Page 33 of A Baxter Family Christmas
All this time Ashley had believed that the kids knew nothing about the details. She and Landon had kept the information from them so Amy wouldn’t get upset.
But now Ashley was sure she was wrong. At the mention of the woman’s name, Amy stared at the bedspread. Tears spilled from her blue eyes and onto her cheeks.
Ashley slid onto the bed between Amy and Janessa. “You know about Kendra Bryant?”
“Yes.” Amy’s voice was barely more than a whimper. “She has my mommy’s heart.”
The words hit Ashley like a series of blows to her gut. She looked over her shoulder at Landon and then back at Amy. “Yes. That’s right.”
“Why, Mommy?” Janessa took hold of Ashley’s hand. She was only four but the conversation clearly was making her nervous. “Why did someone take her mommy’s heart?”
Ashley felt Landon’s hand on her shoulder. His presence gave her strength. “Okay...” She looked from Janessa to Amy, and then to the boys—Cole and Devin. “You all know that Amy’s family went home to heaven.”
“Because of the car accident.” Devin looked at Landon. “A truck hit their van, right, Daddy?”
“That’s right.” He put his finger to his lips. “Let Mommy finish.”
“Okay.” He lifted concerned eyes to Ashley. “Sorry.”
“Thank you, Devin.” Ashley searched for the words. “Anyway, when Amy’s family went to heaven, her mommy gave her heart to another woman. The woman’s name is Kendra Bryant.”
“Doesn’t she need a heart in heaven?” Devin raised his brow, clearly concerned. “Is it okay if I ask that?”
“Of course.” Ashley patted Devin on the back. “The answer is no. She doesn’t need it. In heaven, Aunt Erin has a new heart.”
“Oh.” Amy nodded, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks. “I wondered about that.”
Cole shifted closer to Amy and put his arm around her shoulders. “So we’re not staying for dinner? Because of Amy? Because we don’t want to meet Kendra Bryant?” He shrugged. “Sorry, Mom... Dad. Just trying to understand.”
Amy was crying harder now. Ashley held out her arms to the girl. “Come here, honey.” But Amy slid off the bed and ran out the door.
“Yes. That’s why.” Ashley gave Cole a sad smile. “Your dad and I thought it would be too hard for Amy.”
Cole nodded. “I didn’t know.”
Ashley took a few steps toward the door.
“We’re all trying to figure out the right thing to do.” Landon nodded at Ashley. “Honey, you go talk to her. We’ll stay here.”
“We should pray for Amy, right, Daddy?” Janessa’s eyes filled with compassion. “That’s what I do when she gets sad.”
“Yes, baby.” Landon exchanged a look with Ashley. “We’ll pray for her.”
Ashley headed for the door. “I’ll be right back.”
Ashley fought her own tears as she hurried down the hall to Amy’s room. Amy was lying on her bed, her face in her pillow. Her whole body shook from her tears.
“Amy.” Ashley sat on the edge of her bed. “Sweetie, I’m so sorry. I never wanted any of this to upset you.”
It took a few seconds, but eventually Amy rolled onto her back and then sat up. Her tearstained face hadn’t looked this sad in a very long time. Ashley hugged the child close, running her hand over Amy’s long blond hair. “We don’t have to meet the woman. That’s why we’re going somewhere else for dinner. So you don’t have to be sad.”
“I... know. But...” The sobs still shook her little body. “What if... what if I want to meet her?”
Ashley drew a quick breath. What had her niece said? The floor might as well have fallen away. Ashley blinked and tried to exhale. “Amy...” Ashley slid back and searched the girl’s eyes. “You want to meet her?”
Amy hung her head and nodded. When she looked up, the sadness in her eyes was almost too much for Ashley. “A long time ago...” Amy grabbed a few quick breaths, her tears subsiding a bit. “A long time ago I heard you and Uncle Landon talking... about meeting her. And I thought that would be nice.”
“Honey, why didn’t you tell us?” Suddenly her father’s words at the tree farm that day came back to Ashley. All this time he had been right.
