Chapter 65
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
THE COAT
The day we brought our little guy home, I had a surprise waiting for MacKenzie. I’d had it wrapped in brown paper and I placed it on the rocker in the nursery. I wanted Frankie to be with us when she opened it, so the nursery was the logical place.
I carried Frankie, snug in his carrier, into the house and walked directly into this room.
MacKenzie’s still a little sore from birthing my big guy, but she’s getting better.
Just as I suspected, Mac followed me into the baby’s room.
She started unbuckling him from his carrier, lifting him up and kissing his chubby little cheek.
“Here it is, Frankie, your new bedroom. Do you like it?”
We decorated it in soft, cool colors. MacKenzie chose a light sage green for the walls, a colorful rug for the floor, and a light-purple throw for the rocker.
On the walls are several of her grandfather’s drawings, along with one of his most colorful little shelves.
I’ve got a photo of my mom and dad on one of his walls and a picture of us with all of our friends from the Vegas trip on another.
We wanted our little guy surrounded by the people we love.
I take him from her arms and lay him in his new crib.
The bedding is covered in colorful cartoon animals, and there’s a matching mobile above his head.
He’s too little to understand what that is, but it’ll be no time at all before he’ll love watching it move around and listening to it play soft music.
When I turn, I see Mac holding the box. “What’s this?”
“Oh, um, I don’t know. You should open it and see.”
“Sam. You’re such a terrible liar.”
I shrug, admitting nothing. She sits on the rocker and carefully opens up one end and then the other, making sure not to tear the plain brown paper.
She opens gifts just like my mom. Once the sides are open, she flips it over and pulls open the paper.
She folds it in four and sets it down. Jesus, it’s taking her forever.
I can hardly wait for her to look inside the box.
I almost want to grab it out of her hand and rip the lid off. But I wait.
She turns the box back over, lifting the lid slowly.
She uses her thumb and forefinger to pull one side of the tissue away and then the other.
She blinks. And blinks some more. She’s sitting completely still looking into the box.
She finally looks up at me. Tears are streaming down her beautiful cheeks. “Is this… is this his?”
I nod, attempting to hold back my own emotions.
She’s been extra weepy during and since the pregnancy, but I know it would have been emotional no matter when I chose to give her this.
I take the lid from her hands, set it down next to the rocker, and pull the coat out of the box and her out of the chair at the same time. I hold the coat up. “Put it on.”
She nods, holding out her arm. I slide the coat on one arm and then the other, then turn her to face me so I can tie the belt around her. She looks down at the left side and then at the left sleeve. “I don’t understand. How did you…?”
“Once the police were done with it, I sent it to a textile conservator in New York. It took her a while, but she was able to repair the damage while preserving the good stuff left by Pops.”
Mac is still standing in front of me, gazing down at the coat. She gently touches a spot just below the collar on her left side. She feels around in the right pocket and pulls out the satin lining. There’s a hole in the bottom. “The hole is still there.”
“Nothing was fixed or changed. Only the damage caused by the psycho-killer guy. And some damage done by the lab.” We’ve started calling the killer “the psycho-killer guy” if the subject comes up. I can’t bring myself to say his name. Not yet, anyway.
“Sam, I don’t know what to say. Well, I do. Thank you. Thank you for giving me so much love. For giving me my son, and for giving me back this part of Pops that has meant so much to me over the years. Thank you for understanding its meaning and relevance. I’m literally speechless, Sam.”
“You’re welcome. I’d like to thank you right back for everything you just said. And for the record, I hope you wear this coat everywhere we go.”
She laughs then. “I’ll wear it sometimes, but now that it’s back, I’d prefer to keep it safe. I want Frankie to have it someday. I’ll even let you buy me a new coat.”
“Wow. Really? Thank you for that, too.” I chuckle. We both laugh, and then we hug, and I kiss my girl. “I love you so much, Mac.”
“I love you more, Sam. More than you’ll ever know.”
Oh, I know. I know.