Mark was on his way back to the hotel after eating a home cooked meal in a small mom and pop diner. He pulled his jacket tighter around himself, December 20th was a cold day, and the snow was falling steadily. Mark just moseyed along thinking about how his last marriage ended and how it was almost Christmas and he had nobody to spend it with. Just as he was thinking that things couldn't get much worse, he stepped right into a piece of gum and then a folded up piece of paper. Both stuck to his new boots. Great! Just Fucking Great! My new boots and now they are covered in gum and paper. Fuck! Mark reached down to pull as much of the mess off as he could. Then something made him look at the paper. Mr. Santa Claus, The North Pole. Mark just stared at the paper for a second and then he carefully pulled as much of the gum off of the paper as he could without tearing it and put it in his pocket. He wanted to take a closer look at what he supposed was a letter to Santa when he got to his hotel room.
Mark sat down on the edge of his bed and looked at the childlike writing on the outside of the letter. Slowly he unfolded the letter and began to read :
Dear Santa,
Mom says that you might not be able to find us this year. She said that it would be hard since we don't actually live in a house anymore. I wanted you to know that I don't need any toys this year, but my mom has a baby in her belly and she says that it will be hard to take care of it after it is born. Mommy needs a new coat; she gave hers to me to keep me warm. Also, I want to live in a house again, it is cold here. Please Santa, bring my mommy and me something warm for the baby, Mommy says that it is coming really soon. I am scared because mommy has had a bellyache all day. She says that means the baby is ready to be born. I am scared. Please Santa, help my mommy and me; we are living under the bridge behind the park. Love Matthias.
Mark couldn't believe what he had just read. He wondered how long ago this letter was written. Well, I can't sleep now. Guess I'm going to the park, I guess it can't hurt to check.
Mark walked around the park and found the closest bridge. He slowly walked down to the base of the bridge. "Ahhhhhh! Thai, I need you to help Mommy. You need t- Who are you?" Mark was staring in shock, this young lady was living under a bridge with a boy that looked to be about 4 or 5 years old, and she was in labor. "Sir, who are you? Please just leave."
Mark couldn't believe she was asking him to leave, she obviously needed help. "No, I think you need some help, I am going to call a cab and get you to a hospital." Turning to the boy, Mark decided that Santa just might have to help with this. "Matthias, buddy, can you get your mom's and your stuff ready to go. Grab everything. Santa sent me." The boy's eyes widened. "Santa sent you, but he's early." "I know buddy, but Santa knew that you would need help tonight. So, please buddy, do what I asked you to and I am going to help your mama up the hill, I will be right back to help you with your things." Mark grabbed his cell and called for a cab, and then he gently picked the young lady up and climbed up the hill. He sat her in a nearby swing. "I'm going to go get your son and anything else I can carry. The cab will be here any minute." Mark went down to the makeshift home and grabbed everything, including the boy and carried it all back up the hill and put it into the waiting cab.
Mark was nervous, he was in the waiting room waiting for a baby that wasn't his from a woman that wasn't his, and waiting for the okay on Matthias who was found to be slightly dehydrated and malnourished. While checking him over, the doctor found some suspicious scars that looked to be about 3 to 5 months old. Mark wondered what kind of hell these people had been through.
"Mr. Calaway, the young lady and young man you brought in are both going to be fine. The lad is in the room with his mother and new baby sister. All will be well, thanks to you. Another week and that boy would have been severely dehydrated and his mother would never have been able to care for that newborn. The boy says Santa sent you. I think it was an angel. Would you like to see them?" "Yeah, if I could. I the boy wrote a letter to Santa asking for help for his mama. I stepped in gum and the letter stuck to it. So I told him Santa sent me, I hoped it would get him help me get his mama and their stuff out of there." "Follow me." The doctor led Mark to a room in the maternity ward. Mark nodded his thanks and knocked on the door. "Come in!" Mark stuck his head in and what he saw made him grin. Matthias was sitting on the edge of bed playing peek-a-boo with his new baby sister. "Mark, please come in. Thank you so much for everything, I don't know how you found us when you did, but I thank God every second that you did." "Well, like I said before, Santa sent me. He gave me the letter that Matthias sent him. So, how is the little one?" "Come see for yourself. I named her Raven Michelle. How can I ever thank you Mark, you've done so much for us." "Tell me your name." "Cynthia Cobalt."