Child of Loss

Chapter 3

“Bella, where are you child? It’s time for bed. You better not be in with those pups again!” Arabella’s mother’s voice rose over the laughter coming from beneath the stairs. Maeve knew where Arabella was. The child loved to have her own secret place. Her parents never let on that they knew where she was.

Quickly, Arabella pushed the wolf pups from her lap before crawling from beneath the stairs. Dusting off her play dress she answered Maeve. “I’m right here mama. Do I have to go to bed?”

Maeve smiled gently at her only child, the one in her stomach weighing heavily on her hips. He wasn’t due for another three months but Maeve felt like it should be now. The doctors laughed at her when she told them she was having a boy. She knew though. Maeve always knew things that other couldn’t. She placed her hand on the small of her aching back. Slowly lowering herself to the floor Maeve laughed. Edmond would have to help her up, she was too big to help herself. She looked deeply into Arabella’s eyes and saw the growing magic nestled in the child’s soul.

“Tomorrow is Christmas, Bella. You wouldn’t want to scare Old Man Christmas away, would you.?”Maeve’s eyes shown with an inner light. Arabella was smart for her age and Maeve knew that in another year the Old Man Christmas wouldn’t thrill her as much as it did now.

Arabella’s eyes sparkled as she gave out a mischievous laugh. “If he’s that old mama, maybe we should give him a good scare.” Giggling, Arabella looked up at her mother.

Maeve gathered Arabella up into her arms and kissed her neck. The wonderful smell of her child wafted up as well as the pungent smell of dog.

“Then who would deliver all those presents you wrote down and sent to the old man?” Maeve questioned her.

“Daddy would of course, he loves delivering things. He said he was going to deliver the baby soon.” Maeve shook her head. Arabella’s hearing was amazing but also made it hard to keep secrets from her. When Edmond and Maeve had important things to discuss they went to the cave found on their property.

Arabella heard Edmond laugh heartily from the living room. Edmond approached the stairs. “No, it would not be me little Bella. If the Old Man gets scared off, well then, there wouldn’t be presents for Arabella.” His eyes twinkled as he looked at Arabella;. Swinging her up onto his shoulders he carried her up the stairs.

Arabella could see the Christmas tree lights shining on the white wall. All of the house was white walls and wooden floors. Maeve and Edmond built the house with their own hands before Arabella was born.

Up stairs, Arabella had a huge bedroom with its own bath. The baby’s room would also be huge with its own bathroom for when he got older. For the first months of his life he would share Maeve’s and Edmond’s room. The downstairs held a great family room with a spacious kitchen and a guest bath. You could look over the balcony and see all the way to the front door in the hall way. Edmond enjoyed large rooms with great windows and built the house accordingly.

Edmond tucked Arabella in bed and leaned down to kiss her forehead. “Your mother will be up shortly to read to you, then it’s sandman for you little one.”

Arabella hugged Edmond tight, kissing his beard roughen cheek. “I love you daddy.” Love surrounded Arabella and Edmond briefly before Edmond rose and left the room. Throwing a kiss to Arabella, Edmond turned and was gone.

Maeve read Christmas stories to Arabella until the child fell asleep. She smoothed Arabella’s hair away rom her face. She loved Arabella’s hair, it was wild and beautiful. Maeve wished her own red hair was more like Arabella’s. She felt a slight shiver as she looked upon her girl. It felt wrong somehow, especially during such a joyful season. Shaking her head to rid her of the dreadful feeling, Maeve leaned down to kiss Arabella, her own swollen stomach touching the girl as though her brother were kissing her too.

The scream brought Arabella awake suddenly. Smoke was crawling along the floor, getting thicker by the moment. It curled around the door as though it would open it and burst in.The scream came again, Arabella could hear the fear in Maeve’s voice. She scrambled across her bed her small body convulsing from the smoke.

“Edmond, get Arabella, same my baby. Don’t worry about me I’ll meat you outside.” Maeve’s frantic voice rushed up the stairs. Arabella froze in terror. She had never heard her mother sound like this.

Suddenly, Edmond burst into the door and scooped her up in his arms. She hugged his neck as he turned and ran through the door. Arabella was afraid they would fall as Edmond slid down the stairs, never losing his grip on her.

Somehow, they made it outside through thickening smoke. Both were hacking and coughing form breathing in the arid smoke. Edmond set Arabella down and looked back at the house as the roof fell into the living room. The fire flamed up high as it sucked in fresh air.

“Daddy, where’s mama? Where are the pups? I want mama, wheres’s mama?’ Arabella whimpered through her raw, painful throat.

Edmond’s face went blank as he looked around the yard then swung back toward the blazing house. He started screaming Maeve’s name, chocking on the smoke gathering around the yard and up in the trees. Running toward the house, Edmond fell a few times in his haste.

“Maeve! By the God’s, Maeve where are you?” But the God’s were not listening on this night.

Edmond ran back into the fiery house,, choking on fresh smoke, still yelling her name, Edmond disappeared from Arabella’s sight. Seconds later, the rest of the roof caved ing. Arabella’s screams could be heard over the raging fire. In the distance, fire engines could be heard coming up the mountain rood. They would be too late.

Jack McGuire was the first fireman on the scene. He jumped from his truck as the firetruck skidded to a halt not too far from the house. He did not see the child, he did not see anyone and felt sorrow enter his heart. He knew the Brennan’s and could only hope they were not home. Maybe they were spending Christmas with relatives.

There was no way to save the entirely engulfed house. Now all they could do was keep pumping water on the trees to keep from having a forest fire. “Keeping shooting water at the trees and brush, the house will have to burn down now.” Men scrambled to do Jack’s bidding. Firefighters arrived on the scene and took over for the firemen, doing what they did best. Fire breaks appeared as the men worked to keep the fire contained. Firemen continued to spray water from the pump truck on the trees.

An ambulance rolled into the yard behind the firetruck, pulling along side, waiting to see if there were survivors. None were apparent.

Jack stepped further back from the flames, trying to see if there was anything else his men could do. All seemed to be under control. He heard a faint whimper behind him. Startled, Jack turned around quickly. At first he did not see the child huddled almost flush with the ground, He saw movement and realized there someone was there. Stepping toward the rocking shadow, Jack slowly approached the tiny figure. He could make out what seemed to be an ash covered girl. He knew Arabella by sight only as it was really her Father he who visited at the firehouse on occasion. He had seen the girl sitting in Edmonds car looking around her with great interest. Her grin was almost as huge as her face.

Arabella was rocking back and forth holding a black pup in her arms. The puppy did not try to get out of the girls arms and looked at Jack with distrust. Jack could only hope it wasn’t a biting dog.

Jack leaned in slowly and picked Arabella up, her grip on the puppy to strong to break. He picked them both up.. She gazed into his eyes an empty expression on her face. “My mama and daddy, can you get me my mama and daddy? I’m gonna have a baby brother. Where’s my mama, I want my mama.” Jack motioned the paramedics over with a nod of his head. Quickly, the paramedics moved in to take Arabella from Jack’s arms. She cringed hard against Jack, a terrified look on her face. The pup growled deep in its throat. Jack shook his head at the woman paramedic and took Arabella over to the ambulance himself.

He sat her down gently on the cot and let the paramedics look her over. Arabella’s eyes stayed glued on Jack, her hand tightly in his. Jack felt his heart melt for the tiny, smoke covered little princess

“She’s fine Jack, a little smoke inhalation. There are no burns or anything. Someone got her out in time. She is one lucky little girl.” Jack grimaced at the paramedics words. Not so lucky if both of her parents were in that fire.

Arabella would not let go of Jack’s hand or the pup. As long as they were checking her out everything was fine but the minute anyone moved to remove the pup, the pup and girl growled. Jack waved them all off.

“It’s okay. Leave the pup with her, seems to be her only comfort. I’ll ride down with you guys and get her checked out at the hosipital. She is our priority for now. Leave the dog, it’ll be fine. I will hitch a ride back in the morning.

It would be a couple of hours before the firefighters got the fire out. Someone would stay and keep watch until morning. They weren’t worried that the fire would start up again, There was very little left, mostly ashes.

The Fire Investigator would come out in the morning to determine what caused the fire. That person would be Jack.

Arabella became silent, only her eyes spoke of the horror of watching her parents disappear. She became a ward of the state and placed in foster care for the next year and a half No relatives could be found for her to live with. She did not speak, or if she did it was not around adults. It made the foster family a little nervous but Arabella was no trouble at all. If anything, the other kids, the ones with trauma, seemed to fine comfort when they were with her. Eventually those kids would go to forever homes and live very productive lives. The doctors and phycologist could not say what made their patients more open to treatment they received. Battered, damaged children were improving by leaps and bounds.

It would take that year and half for Jack and Nancy to apply for and eventually get approved to adopt Arabella. The couple had fallen madly in love with the orphaned girl. Jack visited Arabella at least twice a week no matter where she might be fostered. She only changed fosters once after being put in the system and that was only because they were moving out of state. Nancy made sure she was with Jack when he visited and she also visited Arabella on her own. She would be the child they were never able to have.

Eventually, Arabella started talking again but mostly to Jack and Nancy. She would not talk about the night of the fire and phycologist could not find anything wrong with her except that fact.

The day Jack and Nancy came to visit Arabella was her 6th birthday. She sat alone, on a bench, outside the courtroom. Jack and Nancy were inside finalizing the last of the paper work that would make her theirs. The doors opened and Jack stepped out. He knelt down and held out his arms. Arabella hesitated for only a moment before she ran into Jack’s arms. Nancy stood beside them, her hand on each of them and tears in her hazel eyes. Arabella did not look like Jack and Nancy with her dark looks and them so very blond but it didn’t matter. They belonged together.

Jack teased Arabella on the way home.He had not seen her smile for over a year and it broke his heart.

“It’s okay Jack,” Arabella said quietly, “I will smile someday.” Jack looked at Arabella in surprise but said nothing.

Jack kept the wolf pup for Arabella. The dog could hardly contain himself as Arabella threw her arms around Thorn and started crying. Jack started to go to her in concern but Nancy held him back “

Let the child be honey.. She needs this. Let Thorn comfort her.” They stood back as child and dog stared deeply into each others eyes. It would be another 3 years before Jack found out what Arabella was capable of.

“What the hell happened just now, Arabella?” Jack looked at the nine year old with shock.

Arabella hung her head and scuffed her toe on the sidewalk. Blood dripped from the rag wrapped around Jack’s hand, but he did not feel the pain.. He should of felt it but he didn’t and he knew it was Arabella, he felt her somehow. As though she was right there in his mind soothing him.

“The jack slipped, Jack. You cut your hand. It hurt you.”

Jacks patience was at an end. “I know that Ari. What I don’t know is what you did.”

Arabella’s shoulders hunched and she lowered her head further. “You were in pain Jack. I had to do something. I went inside and fixed it.” Arabella said the last in a whisper.

Jack stared at the miserable young girl..He kneled down in front of her so he could see her eyes. “What do you mean you went inside? You went inside where”

Arabella pointed at Jacks head as tears welled up in her eyes and started to flow down her cheek. As realization hit Jack, he covered his shock. Ari was already crying, he did not want to make her cry more. Jack pulled Arabella into his arms and soothed her tears. Arabella wiped the tears with the back of her hand and sniffed. Her nose was starting to run from crying.. Jack held her away from him and made her look him in the eyes.

“I don’t understand how you did that sweetheart but you can never tell anyone about it, do you understand me? People would not understand and there are people out there who would take advantage of you.” Jack kept his voice gentle and even as he spoke. His insides were in a turmoil but his need to protect Arabella was stronger then his shock.

“I’m sorry Jack, do you not love me anymore? I promise to be good.” Tears started to fill up Arabella’s eyes.

“Of course I love you honey. More than the moon and stars and Milky Way. Nothing could change that.!” Jack could see the secret in her eyes and his stomach fell. He had a feeling that there was more, this was only the beginning.

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