Page 27 of Christmas Cove

“An odd thing to begin with,” Carol chuckled.

“Well, if I’m honest, if you don’t care much for him, then I’ll leave him out of the story. And if you do like him, then this will be much easier.”

“Rest assured, I like the young man just fine,” Carol said and took out two teacups with delicately painted blue and gold flowers and placed them on the kitchen table. “It’s nice to see someone so young take such an interest in this place. Though, it may be too little too late. If you know what I mean.”

“Because of the dam break? Yes, he told me,” America sighed as she recalled his sadness when he had recounted the story. “Anyway. Mayor Leo and I want to bring some holiday cheer to the town, but I understand that you’re a sort of gatekeeper around these parts, and I need your blessing.”

“Is that a request, then?” Carol said, and the kettle screamed.

“Well, do we have your blessing to decorate the town and maybe get a tree for the Town Hall?” America asked as Carol grabbed the hot kettle from the stovetop.

“No.” She poured the boiling water into the two cups and placed the kettle back on the stove.

America was slack jawed and at a complete loss for words. The woman had answered with such abruptness that it was possible she had misheard or misunderstood the request all together.

“Milk? Sugar?” Carol asked and plopped two white cubes into her own cup.

America waved her hand over the cup without an uttered word.

“I don’t know why anyone would even care, even if you did deck every hall and string every light in town. There’d be no one here to enjoy it.” She sipped her tea. “It’s a waste of time.”

“That’s not true. You would be here. Leo and Edwin. Others and me, too.” America couldn’t help but feel the woman’s pain at the loss the whole town had likely felt when the cove dried up. “I’m sorry about what happened here. But there are others in the area that would likely show up. I’m not asking for a lot. Just a sense of celebration and a reason to be thankful—”

“You’re not going to take no for an answer, are you?” Carol asked. Her worn face scrunched in the middle, and the tiffany-style pendant light hanging above the table amplified her pale skin and hollowed eyes. “Why do you care anyhow?”

America chuckled. “I suppose I should have led with that bit. I work at a magazine. A travel magazine called Jet Trek. You may have heard of it.” She waved her hands, realizing it didn’t much matter to the old woman what magazine she was from. “Anyway, I’m on assignment to draft a story about Christmas Cove. So, you would imagine my surprise when I arrived here and found neither a cove nor anything remotely Christmassy.”

“But why this place? No one has cared about this place in years. Almost everyone has moved out to better pastures and the rest are waiting around to die.” Her hint of sarcasm shielded her genuine sorrow.

“That is quite possibly the most depressing thing I have ever heard in my entire life,” America said and stood. “Listen, we would love to have your blessing, but it doesn’t seem like you’re interested in anything other than a pity party. Thank you for your hospitality, but I really must be going. There’s much work to be done.”

America turned to leave the kitchen.

“Fine,” Carol said with a cough. “I just wanted to test your resolve, is all.”

“Huh?” America was confused beyond normal measure.

“What, like I was just going to sit down and roll over for a city girl coming in here and wanting to change everything? Like a little pet project? No ma’am,” Carol said and came alongside her.

“It is sort of a pet project, if I’m honest.” America was a terrible liar and didn’t want to start practicing now. “But Leo and Pa are taking it very seriously. And I’m sure there are others who would love to celebrate the holiday the way they used to. No matter what happens in the future, I don’t think anyone would regret putting up some garland and ornaments again, even if there are only a few people here to enjoy it all.”

“I appreciate your candor,” Carol said and took America’s hands in her own. “I think it’s a quaint idea.”

“You do? Really?”

Carol nodded. “And you can go tell Edwin that this Scrooge has a heart after all. Then kick him in the knee for me.”

“I’ll do the former, not the latter,” America laughed.

Carol led the way through the sitting room and to the door. “Is there any way I can help get this circus going?”

America had one question. “Do you know anyone with a big tree?”

“I’ll see what I can do, dear.” Carol winked.

CHAPTER16

Outside Carol’s door,America’s head snapped around at the sound of hooves clopping along the cobbled street. Leo waved like a loon from the front of the carriage. She waved back, then turned to Carol, who was standing just inside her home with the door cracked open. “Looks like my ride is here. Thanks for the tea.”

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