Page 15 of Once Upon a Christmas Carol

Carol was sound asleep when her phone began to jangle loudly.

Getting her bearings, she found her phone and checked the time.

It was well past midnight. Who would call at this hour?

According to her caller ID, it was her mom.

This could be a record—two conversations with her mother within the same week?

She unplugged the charger and answered groggily.

“Hi, honey bunches.” Mom sounded uncharacteristically bright and cheerful.

Had she been drinking? “How’s the Bahamas?

Sunny and warm, I bet.” She chattered on before Carol could respond.

“Anyway, I decided to join you down there, sweetie. I’ve just started to pack my bags and couldn’t choose which swimsuit to pack and thought I’d call you to see if you’d be too embarrassed to see your poor old mother in a bikini.

I have to admit, I don’t look half bad.”

Carol wondered if she was having a nightmare. “Do you know what time it is?”

“I think it’s around nine, maybe ten. I didn’t really check to—”

“It’s approaching one in the morning here.”

“Oh, sorry. Time difference. Well, anyway, aren’t you excited to spend time together in the Bahamas?”

Carol sat up, trying to arrange the right words but nothing came. Did her mom really expect to meet in the Bahamas?

“Ed is driving me up a wall,” Mom shared.

“Honestly, he’s just a big old grump. Worse than the Grinch who stole Christmas.

I told him if he didn’t treat me better, I’d leave him to run away with my daughter and he didn’t even care.

He said to go ahead and go, so I was searching flights out of Phoenix, and I found a seat for tomorrow night and—”

“I’m not in the Bahamas, Mom. I’m still in Michigan.” Carol leaned back against the soft bed. “And like I said, it’s rather late here, so if you don’t mind—”

“Why on earth are you still there? In the Michigan sticks of all places? Seriously ?”

Carol quickly explained the situation. “So I just decided to give up on the Bahamas altogether. I plan to stay on here through the holidays.”

“Are you kidding? You’d give up the beach for that?”

Carol tried to sound more patient than she felt as she explained about staying at Maria’s house, about the injured arm, and how Maria needed help. But the other end of the line remained dead silent. Crickets.

“Mom?” She cleared her throat. “Are you still there?”

“Maria can just find someone else to be her handmaid.” Mom’s tone grew sharper. “You get yourself to the Bahamas, Carol Louise. First thing tomorrow. I will meet you there the next day—”

“I already canceled the whole works, Mom. I’m not going—”

“Why on earth would you give that up? The Bahamas for Maria’s old farmhouse? It’s perfectly ridiculous.”

“I like being here. Maria is family.”

“Family? Seriously?” Her mom made a strangled-sounding laugh. “Trust me, Maria is not family.”

“She’s your sister.”

“Only by blood. Bad blood too!”

“I don’t get that, Mom. Maria is so sweet. Why do you refuse to even—”

“Maria is selfish and—”

“I don’t think you really know her.”

“Ha! I know her better than anyone. Don’t you understand that she abandoned me when I was a young child?

She was much older, and she was supposed to take care of me after our mom died.

Dad even paid her to do it. But she was so selfish.

She just left me to live alone with our father like I was nothing to her.

And he was a monster, Carol! Always drunk and abusive.

It was a horrible place for a child to be.

No, Maria is not family! And if you’re helping her, you’re not family either. ”

Carol sat up again, fully awake now. “You never told me any of that. I mean, you said Poppy drank some, but you said he always worked and supported you. Sure, you told me about being lonely, but you always said how he was basically a good man, how you never went without anything. And you never mentioned any kind of abuse.” Carol thought this might explain why her mother’s parenting was the way it was—bordering on abusive and certainly neglectful.

Or else she was flat-out lying. And it wouldn’t be the first time.

“I wanted to spare you from the sordid details of my youth.”

Carol rolled her eyes at her mom’s characteristically melodramatic remarks. Guilt-tripping her daughter was her favorite MO for acquiring sympathy and getting her way.

“Maria ran off and got married to some old man. And he was a perfect stranger too. She didn’t even introduce him to us.

Just snuck off in the middle of the night.

She abandoned your poppy and me, left us all alone to fend for ourselves.

That’s probably why he started to drink more heavily.

Really, honey, that woman is totally selfish and self-centered, and it’s unforgivable that she’s now guilting you into remaining with her.

But you’re an adult! Tell her to forget it!

That you’ve decided to spend your holidays with your own mother. It’s your choice, Carol.”

“The weather didn’t give me much of a choice, Mom. And, honestly, I had no idea you wanted to go to the Bahamas with me. I’m sorry.”

“But I’m telling you that now. Aren’t you listening?”

“It’s too late. Like I said, I already canceled everything.”

“Well, un -cancel everything.”

“I can’t.”

“Or you won’t? I can’t believe it. You’re choosing that selfish woman over the mother who raised you? What an ungrateful child I suffered and sacrificed for—”

“Mom.” Carol couldn’t hide her exasperation at her mom’s dramatic efforts. She was familiar with the guilt-inducing manipulation her mother utilized to her own benefit. “No offense, but the way you raised me wasn’t ideal. I mean, you wouldn’t exactly have won any mommy of the year awards.”

Unsurprisingly, this was followed by a dramatic gasp from her mother. “This is just fine! My own child turning on me. Maria ruined my childhood and now she’s ruining my Christmas plans to be with my daughter too.”

“Really? Your plans ? This sounds pretty last minute to me. You sure you really wanted to be with me?” Carol thought her mother was more likely trying to punish her husband by running away and Carol provided a handy escape.

“Oh, Carol. You know that we never get to spend quality time together. You’re always working, and I’m getting old.

Who knows how many more holidays I have left?

” Now her voice turned to honey. “And, for the record, I happen to enjoy my daughter’s company.

After all, you’re a beautiful, intelligent woman.

I’m always bragging about my girl to my friends—how you put yourself through college and your impressive career in the design business.

You’re so independent, living on your own in the big city. ”

Carol was used to the guilt trips, but this sugary flattery was a new twist. Was it sincere or manipulative?

Was she being too hard on her mother? Maybe she really did miss her.

“If you really do want to be with me, I’m sure Maria would welcome you here.

Her house is lovely. There’s plenty of room, and I’d love to—”

“I would rather be starved than spend my Christmas with that woman, thank you very much! And if that’s what you plan to do, I’m cutting you off as my daughter!” Then the line went silent.

Carol set her phone down and sighed. It was always difficult to sort out her feelings after a conversation with her mother, but this one took the cake.

And now, instead of feeling hopeful and happy about her holiday plans, she felt guilty and confused, followed by hurt and angry.

And she knew getting back to sleep would be a challenge.

****

After a restless night’s sleep, Carol was still simmering over the late-night conversation as she looked out her window into the gray dawn light.

The snow outside was even deeper now. Perhaps three feet, though she wasn’t sure.

Knowing she’d need to dig firewood out of the snow, she decided to dress warmly.

As she tugged on layers of her aunt’s loaner clothing, she wondered if there was any truth to her mom’s claims last night.

The accusations against Poppy, the blame she laid on her sister, not to mention this sudden unexpected longing to spend time together.

Was any of it real? Would Carol ever know?

Did she really care that her mother was disowning her? It’s not like they’d ever been close.

Despite her attempts to block out these questions, they were still tumbling through her head as she went downstairs.

The house was quiet. She peeked in Maria’s bedroom and was glad to see her aunt sleeping peacefully.

As she tiptoed to the kitchen to make coffee, she wondered if she should tell Maria about her mom’s accusations.

If they were true, it would be very awkward, to say the least. And if they were manufactured, it would only hurt her aunt’s feelings.

Maybe it was better to let sleeping dogs lie.

Or narcissistic mothers lie. Anyway, if she did decide to bring it up to her aunt, she saw no need to hurry.

****

Shortly after Carol got her morning chores completed, and she and Maria finished breakfast, Victor showed up to take them to town, first letting Carol into the cab, then gently helping Maria. Although she said nothing, Carol could see her aunt’s face twisting in pain as he buckled her seat belt.

“Sorry to be slow in getting here,” he told them as he got in. “I had to catch up with plowing some of the farmers’ roads. It really piled up last night.”

Carol turned to her aunt. “Do you think this weather will affect your Christmas Cotillion?”

“Oh, this is Michigan farm country, honey.” Maria laughed. “It’d take more than a little snow to keep folks away.”

“At least the major roads have been plowed,” Victor said as he turned onto the main highway. “And the forecast for the next few days is sunny.”