Reasonable hopes: Shenzhou-era flashbacks, mirror universe shenanigans.

Wild, absurd hopes: time travel/acts of Q/some other kind of plot device enables Michael to swoop in and save her moments before death, or the Klingons just straight-up lied about eating her and she's actually chilling in one of the less awful Klingon prisons. It was ... some other human they ate. Yeah. It's a mistake anyone could make.