Chapter Nine
Angie
So, there was something else she had to figure out. Angie was good at figuring things out. She was good at planning and scheduling, and this would help her solve whatever riddle she was looking at.
Maybe the universe didn’t consider taking a few days off a big enough gesture. She had to do some investigating. The next day on her lunch break, she sent a text to her parents.
I’ll call you later, but I wanted to ask if you’d like to come over for dinner on Christmas Day. Neva’s parents will be there too.
Next, she called Christina. When she didn’t pick up right away, Angie tried another couple of times and got worried. Her next call went to Caron. Magically, the principal’s number was saved in her cell phone.
“I can’t reach my daughter,” she said without preamble. “I need to speak to her.”
“Ms. Winters. I have Christina right here.”
“Mom,” her daughter whined a moment later. “We are not allowed to pick up the phone in class. I got called into the principal’s office.”
“I’m sorry, baby…” She halted, and for a few seconds it felt like everyone, including the principal, was holding their breaths.
“Why are you calling me? Is something wrong?” Christina now sounded alarmed. “Are Mama and the twins okay?”
“Yes, we’re fine. I’m sorry,” she said again. “Can you speak?”
“What does that mean?”
“Chrissie, I need to ask you something. Do you want to come home?”
“Mom? You are freaking me out. You know I’m coming home in a few days.”
“Yes.” Angie took a deep, hopefully calming, breath. “I mean, for good. If you’re not happy there, you could always come back and go to school here. Whatever you want.”
“I’m good. I need to go back to class,” Christina returned. “And I’m meeting Hayley and Ash later. We want to go Christmas shopping.”
So, they had fewer pets now, but their kids had friends and piano teachers and tutors Angie had never heard about. She fought back the rising panic.
“That sounds really nice. I’m sorry I interrupted your class. I’ll see you next week. Love you.”
“Love you too, Mom.”
That was the most reassuring thing she had heard in a while. If the lesson was to bring Christina home for good, well, she would have to work harder on that. She glanced at the new message notification on her screen and opened it to realize it was from her parents.
Honey, we thought you had reservations for Christmas Day as usual. I’m sorry, but Dad and I booked a trip. We are leaving very early on Christmas Morning.
That wasn’t going to work out either. Would she get points for trying, at least? How could she know if she was on the right track?
Angie finished her workday, antsy and unsure what to do next. When she came home, Neva was still working, and the girls were playing in their room.
It was so quiet, her unease kept growing by the minute. She brewed another coffee and opened the pantry to take out some of the chocolate she had bought the day before, when it came to her. Store-bought cookies for Christmas? She wasn’t going to have that.
Angie found a channel that played Christmas music and started taking out ingredients, including the Vegan chocolate chips, and spread them out on the counter. She could have one, maybe two batches in the oven before dinner.
The familiar task finally helped calm her, though she might not be as quick and efficient in her new reality as she had thought: She was halfway through cutting out the first batch when Neva arrived, stopping cold at the sight.
“Hey. I thought at least two kinds would be nice.”
“But…”
Something about her tone made Angie look up. Neva looked flabbergasted.
“It’s still early.”
“It’s…We still have to make dinner. I thought you didn’t like messes.”
Angie glanced at the island’s countertop. To her, it looked fine, though a bit of flour was all over the place. She was just about to cut out another set of sugar cookies.
“This isn’t…never mind. I’ll clean up before dinner, I promise.”
“No, that’s fine. Can I help?”
Right track, again?
Time would tell.
She handed Neva a couple of cookie cutters, a heart and a tree, their fingers touching when Neva took them. “If you could cut out a few more of these…”
They worked together for a few minutes, and Angie put a sheet of cookies in the oven. When she turned back to Neva, she was struck by how wonderful this felt, taking time in the middle of the week to do something she loved, with the person she loved most in the world.
She couldn’t help herself and reached out, touching Neva’s cheek.
“You have a little something there…”
Neva laughed. “You know you don’t have to cosplay a scene from a Hallmark movie just to kiss me…”
“No?”
“No. Any time you want works for me.” So, she did lean in and kiss her, softly at first, then a bit more passionately, until two enthusiastic children interrupted them.
“Cookies!” Fiona sang.
“Can we help? Please?” Elsa asked.
“Yes, definitely,” Angie declared. “We can use all the help we can get.”
She was going to get her life back. It was going to happen.
***
Later that night she stood in the bedroom, daring a quick glance at the gift she had bought for Neva. She held the necklace in her hands, examining it from all sides.
If you have any magic power, please, give me back my life.
Only you can do that, Nadine’s words echoed on her mind.
But how? She hastily put the gift back in its hiding place when she heard Neva coming out of the bathroom and got under the covers.
“That was nice earlier, baking with the girls,” Neva said with a smile as she joined Angie in bed.
“Yes, it was,” Angie confirmed, the memory putting a smile on her face despite herself. They had put the cookies aside for dinner, and Fiona and Elsa had been happy to help decorating afterwards. That’s when it did become a mess, but somehow no one minded.
Right track. She was so sure.
She was also relieved that neither Christina nor her parents seemed to have contacted Neva about her calls. She could operate in secret a little while longer…While getting the Christmas underway that they would all enjoy.
One way or another.