The Christmas gift - a Christmas story - Chapter 13
Maria wanted to go all out for Christmas. It was the first time in years that she looked forward to this day. She had so much to be grateful for and two days before Christmas Terrence surprised her with the biggest turkey that she had ever seen. Terrence and Jonah finished with whatever they were working on in the shed, and everyone was just excited. Maria wanted to repay Terrence for everything that he did for the family but she had absolutely no idea what to get him. She sat thinking in the kitchen while drinking a cup of coffee when Jonah walked in.
"What are you thinking about mommy?" Jonah asked and Maria smiled at him.
"I'm just thinking about how grateful I am for everything that happened in this last three weeks. I'm so glad you are here, and I'm thinking about a present for Terrence. I have no idea how to repay him for everything he has done."
"Terrence doesn't worry about presents mommy, he just wants to be part of something. The only thing that he worries about is Gabriella. I wish we could help him find her. That would be the biggest present we could ever give him."
Terrence and Maria sat there talking for a few minutes and she was astonished by how wise Jonah had become while he was away. She played around with the thought in her head, and when Jonah left the room she picked up the phone to phone Mr Settler. She made an appointment to see him and two hours later she was on her way.
Mr Settler listened to the whole sad story about Terrence and what he had done for Jonah. Maria told him everything that she knew ,but couldn't give him much more than the girl's age and the name of her father. Mr Settler promised that he would try his best, but he was a big believer in Christmas miracles and he believed that it would not take too long to find her.
He had some contacts that could run the school's databases, and that would give them a starting point to start looking. Mr Settler vowed to make this top priority and when Maria left the office, he immediately started to make some calls. He had quite a few ideas up his sleeve and after listening to the whole story he was determined to find her.
Maria did not tell anyone about her appointment with Mr Settler but prayed and hoped that he would find her before Christmas. There were only two days left, but she knew that miracles happen everyday and time is not of the essence.
Maria went to the store to buy a few things for dinner and the rest of the stuff she needed for their Christmas dinner. After buying everything on her list, she decided to walk home because it was such a lovely day. It was still chilly but the sun was shining brightly and she felt that she needed the fresh air. She still had to buy presents for Jonah and Mindy, and was deep in thought when she walked past a box standing next to the sidewalk. She peeked inside and her eyes widened when she saw two puppies inside. There was a note attached, but it fell inside the box. Free puppies to good homes.
Maria was infuriated. Who would do this to a poor animal? Leaving these poor babies outside where they could be trampled by feet or even run over by a car. Maria had no choice but to pick up the box and take it with her. She smiled when she looked at the little faces inside the box and she knew that a little boy and a little girl would be very happy when they see them. Perhaps it was fate that she had to walk home today and she smiled at the two little faces looking up from the box. Fate was totally playing in her favor and she felt grateful that she was alive.
When she went around the corner with all the stuff in her hands and the box balanced on her other arm, she bumped into Terrence. He was on his way to the shelter and laughed when he saw her.
"Quite a balancing act you have there Maria? Are you planning to join a circus?" Terrence asked jokingly.
"I'm so glad to see you Terrence. Don't just stand there help me!" Maria said and laughed when he took the puppies from her.
"Gosh Maria are you planning to open a dog shelter?" She explained to him what happened and he told her that he would have done the same thing.
"I don't know what I'm supposed to do with them for the next two days until Christmas? You don't suppose you can look after them until tomorrow night, could you Terrence, oh please say yes?"
Maria sounded desperate and Terrence could not find it on his heart to say no.
They went into their separate directions and when Maria knocked on the neighbor's door to pick up the children, a very worried Jonah opened the door.
"Mommy I'm so glad that you are back. Mindy has a fever and we tried to phone you to come home but you didn't answer. "
Maria felt terrible and when she checked her phone she saw the the battery had died. She sent Jonah to pack away all the groceries, and then used the neighbor's phone to phone the doctor. He was not available and the receptionist said that it would be best to take Mindy to the emergency room.
Within minutes, Maria, Mindy and Jonah was on their way to the hospital. The bus dropped them off a block from the hospital and Maria carried Mindy inside. The poor child was delirious and Maria had no idea what was wrong with her. Jonah sat with Mindy while Maria filled in all the forms, and as soon as a doctor was available they went in.
The doctor did a thorough examination and suggested that they keep Mindy overnight for observation. A high fever for a three year old can be potentially dangerous and it is better to be safe than sorry. Maria carried Mindy to the children's ward and when they had her settled her in, Maria sent Jonah downstairs to buy something to drink. It was going to be a long night, and Maria did not plan to leave Mindy alone.
Jonah took the money, but when he walked out of the ward, he stopped dead in his tracks. Outside the ward in a wheelchair sat Jack. The same Jack that hurt his mom so badly and made him run away. Jonah panicked and ran back to his mom. He did not want to see him and he did not want to be reminded of all the bad things that happened to them in the past.
-To be continued
Chapter 1 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-1
Chapter 2 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-2
Chapter 3 - https://steemit.com/story/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-3
Chapter 4 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-4
Chapter 5 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-5
Chapter 6 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-6
Chapter 7 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-7
Chapter 9 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-9
Chapter 10 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-10
Chapter 11 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-11
Chapter 12 - https://steemit.com/fiction/@giantbear/the-christmas-gift-a-christmas-story-chapter-12
Beautiful post
This is a awesome story thank you so much.