The monitor crackled to life, Liam’s voice filling the
silence of their room. Maggie rolled
toward the night stand and watched the tiny red lights dance with the rise and
fall of his whine.
“Is it two o'clock or four?” Landon grunted from
behind her.
“Ten bucks if you go.”
“But he wants you.”
“You don’t know that.
Maybe this time—“
As if on cue, Liam’s whine took form, the drawn-out vowels
of “mama” pulling Maggie from her bed.
For several weeks, her son had intermittently awakened in the middle of
the night, crying for his mother. Though
she knew he would continue to beckon her if she continued to respond, she
lacked the self control to lie in bed and listen to her child cry.
As she walked across the house to Liam’s room, she averted
her eyes from the stacks of laundry she had neglected to put away after
dinner. It would be difficult enough to
go back to sleep without obsessing over her unfinished housework.
Liam’s door was slightly cracked, just as she had left it
after she tucked him in at eight. She
pushed it open, reminding herself for the fourteenth time to oil the
hinges.
“What’s wrong, Bubba?”
“I seen him, Mama.”
“You saw who, Liam?
Something in your dream? Are you still scared from the dragon movie?”
“No, I not scared of dragon, Mama. I seen him.
That man.”
“Baby, I keep telling you, the only man in the house is Daddy, and he’s sound
asleep in bed.”
Lucky, she
thought.
“He opened my door. He smiled at me. But I don’t like him.”
“Liam, you’re just having bad dreams. Everything’s okay. I’m here and Daddy’s here. You are safe, baby.”
“I wasn’t sleeping, Mama.”
“Honey, sometimes you dream about being awake. I know it seems real, but it’s not. There’s no one in your room.”
“Can I come sleep with you?”
“Do you really need to sleep in our room? Won’t you be crowded with Daddy and me?”
Liam didn’t say a word, but his eyes filled with tears as he
shook his head.
She sighed. Bringing
her four-year-old to bed with her would ensure that she wouldn’t sleep the rest
of the night, but Maggie knew that it would be less exhausting than getting up
and down for the next few hours.
“Alright, but we’re not making a habit of this. You’re a big boy now, okay?”
Liam climbed out of bed, his favorite truck in his hand and
his blanket trailing behind him. He
stopped as he reached the door and looked up at Maggie.
“Mama, you go first. Make sure that man is gone.”
Normally, Maggie would have talked to her son about the
difference between his imagination and reality, but she was too tired to attempt
logic with a pre-schooler. She opened
the door, peeked out, and smiled down at Liam.
“All clear, buddy.
Let’s go to bed.”
**********************
At some point between late-night parenting and her alarm
going off, Maggie had fallen asleep. She
woke up with Liam lying long ways across the bed, his feet propped against his
mother’s side. She gently lifted his
legs and repositioned him. He rolled
onto his side, into the indentation left in the mattress by Landon. For a moment she considered closing her eyes
and trying to rejoin her sleeping son, but she knew that it wouldn’t be worth
the stressful morning of rushing and anxiety that it would produce. Maggie eased out of bed, hoping she could get
a shower and maybe even dry her hair before the kids woke up. She had turned Landon’s monitor off when she
brought him to bed, but she took Mia’s to the bathroom with her.
Maggie managed to start her shower before hurrying to the
toilet. How drastically her morning
ritual had changed with the births of her children. It hadn’t been that many years ago when she’d
actually drink a cup of coffee and smoke a cigarette before her bladder
beckoned. As she sat there, she ran
through the agenda for the day. Liam to
pre-school. Landon’s suits to the
cleaners. Grocery store, pharmacy, post
office. And all with an almost
eighteen-month-old attached to her hip.
Maggie continued her schedule in the shower, making mental
to-do lists while she washed her face and conditioned her hair. Wash Liam’s soccer uniform for Wednesday’s
game. Confirm with the sitter for
Thursday evening so that we can go to Tally’s book signing. Pick up a bottle of wine for dinner with
Landon’s parents on Friday. Homeowners’
meeting on Saturday afternoon. Feed
Tally’s dog on Sunday when she flies to Houston.
Maggie peeked into the bedroom as she dried off. Liam had rolled over but was still
asleep. She closed the door as gently as
possible and grabbed the dryer from the counter. As she flipped her head over, she noticed the
two-week-old polish on her toes. She
wondered if she might squeeze in a pedicure during the day. Would it be feasible for Mia to sit still
that long?
She was still planning her day and week as she finished
drying her hair and began getting dressed.
As she fastened the hooks on her bra, she heard Liam on the other side
of the door.
“Mama, I’m hungry.”
“Just a second.
Mama’s getting dressed.”
Ignoring her, he opened the door.
“My tummy made noises.”
“You know, you have another parent in this house. Why don’t you go ask your dad to fix you a
bowl of cereal?”
“He puts too much milk.
I want you to get it.”
Maggie closed her eyes for a moment. Her morning had already been more productive
than usual. It was only a little after
seven. She was clean and dry. Why waste the extra time arguing with a
hungry child?
“Listen, bubba, I’ll make you a deal. Go get dad to get your bowl and spoon and
cereal for you. Then I’ll come to the
kitchen in just a minute and pour everything, okay?”
“Only a minute?”
“Only a minute.”
Liam galloped from the bathroom, singing an impromptu song
about cereal. Maggie dressed quickly and
slipped on her house shoes. She grabbed
a clip and pulled her hair from her face, hoping that she’d have a few minutes to
style it before she left the house.
In the kitchen, Landon and Liam stood in the pantry
door. Her husband was, as usual, aggravating
their son, insisting that the high-fiber cereal would taste better than
chocolate-flavored marshmallows in his normal cereal. Maggie set the monitor on the counter.
“You know, one of these days his curiosity will win out and
he’s going to ask for my cereal. He’ll
never trust you again when you tell him something tastes good.”
“Just part of my ploy to make sure he keeps calling for you at night.”
“So glad we’re on the same team here.”
Landon leaned over and kissed Maggie on the lips, his grin
instantly eliciting one of her own. It
had been almost ten years since they married.
Their union hadn’t been perfect by any means, but Maggie’s favorite part
of the day was still when the garage door opening would announce Landon’s
arrival home from work.
She poured Liam a bowl of cereal and a cup of juice while
Landon poured two cups of coffee.
“Big day planned?”
“Could be worse.
Standard Mommy stuff."
“I should be off by 4:30.
Need me to do anything? Pick up
the dry cleaning?”
“Actually, I haven’t dropped it off yet. It’s been riding around in my backseat for a
couple of days.”
“Woman, how much am I paying you again?”
“Obviously not enough or I’d do a better job at this domestic
thing.”
Landon slid between Maggie and the counter, wrapping his
arms around her waist and pressing his forehead against hers.
“Maybe we can discuss a raise tonight? After the kids go to bed? You can wear you sexy sweatpants.”
“Daddy, what are you talking about?”
Maggie giggled as she gently pushed away from Landon. She sat down across from her son, coffee in
hand.
“We’re just talking about mommy and daddy stuff, Liam.”
“Like kissing?”
Landon and Maggie exchanged a look as they tried to suppress
their smiles.
“Landon?”
“This one’s all yours, Mom. I have to get dressed.”
Maggie could hear Landon laughing as he headed toward the bedroom. She sipped her coffee for a few minutes and
watched Liam pick the marshmallows from his bowl.
“You okay for a minute while I get sissy up?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Stay at the table and don’t make a mess, alright? I want to leave on time this morning.”
“Okay, Mama.”
Maggie deposited her coffee cup in the sink as she left the
kitchen. She passed Liam’s room and
shook her head, wondering how long this nighttime phase would last and debating
whether or not she should start slipping him a dose of Benadryl with
dinner. At the end of the small hallway
was Mia’s bedroom. Sweet, quiet, sleeping Mia. It was rare that her younger child woke her
up at night or at any time for that
matter. Barring the few fitful nights
while she was teething and an occasional bout of illness, Mia was a champion snoozer. While Liam was a light sleeper who usually rose
with the sun, Mia was like her mother—at least before children—she slept deeply
and as late as possible. Maggie almost
felt guilty each morning as she pulled her sleeping toddler from bed. She envied her child and hated to interrupt
Mia’s peaceful slumber
Maggie eased the door open, hoping to wake her daughter as
gently as possible. She turned down the
volume on the noise machine only slightly as to not jar Mia awake with the
sudden silence. She hummed a little
morning song as she walked to the side of Mia’s crib.
“Oh me, Oh my, good morning, Mia…”
****************************
Landon was pulling on his socks when he heard Maggie calling
him from the other side of the house, her voice distorted as it came across the
monitor in the kitchen. He walked from the
bedroom and met her as she entered the living room.
“Did you get Mia up?”
“No, I’ve been in the bedroom.”
“You didn’t get Mia up?”
“I said I didn’t get her up.”
Without another word, Maggie turned and ran toward the
hallway leading to the children’s rooms.
Landon followed her, the first low wail of an alarm sounding in his
head.
“Maggie, what’s wrong?
Where’s Mia?”
Maggie ignored him, increasing her pace until she crossed
the threshold to their daughter’s room.
“Mia? Mia!”
“Honey, talk to me.
What’s going on?”
When Maggie turned, Landon felt his heart stop for a
moment. His wife wasn’t one for theatrics or
melodrama. He could only remember two
times he’d seen her panic in their decade together. But the woman standing before him now was on the
verge of hysterics. Her hands fluttered
in front of her as she gasped for breath.
One word found its way past her trembling lips: gone.
Landon looked
into Maggie’s eyes as they silently begged for help. He put his hands on her shoulders and
squeezed as if he was securing her to the spot where she stood.
“Honey, listen to me.
She’s climbed out of her crib and is in the house somewhere, okay? You have to calm down and help me look. Check her closet and then check Liam’s
room. I’m going to go back to the
kitchen.”
Maggie nodded. Landon
ran from the room, calling for his daughter.
“Mia? Mia, where are you, baby? You need to come here. Come drink your chocolate milk!"
In the kitchen, Liam still sat at the table.
“Daddy, I ate all my cereal.”
“Liam, have you played with Maggie this morning.”
“No. I ate my cereal,
Daddy.”
“Son, listen to
me. Have you seen your sister?”
Landon had tried to mask his fear but his control over his volume had betrayed him. Liam jumped from his chair and ran down the
hallway toward his room. Landon wanted
to pursue him but quickly decided he’d apologize once he found Mia. He continued his search, looking under tables
and inside closets. He searched the
kitchen, the living room, their bedroom, the bathrooms, calling his daughter’s
name over and over. Over the monitor, he
could hear Maggie doing the same across the house. They converged back on the kitchen at the same time. She was crying, her voice broken by her sobs.
“Did—did you find her?”
He didn’t have to answer. She could see his answer in his
face.
“Where’s Liam?”
“In his room.”
“Go get him. Take him across the street to the Brysons. I don’t want him in the house when the police
get here.”
*******************************
Landon and Maggie returned to their daughter’s room and waited
for the next chapter of their nightmare to unfold. Landon sat in the glider, his hands pressed to his temples. An unnerving
calm had overtaken him, and he wondered if he was going into shock. Maggie stood at Mia’s empty crib, her hands
clutching the railing as she rocked back and forth. Landon looked at his wife and searched
himself for some way to comfort her.
“We’re going to find her.”
Her body started to shake and she moaned as her chin dropped
to her chest.
He stood and stumbled forward, reaching for Maggie. He eased
her hands from the crib and turned her toward him. She resisted at first but he refused to let
go. As the sobs overtook her body, she
buried her face in his chest as she clasped his shirt in her fists. They stood there for several minutes, swaying in their desperate dance of grief.
Suddenly, Maggie grew quiet.
She pushed away from Landon and staggered backwards. Her face contorted, overtaken by terror.
“Oh my God. Oh my
God. No, no, no, no, no—“
“What, Maggie? What
is it?”
She shook her head wildly, her hair falling from its plastic
clip. Backing against Mia’s crib, she
sank to the floor.
“No, no, no, no, no—“
Landon dropped to his knees and crawled to his wife. Her eyes were squeezed shut and her hands
covered her ears.
“Maggie, listen to me.
You have to talk to me! What is it?”
“No, oh God, no—“
He pulled her hands from her ears and cradled her face in
his own hands.
“Baby, tell me. Tell
me!"
Maggie opened her eyes and blankly stared at Landon. He touched her cheek, trying to open up whatever was inside her that she couldn't let out. He heard the sirens from the squad cars
turning on their street as she whispered
something he couldn’t understand.
"What is it?"
He
leaned closer as she spoke again.
“The man. Liam saw a
man.”
