"No, she was lying. I wouldn't..."
"She isn't the only person I spoke to. I know you beat her."
"You've been talking to Jeanie! You can’t listen to her. She’s never liked me and has tried to destroy my marriage. She must have lied too."
"You have a problem that needs to be dealt with, Eric. You have been a great help to me for some time now and we’ve become quite close and, because of that, I'll do whatever I can to help you, but only if you get help and do something about your anger."
"I don't need help because I don’t have any problem except that you've decided to listen to Emily, who’s been trying for years to destroy me and to turn everyone against me."
"I spent quite a bit of time with Sam and…"
"See what I mean. She's turned my own son against me."
Pastor York shook his head, unable to believe what he was hearing from this man in whom he had placed so much faith for such a long time and thought he knew so well. "Eric, it's obvious to me that you hurt your wife, terribly. I can’t believe that you are denying it. I'm sorry but until you face this problem and get help, I have a problem as well. You have played an important role in the church, but, for now, you’ll have to stop assisting me and you will not be able to lead the group at prayer meeting until further notice. In time you can regain your status in the church but not until you get help with anger management. We can’t have someone who has abused his wife standing as a leader in the church. The church leadership must be above reproach. I’m sorry to have to do this to you for I'm sure that it hurts you, Eric, and I want you to know that it hurts me too."
"When I find her, she'll tell you that I never laid a hand on her. I just need someone to tell me where she is so I can bring her home and we can straighten this all up."
"She's gone."
"Where is she? Do you know where she is?"
"Why don't you just let them go?"
"Not on your life. She's my wife and I have a right to know where she is."
"She's with her father."
"That's impossible!"
"Why is it impossible?"
"She hasn't heard from them in years and they don't even know where she lives."
"Now this makes me curious. How is it possible that they don't know where she is? She told me that she has written many letters. How could it be that they don't know where she lives?"
Eric felt the color drain from his face and looked down. He felt trapped by his own words and was unable to think of a reply.
"Come by the house and talk with me. There are anger management classes. You can get help. If you can get your temper under control, perhaps you can try again with Emily."
"You don't understand. Emily is the one who causes the problems. I don't need help because I don't have a problem. I just need my wife home here where she belongs."
"I believe she needs some time. I’m quite sure that she isn’t ready to talk to you yet and perhaps won’t be for a while. You need to give her some time and space to think things through. Perhaps if you were to get counseling or treatments and could show her that you realized that you needed help and did something about it, you might have some hope of convincing her to give your marriage another chance."
"She doesn't need time. She needs somebody to think for her. She can’t look after herself, how on earth does she expect to raise my kids. They belong here with me and so does she. I have to know where she is."
"By now she’s on a plane to Toronto. It's too late."
"Oh, no, it's not. I won’t accept that. I'll get her back. Just you wait and see. She can’t survive a month without me. I'll get her back, even if I have to drag her all the way from Toronto. Those kids are mine and she can't keep them from me."
Pastor York got up to leave, a defeated look on his face. "Eric, ask God for forgiveness. And when you are ready to face the truth, come and talk to me. I'll do whatever I can for you." With that he left Eric and headed for the car.
Eric sat motionless for some time after his visitor left. "This can't be happening. He actually believed her. That ungrateful schmuck believed her, after all I've done for him."
Once again white-hot rage was building up inside him and his eyes swept the room looking for something on which he could vent his anger. His eyes fell on the half-filled coffee cup beside him. He picked it up and threw it against the wall above the chesterfield and watched the liquid pour down the wall and spread its stain across the fabric. There was a sense of satisfaction in seeing the tangible evidence of his anger but this satisfaction was short-lived when he realized that there was no-one there but him to repair the damage and clean up the mess that he had made all around him.
"None of this is my fault. That useless waste of skin I married is to blame for all of this and she's gonna pay, big-time."
How on earth was he expected to deal with these circumstances that had been thrust at him? Not only was most of the furniture and dishes gone, but also the house was in a terrible mess, and on top of everything else he was hungry. That useless witch should be here and should have lunch ready for him. Why in the name of all that is good and great did he have to deal with this? She had no right leaving him in this kind of situation, with no one to look after him. He had problems enough to think about right now without having to worry about making lunch. He paced for a few minutes, wondering what to do and then decided, "I’ve got time to grab something to eat on my way to work. This mess will keep." He headed toward the stairs to get changed into his work clothes. "Emily will keep, too. I'll figure out what I'm going to do about her later."
Chapter 15
For some unknown reason, Emily found that her limbs refused to move. She concentrated all her energy on her arms but was unable to get any movement at all out of them. She gave up and began to put all of her strength and energy into getting movement from her legs. There was none. Perhaps she would do better to try something smaller; like her right index finger. Surely she could get it to move, at least a little. All her efforts were to no avail; there was not the slightest movement. She became conscious of a baby crying in another room and tried even harder to move. What on earth was wrong? That baby needed attention, and it appeared that there was no one else to go to it, or if there was, they were pretty slack, for the baby cried on, unattended. There had to be some way to get her body moving. Things like this weren’t supposed to happen. Suddenly, she heard footsteps on the stairs. Eric. She struggled even harder to move. The footsteps kept coming. She began to sob, "No, no. Please go away." Ever closer came the footsteps as the baby continued crying, and Emily lay on her bed totally powerless, unable to move even a finger. She screamed.
Suddenly, she found herself safe in her old room, in the bed that had been hers for most of her childhood. Eric was almost 2,000 miles away, her limbs would move and the crying baby was actually Danny, fussing in the borrowed crib in the corner of the room.
"Thank God," she said, "It was just a nightmare."
"Mum, Mum. Up." Danny raised his arms to her; glad that she was awake, for now he knew that breakfast was not long away.
Getting out of bed was proving to be easier every day although it was still quite a chore. She took her time and carefully slid out of the bed, crossed to the crib and lowered the side allowing Danny to climb down without her having to lift him, which she still found caused her a lot of pain.
She smiled as they entered the living room and spotted the Christmas tree in all it’s decorated splendor in the same corner of the room where it had stood during Emily and her brother's childhood. Scott and Kyle had spent yesterday afternoon, while Danny had his nap, putting up the tree. She had tried to help but decided that she would be wiser to conserve her strength for things that she had to do. The quieter she stayed until her ribs healed the better. So instead of helping with the tree, she spent the afternoon making suggestions and admiring the boy’s handiwork. Emily and Danny stopped now to admire it, for it was a thing of beauty, despite the bare spots, and the branches that held
more than their share of ornaments, and the tinsel that was not put on the way she would have done it. She knew that the pride the boys felt and their sense of accomplishment made up for any lack of symmetry. She also knew that Eric would have destroyed that feeling of pride. He would have insisted, first of all, that the boys not touch it and that the tree be trimmed to meet his rigid standards and she would have worked on it until he was satisfied. “Thank God he’s not here to spoil this,” she thought. Danny clapped his hands with joy, "Tee, Mum, tee."
His happy chatter woke the other boys and they joyfully tumbled out of bed in the room that had once belonged to Mark, followed closely by an excited tail wagging Bandit, who it appeared had gained a new lease on life with the boys in the house.
Emily bathed and dressed Danny while the older boys washed and dressed for the day, then she fixed a breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast and orange juice for the family while they waited for the arrival of Helen, who rang the doorbell about an hour later, looking like a fur-covered butter ball, and ready to help Emily do the shopping. They had talked a number of times on the telephone since Emily's arrival two days earlier, and last night she had offered to come and help with the children while they shopped. Helen, who had been left a childless widow at a very young age, had never remarried. Although she had built a quiet life for herself with which she was quite contented, she was grateful for this chance to share in some of the children's excitement. She had spent Christmas with Pete and Angie for many years and was so very relieved that this dreaded Christmas without Angie would not be the sad occasion she and her cousin had anticipated. When she took the gray fox coat off, Kyle marveled that she was as round without the coat as with it. Her hair, without the fur hat, was a mass of gray curls and the blue on her eyelids with the bright pink lipstick she wore made him think of the roly-poly clown Santa Claus had left for him one Christmas.
As the two women began to clear up the breakfast things before leaving, Emily announced, "Dad phoned around 11:30 last night. They have been making pretty good time although they ran into a snowstorm that slowed them up for a while. He thinks they'll be here sometime this afternoon."
"Wonderful! Just in time. I didn’t want to say anything about it but I've been worried that they might have problems and not get back for Christmas." Helen’s bright smile flashed. “This Christmas is going to be so much better than we thought it was going to be. Don’t get me wrong; your mother will be sorely missed. There’s no doubt about that. But still, I’m so glad you and the children are home.”
"Me too. I can hardly believe we'll actually be here for Christmas. And Dad and Sam will be here for Christmas Eve dinner. Will you stay and have dinner with us tonight? Better than that, why don’t you stay all night and be here for Santa Claus in the morning?"
"Thanks dear, the offer is tempting but Muffin and Whiskers will expect me home. I’ll stay for dinner tonight but then...I suppose you will think this is silly, but I always have stockings for them. They are like my children. However, once they get the treats out of their stockings tomorrow, I'll come over."
"All right. Well, I guess we're ready to get this shopping done."
Their first stop was the pawnshop where Emily sold one of the diamond rings. Despite the fact that just a few short days earlier, the ring had cost her well over two thousand dollars when she bought it in Edmonton, the pawn shop owner was willing to pay only six hundred dollars for it. It took her only a matter of moments to agree to the offered price, for six hundred dollars was more than she needed to see that her children had a good Christmas.
With the money safely in her purse, they headed for the mall, where, after deciding a time and place to meet again, they separated, with Helen taking Scott with her and Emily taking Kyle and Danny. This was the first time the boys had ever been Christmas shopping and they were thrilled with the array of treasures before them, from which they could choose gifts for their family. Scott and Kyle were each armed with a list of the people they needed to buy for and with the help of the women, choices were made and gifts purchased and bagged. At the arranged time, they met at the food court as they had planned and enjoyed a drink and a chance to relax, then Emily took Scott and Danny with her while Helen took Kyle and they returned to the rush of last minute shoppers who scurried about the stores, hastily selecting those last minute gifts. Soon the boys were satisfied with the gifts they had found and they met again at the food court and headed off to the super market for groceries, which were next on the agenda. They bought turkey and all the trimmings, as well as fruit, candy, soft drinks, tape and wrapping paper. After a great deal of arranging and rearranging, they managed to squeeze themselves into Helen’s car amid the parcels and bags of food that filled every available spot with things for their Christmas. Back at the house, after a quick lunch, Danny went down for his nap and Helen stayed with the boys, helping Scott and Kyle wrap gifts, while Emily called a taxi and returned to the mall to finish her own shopping.
All of the gifts were wrapped and under the tree by 4 o’clock and all was in readiness, waiting for Pete and Sam to arrive. By 4:30 they were beginning to get worried. By 5:00 Emily had that familiar knot in her stomach. The boys spent their time watching Christmas specials on the television while Emily and Helen made small talk, all the while keeping one eye on the clock. Suddenly, Helen got to her feet. "Enough of this, I never could stand sitting around waiting for things. You stay here and rest. You’ve already done too much today, I can see it in your face. I’m going to start dinner. Perhaps you boys could help. I’ll put the lasagna in the oven. How would you guys like to set the table? Make sure you put on places for Pete and your brother. They will be here for supper. I’ll make a big pot of tea. Pete will want tea when he gets here."
Before long the smell of the lasagna heating in the oven had filled the house and was making everyone hungry. The table was set, garlic bread made and ready to pop in the oven, water boiling for the tea and all in readiness for this first Christmas Eve supper at Pete’s. Suddenly, hearing something out front, Scott jumped to his feet and ran to the window. "They're here," he shouted.
A sense of joy and excitement filled the little house, as everyone crowded around the front door to welcome home the travelers. Sam was the first one to come in and his mother couldn’t help but notice the look of relief that crossed his face at the sight of her up and about and obviously healing. She couldn’t help but think of the worry over her that this boy had carried on his shoulders for so long. The sorrow she felt at the thought was quickly replaced by absolute joy at having all of her children here with her away from Eric. Pete stepped into the doorway and for a moment, before the family noticed him standing there, he was able to quietly watch the love and joy of his new-found family as they hugged one another and tried to talk all at the same time, while Bandit jumped about trying to be everywhere at once. “This silent, empty house looks like it’s about to burst at the seams.” He chuckled. “Feels pretty good.” At the sound of his voice, the attention turned to him and he became swept up in the noise and excitement as it moved to take him in. Just then, Helen appeared in the doorway, “I’ve got a big pan of lasagna just out of the oven. How fast can all of you get to the table?”
“Give us 5 minutes.” Pete answered, “Come on, Sam.” They returned to the truck to get a few necessary items and then parked it, to be dealt with after Christmas. The parcels that Pete and Sam had purchased on their way into the city were secreted in the hall closet to be wrapped later and the family moved to the dinning room table where dinner was spread out before them. At last the Christmas festivities began in earnest.
Later that evening, with the children in bed, Sam and Scott downstairs in the family room and Kyle and Danny in Mark's room, Pete and his daughter sat down to talk. Over another pot of tea, they talked for hours, discussing the eight years they had lost, Eric, and the problems she and the boys had faced, the problems they might yet face with him, and they talked about Angie and the last few months of her life, g
rieving for the loss of her and shedding healing tears. Finally, they filled the children's stockings, put out the gifts from Santa Claus and went to bed.
Chapter 16
Christmas was a wonderful day for the family, from the moment the children began to stir until the last head rested on a pillow. It was a day that Emily would long remember; for the luxury of being able to relax and enjoy the day without having to be on guard for the word or act that would cause all hell to break loose. The children, too, were relaxed and laughter rang often through the little house. Stockings were emptied and the gifts from Santa Claus played with, but they all agreed to wait for Helen before opening the gifts they had purchased for one another.
When she finally arrived, she barely made it through the door and got her coat off when Kyle came barreling out of the living room, “Good, you’re here. Let’s open the presents.” The boys, like all children, were thrilled with the abundance of toys, books and games that filled the room. Emily was especially pleased to see the joy that shone in their faces as their gifts to other family members were opened. Later she mentioned it to her father, “Dad, did you look at the boys when we opened the gifts they gave us. They’ve discovered the joy of giving,” she smiled in complete contentment, “And realized that giving is the real joy of Christmas.”
Emily and Pete had put the turkey in the oven while they waited for Helen and before long the mouth-watering aroma of turkey filled the little house. Once the gifts had been opened and the mess of Christmas wrap gathered up, the three adults finished getting the meal ready and on the table. They feasted on what Pete announced was the biggest turkey that had ever walked the face of the earth. Mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, vegetables, salads and hot rolls accompanied the turkey and they all groaned from the amount they had eaten as the plates were emptied. Emily and Helen excused themselves and returned a few minutes later with a flaming plum pudding. The boys clapped with excitement and Pete groaned, “Now I want to warn the whole bunch of you. If anyone hears a strange rumble they better run as fast as their feet can carry them for it’s going to be me about to explode. Then to everyone’s delight he shouted, “But, bring it on. I’ll take the chance.”
Leaving Sharpstone Page 12