The Christmas Dog (8 page)

“And they say possession is nine-tenths of the law, right?”

Betty didn’t know how to respond.

He kicked the plastic bag with the toe of his boot. “So this is your dog bed, and that must mean this is your dog.”

“But I don’t want a—”

“I’d appreciate it if you’d quit dropping your dog off at my house.” He narrowed his eyes at Betty. “And if you do it again, I will report
you
to the Humane Society. Do you understand?”

Betty was too angry to respond.

“We understand,” Avery snapped, “that you are a selfish, mean man. And you don’t deserve a dog like this.” She reached down and picked up the mutt, holding him protectively in her arms. “He is lucky to escape you.”

“You got that right!” Jack turned and slammed the door shut behind him.

“What a beast!” Avery said.

“Good riddance,” Betty said.

“You poor thing,” Avery cooed to the dog. “I’ll bet you’re hungry.”

Betty just stared at her granddaughter and the dog. She wanted to tell Avery in no uncertain terms that the dog was not welcome in her home. But Avery looked so happy and hopeful that Betty just couldn’t bring herself to say those words. Not yet anyway. Besides, there wasn’t much they could do about the situation tonight. The animal shelter would probably be closed by now. And Betty didn’t like to drive after dark anyway. She would deal with the dog tomorrow.

“Don’t forget to call your parents,” Betty said as she headed back to the kitchen to make a salad.

While Betty was in the kitchen, she overheard Avery talking on the phone. She could tell she was talking to her mother and that it wasn’t an easy conversation.

“I want to stay
here
for Christmas,” Avery said. There was a long pause, and Betty imagined what Stephanie was probably saying to her daughter. So often she had used accusatory words, negativity, blame, and guilt to pressure her daughter into complying with her wishes. Betty had witnessed these awkward conversations before. But because Stephanie wasn’t her daughter and Betty had no actual blood relation to Avery, she had always kept her mouth shut. Still, it had troubled her. It seemed unhealthy. And sad.

“I’m a grown-up,” Avery said. “And I can—” She was obviously cut off again. No surprises there. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Mother. Merry Christmas to you!” There was a loud bang as Avery slammed the receiver down. Good thing that old phone was tough.

“My mother is a moron,” Avery said as she joined Betty in the kitchen. “Man, something smells really good in here.” She peeked in the oven. “Mac and cheese?”

“Yes. I was hankering for some.”

Avery smacked her lips. “All right.”

“So . . . how are your parents?” Betty asked with hesitation.

“I don’t know about Gary. But my mom is as messed up as ever.”

“I’m sure they’ve been worried about you.”

“My mom is more worried about how it looks to have a missing daughter.” Avery began to imitate her mother. “‘Oh dear, what
will
people think if Avery is still AWOL at Christmas? It will completely ruin our hallowed Christmas celebrations if Avery doesn’t show up looking like the perfect little princess daughter. Oh my, we must keep up appearances.’”

Betty smiled. Avery actually did sound a lot like Stephanie. Not that Betty intended to say as much.

“I gave the dog some food, Grandma. But he hasn’t even touched it. Do you think he’s okay?”

“I have no idea. I’ve never had a dog before.”

“Me neither. But he’s so sweet. If he really doesn’t belong to Jack, I think I’ll keep him.”

As they set the table together, Betty wanted to point out how unrealistic Avery’s adopt-a-dog plan was, but she decided to hold her tongue for now. Of course, the dog would need to go to the animal shelter tomorrow. But Betty would see to that. In the meantime, it wouldn’t hurt to postpone that conversation. And Avery seemed so happy tonight, chatting cheerfully as they ate dinner. Betty felt there was no sense in hurrying up what would surely come as a disappointment later.

While Avery was cleaning up the dinner things, the phone rang. Betty always had a tendency to jump when the phone rang. Maybe it was because she didn’t get that many calls in the evening. Or maybe it was just an old reaction from a time when a ringing phone could bring bad news. But she hurried to pick up the extension in the hallway, out of the noise of the kitchen.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Oh, Gary.” Betty smiled as she sat in the straight-backed chair. “It’s so nice to hear your voice.”

“You too. I hear that Avery paid you a surprise visit.”

“Yes, she’s here. And I’m thoroughly enjoying her.”

“I’m sure she’s enjoying you too.” There was a pause, and Betty thought she could hear another voice in the background. “But, uh, Stephanie is not too happy.”

“Oh?”

“She really wants Avery home for Christmas.”

“That’s what Avery said.”

“And she wants me to tell you that you should send her home.”

“I should
send
her home?” Betty blinked as she imagined packing her granddaughter in a large cardboard box and shipping her out to Atlanta on a UPS truck.

“Naturally, we’ll pay for her airline ticket,” he said quickly. “But if you could just make Avery see that she needs to—”

“I doubt that I can
make
Avery do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

“Okay, Mom,
make
was not the right word. But I know that you could influence her. Avery would listen to you.”

“Avery is an adult, Gary.”

“An adult who can act very childish.”

“Perhaps she acts childish because she is so often treated as a child.”

There was a long pause. “You make a good point.”

“Avery seems to want to stay here,” Betty said. “She has offered to help me with the Deerwoods’ fiftieth anniversary celebration.”

“They’ve been married fifty years?”

“Yes.” Betty wanted to point out that she and Gary’s father would’ve been beyond that milestone by now if Chuck was still alive. But she realized there was no reason to.

“Tell them congratulations for me.”

“I will. But, you see, Avery has helped me to get things. And she’s going to work on them and—”

“Sorry, Mom,” he said quickly. “But Stephanie wants the phone. Do you mind talking to her?”

“Not at all.” But Betty wasn’t the one to do the talking. When Stephanie got on the other end, she immediately began to rant and rave about how Avery needed to come home—right now. About how she’d been gone away too long. And about how it was wrong for Betty to keep her away from her family.

“Excuse me,” Betty said. “I am
not
keeping Avery from anyone.”

“You’re making it easier for her to avoid facing up to her responsibilities.”

“Her responsibilities?”

“To her family.”

“What responsibilities does she have to her family?”

“To be here with us. To be with our friends. It’s what we do every year. Avery knows that.”

“But Avery is an adult,” she said for the second time. “She should be able to make up her own mind about—”

“Avery has the mind of a child,” Stephanie snapped. “She proved that by running off and doing God only knows what with God only knows who.”

“That may be. But she’s here with me now. She’s in no danger.”

“And I suppose you can promise me that, Betty? You’re prepared to take personal responsibility for my daughter’s welfare?”

“I’m only saying that she is just fine. And she’s welcome to stay with me for as long as—”

“So you’re choosing her side. You’re taking a stand against me while you enable her.”

Betty wasn’t exactly sure what
enabling
meant these days, but the way Stephanie slung the term, like it was an accusation, worried Betty. Why didn’t game shows like
Jeopardy
talk about words like this? Just the same, Betty decided to give it a try. “Wouldn’t
enabling
mean that I’m
helping
a person to do something . . . as in making them
able
?”

Stephanie laughed so loudly that Betty’s ear rang, and she had to hold the receiver away. “Of course that’s what you’d think, Betty. But no, enabling is making it easy for a person to avoid what they really need to be doing. You enable them to fail.”

“Oh.” Betty had no response to that.

“But if you’re determined to position yourself between us and Avery”—Stephanie made a sniffling sound, although Betty did not think she was really crying—“then I suppose I can’t stop you.”

“I’m not taking a position,” Betty said.

“Oh yes you are.”

“I’ve simply told Avery she can stay with me through the holidays if she wants to and—”

“Fine. Have it your way. I hope you both have a very merry Christmas!” Of course, with the tone of her voice and the way she said this, she could’ve been using foul language and the meaning would not have been much different. And before Betty could respond, she heard the dull buzz of the dial tone in her ear.

“Let me guess,” Avery said as she appeared in the hallway with a dish towel hanging limply in her hand. “My mom?”

Betty just nodded as she replaced the phone.

“Now she’s mad at you too?”

“I’m afraid so.”

Avery grinned. “Well, join the club, Grandma.”

“Apparently my dues are all paid up in full.”

“My mother would’ve made a good dictator.”

Betty stifled a smile.

“She wants to rule the world, you know.”

“I just hope you’re sure you’re making the right decision to stay here for the holidays.”

Avery frowned. “You don’t want me?”

Betty hesitated. Of course she wanted her. But was she wrong to keep Avery from returning home? Was she an enabler—the bad kind?

“I’ll leave if you want me to,” Avery said quietly.

“No, of course I don’t want you to leave.” Betty put a hand on her shoulder. “I only want what’s best for you, dear.”

Avery nodded, but there was a flicker of hurt in her eyes. Betty wondered if she should say more to reassure her granddaughter. But what could she say? It was true that Betty only wanted what was best for Avery. The problem was that Betty didn’t have a clue as to what that was. Should Avery stay here and risk angering her mother? Or go home and face whatever it was she needed to face? Really, what was best? And it seemed unlikely that an old woman like herself—living on a very frugal budget and on the verge of selling her home and fleeing from a questionable neighborhood—was truly the best resource for someone like Avery.

8

Then next morning, Betty got up at her usual time, just a bit past seven. But when she went to the laundry room to check on the dog, she was surprised to discover that he was not there. The door was firmly shut, just like it had been last night, and his bed and food dishes were still there, but the dog was missing. Betty checked around the house and even looked out into the backyard, but the mutt was nowhere to be seen.

Finally, worried that Jack had sneaked over and broken into her house in the middle of the night, she decided to check on the welfare of her granddaughter. And there, in the guest bed, were both Avery and the dog. The dog looked up from where he was comfortably curled up against Avery’s back, but Avery continued to snooze. Betty just shook her head and quietly closed the door. She hoped the dog didn’t have fleas.

Thanks to the dog’s need to go outside, Avery got up before eight. Betty sipped her coffee, watching as Avery waited by the sliding door for the dog to finish up his business. To Betty’s relief he had found another part of the yard—not the dogwood tree—to relieve himself this time.

“It’s freezing out there,” Avery said as she let the dog back inside. “Do you think it’ll snow?”

“I’m sure it’s a possibility.” Betty set her coffee mug down.

“I’ve always wanted to see a white Christmas,” she said dreamily. “Maybe this will be the year.”

“Maybe.” Betty smiled at Avery. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to hear more about what you got for the Deerwoods’ anniversary party.”

Avery’s mouth twisted to one side. “But I wanted to surprise you, Grandma.”

“Surprise me?”

“Yes. I have to work on everything. But I don’t want you to see it until I’m done.”

“That’s very sweet of you, dear. But I’d really like to have some sort of an idea of what you’re—”

“I used your list,” Avery said. “And I can guarantee you that I got enough plates and cups and things for a hundred people. And I’ve got what I need for decorations too. So can’t you just let me work on it and surprise you? I promise you it’ll be awesome. You won’t be disappointed.”

Betty thought of those loud magenta and lime flowers she’d spied in the trunk and wasn’t so sure. What if the Deerwood party turned into a luau or a fiesta or a pirate party? How would Betty explain it?

“Please?” Avery asked.

Betty remembered how many times Avery’s mother had questioned Avery’s abilities, belittled her skills, and treated her like a child. “All right.” Betty nodded. “I will trust you with this, Avery.”

Avery threw her arms around Betty. “Thank you, Grandma! I won’t let you down.”

After breakfast, Avery remained barricaded in her room. Occasionally, she’d emerge in search of things like glue, scissors, staplers, and tape. Sometimes she would carry plastic bags out to the garage, warning Betty not to come out and peek while she worked on something out there. Avery reminded Betty of some mad scientist, secretly creating . . . what? Frankenstein? A bomb? Hopefully the Deerwoods’ fiftieth anniversary would survive whatever it was she was putting together.

To distract herself, Betty decided to proceed with her Christmas baking. Just as she was attempting to fit a pan of fudge into the fridge, she felt a nudge on the back of her leg. She jumped and nearly dropped the pan before she realized it was the dog.

“Oh!” she exclaimed. “You scared me.”

The dog looked hopefully at her, wagging his tail, then he ran toward the sliding glass door.

“You need to go out?” she said as she slid the fudge pan onto the lower shelf. “I’m coming, I’m coming.” She opened the door and let the dog out, but as she was waiting she heard the oven timer ring. She hurried back to the kitchen, worried that her walnut squares might be getting overdone, which would ruin them completely. But she removed the pan to see that they looked just about perfect. And smelled even better.