Chapter 7
Seven
“ W hat did you say?” I stare at her in alarm, convinced I’ve misheard her, that she hasn’t just admitted to lying to me after all.
“It wasn’t a dream.” She’s huddled on the bed, folded in upon herself. I feel a sense of foreboding settle over me as I move to sit beside her, hoping to offer support through sheer proximity, since I have no idea what else to do.
“I mean…it- it started as a dream. And I was definitely asleep for part of it. But…”
“Okay, wait. So…not just a dream. Is that what you’re saying?” Bizarrely, I find that comforting. For once—or maybe twice—it seems like all the weird, mystic, woo-woo, magic crap that I usually hate, will be my salvation. “So what else are we talking about? A vision? A premonition? Something like that?”
“What?” she lifts her head to stare at me, and I grimace in response to the wariness in her gaze.
“Look, Scout, I’m sorry if you still feel you need to hide this stuff from me. I know I haven’t been all that great about it in the past. My attitude on magic was…” My voice fades away and I shake my head. “Well, I think you and I both know what it was. But I’ve realized my mistakes since then, and…and hopefully learned something from then. Having you do what you did to save my life was kind of an eye-opener. I kind of thought you knew that?”
“Oh, Nick.” And she’s crying again.
This time, I reach for her—instead of the other way around. I hug her tight; and I stroke her hair; and I whisper words of comfort. “It’s okay,” I tell her. “It’s okay. “ And this time, it doesn’t feel like a lie to say so.
“I don’t care what it is,” I tell her. “You can tell me. I might not always like it, but I promise I’ll listen; and I’ll try to understand. Because that’s something else I’ve figured out since the last time. All this stuff that used to bother me—none of it matters. Nothing is more important to me than you.”
She pulls away, blinking back tears, shaking her head. “Thank you. But… It’s not what you think.”
“Okay.” I shrug. “Then tell me what it is.”
She takes a deep breath. “Where do I start?” she asks rhetorically, then falls silent again, staring into space.
I try to be patient, with limited success. “Does it matter? Just start anywhere.”
“I guess you could say it began with Larry. Or with his party the other night.”
“Okay,” I repeat, scowling despite my best intentions. “What happened? What did he do?”
“Larry? No, nothing! That’s not what I meant. It’s all those movies he always makes us watch!” She throws her hands in the air. “ Christmas Carol , Wonderful Life , all the rest—I can’t even remember the names of most of the others. But they’re dangerous.”
“Dangerous,” I repeat carefully. “How so?”
Scout pauses then, clearly registering my growing confusion. She breathes out a sigh and continues, “Maybe not dangerous, per se. Not dangerous in an obvious way. Is that better?”
“I’m not sure yet,” I hedge.
“Well, I can’t help that. See, the thing is…I think that, somehow, they must have gotten twisted up and mashed together inside my head and…shit. This still isn’t making any sense to you, is it”
A smile teases my lips as I answer, “Well…not very much sense, no. Why don’t you try again?”
Scout falls back onto the bed and stares at the ceiling. “Okay, so, what happened was this: I was flying home from LA….”
“You’re talking about yesterday?”
“I guess? From your perspective. But, really, it’s not as straightforward as it seems.”
“I’m starting to get that.”
“I mean, it started out like a perfectly ordinary sort of trip. Everything seemed fine while we were in the air. Other than the fact that I fell asleep—which we’ve already discussed. But then, when I landed in Oberon that first time, you weren’t there…or here…or anywhere, really.”
“Okay, stop. What do you mean ‘the first time’?”
Scout nods. “Okay. Okay, you’re right. That was still the wrong place to begin. She breathes out a deep breath and tries again. “So I was on the plane, right?”
“And this is still yesterday?”
“Theoretically. So then this guy came and sat next to me.”
“As you do.”
“Mm-hm. And he tells me he’s an angel, and he’s talking kind of crazy, and of course, I don’t believe a word he’s saying. But then…well, as it turns out, now I do.”
“Now you…?”
“I believe him.”
I snort in disbelief—because really? “You believe you met an angel? Taking a plane? What, he didn’t have wings?”
“No wings.”
“So then, why?—”
“Look, Nick.” My wife levels a finger in my direction. “Don’t go all suspicious cop on me, all right? I told you; I didn’t believe him either at first.”
“But now you do?”
“Yes,” she answers, in a voice that brooks no argument. “Absolutely. One hundred percent. After everything that happened, I kinda have to. And you probably should, too, because I’m pretty sure you’ve seen him, as well.”
“What?” I stare at her in surprise. “An angel? Who are we talking about?”
“That Santa Claus you took Cole to see? I watched the video, I saw the pictures. I wouldn’t swear to it, what with the beard and all, but I’m pretty sure that was him. I also think he was the guy you bought the roses from. That’s just his style. I mean, the whole time I was here—the other here, I mean—he kept throwing roses in my face.”
“Someone threw flowers at you?” I demand. “Repeatedly? That’s assault. You shoulda pressed charges.”
“It’s a figure of speech, Nick.”
“I don’t care what it is. This doesn’t feel right. This guy doesn’t sound like an angel, Scout; he sounds like a stalker!”
“Just listen, okay? He wasn’t a stalker.”
“Okay, hon; sure. Whatever you say.” But I’m already thinking of everything I need to do. First thing tomorrow morning, I’m gonna call the city and find out where they hired their Santa from. Next, I’ll contact the airline and try and get a lead on who was assigned to the seat next to Scout’s. After that?—
“You’re doing it again, aren’t you?”
“Doing what?”
“Figuring out what you’re going to do, how you’ll prove that he’s not an angel.”
“Not exactly, no.” I hadn’t even gotten to that part. Yet.
She smiles knowingly at me. “Yeah, I’m sure it’s something like that. Anyway, as I was saying, the first time I landed in Oberon, you weren’t there. Edge—that’s what he calls himself—picked me up in my old Mustang.”
“You mean a car that’s the same make and model, right? Not the actual?—”
“No. The actual car.”
“That’s impossible. You gotta know that’s impossible, right? I mean, do you even remember the VIN?”
She cocks her head to the side and asks, “Is it impossible? Are you sure about that?”
“Scout…”
“I know how it sounds, Nick. But my paperwork was in the glovebox, and it was all up-to-date.”
“It was probably fake.”
“I thought that, too. But if it was, it was a good enough fake to fool Ryan.”
“Ryan? What’s he got to do with it?”
“That’s not important right now.”
“I’m pretty sure it is.”
“No.” She shakes her head. “Because it wasn’t the same Ryan. That’s what I’m trying to explain. It was a do-over, at least, that’s what the angel called it; it was a Christmas freebie. He said he was giving me the gift of seeing what Oberon would have been like if I’d stayed away, if I hadn’t come back five years ago.”
“And did he?”
“Well, that sure seemed to be the case. Unless this has all been an elaborate hoax and you and Ryan and Dan are all in on it.”
“You know I’d never do something like that,” I protest. “I can see how much this has upset you. I could never?—”
“Shh. I know.” She presses a quick finger against my lips, silencing me. “That’s why I have no choice but to believe it was real.”
“So what happened next?”
“Well, I still didn’t know what was happening, so I drove back to the house. When I got here—that’s when it really started to hit me. There were no decorations, no rosebushes—they’d all been cut down, or dug up, or something. There were no cats. Cole wasn’t here; and you weren’t here either. Your phone wasn’t working. Lucy, apparently, had left town. I think she’d taken both of the girls to Arizona for the holidays, which just…”
“And you’re sure it wasn’t a dream? What about an hallucination? Did you have something to drink on the flight? Could he have slipped something in it without you noticing?”
“You do realize that I’ve been married to you for five whole years , right? Some of your paranoia has rubbed off. Of course, I thought about all of that! I tried for days to debunk his story. So, you’re kind of reinventing the wheel, right now.”
“Days? What days?”
“Nick! I’m trying to explain, but I can’t get a word in!”
“Okay,” I sigh. “I hear you. I get the message. Shutting up now.”
“To answer your question,” Scout continues. “No, I don’t think it was a dream. First because it felt too real. And secondly, because of all the little things that I’ve noticed since I’ve been back, or that have happened over the last few days.”
“Like the roses at the airport,” I say, trying to keep up. I knew there was no way that flower cart should have been there; I knew it!
“Like those roses,” Scout agrees. “And the ones at the diner, and the squabbling couple out at the nursery. Not to mention my plane getting in early, and the wait for my luggage—which was identical both times—and... There were things, okay?”
“Okay. If you say so.”
“Anyway, alternate Oberon…I don’t know how to describe it. But it was awful. I don’t even want to think about it. So many things had gone wrong—worse than I could ever have imagined. Everyone was miserable. Or they’d gotten together with the wrong people and weren’t as happy as they should have been.”
“What people?” I can’t help but ask. “Can you give me an example?”
“Ryan and Sinead,” she answers dryly. “And I know what you’re gonna say.”
“What? That anyone who knows them could have seen that coming? It’s still true, even if I don’t say it.”
“Regardless. Everything was a mess. And it was all my fault. And I couldn’t fix anything!”
“Well, yeah, I’m sure. I bet alternative me was really miserable.”
“You have no idea.”
“Sure I do. Learning that for five years my paranoia wasn’t rubbing off on you? That must have been brutal.”
“Anyway,” Scout says, hurrying on, ignoring the opening I’d given her—which in itself is worrisome. “The good news is that I learned my lesson. I never have to go back to that reality, or even think about it if I don’t want to. Which I definitely do not. I’m so very grateful for everything we have; and I don’t want anything to change that.”
“Same,” I tell her. “We’re a team. And whatever happens, whatever comes next…we got this. We can handle anything as long as we’re together. Right?”
“Right.” Scout nods and smiles, but it’s a watery sort of smile and I can’t help but feel that we’re not out of the woods quite yet.
“So, then what happened?” I ask her.
“Well, then I came home—for real this time. Or I woke from the dream, if that’s what it was, and you were there, and Cole, and Lucy, and…”
“Like the Wizard of Oz,” I say nodding thoughtfully, because wow. I’d nailed that reference, hadn’t I?
“I guess,” Scout agrees. “But, ever since then…I’ve been feeling bad. Because…”
“Because…?” I prompt, as her voice fades away.’’
“Because you weren’t wrong about the past few weeks. I’ve been distracted. And I probably was acting distant. There were things I wasn’t telling you and…I think we should probably talk about them now.”
“Okay.” I take a deep breath and try for an encouraging smile. “I’m listening.”
“As you’ve probably guessed, I’ve been keeping a secret. But it didn’t start out that way. I hadn’t planned for that to happen. And it’s not because I didn’t trust you. But…it was my decision. I had to decide what I wanted to do. And I didn’t want to burden you, or make you feel responsible for my choices.”
“Okay,” I say once more, feeling faint. This sounds ominous, and I don’t really like it, but “It is what it is, right? And I just want to go on record to say that I will always support whatever decisions you make.”
Scout smiles. “Thank you.” She hesitates for a moment then says, “And now…I think maybe we should exchange Christmas presents.”
“Now?” I ask, more than a little perplexed. “It’s the middle of the night.”
“So? A lot of people exchange presents on Christmas Eve,” my wife points out. “And besides, I think it’ll be better if it’s just the two of us. I don’t think you’re going to be mad, but I’ve been wrong about stuff like that before. And, either way, I really don’t think we should do this in front of an audience. It’s not fair to you.”
“Okay,” I tell her. I get up from the bed, then reach out a hand to help her up as well. “Let’s go get the presents. We’ll meet back here in… five minutes or so?”
Scout nods. “Okay. It’s a plan.”
I hurry to the closet and grab the gift bag that Kate had left for me. And then, since I still have some time, I pull on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. Some conversations go better with clothes on. I’m thinking this might be one of them.
Apparently, I’m not the only one who thinks so. Scout’s taken the opportunity to cover up, as well. She’s wrapped herself in her white satin robe—the one that will probably always remind me of our wedding night. In that regard, it’s possibly the worst piece of clothing she could possibly have picked. Because I always want to strip her out of it as soon as possible. And now is no exception.
So, I take a seat and try hard to not think about everything that her robe is concealing. It shouldn’t be as difficult as it is. I mean, we were both entirely naked no more than five minutes ago. You’d think I’d have at least temporary immunity, wouldn’t you? But no.
Scout sits beside me and takes a deep, deep breath—and that does nothing to distract me from the robe. “Okay, this first one is the awkward one,” she says, nervously fidgeting with a manilla portfolio folder, the kind you typically get from a lawyer, or a bank.
Oh, jeez. What the hell have you done ? I wonder. And I won’t deny that I feel a sense of relief when she tells me, “This one’s not actually for you.”
“Okay…”
“This is a gift from me to Kate,” she says as she hands me the folder. “I’d like it to come from both of us, but I understand if you’re not comfortable with that. But, either way…I really want to do this, Nick. And…I hope you’re okay with that.”
I nod, pretty sure I know what’s coming next. It has to be money, right? I open the folder and…wow. Jesus. So many zeros.
“It’s a college fund,” Scout explains, somewhat unnecessarily. “I set one up for Cole, as well. I want them to have choices. It doesn’t make sense for Kate to have to compromise and struggle these next few years. Not when the money was just sitting there, doing nothing.”
“Well, not exactly nothing,” I point out. “I assume it was earning interest.”
Scout makes a face. “Stop it. You know what I mean.”
“I do. And thank you. I’m sure it will mean a lot to her. And, to be honest, it means a lot to me, as well. I didn’t want to talk about it, either. But I was getting worried about what I could do, or how I could help her.”
“I know.”
“This takes a lot of that pressure away and…while I appreciate the offer, it was your idea.” And your money , I add silently. “And I don’t see why you shouldn’t get all the credit for it.”
“Team, remember? What’s mine is yours?”
“Okay, fine. I can’t argue with that, I suppose. If it makes you happy, we’ll tell her it’s from both of us. She’s gonna know the truth anyway.”
Scout’s chin juts stubbornly. “That is the truth.”
I smile at her. “Whatever you say,” I reply, hoping for a smile in return. Instead, she takes a deep breath and hands me a square gift box. “Now, this one is for you,” she says. “But it’s symbolic. So, bear with me.”
I open the box and find…a large, blown glass Christmas ornament in the shape of a house. “It’s beautiful,” I say, then I take a closer look. “Is this…our house? This house?”
“Yes.” Scout shakes her head wearily. “It was a special order, and it took forever to get it back. I wasn’t sure I was going to have it in time for Christmas.”
“Huh. What do you know,” I say, shaking my head as well. “Lucy was right, after all.”
“What?”
“My cousin. She insisted that the reason you went to LA was to pick up a Christmas present for me. She also thought that was why you were so late getting back. She said it had to be an issue with your gift being held up. And, I guess she was right about that, as well.”
“Oh. Well. No, not entirely. That wasn’t the biggest issue.”