“May I, Mama?”
“Of course you may, Charles. I’ll come as soon as possible. The nurses will look after you until I get there.”
Jaqueline interrupted. “No. No, you must go with the children. They need you. If you will allow me, I can lock the house and bring whatever you need to the hospital. I suspect your keys are in your handbag, yes?”
“Yes. On the kitchen table. Thank you.”
“I’ll drive her there.” Colin Jones spoke up. “We can meet you in the emergency.” Before he could say more, the woman turned quickly toward the ambulance. Before they could help her inside, she groaned loudly and slid to the ground.
Chapter Two
Jaqueline watched the vehicle with siren’s blasting drive away, and then she headed into the nearby house, Colin following close behind. “Thank goodness the ambulance was here when Gisele collapsed. I could tell she wasn’t well, but she seemed to be holding it together.”
“Yes, by pure strength of will. Something is off with her, a kind of a fragility. I remember seeing the same in my mother when she was in the last stages of Multiple Myeloma… a kind of terminal bone cancer.”
Stopping in her tracks, Jaqueline turned to face the man following her. “I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks. It was two years ago. I always appreciated her choice to have Maid step in before she suffered the worst of the illness. But by the time they did, she was very weak. Just like I sensed Gisele today.”
“Me too. I suspect she was holding it together with every bit of strength she had, poor woman. I hope she isn’t seriously ill. Those children need her.”
Colin waited in the doorway while Jaqueline wandered into the kitchen, finally finding the purse she searched for. His gaze traveled their surroundings, and he didn’t hold back his worries. “Looks to me as if the family is poor. Everything’s very basic, don’t you agree?”
“Yes. I was thinking the same thing. I’ll go into the bedroom and get extra clothes for the kids. Theirs were soaked when the ambulance arrived.” Both made their way into the smallest of the two pocket-size bedrooms to find matching small beds along one wall, and a set of shelves where a few precious toys were stacked neatly.
The tiny closet covered by a piece of cotton material featuring colorful kitties held an array of shelves where small clothes, an extra pair of shoes, and slippers for each were neatly arranged. What caught Jaqueline’s attention were the walls decorated with cheerful photos taken from a magazine. Scattered everywhere were pictures of bunnies, butterflies, puppies, and lambs. Interwoven… a happy array of various scenes had been carefully cut out and placed to separate the animals. It dressed the room with brightness and a lovely sort of perception, depicting incredible scenes of lakes, mountains, and flower filled valleys.
Turning to the shelves, Jaqueline found clean, folded pants and tops for both children while Colin rifled through a basket filled with socks which could be worn by either of them. They poked into the second bedroom, one even more meager than the children’s and saw a cot-like bed and a small dresser. In this room the pictures she’d chosen were more landscapes showing a beautiful world.
Filling a ragged backpack that Jaqueline had found hanging on an old clothes rack in the corner, she chose the woman’sslippers and robe. Ones that had been left on the chair beside the bed. A surface Gisele obviously used as a night table.
Soon, they had what they considered essentials, and they wandered back into the kitchen where Jaq watched as Colin opened the fridge door. The small amount of food shocked them both. Then he went to the cupboards, where they found the same lack of groceries.
He turned to her, his face registering his discomfort in their findings. “This family is very poor.”
Jaq nodded. “I thought the house looked a bit decrepit but many of the older homes around here appear this way, which doesn’t necessarily mean the furnishings inside are the same. Unfortunately, I believe Gisele and the kids are suffering from a lack of income. She mentioned that her husband died last year. I’m thinking she must be supporting them on her own, probably with government assistance and widow benefits.”
“Which doesn’t amount to much.”
“I know. I’ve been living with my mother to help her keep her old home. After my dad passed, she could barely make it on the pension they thought would last their lifetime. My grandmother is furious with the situation, thinks I should be on my own, and Mother should sell the house and move into a senior’s residence. Can’t say I disagree but how can one force their stubborn parents to do something they refuse to do… even if it’s for their own good?”
“Tell me about it. I used to deal with a cantankerous old man who insisted he did just fine alone in his house until the day he didn’t answer his daily phone call. Guess he died happy enough, sitting in his chair in front of the TV. But I always felt bad because he’d been alone.”
Jaqueline sent a smile of sympathy toward Colin, knowing he understood her struggle and the choice she’d been forced to make. Then Jaqueline picked up a notebook from the table,one where a child – probably Charles – was doing basic math equations. “I’d bet money Gisele’s a stay-at-home mom. I think at six and a half Charles is school age, but I doubt if Maisie is.”
“Agreed. Gisele, probably has no way of getting him to the school.” He stopped walking and looked at her. “Did you see how protective Charles is over his sister. Sure melted my cynical soul.”
“A cynic wouldn’t have stopped to help.” Jaq shot back. “And yes, it is kinda nice to see children who care about each other more than themselves.”
Colin nodded and then sighed, a long drawn out breath that Jaq sympathized with. Finally, he put into words what she’d been thinking. “This place is depressing, isn’t it?”
Jaq knew her expression showed she agreed with his conclusion. “I feel it too. Did you notice there are no signs of Christmas anywhere?”
Colin stared into her face, his own troubled. “Could be Gisele’s the type who decorates closer to the holiday.”
“True. Or maybe they don’t celebrate Christmas at all.” A few seconds passed in silence before Jaq added, “How sad. In fact, this whole situation is sad, don’t you think?” Her voice resonated with the sympathy she couldn’t hide.
“It is.” As if he came to a decision, Colin swept his hand out in front of him. “Maybe it’s unreasonable, but I want to help. Only I’m not sure how I can… well without stepping on toes and hurting feelings. Do you think if I went and shopped for groceries and stocked up the kitchen, Gisele would be grateful or furious at the charity? I wouldn’t want her to feel I was interfering.”
