Midnight Caller - By Diane Burke Page 0,49
door slammed against the wall. “Mommy, I want you to send Amy home right now.”
Erin glanced up from making Jack’s bed. “You know you don’t mean that.” Erin skirted around his walker and straightened the spread on the other side of the bed.
“Yes, I do.” Jack lumbered to the closet and tried to drag out a small suitcase. “I’ll help you pack.”
Erin took the case out of his hand and put it back in the closet. “What’s got into you? Amy’s your best friend. This isn’t the way we treat our friends.” She returned to making the bed.
“She broke off Luke Skywalker’s arm.” His lower lip jutted out in a pout.
“I’m sure it was an accident. Bring him to me. Maybe I can fix him.” Erin fluffed the pillow and tucked the spread beneath it.
“She knocked down my Lego village. Now, it’s ruined.”
Erin stopped what she was doing and took a hard look at her son. His flushed cheeks and rapid blinking revealed how hard he tried not to cry. Something was wrong. Something much more than a few broken toys.
Erin perched on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry, honey. That’s my fault. I should have kept Amy with me while I cleaned. But you’re a wonderful builder. I bet you can build a bigger and even better village. I promise I won’t let her near it this time.” Erin patted the spread for him to sit beside her, but he ignored the gesture.
“She ate my oatmeal and raisin cookie. I hid it in my Spider-Man lunch box. She found it and ate it.”
Erin hid her smile. “I’ll tell you what. As soon as I run the vacuum in here, the three of us will make a whole batch of oatmeal and raisin cookies. How’s that sound?”
“No!” Jack’s eyes glistened with tears. “I want her to go home right now.”
Erin gently pushed his walker to the side and lifted her son to sit beside her. “I thought you liked having Amy here.”
Jack hung his head. “I don’t. I want her mommy to come back.”
Erin drew in a sharp breath. She paused for a moment and considered her words. “I want that, too, honey. But Amy’s mommy is in heaven. She isn’t coming back. We’re her family now.”
“Did Amy’s mommy want to go away? Didn’t she love Amy?”
“Oh, Jack, don’t ever think that. Amy’s mommy loved her very, very much.”
“Then why did she go away and leave her with us?”
Erin put her arm around her son’s shoulders. “I told you, sweetheart. A very bad man hurt Amy’s mommy. The doctors couldn’t make her better. So she went to heaven where she doesn’t have to hurt anymore.”
Jack’s shoulders sagged and he started to cry.
“Sweetheart, what’s the matter?” She smoothed his hair with her hand. “Talk to me.”
“Are you going to go away like Amy’s mommy?”
“What?” She tilted his face to look at her. “I’m not going anywhere, Jack. Why would you think something like that?”
“I heard Mr. Fitzgerald tell Aunt Tess that he’s staying on our porch every night until the police catch the bad man. Is the bad man coming here? Is he going to take you away, too?”
Erin drew in a sharp breath. She was speechless.
Heavenly Father, what a selfish fool I’ve been. So wrapped up in my own pain I haven’t paid attention to the pain and fear of the people around me. Please guide my words and help me comfort my son.
Erin blinked hard and searched for the right words. “Honey, the police are working very hard to find the man who hurt Amy’s mommy. They’re going to find him soon, you’ll see. I don’t want you worrying about anything. No one is coming here. And no one is going to hurt me.”
Jack’s tears stopped, but his breath still held a little hitch. “Tony’s a policeman. Is he helping to find the bad man?”
Erin folded her arms around her son. “Absolutely. Tony is searching for the bad man right this minute. All of his policeman friends are, too.” She rested her chin on his head. “You know how good Tony is at hide-and-seek.”
Jack looked up at her, thought about it a minute, then grinned. “Tony’s great. He finds me every time.”
“Yes, he does,” she assured him. “And he’s going to find this bad man. Until he does, Mommy and Aunt Tess will make sure everybody is safe. And Mr. Fitzgerald is going to help. And Tony is going to help. There’s going to be so many people