by Mary Carter
“Who? Yvette?”
“I can’t even call her by name. How could she do this to us?”
“First things, first. He’s alive, Faith. Our dad is alive.” Hope started for the cabin. Faith pulled her back.
“Wait.”
Hope jerked free from Faith’s grasp. “I have to see him right now.” She was close to tears. She wanted to tear across the lawn and throw herself into his arms.
“Just wait. We have to think about this.”
“What is there to think about?”
Faith started to pace in the snow. Not an easy task when it was so deep. “Maybe Dad had a brother. Maybe he’s our uncle.”
“And they both like blackjack and Christmas, and love us, and they were both in the car accident?”
“Why not?”
“And we never met him? Never even heard that Dad had a brother?”
“We can call Mom.”
“She’s never once mentioned a brother or our uncle. You know she would have. And look.” Hope showed her the missed calls on her phone.
“Oh my God,” Faith said. “She’s on her way here.”
“I’d say so,” Hope said.
“Why did she call you? Why not me?”
“Seriously? You have to do this now?”
“You’re right. He’s alive. Daddy is alive.”
“I think we’re too old to call him Daddy. But I’m doing the same thing in my head.”
“Yvette. She’s evil. Do you think she planned on telling us at all?”
“I don’t know. But I don’t care about her right now. Our father is just over there.” Hope pointed to the cabin and once again headed for it, and again Faith pulled her back.
“What if he doesn’t know?” Faith cried.
Hope stopped dead. She’d never considered this. “What?”
“He has brain damage. His own mother is calling him Roger instead of Thomas. What if he doesn’t know who he really is?”
“Oh my God,” Hope said. “Oh my God.”
“He was standing right there when she showed us that phony grave. Do you think he would have allowed us to see that if he knew who he was?”
“Never,” Hope said. “Never.”
“I’m right,” Faith said. “I’m right.”
“You’re right. You’re so right. Our dad would never hide from us. And he never would have left us. That’s the reason he’s never come for us.”
“So he wasn’t a spy,” Faith said softly.
Hope gave a bittersweet laugh. “But he didn’t mean to leave us. You’re right, Faithy. He has no idea who he is.”
Faith and Hope stopped talking, too stunned in the revelation. They stared at the cabin, then at all the Christmas decorations on the lawn. They were glittering, and moving, and in this moment seemed to be crying out just like them.
“He still likes Christmas,” Faith said softly, taking it all in. Hope could hear a sob forming in her voice. She felt a lump of her own.
“He still likes us,” Hope said.
“Do you think so?” Faith said, the hurt little girl clearly taking over her voice. “Do you really think so?”
Hope grabbed Faith’s hand. “I know so.”
“Make me believe,” Faith said.
“Look at this lawn,” Hope said. “It’s all around us. These decorations haven’t come out since Rupert passed away. Even Yvette said he hasn’t behaved like this. Talking, laughing, decorating for Christmas. He’s reacting to us. On some level he knows.”
“And blackjack,” Faith said.
Hope laughed. “And blackjack.”
“That’s why Yvette is going through so much trouble to make sure he’s all right after she dies.” Excitement grew in Faith’s voice. Hope refrained from mentioning that she’d already pointed this out.
Hope felt like jumping for joy. Well, not for her sister, but out of true joy. “It was right in front of our face this whole time. He’s alive, Faithy. He’s right here.”
“Don’t cry.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.” Faith tried to wipe the tears from Hope’s face with her big mittens. “Stop it.”
“Don’t yell at me.” Hope swatted her hands away. The tears came harder.
Faith groaned. “If you start, then I’m going to start and I might not ever stop.”
“Can I at least have a Xanax?”
“Yes.”
“Yes?” Hope said. She’d been half-kidding.
“If ever a situation calls for a little Xanax, this is it,” Faith said.
“Hear hear.”
“We’re just going to go back inside and talk about this. We’re not going to do anything tonight.”
“I agree,” Hope said. “I totally agree.”
“Although we might have to have a word with Granny Dearest first,” Faith said. “Okay, okay. Tea. Xanax. Talk.”
“This is the best Christmas present I could have ever imagined,” Hope said.
Faith clasped Hope’s hands. “Even if he doesn’t know who we are?”
Hope squeezed back. “Even if.”
“What about Joy?”
“Oh God,” Hope said. “She’s going to kill me for telling you without her.”
“It’s okay. It’s okay because we’re not completely sure.”
“You’re not sure?”
“Oh, I’m sure. I’m sure. But Joy doesn’t have to know that. I mean, a little white lie in order to avoid a nuclear reaction from our little sis is quite acceptable, don’t you agree?”
“Totally agree. Okay. Right. When we’re sure. We’ll tell her when we’re sure.” Hope looked back in the direction of the cabin. “God, I just want to run up there right now and hug him.”
“He may be our father, but he doesn’t look like he showers very much.”
“Just like Joy!” Hope said. “She’ll be thrilled to know she inherited that from him.” She and Faith shared a little laugh.
“We may not want to mention she got that particular trait from him.”
“Do you really think he doesn’t know who he is?” Hope said.
Faith stared at the cabin. “The only thing I know for sure is that I don’t know anything.”
“I’d like to shake our grandmother awake right now. Because she certainly knows.” The more Hope thought about it the more furious she became. If that was their father and Yvette deliberately lied about it, well, there was no forgiveness, was there? Maybe their mother had been right all along. She was a cruel woman.
“Pajamas. Tea. Xanax,” Faith said. “We’ll figure out a plan of attack.”
* * *
Josh lay on his bed in his clothes. They had come looking for him, but they hadn’t even cared that he didn’t want to come back with them. He much preferred hanging out with Roger. They had fun. Roger had Coke and potato chips and ajar of coins he brought out to play blackjack. It was the most fun Josh had had since he’d been there. He would have slept much better on Roger’s sofa. He didn’t think Roger would have minded. Heck, maybe he could convince his mother to leave him here with Roger permanently. Especially if his dad didn’t want him and Charlie was going to move in. It figured. The minute Josh was having fun his mother just had to step in and ruin it. His door creaked open. It was Brittany.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I can’t sleep,” she said. “I’m too excited about Christmas. Aren’t you?”
He smiled. He wished he could be more like her. It wasn’t her fault she was so happy. “Come in.”
“Really?” Her voice perked up and she skipped into the room.
“You can sleep here tonight.”
“Will you tell me a story?”
“Sure,” Josh said. She snuggled under the covers. Josh looked outside at all the twinkling lights. He took a deep breath. “ ‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house . . .’ ”
* * *
Joy lay in bed wishing Harrison would join her. Except for two times, he�
�d been the one who insisted they follow Granny’s rules. She could hear him snoring from his room across the hall. She smiled. He was enjoying himself. His mother was furious with him, though; she’d heard him talking to her on the phone the other day. She didn’t want to spend Christmas without her boy. Joy couldn’t blame her. Maybe they should go back to Seattle for Christmas. This was turning out to be a nightmare anyway.
She could hear Hope and Faith in Faith’s room. What were they doing in there and why hadn’t they invited her? She supposed they figured she was with Harrison. Still, it would have been nice to be asked. She always felt like the unwanted one. She didn’t get to know their father. Faith left when she was young, and Hope had been absolutely brokenhearted. Joy always thought Hope loved Faith better, and that Faith must have loved Hope better—for why else take off before really getting to know Joy?
Now that she was older, she knew logically that it was just life. Faith had been pregnant and scared. Their father died. Hope, of course, was going to miss her older sister. But in her heart, Joy had carried a world of hurt. She wanted to be close to her sisters, repair the broken bits, she just didn’t know how. She liked being around them, though. They were actually having fun some of the time. She wondered if Hope had been serious about the coffee truck idea. Grudgingly, Joy had to admit it was a pretty good one. They could take it everywhere. Especially downtown in the winter. This place was growing on her. They certainly had a lot of tourists at this time of year, and tourists loved coffee. They could have hot chocolate for the kids. Maybe Harrison could even bake his bread and pies. Some of those trucks were even big enough to sleep in. Oh, who was she kidding. A truck might be cheaper than a store, but that didn’t mean they could afford it. The only way they would be able to afford anything was if they were allowed to sell this house.
Granny and her rules. Can’t sell it until some old man dies? That was crazy. And crazy couldn’t be legal, could it? And what had Josh been doing in that creepy cabin? What kind of man lets a teenage boy into his cabin at night? In this day and age?
Thank the Lord they found Josh quickly. She was surprised Faith wasn’t harder on that old man. It wasn’t right to have someone else’s child over at your house for hours without telling anyone. Joy didn’t know why everyone else was tiptoeing around the guy. Joy just thought he was weird. Were Hope and Faith really considering keeping him on after Granny passed? She’d noticed the office for a lawyer in town when she was there last. She was going to make an appointment. There was no way what Granny was asking them to do was legal. And then she was going to confront Roger. Tell him that everyone else might be fooled, but she knew he was putting on an act with all that brain-damaged stuff. Scamming a rich old lady about to die.
Joy crept into the hall. She could sneak into Harrison’s bedroom, or she could join Faith and Hope. She stopped by Harrison’s room and opened the door a crack. Loud snores snaked out into the hall. She smiled and shut the door. She headed for Hope’s room. This time she didn’t bother to knock or even open the door a crack. She pushed the door open and took a flying leap for the middle of the bed. Hope and Faith, who were sitting on the bed, squealed as Joy landed between them, laughing.
“So nice of you to drop by,” Hope said.
“We thought for sure you were busy,” Faith said, using air quotes.
“He’s in his own bed, snoring,” Joy said. “And I’m wide awake.” She looked at her sisters. They looked all red-eyed and funny. “Are you two drunk?”
“No,” Hope said.
Faith just blinked rapidly.
“You both have red eyes,” Joy said. “Did you smoke a joint?”
“No,” Faith said.
“We were standing too close to the fire pit outside,” Hope said. “That smoke is killer.”
“I can’t sleep,” Joy said. “Harrison is snoring loud enough to wake the whole house.”
“Do you want me to make you some warm milk?” Hope joked.
“Actually, yes, I do,” Joy said.
“Mom used to make that for you all the time,” Faith said.
“I know. Didn’t she make it for you guys too?”
“Nope,” Hope said. “She didn’t start doing that until you.”
“Because I was a terror about sleeping,” Joy said.
“She would spike it,” Faith said.
“Why do you think I always pretended I couldn’t sleep?” Joy said with a wicked smile.
“I think I could use some warm milk too,” Faith said.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Hope said. Joy resisted rolling her eyes. Who made Hope the permanent hall monitor? Joy would have to sneak some extra alcohol into Hope’s warm milk just to loosen her up a bit.
“Come on, bitches,” she said, throwing her arms around her sisters. “Got milk?”
* * *
It was nice being in the kitchen late at night with her sisters. They were talking in whispers just in case Yvette could actually hear them from down the hall. The milk was warming in the pan and Joy was making a big deal out of examining each coffee cup in the cupboard and putting herself in charge of who drank out of which one. She gave Faith a cup with a bulldozer on it, Hope one with an enormous turkey, and she drank out of the one that said, WORLD’S BEST MOTHER. Probably just to stick it to Faith. Faith and Hope exchanged a look. Had Roger given Yvette the mug?
When the milk was hot, and Faith’s and Joy’s spiked with just a bit of rum, they sat at the kitchen island. Hope kept glancing at Faith, wondering if they should tell Joy about Roger. They’d decided to wait until they were a hundred percent sure. That was probably wise when it came to Joy. She was like a spring, always ready to bounce.
Roger. It was going to be impossible to call him that. First thing in the morning they were going to call Carla. Hope wasn’t even sure their mother was really on her way here. She could have been reacting to Roger getting a piece of the inheritance, not Roger being Dad. But it was him. Hope knew it. She just didn’t know if he knew it.
“What’s up with you guys?” Joy said.
“It’s about Roger,” Faith said. What was she doing? They’d just agreed not to tell Joy until their theory was irrefutable.
“Ugh,” Joy said. “I couldn’t believe you didn’t let him have it.”
“What?” Hope said.
“Who lets some strange kid in their cabin without checking in with the mom?” Joy said. “I don’t care if he is brain-damaged. He has to know he can’t do that.” Faith glanced at Hope. Joy’s eyes narrowed as she caught the look. “What?”
“That’s not what Faith was trying to say,” Hope said. A loud rap on the door startled her. Hot milk slopped out onto her arm.
“Oh my God,” Faith said. “Is someone at the front door?” The knock came again.
“What time is it?” Joy hissed.
“It’s one a.m.,” Faith said.
“I suddenly wish that beast of a dog was in here with us,” Faith said.
“Maybe it’s Mom,” Hope said.
“Mom?” Joy said. “Why would it be Mom?”
“There’s no way she got here this fast,” Faith said.
“Mom’s coming here?” Joy said. “What happened to Cuba?”
“She changed her mind,” Hope said.
Joy slid off the stool so she could literally stomp her foot. “Why am I always the last to know?” Hope resisted looking at Faith. Joy was going to kill them for keeping the secret about their dad. Another loud bang on the door interrupted Hope’s thought.
The Garland Girls advanced to the door together. Hope flipped on the light to the mudroom. A woman could be seen standing on the porch. She was petite, with blond hair. Not Carla, although she could have introduced her head to a bottle of bleach.
“Oh no,” Faith said. “Not now.”
Joy and Hope exchanged a look as Faith hurried to the door, raced through the mudroom and had the front door thrown open in seconds flat. Hope and Joy followed and watched as Faith hugged the
woman, then scolded her. She smiled broadly at Hope and Joy and they smiled back.
“What are you doing here?” Faith said. Her voice sounded intimate.
“I missed you,” she said.
“You should have called.”
“I did. Several times. And texted. Why are you ignoring me?”
Faith glanced behind her at Hope and Joy. “Can you give us some privacy?”
“I don’t think so,” Hope surprised herself by saying.
“Not a chance,” Joy said.
“Great,” Faith muttered.
“These must be your sisters,” the woman said. She held out a dainty hand. “I’m Charlie.”
“Charlie,” Joy said, slowly, as if she were wine tasting, savoring the sights and smells.
“Charlie,” Hope said.
“I was going to tell you,” Faith said.
“Stayed in the closet, did you?” Charlie said. Her laugh was much bigger than she was. “Oops!” She winked at Hope and Joy. Hope had to hand it to Faith, she was cute.
“Guess who’s coming to dinner?” Joy said.
CHAPTER 29
Yvette was up with the birds. Bright red cardinals and little brown sparrows, and if she was lucky Yvette could spot the occasional hawk gliding by the window. The house was quiet for a change. Hope was usually up messing about the kitchen, and Yvette was surprised to realize that she missed her. The girls hadn’t quite taken to her, not that she expected them to, but they sure did bring Roger back to life. She fixed his breakfast, a hardboiled egg, warm oatmeal with apples, and a thermos of coffee, and then put on her boots and coat and headed for his cabin. She glanced at all the Christmas decorations. Roger had been putting up a little more every night, and now almost half the lawn surrounding the log house was filled with one moving creature or the other, all lit up and heartily embracing Christmas. She was even allowing herself to get into the Christmas spirit. When she was a child they didn’t make a big fuss over Christmas, but oh, she loved it anyway. Their gifts were modest—Clementine oranges, a pair of shoes, or a hairbrush—something practical but new. And oh, how Yvette cherished her gifts. Nowadays kids were so spoiled. Brittany and Josh were an exception. What wonderful children. She felt closer to them than she did the girls, but Yvette had always had an easier time relating to children than adults. Brittany was so fresh-faced and agreeable. And she didn’t mind Josh being a bit moody—he reminded her so of Thomas.
