A Christmas Passage by David Saperstein

Author:David Saperstein
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.
Published: 2008-08-14T16:00:00+00:00

Amelia stood over the cast-iron sink. She rested a pewter water pitcher she had found in it.

“I’m ready.” Lisa grabbed the one bucket that still had water and poured some into the pitcher. A few drops fell on Amelia’s hand.

“That’s cold,” she said.

“Ilena said the stream was lovely.” Amelia rinsed out the pitcher, and Lisa filled it to the brim. The men had moved the table closer to the fireplace. Lisa carried the water over to the table. Amelia was right behind her with a wooden tray that held a mixture of cups and glasses.

“Here’s a nice, cold drink,” Lisa announced. Ronny and Nancy were first at the table. They each drank two glasses of water.

The front door opened. Reggie and Andy came in with arms full of newly cut splits. They stacked them near the fireplace. Ilena, who had been stoking the fire and keeping it going, helped spread the wet wood out to dry.

“That should get us through the night,” Reggie said. He sat down on the dusty, rough-hewn plank floor and leaned back against the cabin wall. His muscles ached and twitched, unused to the sudden burst of labor splitting logs.

“Are you sure?” Marta asked. Her doubt and moodiness had returned. There was an edge to her voice. Reggie ignored her.

“Not to worry, Marta,” Andy assured her. “We won’t run out. There’s a great big forest outside.”

“They’ll clear the road by morning,” Lisa said, “and then we’ll—”

“And then what? What do you know?” Marta said, interrupting with an even more accusatory tone of voice.

Her hostility changed the atmosphere in the room. It got everyone’s attention.

“Well, I don’t exactly, but—” Lisa began.

“None of us do,” Reggie concluded. “But instead of doubting everything, you should be glad Ilena found this place. There’s warmth, shelter, water, and food. We’ll deal with what we have to do in the morning.”

“We wouldn’t have to deal with anything if she hadn’t come along with her van,” Marta said, pointing at Lisa, who had walked back to the kitchen with Amelia. “Some good samaritan she turned out to be.”

“You didn’t have to come!” Reggie said angrily, getting to his feet. Ronny and Nancy looked up at him, towering above them. They were frightened. Lisa came back out of the kitchen.

“I guess we should complain to our travel agent,” Lisa joked. “Hey…that’s me, huh?”

“That’s not funny,” Marta said, dismissing Lisa’s attempt to defuse the situation. “And you didn’t have to wreck the darn thing!” she said defiantly, pointing at Reggie.

“It was an accident, Marta,” Andy interjected. He was not happy with the discord she was causing. They were a group of strangers thrown into a dangerous situation in close proximity. “Reggie was only trying to help. Didn’t we put all that behind us back on the road?” he asked. Marta sulked and looked away. Amelia, who could see and hear everything from the kitchen, noticed anxiety on the children’s faces. The arguments swirling around their mother were disturbing them.

“Well, everybody,” Amelia announced as she came into the main room.

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