Free Christmas Miracle: A Family by Dianne Drake Page A

whole view, Fallon. That’s where you’ll find your happiness.” Her eyes started to flutter shut. “I promise, that’s where you’ll find it, when you want it badly enough.”
    Fallon pulled the sheet over Edith’s shoulder and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek. “It used to be a lovely view, Edith. But I can’t bear looking at it any more.”
    “Stubborn,” Edith whispered, although her eyes were closed. “That’s all it is.”
    The hallway wall outside Edith’s door turned out to be a great support as Fallon leaned heavily against it for a moment, thinking about the woman’s words. You need to see the whole view, Fallon. That’s where you’ll find your happiness . The whole view…whatever that was. She wasn’t sure she would want to see it even if she knew what it was.
    Shutting her eyes, Fallon rubbed her head, bracing herself to go back to the emergency department. It was a stressful, busy night. She wanted it to be over, wanted the morning to dawn bright and sunny, wanted everything to be right. But she knew better. Practical experience was always the best teacher. And usually the harshest.
    Harsh… She peeked into Tyler’s room on her way back to Emergency. Harsh shouldn’t have any place in the life of a child but sadly it did all too often. Poor Tyler was only at the beginning of what was going to be harsh in his world, and she wasn’t sure there was any way around it. James would help him, though. He’d be an amazing father… was an amazing father. Someone who deserved to be an amazing father to other children. “You OK?” she asked from the doorway. Tyler was sitting on the bed, playing a video game.
    “Fine,” he said, his voice so quiet she barely heard him.
    “You winning?”
    He shrugged.
    “Look, we’re really busy in Emergency right now. But how about I come see you later, when things slow down?”
    He shrugged again, and Fallon turned to leave. But before she had stepped away from the door, Tyler spoke up.
    “Why?” he asked.
    “Why what?”
    “Why are you busy?”
    “There was a big fire tonight at one of the buildings up on the mountain. If anybody gets hurt, we have to take care of them.”
    “I didn’t do it!” he said, dropping his game controller and scurrying for the shelter of his blankets. “I didn’t start the fire.”
    Fallon’s cellphone took that particular moment to jingle. She glanced at the number…the emergency desk. “Hello,” she said.
    “It’s about to break loose down here,” Emoline Putters said. “They’ve been trickling in, nothing we couldn’t manage, but one of the beams in the lodge came down, and we have four firefighters injured, as well as three of the hotel personnel. Don’t know the extent of the injuries, but Eric is coming in with them. ETA ten minutes or less.”
    “I’m on my way.” She clicked off, torn between hurrying to the ER and staying here a minute or two, trying to comfort the little boy who’d crawled all the way under his covers now. Not even his head was showing. “Look, Tyler,” she said, “I know you didn’t start that fire. It was an accident in the kitchen. The grease got too hot and when that happens it can cause a fire.”
    “Really?” he said, still covered.
    “Really. No one meant it to happen, and we know you didn’t start it.”
    “That’s why he doesn’t want me,” he said.
    “Who?”
    “My first dad…Donnie.”
    “Because of a fire?”
    He didn’t say anything, but she saw the blanket bob up and down and took that for a yes.
    “Did you start a fire at your house?”
    “He said so, but I didn’t do it.”
    “What kind of fire?”
    “In his chair. He was sleeping and it just caught on fire.”
    “In Donnie’s chair,” she said, just to be sure.
    The blankets bobbed up and down again.
    “And Donnie said you started the fire in his chair?”
    “Said it was my fault ’cause I didn’t get it. I was supposed to get it when he went to sleep, and I forgot.”
    “What,