Page 21 of The Ties That Bind
Gifts of the Heart
Feeling a need to bring joy into someone’s life, Brie went on a shopping spree for Autumn with her daughter Hope in tow.
She’d tried to call Autumn on several occasions, but each time, it went straight to voicemail. She wasn’t sure if Autumn was ignoring all of calls or was simply too worried about Tono to deal with them.
Brie could only imagine how much her friend must be suffering, needing to remain strong for Tono without any outside support. Although Brie understood Tono’s reason for keeping his health crisis a secret to protect Faelan, she still hated the thought of Autumn facing the uncertainty all alone.
Having experienced the benefit of the entire community’s support when Sir was teetering on the edge of life or death, Brie knew how much it had helped. Without that support, she wasn’t sure what would have happened to her—or Hope.
Although she couldn’t fly to Korea herself to offer moral support, she wanted Autumn to know she was not alone. Remembering that terrible moment in her own life, Brie spent time thinking about her purchases for Autumn.
As soon as she arrived back home with her many packages, Brie began filling the large wicker basket with the plethora of comfort foods she’d purchased. She added a digital course on learning Japanese that Autumn could take with her wherever she went. Brie had found learning Italian a positive distraction when she had been at the hospital watching over Sir.
Brie also included a huge joke book full of terrible jokes, along with a fluffy blanket for those times when Autumn needed a warm hug. Hope had personally picked out the floppy stuffed bunny to go in the basket. Brie attached a tag to it and wrote,Some bunny loves you.She was certain Autumn would appreciate the silly humor.
Brie also threw in a couple of “gourmet” cans of soup in honor of Master Anderson, knowing how much his hot soup had warmed her soul on those days when she really needed it.
The last item she added to the basket was a picture frame with a photo of the three of them together. Lea stood in the center with her arms draped around Autumn and Brie. Engraved on the frame were the words, “Friends are like bras. Close to your heart and there for support.”
Although Lea was in the dark about what was going on with Tono, Autumn needed to be reminded that Lea was still with her in spirit.
After carefully packing up the basket to be shipped across the world, Brie headed to the post office to have it overnighted. She was well-known at their post office because of her little PO box which was continually overflowing with letters from fans of the first documentary. It amazed Brie that they continued to reach out to her, wanting to express their love of the film and to share how it had changed their lives.
Brie was grateful for every letter, but today it left her feeling a little melancholy knowing the second film—which was even more powerful than the first—might never see the light of day.
“Oh, Mrs. Davis, let me help you with that,” Polly called out when Brie walked up to the counter kicking the large box with her foot.
Polly ran through the counter’s swinging gate and grabbed the heavy box off the floor for her.
“Thanks so much, Polly.”
While Brie was paying her to ship it, Polly exclaimed, “Something just arrived for you from Italy. Let me get it for you!” She went into the back and returned holding a beautiful sapphire box.
“I wonder what it could be?” Brie asked in excitement, taking the box from her.
“I don’t know, but it’s got to be something special. We’ve never seen a shipping box this pretty before.”
A smile spread across Brie’s face when she saw the name of the company in gold print on the box—“Dante’s Creazioni di Venezia”.
Although it was pure torture, Brie chose to wait until she arrived home so she could open it with Sir. “Look what came all the way from Venice!” she said when she entered the house.
Sir raised an eyebrow when he read the address label. “Interesting…”
“Isn’t the box gorgeous? I almost hate to open it.”
Brie was careful as she cut through the tape, and then laughed at herself when she saw there was an identical, but smaller, box inside which was wrapped in a silver bow. The attention to detail made unboxing Dante’s gift a true experience.
She set the box on the desk and untied the ribbon. Lifting the lid, she set it to the side and sifted through the silver tissue paper.
Brie let out a gasp. Carefully picking it up, Brie gazed in sheer wonder at the jeweled Venetian mask. The delicate white mask was covered in sparkling crystals, and on the upper right side were amber stones in the shape of a violin. On the left were black jewels that made up five music notes. The pattern of notes on the staff was wavy like a flag fluttering in the wind, giving the musical notes a feeling of movement.
“Let me help you put it on, babygirl.”
Brie held her breath as she laid the mask against her face and Sir secured the ties in the back. Once it was secure, he turned her around to look at it.
She saw Sir’s eyes widen as he stared at the mask. “It is the most exquisite thing I have ever seen.”
She smiled and hurried to the closest mirror to stare at her reflection. The genius of Dante’s design was that the feminine shape complemented her face, but his intricate additions of the violin and musical notes enhanced the color of her eyes.
