With a thoughtful nod, John agreed to his request. “I’ll tell everyone the money came from an anonymous donor. If you ever want to talk about what happened, I’m a good listener.”
Peter sighed. “Thanks, but it was a long time ago.”
“Time doesn’t make any difference to how we feel.”
Taking an envelope out of the folder, Peter handed it to John. “No, but this will.”
John’s hand shook when he saw the amount written on the check.
“My staff will liaise with the university to work out the best way of paying for the scholarships. I’ll leave it up to you and Shelley to finalize the details and choose the recipients.”
Peter smiled as he stood. John wasn’t often lost for words, but he still looked shocked by the donation. “If you have any questions, you can either ask me or call the head of our finance team. Her details are on the bottom of the letter.”
John opened his arms and hugged Peter. “This means more than you can imagine. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I’m looking forward to seeing what you do with the money.” And with a final hug, Peter left John to think about what had just happened.
* * *
Katie satbeside Nora and read the ten-year-old’s story. “This is wonderful. I like the way Marley can jump as high as a horse. He must be a very special dog.”
“Dogs can’t jump as high as horses,” Charlie, Nora’s ten-year-old friend said from the other side of the table. “Even dogs with long legs couldn’t do that.”
“Marley can,” Nora said with certainty. “He’s eaten some magic beans that make him extra strong.”
Katie watched excitement build on Charlie’s face. He loved anything to do with magic. “Where did he get the beans?”
Nora tapped her pencil against her chin. “I haven’t decided yet. He could have found them in the vegetable garden or someone could have given them to him.”
Adele, the youngest budding author in their writing group, leaped out of her chair. “I know. Santa could have given him the beans.”
From Nora’s smile, Katie guessed that she liked Adele’s idea.
“Can I add another page into my story?” Nora asked Katie.
“Of course, you can. Do you know where you’d like to put it?”
She turned to the second page. “It could go here. And Santa could ask Marley to help him deliver the Christmas presents.”
“What else can Marley do with the beans?” Charlie asked.
While Nora told him about Marley’s magical abilities, Katie moved around the table. For the last two months, she’d met a group of children at The Welcome Center. Each Thursday they’d worked on their stories, polishing the text and drawing pictures for their very own books.
Andy, one of the older students, had written a story about a twelve-year-old’s rocket mission to Mars. Katie had enjoyed it so much she’d encouraged him to enter it into a writing competition.
She laughed at something he said and carried on to her next student.
“Hi, Mr. Bennett,” Nora yelled across the room. “Come and see what we’re doing.”
Katie looked up and saw Peter standing uncertainly in the doorway. “It’s okay. You’re welcome to join us.”
“We’re making our own books,” Nora said proudly.
“That sounds exciting.”
Aware that Peter’s gaze was focused on her, Katie’s heart pounded. “This is our final week to edit the text,” she said. “Next week we’ll finish the drawings.”
Adele hurried around the table. “And then we can show our families.” She handed him her work book. “This is my story. It’s about a baby mouse called Mindy. She’s white and cuddly and loves eating chocolate.”
