The Fairy Trail

by Catherine Ras

  ***

  Maggie insisted on being cleared by the doctor the next day, and with Charlie and Aunt Agnes in tow, she took Tyler home. She was exhausted because she kept Tyler in the room with her where she held him through the night. She was afraid Michael would return.

  “He scared me,” she said to Charlie and Aunt Agnes as she lay Tyler in the basinet. I wouldn’t put it past him to take Tyler from me.”

  Charlie put her hand on Maggie’s arm and turned her around. “He’s not going to take Tyler from us.”

  The reference made Maggie feel guilty. She wasn’t including her partner in any of this. “I’m sorry. I’m doing it again, aren’t I?”

  “I can forgive you this time. I understand. But Tyler is ours, and no one is going to take him away from us. He has to have a DNA test to prove it, and that whole process is going to take a while--lawyers and the whole thing. And if that jackass is the father, we’ll fight him with everything we have.”

  “That’s right,” Aunt Agnes agreed. “Besides, that piece of shit doesn’t want a kid; he just wants to mess with your mind.”

  “Aunt Agnes!” Charlie exclaimed.

  “What, you don’t think I can trash talk? You forget my origins. Besides, I remember that punk. I didn’t like him from them the moment I met him. I highly doubt you’ll see him again.” She turned both girls toward the door. “Now, let this precious angel sleep.”

  “I just want to stay here and watch him sleep,” Maggie whined.

  “There will come a time when you will want someone else to watch him sleep. Take advantage of it. Let’s say we get something to eat.” Aunt Agnes gently pushed them out the door. She handed the baby monitor to Maggie. “Hang on to this. You can listen to him sleep.” She smiled.

  On the way to the kitchen, Maggie couldn’t keep Mike out of her thoughts. If Aunt Agnes was right and he didn’t want a kid, then why did he come to the hospital and threaten her? She couldn’t let this happen.

  When lunch was over, Maggie told Charlie and her aunt she wanted to take a walk. She wouldn’t be long.

  “I’ll go with you,” Charlie offered.

  “No, it’s okay. I’d just like to clear my head a little.”

  Charlie started to protest, but out of the corner of her eyes she saw Aunt Agnes shake her head.

  “Hurry back.”

  Maggie grabbed a sweatshirt off the chair in the living room and walked out the door with purpose, and it wasn’t to clear her head.

  She hurried toward the forest. She was more determined with each step she took because she knew what she had to do.

  When she entered the woods, she called out, “Show yourselves. I need your help.”

  She heard a pop that came from the ground and immediately looked down to see a small green door tucked away in large gnarly roots of a tree. The door opened, and a fairy walked out.

  She had flowing black hair that seemed to move with an invisible wind, and she wore a long, gray dress. She appeared older than the other fairies she had seen.

  “Since when do you give us orders?”

  Maggie fell to her knees in front of the fairy. “I’m…I’m sorry. But I’m desperate. I need your help.”

  “What can we do for you now?”

  “I just had a baby and….”

  “Congratulations! What a wonderful thing. You must be so happy. So why would you need our help?”

  “This horrible guy Mike thinks Tyler is his, and he wants to take him from me.”

  The fairy’s eyes grew wide. “Oh, my!”

  Maggie paced in circles. “Right? I could lose my son to a drugged up, lying cheater.”

  “Oh, that would not be good…not good at all.”

  “It would be horrible. Can you help me?”

  The fairy began to pace behind Maggie, shaking her head and talking to herself as she moved.

  “Now I’d have to give you something that would permanently remove him or place him somewhere else, or maybe just mute him. Or I could….”

  Maggie stopped, and the fairy ran into her ankle, causing her to topple over.

  “That was rude!” the fairy exclaimed.

  Maggie bent down and righted the little woman. “I’m so sorry, but you were mumbling about permanently removing him, and I’m just not sure what that means. I’m afraid to ask.”

  The fairy brushed off her frock. “Well, I will forgive you for that. You are upset. But next time, watch where you’re going.”

  “I will. I will. I’m so sorry.”

  The fairy looked up at Maggie with misgiving. “Hmph.” She turned away and studied the ground. When she saw what she was looking for, she picked up what to her was a large rock. She held it out for Maggie.

  In Maggie’s hand, it was a small pebble. She didn’t dare make fun of the gesture or turn it down. She had had enough interactions with the fairies to know better.

  The fairy smiled. “There.” She walked back to her front door.

  “What do I do with it?” Maggie called out to her.

  “Use it.” The fairy opened her door.

  “Use it how? What will it do?”

  “What you want it to do. Now be off with you. I have things to do. Good-bye Margaret Beatrice Smith.”

  “How do you know my whole name?”

  The fairy went into her home.

  “What’s your name? You have to tell me what I’m supposed to do. Say something, anything.”

  “It is a gift I would bestow upon you, and you must not misuse it. The gift would be yours until your next birthday. But…if at any time before that you abuse my gift, you alone will reap the consequences, and the gift will come back to me.”

  The fairy closed the door.

  Chapter Forty-one

  Maggie walked home, turning the smooth pebble over and over in her hand. None of the fairies had ever given her much instruction, but she could figure this out—just like she did all the other times.

  The fairy told her to use it the way she wanted to, and that’s exactly what she would do. She stopped just before she reached her house, closed her hand about the stone and shut her eyes.

  “I want Mike to never come near me or Tyler again.” Satisfied, she put the pebble in her pocket.

  When she walked into the house, Charlie and Aunt Agnes were in the living room talking. Charlie looked up at her with a slightly worried look on her face.

  “Are you okay hon?”

  Maggie went to her and wrapped her arms around her. “Much, much better. I think I just needed a good dose of fresh air.”

  Charlie held Maggie at arm’s length and studied her. “Well, I dare say you knew what you needed. Look at that smile.”

  “She does look much better,” Aunt Agnes said. “Maggie, I have some good news. Tony is coming tomorrow. Charlie and I were talking about having the celebration this weekend at Leena’s. After that, if you’re both all set, I’ll go home. How does that sound?”

  “That sounds wonderful,” Maggie answered, feeling better about Mike. The fairy wouldn’t let her down.

  ***

  Saturday night, Maggie bundled Tyler up and placed him in the carrier. Charlie’s arms slipped around her waist from behind.

  She whispered in Maggie’s ear, “He certainly is handsome, isn’t he?”

  Maggie turned around and kissed her. “And you’re looking pretty good yourself.”

  “Are you ready to go?”

  “Just have to get my purse. Will you take him down?”

  “I am not going to turn down any amount of time I can get with our little boy.”

  Maggie smiled. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

  Charlie picked up the carrier and went downstairs.

  Maggie walked over to the small white dresser with two narrow drawers over-stuffed with onesies, coordinating outfits for boys zero to six months, baby socks, and baby hats. Sitting on top of the dresser was a small musical lamp adorned with zoo animals on the bottom that circled around the base when it was on and the
music was playing.

  The pebble the fairy had given her was strategically placed amidst the animals so if you weren’t looking for it, you wouldn’t notice it. She placed the pebble in her purse and went downstairs. When she got to the landing, Aunt Agnes, Tony and Charlie were ogling over the baby.

  Maggie stepped away from the stairs and backed up against the wall. She felt a fullness in her chest, a strange sensation that she had never felt before. It wasn’t pain or an ache—it was a nervous feeling. At that moment, Maggie realized that she was surrounded by love for the first time in her life, and she was so afraid of losing it.

  When Charlie saw her, she said, “Come on, girl. We’ll be late.”

  Maggie took several deep breaths then pushed away from the wall. She placed the love in her heart upon her face and trotted down the steps with a smile on her face and the reflection of love in her eyes.

  When they arrived at Leena’s, Aunt Agnes and Tony went in ahead to get a table. A few minutes later Maggie and Charlie, carrying Tyler, opened the door to a restaurant full of people yelling surprise. In the forefront was Aunt Agnes and Tess. Standing next to them was Leena and Barty.

  Maggie couldn’t help but notice for the first time since she had known them, they looked happy. There was no curmudgeon look on their faces that they sported most of the time. In fact, the room was filled with happy people, some she didn’t even know.

  Tables were lined up against a wall laden with food, desserts and gifts.

  She turned to Charlie. “Are we interrupting something?”

  Charlie leaned into her. “No, silly. This is for Tyler.” She beamed as she held up the carrier. Everyone clapped and shouted, “Congratulations!”

  Maggie’s face grew red from embarrassment. Even though it was for Tyler, she had never been this close to the center of attention before in her life. Because she didn’t know what else to do, she stepped forward and offered hugs to her friends.

  Then she stepped back and scanned the crowd. She had the rock. He wouldn’t be there. She thrust her hand into her purse and ran the pebble through her fingers.

  Just keep him away. Make him forget about Tyler. Keep him away. Make him forget, she said over and over to herself.

  Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder from behind. She started.

  “Hey, hon, it’s me. Why so jumpy.”

  Maggie felt the warm breath of Charlie’s words on her ear. She took a deep breath and leaned back into her.

  “Thank you. This is so…wonderful.” Maggie turned to face her. “You alone have made my life so much better. Thank you.”

  “You and Tyler make my life better. We deserve this.”

  ***

  Maggie rocked back and forth in the wooden chair holding Tyler close to her chest. After putting Tyler to bed, they had succumbed to their own fatigue and crawled under the covers. Aunt Agnes and Tony were at a nearby motel.

  Maggie climbed out of bed when she heard Tyler’s whimpers of restlessness. She had lifted him out of the basinet at the end of their bed. Maggie wasn’t ready to let him sleep alone in his bedroom yet. Worry still held on to her, even though Mike hadn’t appeared at the party.

  When they got home, she placed the pebble back into its hiding spot back in his room. It had to work, although she never really knew if any of the gifts the fairies gave her did what she thought they were supposed to do.

  Tyler stirred. She looked down at her child.

  “Shhh, it’s okay. Mother will never let anything happen to you—neither will the fairies. When I was a young girl, my parents were very cruel. Kids were mean to me. I didn’t have the best life. I escaped to the woods and met the most wonderful little people—fairies.

  “They…helped me with special gifts, but they always warned me never to misuse them. You, my little angel, however, will never need to turn to fairies or anyone else but your family. Charlie, Aunt Agnes and I will always be here to help you, guide you and love you.”

  She carried him back to their bedroom, kissed him on his forehead, and placed him gently in the basinet at the end of their bed.

  She snuck one last look out the window, wondering if she would ever be free of worry.

  Chapter Forty-two

  “Maggie, wake up. Maggie. Come on, hon, wake up”

  Maggie tried to force her lids to open, but fatigue fought against her. She felt like she was a prisoner of the slumber that held her captive, and even though she heard Charlie’s voice coaxing her to wake, she found herself still held in the vast sleep void against her will.

  “Maggie, this is important. Come on, hon.” She felt her body being shaken.

  Maggie fought against exhaustion to get to the surface of consciousness. She heard herself whisper, “Was up all night…need more sleep.”

  “I know, and after we talk, you can go back to sleep.”

  The distressed tone of Charlie’s voice led Maggie through her fogginess to some sense of alertness. She dragged her body to a sitting position, rubbed her eyes, and finally met Charlie’s gaze.

  Seeing the troubled look on her face, she panicked. “Is Tyler okay? Where is he?” She tried to climb out of bed, but Charlie put a hand on her arm and gently pushed her back.

  “Tyler is okay. Aunt Agnes and Tony are feeding him, changing him, and ogling over him.”

  She sank back against the pillows and sighed with relief. “Then what is it? What’s wrong?”

  Charlie didn’t speak. She was looking at an envelope in her hand. After several very long seconds, she said, “Mike is dead.”

  “Wh…what?”

  “Last night…his mother called Aunt Agnes.”

  “How? Where? It’s not true. Why would she call Aunt Agnes?”

  “Maggie,” she said as gently as she could. “He committed suicide—shot himself in the head.”

  “They’re lying to you. This isn’t true. He wouldn’t do something like that. He’s too mean to do that. His goal in life is to make other people miserable—to make fools of them, take advantage of them.” She rambled on in disbelief.

  “She called Aunt Agnes to tell her that Mike left a letter for you. She didn’t want to see you, or anyone for that matter, but Mike left her instructions that you were to get the letter.”

  “I don’t want it.” She jumped out of bed and started dressing.

  “I can’t make you read it. You can throw it out or burn it. It’s your choice.” Charlie walked over to the dresser and set the letter down. “I’ll leave it here, and I’ll be downstairs if you need me.” She kissed Maggie on the cheek and left the room.

  Maggie stared at the letter. “Damn him! Damn those fairies. That’s not what I wanted. That’s not what I wished for.” She put her hands on her head and turned in circles. “Damn him, damn him, damn him!”

  She glanced at the letter then walked over to the window. It was as if she touched the letter its poison would kill her.

  She sat down on the bed, fighting tears instead of fatigue. She looked at the letter again. “How dare you do this to me? How dare you.”

  Her head dropped back, and her eyes closed in defeat. She took a breath as she stood up. Maggie approached the dresser with immense trepidation, knowing she wasn’t going to like whatever Mike wrote in the letter.

  For a brief moment, she thought about having Charlie there while she read it, but she hadn’t told her everything about her crazy life in New York with Mike. Even though Charlie knew the gist of it, she hadn’t yet felt comfortable enough to give her all the gory details.

  She angrily snatched the letter off the dresser. As soon as she touched it, the images she had experienced a year ago of herself lying in an alley in a pool of blood entered her mind. She sat back down on the bed. Now she understood the meaning of the blood. It could have been her who put a gun to her head. Tears welled in her eyes.

  With great care, she opened the envelope and removed one sheet of paper.

  Margaret.

  “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me. Yo
u never called me Margaret, and now that you’re dead, you decide to call me by the name you knew I hated?”

  Margaret.

  She stared at her name not sure she wanted to read on. If he started his letter this way, she was sure the rest wasn’t going to be much better.

  Margaret,

  To this day I’m not sure why you left me at Jason’s that night. It was a rotten thing to do. Then you wouldn’t see me. Was it because you discovered you were carrying my baby? We could have had a good life together.

  But we’ll never know, will we?

  I really did love you. Take good care of my child.

  Mike

  Maggie folded the letter and put it back in the envelope. What was she supposed to do with it? He had corrupted her every moment they were together, and here he was, reaching out from the grave to mess with her once again—to make her feel guilty as if his suicide was her fault.

  The answer came to her when Charlie entered the room with Tyler cradled in her arms. She looked up at them and held out the letter to Charlie. “Burn it.”

  Charlie exchanged Tyler for the letter. She touched both their cheeks and left the room without a word.

  Maggie held Tyler close and cooed to him like all mommies do when they both need soothing. She walked into the baby’s room and removed the pebble from its hiding place, placing it in her pocket.

  She sat down in the rocker sighing as she rocked back and forth all the while looking up at the ceiling. “Those fairies I told you about don’t always come through the way you want them to. But it’s over, my sweet boy. We’re gonna be okay. We’ve got Charlie, and she loves us more than I could have ever imagined possible.”

  She pulled the pebble out of her pocket and turned it over and over in her hand. “Now what to do with this.”

  Chapter Forty-three

  The five year old toddler’s full head of curly, blond hair bobbed up and down as he bounced along the sidewalk. His warm, energetic smile was indicative of the playfulness in his movements.