“Hey,” Abigail protested halfheartedly. “I resemble that remark.”
“Me too,” Gavin answered with a wink before shoving another big bite in his mouth.
Chapter 19
Abigail
After lunch, Abigail dropped Gavin back at his office and gave him a quick hug goodbye. “Thanks for everything,” she whispered into his ear before they pulled apart. They exchanged numbers and promises to meet up for lunch sometime again soon, and then she made a quick stop off at the baby store before heading back home.
Hearing Gavin’s tale of pain touched her in a way she hadn’t expected. On the one hand, it was nice to know she had someone who could understand, someone other than her father who so desperately wanted to swoop in and fix everything for her.
On the other, it hurt her to see her friend hurting. He’d seemed so carefree one moment and so tortured the next. Would she never truly escape her grief? Would it be like a shackle that remained forever bound to her ankle, sabotaging her as she tried to stumble her way through life?
There were no easy answers. That much hadn’t changed.
She tried to push their lunch from her mind and focus on the aisle that stretched before her brimming with seemingly every infant knick-knack in existence. She pushed through to the clothing display and selected a dapper little outfit for Owen. It had soft overalls sewn into the onesie and even sported a little bowtie. He would look so handsome dressed to the nines while still comfy cozy in the soft cotton get-up.
Just five more months until he’d be here with her. She tried to picture it but couldn’t quite form an image. Would he have a full shock of red hair like his papa? Or would his hair be dark and silky like Abigail’s? He could be born bald as a cue ball for all she knew. One thing she knew for sure, though, was that he’d be hers.
All hers.
There was still so much to prep for his arrival, but at least now she knew she could do it. Gavin was proof that one could live with pain and still thrive in other ways. He’d seemed so normal and happy before he revealed his big secret to her. It obviously still hurt him, but it didn’t stop him from reaching out to her, either.
But why her? Why Abigail of all people?
It was clear he wasn’t looking for a relationship now that he’d told her the sad truth hidden behind that goofy grin. So what was he looking to accomplish, and why did he think she would be the one to get him there?
Maybe he was just well and truly lonely.
Or maybe, a small, niggling voice whispered in the back of her brain, it wasn’t an accident at all. Maybe God put you in each other’s paths for a reason.
She shook off the thought, not having the energy or desire to unpack it at the moment, and headed to the cash register to purchase little Owen’s first outfit.
Back at home, Mama Mary whimpered and shook her teeny tail so furiously that her entire body followed right along with it.
“Did you miss me?” Abigail asked the dog with a laugh, noticing Mary had knocked one of her puppies off the bed in her eagerness to greet her.
“Let’s put you back, little Cookie,” she told the pup, kissing the top of its head before nestling it in beside its brothers and sister. She headed to the kitchen to refill the mother Chihuahua’s water dish, then fired up her laptop.
Mama Mary groaned and waited for Abigail to pick her up and place her on the bed beside her. The little dog gave Abigail a quick lick then dove under the covers, probably eager to have a nap completely undisturbed by her babies. Soon Abigail would understand how that went for herself—just five months to go.
She watched as Mama Mary got comfortable and fell asleep with a series of happy whimpers, then opened up Facebook and found that two messages were waiting for her.
The first was from Gavin: Thank you for today. It meant a lot.
Why me? she asked herself again. She’d asked herself that same question when Gavin had started paying attention to her in high school. He’d always been more popular than her, more handsome and well-liked by their peers. So what did he want with boring old Abigail? She had even less to offer now, but that didn’t stop him from wanting to spend time together.
She’d need a while to think about how she wanted to respond, so she clicked on the other message. It read: Hi, my name is Marcus Barnes, and I think you found my dog.
Chapter 20
Pastor Adam
From the very second Abigail told me about this Marcus Barnes and his apparent claim to the dogs, my spidey sense started going haywire.
“Why won’t he let us meet him at his house?” I asked her after she’d informed me that we had to go to meet Marcus instead of to the vet as planned.
She shrugged away my concern as if it were nothing. “I don’t know, but I’m sure he has a good reason for it.”
“Well, did he present evidence of a photographic or any other nature?”
She just rolled her eyes at me, same as she’d been doing since she was a little thing herself. “Dad, listen to you. You sound like Nancy Drew or something. Why would he say the dogs are his if they’re not?”
That’s what I wanted to know, too. Of course, I wouldn’t keep our church dogs away from their rightful owner, but this smelled more than a little fishy if you asked me. And if Abigail wasn’t going to worry about it, I’d have to worry about it enough for both of us. Luckily, I’d already started in on that particular task.
“Ready to go?” my daughter asked, carrying Mama Mary tucked tight into her chest and leaving the box of puppies for me to manage.
“As I’ll ever be,” I said with a grunt as I followed her out to the driveway and allowed her to drive us to the nearby Micky D’s.
“You must be Marcus,” Abigail said, striding right on up to a scraggly fella leaning up against an old GMC and smoking a cigarette.
Had she no sense of self-preservation?
Boy howdy, was it a good thing I’d talked her into letting me come along.
The man smiled in a way that told me he was thinking unconscionable things about my daughter. He was lucky I was the turn the other cheek type and not the shoot now, ask questions later type. “Did you bring the dog?”
“Yes, we have her and the puppies in the car.” Abigail wrung her hands, and I could tell this pained her, too.
“We need proof before we hand them over,” I shot in. I loved that it was in my daughter’s nature to trust people, but God had already told me that these dogs belonged to the church. And I trusted my God Almighty over a million such Marcus Barneses.
The man sniffed. “Proof? My word not enough for you?”
“Oh, no,” Abigail said in a hurry. “We didn’t mean to—”
“No, good sir, it is not,” I said, taking a step forward and motioning for Abigail to get behind me just in case this turned ugly. “How do we know that the dog is yours? How do we know she’ll be better off with you than with us? She was half dead when we found her, and that doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in your pet-keeping skills.”
“She’s mine because I say she is.” He puffed up his chest, then just as quickly deflated. “Look, her name is Sausage, and I was worried sick about her, all right? Can I just have my dog back?”
“You got any pictures of Sausage on your phone? Something you can show us?” I demanded.
“If you’re looking to shake me down for a reward, it’s not going to work. Just give me my dog.”
“Well, this is quite the pickle, because I’m not giving you a single dog without proof, and you refuse to provide it.”
“I’m not looking for a fight. I just want my dog back,” the man said.
“And we just want to make sure we’re doing right by these dogs, and right now sending them home with you doesn’t seem like the right decision at all.”
“So, what then? You’re just going to refuse to give them to me?”
“Tell you what,” I said with a smile. “We can divide them in half, that way we each get some. The mother dog stays with us, thoug
h.”
“So you’re telling me it’s some dogs or none at all? You’re crazy, man.”
“So you choose none at all? Fine by us. C’mon, Abigail, let’s go home.”
“Wait!” Marcus said, trailing after us like he was the little lost puppy in this scenario. “Fine, I’ll take half, if that’s the way it’s gotta be.”
“Get in the car, Abigail,” I said with a patient smile before turning back to Marcus and explaining with triumph, “We will not be giving you any puppies today.”
“What?” the man exploded. He’d clearly had more than his fill of me, and I definitely felt the same way about him. “You just said you’d give me half.”
“I did say that, and I’ll also say this: you need to read your Bible more, son. You just let me get away with a classic King Solomon,” I said, referencing the story about the two mothers fighting for the same baby. That time, the King had said they’d cut the child in half. I was just talking about dividing puppies, but still, if he loved that mama dog at all, he would not have settled for our split decision. And he would have had at least one photo to back up his ownership claims.
Marcus Barnes watched dumbfounded as I slipped into the car and motioned for Abigail to drive us back home, dogs in tow.
“I don’t know what he was playing at,” I told my daughter, “but I think I’ll give Officer Jackson a call just to see if he can’t find out for us.”
Chapter 21
Abigail
The vet was very understanding about rescheduling their appointment after Abigail’s abrupt cancellation. A good thing, too, because it seemed her father had been right all along. Mama Mary and her puppies were meant to find them.
After returning home from their distressing meeting with Marcus Barnes, her father had put in a call to his friend in the county police department. The man hadn’t been smart enough to use a fake name when reaching out to Abigail, so the police were able to track him down that same evening and bust his puppy mill operation wide open.
How one pregnant mother Chihuahua had managed to escape her cage and run all the way to their church was anyone’s guess, but by doing so she’d saved her puppies and countless others, too.
“Would you mind keeping hold of the dogs a little longer?” Officer Jackson asked when he called to share the news. “The local animal shelter doesn’t have enough room for all the dogs we took from this guy, and we need all the help we can get.”
“Say no more,” her father answered promptly. “Eternal Grace is on the case.”
Abigail watched in amazement as her father started up the church phone tree, amassing more than a dozen volunteers in less than an hour. She hugged Mama Mary close to her chest, finally willing to admit how much the dog had come to mean to her in such a short span of time.
“Do you believe God sent us these dogs now?” her father asked, picking up each little pup in turn and giving it a gentle kiss on the head.
Abigail nodded, still clutching the mother dog tight. “I guess you were right about them being miracle workers. Mama Mary saved so many other dogs because of her bravery.”
“And you helped her do it because of that strong sense of right and wrong you’ve had ever since you were a little girl.” He came over to pet Mama Mary and make cooing noises at her. “You weren’t going to rest until we found that owner.”
“Thanks, Dad.” She gave her father a hug and a kiss on the cheek, basking in her and Mary’s shared victory. She had done something important, something miraculous, and it felt wonderful.
The next morning, the vet confirmed that they had rescued the dogs just in time. “They’re all strong and healthy,” she said, shaking her head in disbelief. “Even brief exposure to the cold at their age should have done them in. I just don’t understand. It’s like it’s a—”
“Miracle?” her father finished with a knowing smile. “That’s what I said.”
The vet laughed before pressing her stethoscope to Mama Mary’s chest. “Yes, I guess you could call it a miracle. Someone was clearly looking out for these dogs.”
“How’s Mary doing? Is she healthy, too?” Abigail asked from her seat in the corner. Even though she still wasn’t sure how she felt about God these days, she’d prayed for that little dog hard and long. Mary had overcome too much to not get her happily ever after now.
The vet frowned briefly before putting on a placating smile. “Yes, she appears healthy. But she’s had litters before. It’s hard to say how many, though I’d guess she was being bred nonstop since reaching sexual maturity.”
“How old is she now?” Abigail chewed her lip nervously.
The vet shifted her stethoscope to Mary’s back and listened in a couple different spots before turning her attention back to Abigail. “My best guess is three.”
“Only three!” her father sputtered, his brows lifted in surprise. “She sure has seen a lot for her short time on earth.”
The poor dog had suffered three years of captivity and forced breeding, three years of non-stop torment, Abigail realized. So why does she trust me? She shouldn’t trust anyone.
“She’s remarkably well-adjusted for what she’s been through,” the vet continued, confirming just what Abigail had been thinking.
“She’s a hero,” Abigail said, picking Mama Mary off the exam table and giving her a kiss between the ears. This amazing creature had chosen her. Perhaps she’d seen something in Abigail that Abigail had yet to discover in herself.
“So what next?” she asked the vet, eager to make their adoption of the church dogs official. She was never letting a single one of them out of her sight again—not if she could help it.
“We’ll take up a collection at church to help pay for the veterinary care of the others who were rescued from the mill,” her father said.
“And I’ll perform those exams at cost,” the vet added. “A rescue this size is a huge undertaking, but I can see the dogs are in great hands.” She reached out to shake both of their hands before picking up her stack of folders and leaving them alone in the exam room.
“Praise the Lord,” her father said. “We couldn’t have asked for better news today.”
“Are you really taking up a collection?” Abigail mumbled, not sure why she was surprised by this news.
“Of course.” He smiled and puffed out his chest, always so proud of his church and the people who made up its family. “The congregation will want to help.”
“I want to help,” she said before she could change her mind. She still had a rough relationship with God, but she wanted to do her part to make the world better, to help in whatever way she could.
He gave her the side eye. “Does that mean you’ll come to church this Sunday?”
“I could design flyers, or—”
“Or you could finally come back to church.” He turned his full gaze on her, a warm smile took over his entire face. “Come tell everyone about the dogs and why they need help. Introduce them to Mama Mary and her pups. Maybe say hello to God while you’re visiting His house.”
“Okay,” she said before taking a deep, shaky breath. “I’m in.”
Chapter 22
Abigail
Abigail texted Gavin to update him on the puppy mill bust, their vet visit, and her upcoming return to church. Almost immediately after she pressed send, her phone buzzed with an incoming call.
“Wow,” Gavin said, not even bothering with hello. “All that in the space of twenty-four hours? You definitely don’t do anything halfway.”
“I guess not,” she answered with a laugh.
Mama Mary cocked her head to the side as if trying to listen in to the conversation, which only caused Abigail to laugh harder.
“So you get to keep the dogs?” Gavin asked. Hope filled his voice, and the sound of a whirring drill accompanied it as well.
“Are you…? Are you doing a root canal while talking to me?”
“Maybe a little bit. I have you on speaker,” he confessed without sounding the least bit
apologetic.
“Gavin!” she shouted, plopping down onto her bed with a soft whoosh as the down repositioned itself in her comforter. “That’s awful. You need to be one-hundred percent present for that. Your poor patient is probably terrified.”
A muffled moan came from the other end of the call, and she couldn’t tell whether it was the patient’s way of expressing pain, terror, or laugher.
“Oh, sure,” Gavin joked, drawing out that last word an unnatural length.
She could just picture him rolling his eyes, and it made her feel light and easy despite all the awful things that had happened in her life the past few months. They said that time healed all wounds, but sometimes it felt like going back in time was the only way to move forward. Perhaps that was why she was so sentimental, as Gavin had deftly pointed out.
“It’s not like I’ve done a million of these before, but okay. Have it your way,” he said with a dramatic and clearly faked sigh. “By the way, I’ll be there with you and the dogs on Sunday, too. Okay, bye!”
He hung up before she could protest, presumably returning his full attention to his latest root canal victim.
Okay, well, I guess that’s that.
She’d be seeing Gavin again on Sunday. Perhaps his presence would make the visit a little easier on her. Now she just needed to find a way to fill her time between now and then. It was only Tuesday, after all, and Sunday seemed a mighty long way off.
She leaned back against her headboard and let out a long, beleaguered sigh.
Mama Mary popped up from her bed and trotted over. Her petite paws hugged the edge of the mattress as she whined and begged for Abigail to pick her up.
“You can save fifty-seven dogs from a puppy mill, but you can’t even jump onto the bed,” Abigail said with a chuckle as she lifted the Chihuahua into her arms. Mary’s triumphs and challenges spoke to Abigail in a way little else had. Even though the small things were hard, that didn’t stop her from achieving big—some might say impossible—feats. Could that be a lesson for Abigail’s own life? And for Gavin’s, too?
Mini Miracles Page 7
