The Snow Globe (4 page)

Thankfully, Mom didn't ask her what was wrong. Instead, she rose and led Kiley to the kitchen, saying, “Well, then, let's get you some pumpkin pie to take home.” Once it was just the two of them, Mom said, “I'm sorry this day has been so hard for you, sweetie, but I'm proud of you for being brave enough to come.”

She hugged Kiley, and that broke the dam. “How am I go
ing to get over this, Mom?” cried Kiley, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I still want him. And I hate her. I know she's my sister, but I hate her.”

“I know,” Mom said softly, patting her shoulder. “Right now you do. But this ugly storm will blow over, I promise.”

“When?” Kiley cried. “When will I see a rainbow? It's not that I don't want Gwinnie to be happy. But why does she have to buy her happiness with my misery? My God, Mom, it's been one thing after another this year. I wish I could catch even a glimpse of happiness.”

Her mother took Kiley's tear-stained face in her hands and gave her the kind of bracing look only mothers can master. “I know you've had a double whammy, but you are a strong young woman, and a good one, and goodness never goes unrewarded.” With those words of wisdom and a ton of leftovers, her mother escorted her safely to the front door.

Kiley drove away with a sore heart, the image of Jeremy sitting on the couch next to a pouting Gwinnie and looking miserable imprinted on her brain.
Good. Misery loves company
.

“You had a lucky escape,” she told herself for what felt like the millionth time. A man who could swear undying love to one woman and then dump her in a heartbeat for her sister wasn't a keeper. She should feel sorry for Gwinnie. And she would, if she ever got past feeling sorry for herself.

Back home she settled in with her cat, Furina, to watch a DVD and gorge on pumpkin pie. But even though the movie was a holiday favorite it couldn't hold her attention, and the pie tasted like ashes.

She finally gave up on both, took a shower, and went to bed.

Sleep wasn't kind to her. Instead of letting Kiley sink into dark oblivion, it tortured her. She dreamed she stood in a church festooned with flowers and full of people as Gwinnie's bridesmaid, and instead of a gown, she wore a clown suit. On the other side of her sister stood Jeremy, resplendent in a ringmaster's red tuxedo and a black top hat. He leaned across Gwinnie and told Kiley, “I never wanted you.”

All the wedding guests started laughing, and chanting, “He never wanted you.”

“He did!” Kiley insisted, and Gwinnie reached over and grabbed her big, red clown nose, making it honk.

Her eyes popped open and she sat up with a gasp, scaring Furina off the bed. She let out a calming breath and pushed her hair out of her eyes.
Get a grip.
She scolded herself.
It was just a dream. Just a stupid, pie-induced dream.
She looked at her bedside clock. Three a.m. Good grief.

Time for a bathroom break. Then she'd go back to sleep, continue the dream, and give her sister a big kick in the butt with her clown shoe.

The little snow globe seemed to call to her as she passed her dresser. “You were a waste of money,” she told it.

Waste of money or not, she couldn't resist the urge to jiggle it.

Wait a minute. What was going on here?

Kiley blinked in disbelief. The scene in the snow globe had changed. She still saw a toyshop, but this one appeared to be in Seattle, in what looked like the Pike Place Market. A huge Christmas tree decorated with kites and dolls, and stuffed animals adorned this new toyshop window. And where was the angel? Maybe off having dinner at Ivar's.

Her eyes were playing tricks on her, that was it. She shook the globe again, stirring up a fresh snowfall, and watched the same toyshop with the toy-laden tree in the window emerge as the storm subsided. What did it mean?

Once back in bed, she snuggled under the covers and thought about the story the antique shop owner had told her about the snow globe's history. What was it trying to tell her? She suspected she wouldn't know until she found that toyshop.

Come morning, she awoke to realize something was missing. It was the heaviness that had been pressing on her heart for the last few weeks. Gone just like that. Now, there was a miracle!

She threw off the covers and padded to the dresser to visit the snow globe. The modern toyshop she'd seen was gone and the angel and the Alpine village were back. She reached out for the snow globe, then pulled back her hand. Of course, she'd dreamed what she saw the night before. Why disappoint herself by picking it up? She'd only ruin her good mood.

She slipped into her reflective running gear and did her usual three-mile morning run. It was seven-thirty and normally Kinnear Street would be bustling with cars. Every day she saw the bus on its way downtown and other joggers out on the street. But the early-bird shoppers were already at the stores today and everyone else in the civilized world was either still off visiting relatives or sleeping in. All she had for company this nippy morning was the sound of her breathing accompanied by the rhythmic pounding of her feet. She cleared her mind of everything but the sensation of fresh morning air and the pumping of her heart. After a mile, however, her mind began to wake up, and soon two words danced in time with every footfall.
Why not?

Of course, it was silly to shake the snow globe again looking for some fairy-tale adventure. She'd been in a dream state when she saw that vision. What was the point in looking for something that wasn't real? She might as well plan to wait up for Santa on Christmas Eve. But…

Why not?

As soon as she got back home, she abandoned her earlier resolve, and picked up the snow globe and jiggled it. Her breath caught when the snow settled. There it was again. Okay, she
told herself, It's broad daylight and I'm wide awake so I'm not dreaming. But she could be going crazy.

There was only one way to find out. She showered and made a protein drink with a banana mixed in for good measure. Then she parked on the couch with her drink and her laptop and began an Internet search. If there was a toyshop at the Pike Place Market, she'd find it.

She was barely into her search when her cell phone rang.

“Are you at the mall with your family?” asked Allison.

“Noooo. Yesterday was enough for a while.”

“Oh. How'd it go?”

“Well, it wasn't fun,” Kiley said. “But you know what? I think I'm over the Jeremy flu.”

“The fever broke, huh?”

“Yes, it did.”

“I'm glad,” said Allison. “He doesn't deserve you.”

“That's pretty much what Corey and the cousins think. And you know what, I think they're right.” Kiley couldn't help smiling when she remembered how they had enjoyed pummeling her ex. Sick puppy that she was, she rather enjoyed the memory of it now. “How was your Thanksgiving? Do I dare ask?”

“No big fights.”

“That's an improvement over last year,” said Kiley, staying positive. “How long did you last with the wicked stepmother and the crazies?”

“An hour and a half. And she's not wicked. She's just…clueless and self-absorbed.”

It amounted to the same thing as far as Kiley was con
cerned. “Anyway, that checks off family togetherness until Christmas,” said Allison. “Speaking of Christmas, how about going to Northgate with me? I want to make a dent in my shopping list.”

“Actually, I may be doing some shopping, but not at the mall.”

“Online?” Allison guessed.

“No, closer to downtown. Actually, I'm on a quest.”

“Yeah? For what?”

“Promise you won't laugh?”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because it's going to sound crazy.” Actually, it was, but, crazy or not, she had to find that toyshop and see what it had for her.

“Well, now I'm dying to know, so you'd better tell me.”

“I saw something in the snow globe.”

“Oh, my gosh!” squeaked Allison. “What?”

Kiley told her about the mysterious toyshop. “I have no idea what it means, but I have to go find that shop.”

“I'll help you,” Allison said eagerly. “Hey, maybe Suz wants to come, too.”

“Not Suz,” Kiley said. “She'll think we're both nuts. Anyway, I'll lay you odds she's working on that holiday home tour today. Or showing a house.”

“Or both,” added Allison. “Okay. It'll be just us. I'll be over in a few.”

Half an hour later Allison arrived, wearing jeans, boots, and a
red parka that made her look a whole size bigger than she was.

“Is it that cold out?” asked Kiley. Winters were almost always mild in Seattle, and she had opted for something a little more stylish.

“It's getting there,” said Allison. “And I hate being cold.”

So did Kiley. Still, she was willing to pay for style with a few shivers, so she stuck with her leather jacket, the one she'd bought back when she had a job and money. But since the weatherman was predicting some unusual weather for the weekend she added gloves and a wool scarf.

It was drizzling by the time they left and Kiley's carefully straightened hair began to frizz with the moisture. Great, she thought. Soon she'd look like a forsythia bush.

Even though most people were either in the downtown department stores or the mall, Pike Place had its own loyal following. In the summer, Seattleites brought friends and relatives to the historic farmers market that overlooked Puget Sound and the stunning mountain range beyond. There they'd watch the fishmongers toss salmon back and forth, or have their pictures taken with Rachel the bronze pig. The rest of the year they came to dine in the restaurants, pick up something tasty from the bakeries, or purchase fresh vegetables from the main arcade, and many a hostess could be seen heading home from the Market on a Friday with a huge bouquet of fresh flowers. In addition, the sprawling place offered any number of quaint shops and stalls where shoppers could buy wares from local artisans. And somewhere in the lower regions affectionately referred to
by regulars as “Down Under,” would be a mysterious toyshop.

“So, you're sure it's here?” Allison asked as they wandered past a couple of middle-aged women.

“Pretty sure,” Kiley said, pulling off her gloves. There was
a
toyshop listed on the Market's website. Whether or not it was
her
toyshop remained to be seen.

“Let's ask somebody,” Allison decided, and ducked into a shop that sold Asian art and clothing.

Kiley followed her in, feeling mildly stupid. She could have asked when they first arrived.
I'm looking for this toyshop I saw in my magic snow globe
. Hmmm. Maybe not.

“Is there a toyshop down here?” Allison asked the shopkeeper.

The woman's expectant smile faded and she pointed farther down to the end of the building. “That way. Keep going. You'll see it.”

Somehow, it seemed wrong to come in and ask a shopkeeper directions to a different store, especially when there were no potential customers browsing, so, ignoring the funky smell of incense, Kiley drifted over to a display of scarves under a sign that read
SALE. BUY ONE, GET THE SECOND FIFTY PERCENT OFF.

The woman's smile had returned. “When you buy one you get the other half off,” she said, in case there was any doubt as to the veracity of the sign.

Kiley fingered one, taking in the bold pattern and vivid colors. “Oooh, that's gorgeous,” said Allison, now at her elbow.

“You like it? Good,” said Kiley. “Try to act surprised when
you open your present.”

Allison frowned. “Actually, I was thinking maybe we shouldn't exchange presents this year. I'm broke.”

Kiley narrowed her eyes. “No, you're not.”

“I need to save money,” Allison said.

“And I don't have any?” Kiley added, getting to the heart of the matter.

“I don't want you to buy me anything,” Allison said earnestly. “You can't afford it.”

That was so typical of Allison. She was always thinking of others. Between her clueless father and her self-absorbed stepmother it was a miracle she had turned out so well. If it hadn't been for her grandmother, Allison would probably have drifted off into Flake Land right along with the rest of her screwy family.

“Well, I'm going to get you something,” Kiley insisted, “so it may as well be something you want.”

“Second scarf is half price,” chimed in the shop owner.

“I'll get one for you and one for Suz,” Kiley decided. She started sorting through them. “Help me pick one out that she'll like.”

Allison gave up with a sigh, and five minutes later they left the shop with Kiley carrying a bag and Allison frowning in disapproval. “I thought we were going on a quest,” she said.

“We are. But we're Christmas shopping, too. At least I am. Even unemployed people have to celebrate the holidays, you know.”

Allison shook her head. Then she stopped and grabbed Kiley's
arm. “Is that it?”

Kiley stopped, too, and gaped. There was the tree in the window, decorated with kites and stuffed animals.
FOREVER KIDS
, read the store sign. “Yes,” she said breathlessly.

A tall man dressed casually in jeans and a gray T-shirt with an old beat-up bomber jacket thrown over it appeared in the doorway.

“Oh. My. Gosh,” said Allison. “You saw
him
in the snow globe? I wish I'd bought it.”

Kiley's mouth went dry. “All I saw was the shop.”

“Well, then, he's a bonus.”

He sure was. Even in the dim light of the market's lower level it was easy to see that he was fantasy-beautiful. His brown Indiana Jones hat hid his eyes but it couldn't hide a gorgeous mouth and a strong, Superman jaw. He stood for a minute in the doorway, looking at his display window like a king surveying his kingdom. Then he took a key from his pocket and inserted it in the door.

“He's locking up!” cried Allison. “Oh, no.”

“Wait!” called Kiley, and they both took off at a run.