The Gift

“Bye, Annie,” Maribeth said softly as they left, but they both knew that they took her with them. She went with them everywhere, in the memories Tommy carried with him, in the room where Maribeth stayed, in the look in Liz's eyes when she remembered.

“She was such a great kid,” he said with a catch in his voice as he walked away. “I still can't believe she's gone.”

“She isn't,” Maribeth said softly. “You just can't see her now, Tommy. But she's always with you.”

“I know,” he shrugged, looking all of sixteen, and not an instant more, “but I still miss her.”

Maribeth nodded, and moved closer to him. The holidays made her think of her family, and talking about Annie made her miss Noelle. She hadn't been able to speak to her since she left home, and her mother had told her months before on the phone that her father wouldn't let Noelle have Maribeth's letters. At least she'd be seeing her soon …but what if something ever happened to her …like Annie …the very thought of it made her shudder.

Maribeth was quiet when they got home, and Tommy knew she was upset about something. He wondered if maybe he shouldn't have taken her to Annie's grave. Maybe at this stage in her pregnancy, it was too upsetting.

“Are you okay? Do you want to lie down?”

“I'm fine,” she said, fighting back tears again. His parents weren't home yet. He and Maribeth had come back early. And then she totally surprised him. “Do you think your parents would mind if I called home? I just thought that maybe …maybe on the holiday … I just thought I'd say Happy Thanksgiving.”

“Sure …that's fine.” He was sure his parents wouldn't mind. And if they did, he'd pay for the call himself. He left her alone while she gave the operator her number, and waited.

Her mother was the first to come on the line. She sounded breathless and busy, and there was a lot of noise around her. Maribeth knew that her aunts and their families always went to her house for Thanksgiving, and both of them had young children. There was lots of squealing, and her mother couldn't hear her.

“Who? …stop that! I can't hear! Who is it?”

“It's me, Mom,” Maribeth said a little louder. “Maribeth. I wanted to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.”

“Oh my God!” she said, and burst instantly into tears. “Your father will kill me.”

“I just wanted to say hi, Mom.” She suddenly wanted to touch her and hold her and hug her. She hadn't realized until then how much she had missed her. “I miss you, Mom.” Tears swam in her eyes, and Margaret Robertson almost keened as she listened.

“Are you all right?” she asked in an undervoice, hoping that no one would hear her. “Have you had it yet?”

“Not for another month.” But as she answered, there was a sudden outburst at the other end, an argument, and the phone was wrenched from her mothers hand, and a sharp voice came over the line clearly.

“Who is this?” he barked. He could tell from his wife's tears who was calling.

“Hi, Daddy. I just wanted to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.” Her hand trembled violently, but she tried to sound normal.

“Is it over? You know what I mean?” He sounded merciless and brutal as she fought back tears.

“Not yet … I just … I wanted to …”

“I told you not to call here until it's over. Come home when you've taken care of everything and gotten rid of it. And don't call us until then. Do you hear?”

“I hear, I …Daddy, please …” She could hear her mother crying in the background, and she thought she heard Noelle shrieking at him, telling him he couldn't do that, but he did, and as Maribeth cried, he put down the receiver, and the operator came back on the line and asked if she was finished.

She was crying too hard to even answer her. She just put down the phone, and sat there, looking like a lost child, and sobbing. Tommy came back into the room and was horrified to see the state she was in. “What happened?”

“He wouldn't …let me …talk to Mom …” she sobbed, “and he told me not to call again until I'd 'gotten rid of it.' He …I …” She couldn't even tell him what she was feeling, but it was easy to see. And she was still upset when his parents came home half an hour later. He had made her lie down, because she was crying so hard, he thought she'd have the baby.

“What happened?” his mother asked, looking concerned when he told her.

“She called her parents, and her father hung up on her. I guess she was talking to her mom, and he grabbed the phone, and told her not to call them again until after she'd given up the baby. They sound awful, Mom. How can she go back there?”

“I don't know,” Liz said, looking worried. “He certainly doesn't sound like much of a father. But she seems to be very attached to her mom …it'll only be till June …” But Liz had a very clear picture that it was going to be rough on Maribeth when she went back to her parents.

She walked quietly into Annie's room, and sat down on the bed next to Maribeth, who was still crying.