a decision.

He left shortly after, Cassie taking over the vigil at Maddie's bedside. Alone is his truck in the darkness of night, he broke down. Why? Why Maddie? It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. The same universe that saw fit to take his wife before her time now demanded his daughter also.

Somehow he managed to make it home, staying in his truck for a moment to gather his emotions and pull himself together. He had to tell them. Tell them that Maddie wasn't going to make it. That she was going to die. That it was time to say goodbye… He banged a fist down against the steering wheel, looking up at the cloudless start sky above through the windscreen.

Why?

He made it into the house, his family sitting at the kitchen table eating a late dinner. As he walked in they stopped, turning to him. Abeline asked in a shaky voice what had happened and after he had taken a seat, he attempted to break the news as gently as possible.

Stella and August didn't receive the news well at all, August breaking down first then Stella. It was hard news for all of them, Cordell trying his best to comfort his children through his own brokenness. Time slipped by, dinner long forgotten and left to grow cold. None of them had much of an appetite anyway.

Stella and August finally went to bed and Cordell was alone with his parents and brother once more. In their company he finally broke down, unable to hold it back anymore. They tried to comfort him as best they could but they were all crushed. They all loved that little girl and to know they were going to lose her was harder than any of them could hear. Even Bonham shed tears seeing his son and wife crying, Liam doing his best to hold himself together too.

It wasn't right.

They spoke about the decision to turn off her life support and they came to the conclusion that Cordell shouldn't have to make it on his own. They would all decide, they would all shoulder the responsibility of the burden. In the morning they would tell the doctors of their decision. They would prepare to say their goodbyes.

Liam drove Cordell back to the hospital once the discussion was over, heading in with his brother to sit with Maddie once more. Cassie left again and they were alone in the silence, listening to the beeping of the machines and Maddie's breathing. Liam stayed with Cordell for a long while then left to go home, Cordell sitting beside his daughter the whole night, praying for a miracle.

How could they let her go?