Let the Lord carry the burden.
He need not be afraid.
Closing his eyes, James whispered, “Thank You, Lord.”
On Christmas Eve, right before lunchtime, Anabelle slipped into her coat and stepped outside the hospital’s main entrance to call the animal shelter on her cell phone. A heavy cloud cover created a monochrome landscape, and the temperature suggested snow was on the way.
When the shelter attendant answered the phone, she gave him her name. “I came by the other day about the puppy, the only one you had left. You remember—”
“Yes, ma’am. I have your name right here. I was hoping you’d call.”
“Has anyone adopted him yet?”
“No, ma’am. Are you going to come pick him up?”
Yes! Yes! Yes! Her stomach did a somersault, exhilaration mixing with sheer panic. She wasn’t prepared. She had no food for the puppy. No carrier. No leash. She didn’t even know where he would sleep.
“I’ll…I’ll come by in an hour or so,” she stammered. “If that’s all right.”
“Sure. I’m going to close early tonight, Christmas Eve and all. Around four. Can you get here before then?”
“Yes, that will be fine. I’ll see you in a bit.”
She flipped her cell phone closed and stared off into the distance, her brain racing to come up with a to-do list. She barely knew where to start.
“Are you all right, Anabelle?”
She blinked, shook herself out of the self-inflicted trance and smiled at Candace. “I’m fine. I’m adopting a puppy.”
Surprise widened Candace’s eyes. “Really? I didn’t know you were thinking about a puppy.”
“Cam didn’t want to, but there’s this adorable puppy at the shelter and if I don’t—” She stopped herself from saying it. “Look, I have to get to the pet store. There’s so much I need to buy. Would you stop by Leila Hargrave’s office? Tell her I’ve had a…family matter come up. The floor’s covered, so I don’t expect any problems.” The Nursing Administrator wasn’t overly fond of staff members taking time off for family issues. In this case, she’d simply have to live with it.
“Sure, I’ll tell her,” Candace said, still looking nonplused. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No, just tell Leila and the gals on the floor. That’ll help a lot.”
“Of course.”
“Wish me luck.” Anabelle left her friend and hurried to her car. Her hand shaking, she fumbled with the key. She almost backed into a passing car and had to slam on the brakes. The other driver hit his horn. Her heart rate bumped up to a good 130 bpm, her breathing shallow. If she wasn’t careful, she’d go into shock.
“Take a deep breath, Anabelle.”
More cautiously, she took her foot off the brake again and eased out of her parking space.
Deerford Feed and Pet Shop was just outside the downtown area on Main Street. A refurbished barn, it was painted traditional country red with white trim around windows that showcased puppies and kittens for sale. The day before Christmas, two puppies and three little kittens were still waiting for a new home.
Anabelle didn’t dare take a close look. Cam, still opposed to adopting a shelter puppy, would have a fit if she came home with more than one canine addition to their family.
Inside, a half dozen people were lined up at the cash registers, most of them with last-minute gifts for their pets. Others strolled through the store, checking out the lovebirds and noisy parrots in their cages. Two children were fascinated as they watched a hamster race himself on a wheel. Aerated bubbles rose to the top of several aquariums filled with colorful fish.
Ralph Gustafson, the owner of the store, was in his late fifties. A birth defect had left his right arm underdeveloped and without a hand. Neither the animals nor his customers seemed to notice.
Anabelle cut past the line at the cash register. “Ralph, I know you’re terribly busy. But when you have a minute, I desperately need your help.” She heard the plea in her voice and hoped he did too.
He ran a customer’s credit card through the machine, handed him the ticket to sign, then turned to Anabelle.
Glancing at the waiting line of customers, he said, “Give me a minute or two, and I’ll be right with you, Anabelle.”
“Thank you. I’ll be over in the puppy department.”
There seemed to be a dozen different kinds of dog collars, harnesses and leashes; the shelves were stocked with even more brands of dog food.
How could she possibly choose? It had been years and years since she’d owned a dog.
True to his word, Ralph appeared at her side within minutes.
“Now then, Anabelle, it sounded like you have an emergency. What can I do for you?”
“You’re right, it is an emergency. I’m picking up a puppy at the animal shelter in less than an hour, and I don’t have a thing for the poor little guy. I’m starting from scratch.”
He chuckled, the corners of his blue gray eyes crinkling with amusement. “Well, you’ve come to the right place.” He glanced around the store. “Let me get a cart and we’ll start filling it up.”
He walked off and returned quickly pushing a cart. “How old is the dog?”
“Ten weeks.”
He took a bag of puppy food from the shelf and dropped it into the cart. “Okay, you’ll need a food bowl and a water bowl. The metal ones that don’t slide around are the best.” He plucked two shiny bowls from another shelf.
“The shelter attendant said I need a travel carrier for him. And I know I want a leash.”
“Right. That means you need a harness to start with and a collar too. Something soft for such a young dog. How about a bed?”
She hadn’t thought about that. “If you think I should.”
By the time they’d placed everything Ralph thought was necessary in the cart, and added a few chew toys, Anabelle could barely contain her excitement.
Impulsively, she grabbed a bag of doggie treats and a red and green Christmas bow to put around the puppy’s neck, dropping them in the already overflowing cart. She might have purchased even more goodies but the time was growing short. She didn’t want Josh to close the shelter before she got there.
Her car laden with her new purchases, Anabelle headed for the shelter. Last-minute shoppers crowded the streets of downtown Deerford; traffic was bumper-to-bumper. She tapped an impatient rhythm on her steering wheel as she waited for pedestrians to cross the street. A few flakes of snow had begun to fall, but they weren’t sticking yet.
Finally at the shelter, she grabbed the carrier from the backseat and hurried inside.
Josh welcomed her with a grin. “Hey, Ms. Scott, glad you got here in time.”
“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world.”
She followed him into the kennel. Josh opened the puppy’s gate, and she stepped inside.
With boundless enthusiasm, the puppy wagged his entire body from tail to nose, jumping and yipping as though he recognized her and knew what was going to happen.
She knelt and took him into her arms. “It’s okay, sweetie. You’re coming home with me now. You won’t have to be here all alone anymore.” Tears of happiness edged down her cheeks as she kissed the top of his head and he licked her face in return.
She slipped him into his new carrier, closing the gate behind him.
At the hospital, James finished his rounds, handing over the patients to LaDonna Fields, an older nurse who had volunteered to cover the swing shift on Christmas Eve.
“Hope you have a nice, quiet night,” James said.
“As long as Emergency doesn’t send too many patients my direction, it should be fine. You have a good evening with your family.”
“I will. Thanks.” He returned to the nurses’ station to log himself off the clock. Candace was doing the same.
“I still can’t believe Anabelle is getting a puppy,” she said, having told James the news when she returned from her break.
“Sound
s like a good idea to me. She and Cameron will enjoy having a dog.”
“That’s the part that surprises me. She said Cam didn’t want a dog but she’s getting one anyway.”
That was a surprise, but James shrugged it off. Anabelle usually knew what she was doing.
Elena appeared from around the corner. “Who doesn’t want a dog?”
Candace laughed and told Elena the news about Anabelle’s dog.
“Does seem funny she’d get a dog when her husband doesn’t want one,” Elena commented. “Cesar can be pretty stubborn when he makes his mind up about something. I assume Cam’s that way too.”
“Maybe Anabelle thinks he’ll come around once they have the dog. Puppies are pretty hard to resist.” James had made sure the boys had a dog growing up. But now, given Fern’s health, caring for a dog would just add to her burdens.
“At the very least,” Candace said, “the puppy will make for a merry, if exhausting, Christmas. Brooke and Howie would go nuts if I brought a puppy home tonight.”
“Are you both going to church tonight?” Elena asked.
“Fern and I are taking the boys to the eleven o’clock service at Church of the Good Shepherd. The choir usually outdoes itself at Christmastime and the whole congregation gets to sing along.” James hoped the service wouldn’t wear Fern out too much. But she’d insisted they all go. “We’re going to Fern’s parents’ house for dinner tomorrow. Her sister Beth and her family are driving up from Springfield.”
“Our church has a five o’clock service,” Candace said. “This year Brooke’s playing ‘The First Noel’ to accompany the children’s choir. She’s pretty nervous about playing for the entire congregation; but she’s been practicing that one piece so much, I’ve been hearing it in my sleep. Dean used to play that song. It was his favorite carol. I’m hoping that it will be cathartic for her, bring her closer to her father somehow.”
“That would be a good thing,” James said.
She glanced away, and James knew Christmas had to be hard for her and her children, the memories of her late husband especially bittersweet during the holidays.
“She’ll do fine,” Elena said. “It will be a wonderful way for her to honor her father’s memory.”
“I hope so,” Candace said.
“I’m taking Izzy to our five o’clock service too. Cesar won’t go with me, though.” A hint of sadness touched Elena’s dark eyes. “Maybe someday.” Blinking, she glanced away too. “Anyway, tomorrow my mother and Granny are coming to dinner. My mother always makes those sweet tamales for Christmas supper. Little Izzy loves them.”
“It’s my sister Susan’s turn to cook dinner,” Candace said, appearing to have shaken the sad thoughts. “I’ll make pies in the morning after we open presents at home.”
They all wished each other a happy holiday, went down the stairs together and headed for their respective cars in the half-empty parking lot.
Chapter Twelve
AS ANABELLE PULLED INTO HER DRIVEWAY, nerves fluttered in her stomach. Surely Cam would fall in love with the puppy just as she had.
“Please, Lord, don’t let him be too angry with me.”
She lifted the carrier out of the backseat and went into the house via the back door. Cam had left his heavy-duty rubber work boots in the mudroom, which meant he’d spent his day gardening. She hoped he was in a good mood.
“Cam, dear, are you home?” she called.
“In the office,” he responded.
Taking her courage in hand—and swallowing her anxiety—she went down the hall to Cam’s office. He was sitting at the computer.
She set the carrier on the floor. “I’d like you to meet the latest member of our family.” She opened the carrier door.
The puppy leapt out of his confinement, yipping and yapping, his tail wagging, and made a beeline for Cam. He sniffed around Cam’s slippers, then rose up on his hind legs and pawed at Cam’s knee, his tail still going like a windmill in a tornado.
Eyebrows raised, Cam glanced at Anabelle before turning his attention to the dog.
“Well, hello there, young fella.” He petted the puppy, his hand so large the puppy’s head nearly vanished in his palm. “You’ve certainly made a hit with my wife.”
“You aren’t too mad at me, are you?”
“When was the last time I got mad at you?”
She didn’t want to remind him of the time she’d backed the car over a sapling he’d just planted in the front yard. How was she supposed to know a tree had shown up in her yard when she wasn’t looking?
“Annie, did you notice how big his feet are?”
She frowned. “They look all right to me.”
“Looks to me like this little guy isn’t going to stay little for long.”
With some concern, she eyed the puppy’s feet again. She hadn’t been thinking about how big he might grow. Only that he was adorable and so loving.
“I’m sure he’ll grow into just the right size,” she said with less confidence than she felt. “I had to stop at the pet store to buy a few things for him. If you can watch the puppy for a minute, I’ll just go bring them in from the car.”
Hearing no objection, she hurried out to the car. When she returned, her arms full, she saw that Cam had spread his morning newspaper on the floor.
“Uh-oh. An accident already?” she asked.
“That’s what puppies do.” The puppy was now chewing on the toe of Cam’s slipper. Cam pushed the dog’s head away, but he went right back to the slipper as though it were a yummy doggie lollipop.
“Here, let me take him.” Anabelle scooped him up in her arms. “I think we can keep him in the kitchen for now. It’ll be easier to clean up any messes he might make.”
“The mudroom might be better.”
“Maybe at night. I don’t want to put him off by himself already. He has to get used to us and his new home.”
Cam might not be mad at her, but his frown suggested he wasn’t exactly pleased either.
“Ainslee and Doug are still coming over for dessert, aren’t they? Are we all going to church together?”
“Oh yes, they’re coming. I know Ainslee will be thrilled with our little scamp.” She cuddled him close to her chest and took him into the kitchen. She really should have gotten a doggie gate to put across the kitchen door to prevent him from having a free run of the house until he was housebroken. She’d do that right after Christmas…
The Church of the Good Shepherd was one of the oldest churches in town. Built of brick, it had a sharply slanted roof with an aluminum cross above the front entrance. At night two spotlights illuminated the cross. On Christmas Eve, snowflakes danced in the two light beams promising the town of Deerford a white Christmas.
James parked in a handicapped spot as close to the church as he could. Still, it was too far for Fern to walk. She’d have to use the wheelchair he’d placed in the back of the minivan.
“Gideon, you want to get the wheelchair out of the back?” he asked.
“Sure, Dad.”
Gideon slid the door open and hopped out. Nelson followed him.
James rested his hand on Fern’s gloved hand. He’d made sure she was warmly dressed in a heavy coat and knit cap. “Are you sure you’re up to this?” James asked her.
“You know this is my favorite time of year. Just look at the snow coming down. It’s beautiful.”
In James’s eyes, Fern was the most beautiful thing he could imagine. Her strength and love of life shone brightly, her face radiant.
“Okay, let’s get you into your chair. We don’t want to miss any of the sing-alongs.”
He climbed out of the van and went around to the passenger side. Gideon had the wheelchair waiting.
“Your chariot awaits, Mrs. Bell.” While Gideon held the chair steady, James helped Fern out of the van and settled her comfortably.
Gideon took charge of the wheelchair, pushing his mother along the sidewalk toward the double doors of the church, James and Nelson
following behind. Like James, both of his boys were dressed in nice slacks, warm sweaters and winter jackets.
Several members of the congregation stopped to say hello and give Fern’s hand a welcoming squeeze.
Their progress was slowed again when Anabelle and Cameron stopped to greet Fern.
“I’m so glad to see you,” Anabelle gushed, brushing a kiss to Fern’s cheek. “And your boys. Aren’t they handsome young men? We don’t get to see enough of you and your family.”
“My social calendar’s been really slow these past few months,” Fern said. “But I’m sure to improve soon.”
“I do hope so. I’ve been praying for you.” Anabelle gestured toward her daughter. “Here’s Ainslee. She’s five months along but you’d never know it from her figure. Still as slender as ever.”
“Mother, please,” Ainslee complained. “We don’t have to broadcast to the whole world that I’m pregnant.”
In a reassuring gesture, Doug slipped his arm around Ainslee’s waist.
Anabelle waved off her daughter’s complaint. “A first-time grandmother has the right to be excited, doesn’t she?”
Fern laughed. “I’m sure I’ll be excited too.”
Gideon visibly paled at the thought. “That’s not gonna happen anytime soon,” he mumbled.
Standing near James, Cameron waited patiently for the ladies to stop their chatting.
James said, “How’d your puppy like his new home?”
Twisting his lips into a wry smile, Cameron said, “The puppy seems fine. He’s taken an inordinate amount of interest in my slippers, however. So far he seems to think they’re a doggy teething toy.”
James winced. That didn’t bode well as a first impression.
Fern’s parents hurried up the walkway and stopped to say hello.
Frank Driscoll, a tall, muscular man with a quick smile, shook hands with James. “Merry Christmas, son.”
Strength in Numbers Page 10
