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breeze, giving the place an ancient and magical ambiance.
     
    This graveyard had been forgotten long ago and how she managed to be standing here was a mystery.  Nicole shook her head slightly, squinting her brows together, as she tried to figure out where she was.  But a fog clouded her mind, and kept her from thinking past the moment.  She caught a glimpse of movement ahead of her, making her heart skip a beat and her breath catch in her throat.  A woman with beautiful flowing white hair who was dressed in a drab, long-sleeved, brown dress stood only a few feet away.  She moved up to a Celtic cross shaped headstone with her back to Nicole, seemingly unaware of anyone else.  “Hello there, excuse me.” Nicole said softly, hoping not to startle the woman.
     
    The woman stopped and turned toward Nicole, as a gentle smile played delicately across her face.  Her age was hard to judge, her skin was slightly lined with a few dark spots on her face and hands but the way she carried herself appeared young and strong.  This woman had a timeless beauty about her that years of age would never be able to end.
     
    “Hello, Nicole.”
     
    *****
     
    Nicole awoke with a gasp, the old woman’s piercing blue eyes flashing in her mind, eyes identical to her own.
     
    “She knew me….but how?”
     
    “Who knew you, baby?  Open your eyes, Nicole!  Come on, honey, focus.” a familiar voice pleaded with her.  A soft caress swept across her forehead.
     
    “Dad….Where am I?” she said, her tongue feeling thick in her mouth.  She cracked her eyes open only to close them again from the blinding light.  Her body felt heavy and sluggish.  She tried to sit up, but the slightest movement sent pain shooting across her chest and down her right arm.  She groaned with frustration, hating nothing more than feeling helpless.
     
    “You’re at the hospital and that’s exactly where you are going to stay until the doctor says otherwise.  Do you hear me, Nicole?” James said.  “You are as stubborn as your mother ever was.  Luke told me about the stunt you pulled, not wanting to come to the hospital, which was just plain crazy.” He loomed over her bed talking in a tone he hadn’t used since she was a teenager.  He ran a shaking hand through his salt and pepper hair.  The stress in his body radiated from him as he started to pace the small room.
     
    “Dad, you’re overreacting, please calm down, okay?  I’m fine, really.  It’s only a flesh wound so I’m sure I’ll be back to normal in a few weeks.”
     
    “Yes, it could have been a lot worse than it is, but the fact remains that someone tried to kill you, baby.” He stopped at the end of her bed, his eyes steely hard as his mouth tightened into a line.  “I know you’re a police officer and it’s all part of the job, but you weren’t even on duty this morning.  Did you piss someone off while you were jogging?” His face was a mix of worry and confusion, the lines deepening as his jaw grew tight with tension.
     
    Nicole lay still, not saying a word.  She was hoping the medication in her system would knock her out so she could put off this conversation for a while longer.  She knew when she told her dad the full story, his stress level was going to go through the roof.  She loved him more than life itself so she hated causing him to worry.  She could handle this herself but she knew he would never see it that way.  She let out a frustrated sigh when she realized “Plan A” had failed, in her still being conscious, so she was relegated to telling the truth.
     
    “It was a hit man, or something like that.  He was waiting for me.  His thoughts were easy for me to hear, he was sent by someone to test me and if I failed…to kill me.  He didn’t give me any clues about who sent him but he made his intentions loud and clear.” As if she needed to emphasize her statement, she pointed to her bandaged arm then let her hand fall heavily at her