ABIGAIL ANDRE BILL_COLLECTOR COMMUNITY_VOLUNTEER COUNTY_CLERK CUSTOMER ELI GABBY GPS JONAH JONAHS_MOTHER JUDITH_CROSS LIBRARIAN MANDY PASTOR SANTA TEENAGE_GRANDKID TOWN_MAYOR VICTOR_FRANKLIN WORKER MANDY Those are amazing! I have some bells if you want them for those stockings. CUSTOMER Thanks! GABBY Mandy, someone left a box for the donation drive out back. MANDY Perfect! GABBY Someone also left a whole bunch of trash NEXT to the dumpster. MANDY Want some help? GABBY I got it. MANDY You sure, Gabby? GABBY Yep! People. Who does that? A few inches further and the trash is where it's supposed to go. MANDY Huh. GABBY A hymn book? MANDY Yeah. There are a lot of used books and toys here too. GABBY I thought we were only taking new things. MANDY Whoever left this must not have known. It's okay. I'll take care of this- MANDY Oh wow. Look at this. GABBY Cool. MANDY A Christmas Carol. It's a classic. This is an old edition too. GABBY A child still isn't going to want it. MANDY I know but- MANDY Oh! GABBY What's that? MANDY I don't know. GABBY Whoa. MANDY It's a coin. MANDY "Dear Santa. I have been good all year and tried to help my mother. I know we won't have much for Christmas. That is just fine by me. But could you help me? I found a coin I think my father would like. He died in the war though. For Christmas this year, could my present be you giving this to my father? He liked collecting these. I miss him and I know he would love it. Love, Judith." GABBY That's. MANDY She put the date on it. December 11, 1947. So long ago. GABBY Why is this here? It's sweet. Who would give this away? MANDY Maybe they didn't know it was with this stuff. MANDY Judith.... MANDY Who are you? MANDY Creek Hill Chapel..... GPS In 800 feet, turn right. MANDY Hello? MANDY Excuse me. MANDY Uh, hello? MANDY Hey! MANDY Ah. Okay then-- JONAH Oh! JONAH Sorry! MANDY It's okay. MANDY Are you all right? I didn't mean to scare you. JONAH No, you didn't. I mean, you startled me, but... don't tell anyone that. MANDY You got it. JONAH Um, you have-- here. MANDY Oh thanks. JONAH I think I'm making it worse. MANDY Oh, well- JONAH Sorry. MANDY It's okay. MANDY Better? JONAH Yes. It looked great before, but you know-- MANDY Got it. JONAH So, are you looking for the pastor, or-- MANDY Um, yeah. I'm trying to track down who donated these books. JONAH Oh, I did. I took them to a dropoff in town for a book drive? MANDY That's my place. I'm Mandy. JONAH Oh, nice to meet you. Jonah. MANDY So are these your books then? JONAH No, there were a whole bunch of odds and ends in one of the rooms here. MANDY Oh. You wouldn't by chance know who this book in particular belonged to? JONAH No. Why? MANDY This letter was inside the book, and a coin too. I wanted to find the person who wrote it. JONAH Wow. MANDY Amazing, isn't it? JONAH Pretty neat. "Judith." From the date, she'd be... MANDY In her late 70s, probably. You don't by chance know who that is, do you? Are you from around here? JONAH I am, but a woman named Judith in her 70s? Sorry. It's kind of thin to go on. MANDY Yeah, I know. Someone else probably would have thrown this away, but...there's something special about it, you know? JONAH I guess so. Any kid's letter to Santa is, and with it being from so long ago ... I get it. MANDY I was hoping maybe it came from someone here. JONAH Look, maybe the pastor knows more. He's not here right now but I can ask him. MANDY Would you? That'd be great. Or I can come back? JONAH Why don't you leave me a way to reach you. I'll check with the pastor or have him call you. Okay? MANDY Thank you. MANDY You said Jonah, right? JONAH Right. Canton Construction & Renovations. MANDY Sorry to interrupt your work. JONAH Not a problem at all. MANDY Bye then. MANDY And thanks again! JONAH You're welcome. PASTOR All done for the night? JONAH Yeah. Just powering down everything. I'll pick up where I left off in the morning. PASTOR Excellent! Are we still on schedule? JONAH I think so. I'll let you know if any hiccups come up. PASTOR Thank you. JONAH Oh, a woman came by today, asking if you knew anything about the books I found in the back rooms. She found something in one of them and was trying to track down the owner. PASTOR I wish I knew. Everything there has accumulated over the years, before I was pastor here. JONAH What about a woman named Judith? She would be much older now. PASTOR There's Judith Tucker. She's only in her fifties though. JONAH Anyone else? PASTOR No one I can think of. I'm sure Pastor O'Brien would have known more. JONAH Are there church records that might go back aways? PASTOR I had to throw out a whole bunch that were damaged from a burst pipe a few winters ago. Everything left is more recent. Is this woman a friend of yours? JONAH I just met her. PASTOR Oh. I thought she might... JONAH What? PASTOR You seem determined to help her. JONAH No, it's not... quite like that. PASTOR She must be a special lady. MANDY This turned out so great. You are quite the artist. MANDY Have a Merry Christmas! GABBY I wonder if this is worth anything. MANDY If it is, maybe you shouldn't handle it like that. GABBY Seriously, though. You should find out. MANDY Andre has his rare book shop down the street. GABBY He'd know something. MANDY It doesn't matter though--I want to return it to the letter writer. GABBY It might matter to "Judith," if you find her. Which is a big if. MANDY I know. GABBY What if she's passed away? I mean, decades have gone by, so... MANDY I get it--the deck is stacked against me. But I still want to try. ANDRE I'm not an expert, but I dabble in coins here and there. The hardest days are when some boy comes in here with his great uncle's collection, certain he's going to strike it rich. MANDY Well, I was curious to know what I've been holding. ANDRE Not to get your hopes up, but... MANDY What? ANDRE 1895... ANDRE Proof. ANDRE This coin in mint condition could be worth $30,000 easily. It's a bit worn, but still... you've got quite the coin here. MANDY $30,000? Really? ANDRE Now, I said 'could be' and that's if it were in perfect condition. So no guarantees. MANDY Of course. MANDY Thanks, Andre. ANDRE Here. ANDRE Now, if you decide to sell that, you'll let me bid on it, won't you? MANDY You bet--but it's not mine to sell. Thanks again. GABBY You've won the lottery. MANDY No, Judith has. GABBY Okay, but think about it. After you've done everything you can, and you can't find her-- MANDY Hey, don't jinx this. GABBY Or she's passed away or is somehow unreachable, what will you do? MANDY I'll find her. Or her family. They deserve to have the coin. And the letter. Oh! Wouldn't this be the best Christmas present for them? GABBY Sure. Christmas is a couple of weeks away though. MANDY Plenty of time. GABBY Oh boy. GABBY Any luck? MANDY There are a lot of Judiths, even just around here. I didn't think it was that common of a name. GABBY Too bad it's not 'Gabby.' There aren't many of us. MANDY True. GABBY Did you just type in "Judith" and think you'd find her? MANDY I typed in the name of towns around here--Everett, Kingston, you know... MANDY Hey, it's just a start. GABBY I'll say. GABBY Anything else you need done tonight? MANDY Ah, no. Thanks, Gabby. GABBY All right. I'm going to clean these up and take off. MANDY Night! MANDY Sorry, we're closed. JONAH Mandy? MANDY Oh, Jonah! Sorry, I thought you were a customer. JONAH It's okay. Uh, I talked to the pastor. MANDY You did? What'd he say? JONAH He didn't know who it could belong to. MANDY Oh. Thanks for asking him though. Did you drive here just for that? JONAH I was in the area, buying some supplies for a job. But I had an idea. JONAH I want to help you find Judith. MANDY You do...? JONAH I've lived in Everett most of my life. I know places to look -- assuming Judith was from around there or nearby too. So we team up. MANDY I want to find her by Christmas, so I could use all the help I can get. But are you sure? JONAH Yeah. MANDY Why? JONAH Why what? MANDY You have your renovations and work to do. JONAH That can run without me often. I have others and subcontractors who do a lot of the work. MANDY But why spend your time with this? JONAH The whole thing is intriguing and noble. And you seem like someone worth helping. MANDY Thanks. JONAH Plus, I have an idea of where to start. MANDY Where? JONAH The letter mentioned that her father died in the war. World War II. MANDY So you're hoping we could find a list of those who served from the Everett area? JONAH Exactly. COUNTY CLERK What do ya'll need? MANDY Uh, hi. We're trying to track down soldiers who died in World War II who lived in the county. Is that something you'd have record of? COUNTY CLERK Name? MANDY Um, yeah, we don't have that. JONAH Sorry. COUNTY CLERK Give me a few minutes. You can have a seat. MANDY She thinks we're crazy. JONAH There are worse things. MANDY Thanks for this. You know, helping. JONAH Glad I can. MANDY I'm taking you away from your building. Or renovating? JONAH We'll call it construction. General enough. MANDY Have you done that long? JONAH Yeah. Around here, it's more fixing up and building add-ons than it is new buildings, but every now and then, there's a big job. MANDY Have you thought about going closer to a bigger city? JONAH Been there. Done that. Didn't like it. MANDY Why's that? JONAH It's ... too tense. Everything costs more. More red tape. More stress. Building is supposed to be exciting, and I started to dread it. MANDY So you left. JONAH I came back home. It's not as busy here, and the money's... well, it's not as good. But I love being here. MANDY Me too. COUNTY CLERK Here it is. MANDY This is it? COUNTY CLERK Yep. It's the whole county. You'll have to sift through it. JONAH Any way we can check this out? COUNTY CLERK We're not a library. But we have a copy machine. MANDY Without a name... There's so many. JONAH It could be a starting point though. MANDY Where is the copy machine? JONAH This is cool. You can make your own crafts? MANDY Yeah. This time of year, it's all about decorating things for Christmas, but it stays busy year round with date nights, other holidays, birthday parties and such. JONAH It's creative. And cute. Can I say that? MANDY Of course. GABBY Hey. We had a few more toy donations come in. Who's this? MANDY Gabby, this is Jonah. He's helping with the-- GABBY Mystery letter writer search. Welcome. JONAH Thanks. Nice to meet you. So you work here? GABBY Yup. I keep this place running when Mandy is-- GABBY Distracted. JONAH Oh. One of my job sites. Do you mind if we pick back up tomorrow? I should have everything settled by then. MANDY Sure. JONAH Okay. MANDY Oh, thanks. JONAH Bye. GABBY He's nice enough. MANDY Yeah. GABBY Make any progress today? MANDY Yep. Well, sort of. GABBY What's that? MANDY A haystack. JONAH They've been waiting a long time to have this done right. So, let's not disappoint. WORKER Got it. I'll get right on it. MANDY Looks like you're pretty busy here. Are you sure you have time for this now? JONAH Yeah, it'll be a nice break from this mess. There was some work done here that ... how to put it? Failed spectacularly? MANDY Ouch. JONAH Yeah. I hired someone who messed up bad. And it's costing an extra fortune. But, it'll be great when it's done. MANDY I brought everything. MANDY Including two copies of the letter, so I don't damage the original. JONAH Thanks. MANDY Ready? JONAH I figure maybe start with those who died in Everett. MANDY I wish these were organized better. JONAH Yeah. Too bad the computer wasn't invented earlier. MANDY I was crazy to think this would lead to something. JONAH Actually it was my idea. MANDY Sorry. It's just... it's like solving for X in a math problem without any other numbers. MANDY Judith could have left more clues. JONAH Yes, I'm sure she thought that too when she was writing it. JONAH There's a next of kin listed for each of these soldiers. What if the mother is named Judith? MANDY Daughters aren't named after mothers very often. JONAH Or another relative? I'm not saying we find a Judith Junior. MANDY I wonder if we could cross-reference the county list with all the Judiths I found. Maybe something connects? JONAH You really want to type all this up? MANDY No, I- JONAH What? MANDY There's. MANDY I saw something. JONAH What--Victor Franklin. MANDY It's his book. Maybe it's Judith's brother! JONAH Or her father. Either way, it's a lead. MANDY He's got to be here. JONAH If he was a soldier. Maybe Victor isn't. MANDY I'm more than halfway through. With my luck, it'll be the last one I go through. MANDY Nope. JONAH What if he was a brother? Check out the hand writing. JONAH Kind of young looking. MANDY But it could be her father's copy. The book was first published in 1843. JONAH Not this edition. MANDY Hmmm. Okay, say you're right. What do you suggest? JONAH Victor Franklin. Age 78. Could be him. MANDY What did you search? JONAH Property records and a phone number. He lives in Everett. MANDY Really? MANDY I'll call Victor to set something up for tomorrow while Gabby's running the store. JONAH Gabby wasn't kidding then. MANDY What? JONAH Running things when you're busy? MANDY Oh, yeah. It's a lot to be cooped up in the store from sun-up to sun-down, so I was looking for someone to help. And Gabby comes and knocks on the glass door, selling solar panels. JONAH Really? MANDY She had this dead-pan blunt sales pitch--straight out of whatever talking points she'd been given. It made me laugh. JONAH And you hired her off of that? MANDY I appreciated her honesty. She'll call it like she sees it. And as long as she believes in what she's doing, she'll work hard. JONAH And now she works for your store. MANDY Yeah. It was my great-grandfather's store, actually. Started out as a bookstore. Then toys when my parents ran it. Over time, I've shifted it to do-it-yourself crafts and hobbies. JONAH It's just you and Gabby running it? MANDY Since my parents retired, yes. In fact, they're on their dream vacation-- a 6-month cruise. JONAH Wow. MANDY Yeah. They've got three months left, I think? They won't even be back for Christmas. JONAH Any brothers or sisters? MANDY Two brothers, but they didn't appreciate the business. They live in Oregon and Nevada. JONAH So what do you plan to do this year for Christmas without your family around? MANDY I'm trying to figure that out. I can sleep in. Go see a movie. Open presents for myself whenever I want. MANDY What about you? Any big plans? JONAH Yes, I'm hosting my parents this year. I think they're expecting me to cook. MANDY You can always get takeout. JONAH For Christmas dinner? I think my mom would be horrified. WORKER Hey Jonah. Can you come take a look at something? JONAH Sure. MANDY I should let you get back to work. See you later. JONAH See you. She gets in the car. VICTOR FRANKLIN This is Victor Franklin. Leave me your name and telephone number, and I will call you back. Thank you. Mandy quickly hangs up. Gabby watches with amusement. GABBY You ever going to leave a message? MANDY I already did. MANDY I keep hoping he'll pick up, but I don't want to come across as too persistent. GABBY Who are you calling? Jonah? MANDY No! GABBY Oh. I thought you were playing hard to get or something. MANDY No, he's just helping. I was calling this man named Victor Franklin--he might be the owner of the Christmas Carol book. GABBY And he hasn't answered or called you back. MANDY No. MANDY Here. Use your phone. You call. Here's his number. GABBY I'm not going to call a stranger-- MANDY Just try it, please? GABBY If he hasn't answered, there's probably a reason. MANDY But it's important. GABBY Yeah, you have to see if he owned a book once. MANDY Come on--just dial. GABBY Do I get extra time off for this? MANDY Shhh. Is it going through? GABBY Voicemail. Guess he's not dodging your calls after all. Want me to leave a message? MANDY No. Yes- MANDY No- GABBY Good job. You'll just have to wait. MANDY Jonah did find his address. JONAH Hi. MANDY Hey. He never called back, so. JONAH It looks like he's home though. MANDY All right then. VICTOR FRANKLIN Can I help you? VICTOR FRANKLIN I don't know any Judith Franklin. I have a niece named Judith though. MANDY Do you know when she was born? VICTOR FRANKLIN Oh, 1960, I think? MANDY She's too young for who we are looking for. Anyone else you knew with that name as you grew up? VICTOR FRANKLIN Oh, now, my memory is not that good. JONAH What about this book? MANDY Is it yours? VICTOR FRANKLIN Hmmm. I don't recall. I wasn't much of a Dickens fan. JONAH It has your name in it. VICTOR FRANKLIN Where did you find it? JONAH At a church here in town. We figure you maybe left it behind at some point as you grew up. VICTOR FRANKLIN I don't think so. I was born and raised in California. I moved out here, oh, maybe four years ago? My wife's sister needed some help, so we came on out. Uprooted ourselves. I sure miss the mild winters there. I'm not fit for the snow here. JONAH It was worth a shot. MANDY Jonah, did you see the book by his glasses? JONAH No. MANDY It was a yearbook. JONAH It's not him though. MANDY No. But odds are, there's a Victor Franklin is in a yearbook somewhere, right? JONAH You're thinking... MANDY We could look at the schools around here and see if they have any Victor Franklins. JONAH I like it. I'll pull up the school addresses. JONAH Hello? LIBRARIAN Cell phones are supposed to be off here. BILL COLLECTOR Jonah Canton? JONAH Yes? BILL COLLECTOR I'm calling from Taggart Collection Agency about your overdue balances. JONAH Yeah. MANDY This school has been around since the 1950s, right? LIBRARIAN Yes, 1949. MANDY Do you have yearbooks from then? LIBRARIAN Every one since the school opened. MANDY Perfect. Is there a way I can look at those? LIBRARIAN Which year? MANDY To be safe, how about 1949 to 19... 63? MANDY It's for a really good cause. 34 INT. HIGH SCHOOL/HALLWAY - DAY 34 JONAH I understand. Yeah. Okay. Bye. MANDY This might take awhile. Can I check these out? The Librarian hesitates, not loving the idea. LIBRARIAN The library is only for students and staff. MANDY Oh. But where else can I find these? LIBRARIAN Well, I'm not sure. MANDY I promise I will take good care of them and bring them back soon. LIBRARIAN I can ask the principal but she's out today and tomorrow. Why don't you come back next week? MANDY I'm kind of under a time crunch. Look, it's Thursday. How about I promise to bring them to you Monday? LIBRARIAN That long? MANDY I'll get it done this weekend. And then I'll bring them back first thing Monday morning. LIBRARIAN Let me get you a box. I don't want these getting damaged or wet if it's snowing. MANDY Thank you. GABBY What's all that? MANDY Yearbooks. GABBY I don't think those will be sought after from the donation bin. MANDY We're tracking down Judith and Victor. GABBY That's a lot of yearbooks. JONAH Three high schools' worth. Everett, Kingston, and we even drove to Midwell. MANDY And they all want them back early next week before school closes for Christmas. GABBY Sounds like a new haystack. MANDY Yeah. JONAH Let me take some home. We can divide them up. MANDY Okay. MANDY Phew! GABBY Well, I'm glad you're back. I have to run to my niece's school Christmas program tonight that I told you about. MANDY Oh yeah. I'm closing then. GABBY Yep. JONAH Have a good night. GABBY You too. JONAH What are they making? MANDY You've never seen an ugly Christmas sweater? JONAH I have. I just didn't know people made their own. MANDY They do here. What size sweater do you wear? JONAH Have you always wanted to run your family's store? MANDY Sure. I love it. JONAH Ever found a hidden letter in a book before? Maybe back when it was your grandpa's bookstore? MANDY No. Receipts, yes. Inscriptions or "for my grandson Timmy"-type of sentiments, yes. But not a Santa letter. JONAH I always made sure I put a postage stamp on my Santa letters. Took them to the mailbox myself. MANDY Really? And what type of things did you write? JONAH Oh, the usual. "Can I please have a skateboard, or a dog?" Or I'd plead for forgiveness if I felt guilty about something I'd done that I was sure would keep me from getting any gift at all. MANDY That's sweet. JONAH What about you? Ever write to Santa? MANDY Yes. It was a tradition growing up. My brothers and I would sit around the dinner table on the first Sunday of December and write our letters. JONAH And you wrote.... MANDY My memory's pretty vague. I remember what it felt like, that warm excitement of the season. Beyond that, though... Well, I do remember one time. JONAH Yeah? Let's hear it. MANDY My parents were actually struggling with this place. It was a bookstore still. A bad couple of years of sales, and then there was a fire next door that caused some damage here. No one wants to buy smokey books. So I wrote and asked Santa to help save the store. JONAH No wonder you like Judith's letter. MANDY What do you mean? JONAH She was looking out for someone else's happiness, not just her own. Like you did. MANDY You're giving me too much credit. I think I was scared at all the uncertainty. JONAH But you could have wished for a stuffed animal or toy or something to comfort you. You got what you wanted, I assume. MANDY We survived through it, yes. That's when my parents turned it into a toy store. And here we are, years later, with crafts. JONAH It's great. JONAH Is that why you do a toy and book drive now? An homage to your family's legacy? MANDY You figured me out. It's actually an annual drive the county has. I just like to help out. MANDY How's your sweater coming along? JONAH Do you have any of those fuzzy stick things? MANDY Pipe cleaners? JONAH Ah, great. JONAH Voila. MANDY One of the finest I've seen. JONAH We should get a picture of us wearing these. MANDY What? No, I never- JONAH Come on. MANDY Oh! JONAH "I found a coin I think my father would like. He died in the war though. For Christmas this year, could my present be you giving this to my father? He liked collecting these." JONAH A coin collector. GABBY Here you go. The paint's on the table, and glue guns are plugged in too. CUSTOMER Thanks! MANDY Here, come look through one of these. GABBY Can't I make an ornament too? MANDY Nope. Make sure you look at every name. GABBY I will. MANDY Because if you miss one- GABBY I get it. GABBY Saved by the- GABBY Oh, it's just you. JONAH Hi. MANDY Hey. Did you find something? JONAH I wish. I have a few books to go through still. But, I wondered about the coin. MANDY What about it? JONAH Judith said her dad was a collector. Coin collecting can be a community of its own. I thought I'd follow up with someone I know and see if they have any ideas about how to trace the coin to its owner. MANDY But Judith said she "found" the coin, not her dad. JONAH "Found" could mean she bought it, or someone else in her family. What if there's a way to find who bought that particular coin? MANDY I guess it doesn't hurt to look into it. JONAH Could I borrow it? MANDY Take good care of it. It's... well, it might be worth a lot. JONAH You bet. JONAH I'll be back soon. MANDY Thanks. GABBY You know, tonight there's the Christmas kickoff celebration. You should go. Sleigh rides, Christmas trees, hot chocolate bar, Santa, the whole big deal. MANDY Oh, I don't know. GABBY You can still celebrate Christmas even if your family's not around. MANDY I know that. GABBY Think about it then. And you know, maybe take someone with you. MANDY Keep searching. ELI And you can order ahead for Christmas. We need orders no later than the 21st. JONAH Hey Eli. ELI Good to see you, Jonah. JONAH I'll have a raspberry cream cheese pie. ELI A whole pie? Going off the deep end? JONAH Not at all. I have something that might catch your interest though. ELI Hundreds of these were minted in 1895, and they're pretty sought after now. JONAH So it's valuable. ELI Definitely. It's a proof coin, so it wasn't released to general circulation like the rest of money is. JONAH So how would someone get their hands on one? ELI Buying it from the mint. Inheriting it from another collector. Or someone could have made the mistake of using it at face value and it went into circulation that way. JONAH I'm helping someone track down the owner. Are there records of coins? Like, who owns what? ELI What, are you looking for some magical database of coin collectors? JONAH Too good to be true? ELI You might be able to find credit card records from whichever store sold it. JONAH Well, we're not sure it was sold in a store. If it was, it was 70 years ago. ELI Good luck. ELI Still want that pie? JONAH Yes, actually. Throw in a couple of forks too. MANDY You're back already? JONAH Yep. I brought some pie. MANDY Pie? JONAH Yes. Oh, and the coin. MANDY What'd you find out? Mandy puts the coin away as he replies. JONAH Nothing helpful. I was hoping coin collectors might have some community or group or way of tracking who has what coin. But it's been so long that it's a dead end. MANDY That's the challenge with this all around. MANDY That looks amazing. JONAH How is it? MANDY You don't want any, right? JONAH It's my favorite. I'm glad you like it too. JONAH Sorry, work again. JONAH Hello? JONAH Two weeks, I'm hoping. That soon? My guys are on another site, so I can't-- No, I understand. I'll... I'll see what I can do. Yeah. Bye. JONAH This one client--you came there before-- I guess they have a big event early next week. I have to have the job finished before then. MANDY How much more work is there to do? JONAH It's down to the cosmetic, fixtures and paint, and a few final things to touch up. But I can't get guys to go there in time. They're already on other jobs and it's the weekend. JONAH I better get going. MANDY Do you want some help? JONAH What? MANDY I'm not an expert builder but I can follow instructions. JONAH No, I couldn't-- MANDY You've been helping me with the letter, and you brought pie. JONAH But your store--I don't want you to shut down for me. It's Christmas rush time. MANDY Gabby's scheduled to come in any minute. JONAH All right then. MANDY So I remember you said something went wrong here and set things back. JONAH Yeah. JONAH I had a plumbing subcontractor who didn't properly seal a pipe. I'd already finished this room, and it was all done. But then the pipe came loose and -- JONAH Disaster. MANDY Shouldn't the plumber have checked his work, or something? JONAH Yeah. It got past him, and me. Anyway, he refused to fix it up or make things right, and tried to pass the blame on. The owner here wasn't happy. So... MANDY You're left to pick up the pieces. JONAH More like patch the pieces together. MANDY That sounds. JONAH Expensive? MANDY I was going to say not fun. JONAH Well, the work itself isn't bad. But paying for someone else's mistake? Yeah. MANDY Point me wherever you want me to start. I bet we can get through this faster together. JONAH Okay. Start on that wall. I'm going to grab the paint for the trims. JONAH Wow. You have no idea how much time this saves me. MANDY It's not all done though. JONAH This gets me so much closer. I can handle the rest myself without losing sleep. MANDY Good! JONAH Seriously, thank you. MANDY I'm just glad I could do something to help you too. JONAH I think I at least owe you dinner. MANDY Actually, I have a better idea. MANDY Gabby told me about this. It sounded like a nice break from work. JONAH It definitely is. You can just about feel the giddiness here. Why is that with Christmas? MANDY I don't know. Maybe it reminds us of when we were young. JONAH Any favorite holiday memories when you were younger? MANDY Being with my family. JONAH Didn't you say you were on your own this year? MANDY I did. JONAH Well, that's no good. Come to my place. MANDY No, I couldn't. I don't want to intrude. JONAH Intrude? It'd be nice to have you. JONAH I mean, you can't be alone for Christmas when what you love about it is being with people. MANDY Okay. But, only if you let me help with the dinner. JONAH Perfect. I definitely need help with that. MANDY Oh look! Kids can write their own letter to Santa. JONAH Not just kids. MANDY You'll write one too, won't you? JONAH Why not. MANDY What are you going to write? JONAH Can we talk about that? I thought it had to be a secret. MANDY That's birthday wishes. JONAH Well, maybe I want to keep it a secret. MANDY Okay, okay. MANDY You all right there? JONAH I want to get the wording right. He shields the letter from her view. JONAH No peeking. MANDY I wouldn't dare. JONAH Ready? MANDY Let's send them off. JONAH On three? MANDY One. JONAH Two. MANDY Three! MANDY Thank you. JONAH Lots of choices. They start to add in marshmallows, flavored syrups, cinnamon, MANDY Now that's a hot chocolate. JONAH So what did you write in your letter? MANDY I asked to find Judith in time for Christmas. JONAH I thought you might. MANDY What about you? JONAH I'm not saying. MANDY What?! JONAH Just in case it's a birthday wish type of thing. MANDY Then why did you ask me? JONAH Can't blame a guy for being curious, can you? MANDY It's a double standard. JONAH I'll admit to that. MANDY Okay, so don't tell me what's in the letter, but what is #2 on your Christmas list that you didn't write Santa about? JONAH Hmm. Second-best thing.... My bills paid. MANDY Oh yeah? That's not exciting. JONAH It is when you have a lot to pay off for a certain plumber's mistakes. MANDY Ah, yes. Sorry. But you have to have something you want. JONAH What are you looking for? Like, something that would be wrapped under my tree? MANDY Sure, something tangible. JONAH Okay. A good book. MANDY A classic, like Christmas Carol? Jonah winces--clearly not his first choice. JONAH Uh, maybe. MANDY No Dickens then. What are your favorites? JONAH Ones that have been made into movies. MANDY You haven't even read the books, have you? You just watch the movie version. JONAH Guilty. I can tell if I like it or not without spending the time to read it. MANDY All right, then what movies do you like? JONAH Spy movies. MANDY Action-junkie? JONAH Yes and no. I like the intrigue and subplots. MANDY Interesting. JONAH I know, I know. I've ruined your opinion of me. MANDY No. JONAH Sure I have. You were hoping I'd say I liked something deeper. MANDY Nope. It doesn't matter. I just like learning more about you. JONAH You do? MANDY Yeah. Yeah, I do. COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER Come on everyone! Time to meet Santa! SANTA Ho ho ho! MANDY Jonah. Good morning. JONAH Hi. Sorry to bother you-- MANDY No, I'm just taking a break. I've been making a list of all the Judiths in the yearbooks. JONAH Whoa. Any Judith Franklins? MANDY No, and it could be a waste of time but I thought it might come in handy if we find anything else. What are you up to? JONAH I'm looking at my kitchen and realizing I probably need food if I'm going to make Christmas dinner. MANDY That's a good assumption. JONAH I'm not sure what to buy, or to make. Can I convince you to brainstorm with me on that? MANDY Sure. I just have to make one quick stop first. JONAH Hey, thanks for coming. MANDY I brought ideas. JONAH Come on in. JONAH What do you suggest? MANDY Any favorites your parents like? JONAH Just traditional stuff. One year I suggested we have steak and my mom about lost it. MANDY Okay. Ham maybe? Turkey's always good but after Thanksgiving, some people are done with turkey for awhile. JONAH Which is easier? MANDY Ham, definitely. JONAH Perfect. MANDY What about sides? JONAH Do rolls count? MANDY Here-- MANDY Do your parents like sweet potatoes? Or more regular potatoes? Casseroles? JONAH Uh, sweet potatoes. Sure. MANDY Any other favorite veggies? My mom makes this amazing phyllo-dough tart, with mushrooms and this sauce on it. I still don't known what it really is, but it's a Christmas-only tradition. JONAH Mushrooms, for Christmas? MANDY Don't knock it till you try it. Isn't there something special that you'd want as part of the dinner? JONAH Honestly? The raspberry cream cheese pie. MANDY I'll bring one then. JONAH Don't think that lets you off the hook for helping me cook. MANDY Of course not. JONAH Thanks for your help. MANDY Don't lose that. Half the stress is knowing what you'll cook. JONAH And the other half is the cooking itself? MANDY Yep. MANDY Oh, here. JONAH Uh, thanks. JONAH So what are you up to today? MANDY I actually need to go round up donations at a few collection spots and drop them off at the county. JONAH Well, I'll give you a hand. MANDY You don't have to- JONAH I want to. MANDY You sure? JONAH Yeah. Let's do it. MANDY Wow, a lot came in here. She lifts a plastic bag from the box and peeks at the items below it. STUFFED ANIMALS can be seen in the bag. JONAH Do you want to take the whole box or just empty it? MANDY There are still a few days before Christmas. Let's just empty it for now. JONAH Have you finished going through your yearbooks? MANDY Getting closer. I have this idea in my mind about what Judith looks like. Is that funny? JONAH No, of course not. MANDY When I look over the yearbook photos, I see certain ones and get excited if it fits that image. JONAH Until you look at the name. MANDY Yeah. This whole thing is kind of strange, isn't it? JONAH No, because there's a good reason for it. MANDY Be honest with me. Do you think we'll find her in time? JONAH I don't know if we will find her by Christmas. But I do think we'll find her. GABBY So how many bags of toys and books did we collect this year? MANDY In our store, a good 4 large bags. But a lot more came in from other spots throughout town. GABBY Nice of Jonah to help you. MANDY Yes. I wish. GABBY What? MANDY I think Jonah is in a bit of trouble. GABBY Really? MANDY Like, money trouble. He talks about it like he's okay and can handle it, but I think it's worse than he's saying. GABBY That's rough. He's a good guy. * MANDY Yeah. I want to help him, but I'm not sure. GABBY If he'd accept. He seems like the type who wants to earn his own way. MANDY And I like that about him. But then how can I help- GABBY Have an idea? MANDY A little inspiration, yeah. PASTOR Oh. Sorry, I'm afraid we're not open for services for a couple more weeks. MANDY Oh, I know. Are you the pastor here then? PASTOR Yes, I am. MANDY Um, my name's Mandy. And I have something to ask you. MANDY Oh! MANDY Come on. MANDY What? JONAH Mandy? JONAH What's wrong? MANDY The coin. MANDY I've looked everywhere. JONAH It's gone? MANDY I thought I put it back. In my box. JONAH Anywhere else you might have put it? MANDY No. I've kept it here- MANDY I can't believe it's gone. JONAH You've checked the store? Maybe it fell? MANDY That's what I thought. I dropped some stuff but I've been scouring through here all morning and-- JONAH What about Gabby? Would she have any ideas? MANDY Called her already. Nothing. Mandy slumps to sit on the floor. MANDY What if I find Judith? Without the coin, how could I face her? JONAH Hey, don't worry about that. He sits next to her. JONAH We'll be doing good if we even find her. JONAH We'll look for it. Don't give up, okay? MANDY It's just... it's worth a lot. If it were a regular coin, it wouldn't be a big deal, but that's not the case. It could change her life.... JONAH I know. It could change anyone's life. JONAH So, when did you last see it? MANDY Um. You had just borrowed it. JONAH Yeah. I brought it back after I showed it to a collector friend. MANDY And I put it in the box. JONAH Nothing since then? MANDY No. Did you come back for it at all? Maybe to take a second look? JONAH No. And I wouldn't take it without asking you. MANDY It's just, I know you said money's kind of an issue right now, and the coin could help. JONAH Are you... Mandy, I'd never do that, and... I'm surprised you'd think that of me. MANDY No, sorry, it's -- look, just forget it. JONAH Look, I better go. MANDY Jonah-- JONAH I have to finish cleaning up that job site. MANDY I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that-- JONAH Yeah. MANDY Jonah, wait. MANDY It's not like I was accusing him. GABBY It sounds like it was. MANDY You weren't there. GABBY No, which is too bad, because that would have been interesting. I did go over the store with a fine-toothed comb, and couldn't find the coin either. You sure he didn't take it? MANDY I don't know. Wait, do you think he took it? GABBY No. MANDY I'm totally frazzled, and not thinking straight. What do I do? GABBY About the coin or Jonah? MANDY Both. GABBY Well, to start, maybe apologize? MANDY I tried. GABBY He was upset. Understandably so. MANDY Thanks, I get that. What about the letter? It helped having an extra set of eyes and ears. GABBY Seems like if you fix things with Jonah, that solves the other problem. Mandy sighs and plops down into a seat. MANDY You make it sound easy. It really hurt him though. GABBY It'll be okay. MANDY Thanks for listening. GABBY Get some rest. Don't stew over it all night. MANDY I'll try. GABBY Good night. MANDY Night. MANDY "Don't open till Christmas. Love, Mom and Dad." MANDY Oh no. It's Monday-- LIBRARIAN You've reached the library of Everett High School. Please leave a brief message. Thank you. MANDY She is not going to be happy with me. MANDY Hi. JONAH Hey. MANDY Um, I realized I never returned the yearbooks today to the schools. I just finished my part. JONAH Did you find anything? MANDY No. Um, the librarian at Everett High was especially anxious, so I should get those back to her. I think you have those ones. JONAH I haven't finished. I have to drive near the high school tomorrow for work anyway. I can take those back. MANDY You don't have to-- JONAH It's fine. MANDY Okay. Thanks. JONAH My dinner's probably burning on the stove. I gotta go. MANDY Oh, okay. See you later. LIBRARIAN Those are late. JONAH I know. We're really sorry. LIBRARIAN She promised. JONAH It took longer than we thought. I actually have a couple more to go through. Could I sit here and finish them? LIBRARIAN I have a class coming in here soon. JONAH I'll be as fast as I can. LIBRARIAN Make sure your cellphone is off. JONAH Got it. JONAH Victor Franklin. GABBY What are you doing? MANDY Going over the war records again. GABBY Maybe you're putting too much pressure on yourself with this thing. MANDY I'm not giving up. GABBY I know. But finding Judith could be special anytime. You should stop so you can enjoy Christmas. MANDY I am. I bought myself something online last night. It will arrive Christmas Eve. GABBY Yeah, that's the spirit. MANDY It's not a bad thing to stay busy anyway. GABBY It is when you're trying to distract yourself from the real problem. MANDY I keep thinking maybe there is something I've missed-- MANDY Gabby. GABBY What? MANDY I need a flashlight. GABBY Here. GABBY What is it? MANDY It was here. GABBY Okay, when I checked everywhere, I guess I missed that spot. MANDY Me too. GABBY Guess this means Jonah is really in the clear. MANDY Jonah. JONAH Hi. MANDY Thanks for meeting me here. I have something to show you. MANDY It fell in a floor vent. JONAH I'm glad you found it. MANDY Me too. And I'm glad you're here. MANDY I shouldn't have even suggested you had anything to do with it being lost. JONAH I returned the books to Everett High School. JONAH Merry Christmas, Mandy. MANDY What's this? MANDY "Senior Victor Franklin with his cousin Judith Lewis, a sophomore." GABBY So that has to be her. What's next then? MANDY I find everything I can about Judith Lewis. GABBY Great. How? MANDY Her father. You're not busy tonight, are you? GABBY Well, no, but-- MANDY Great! Come over and I'll make you dinner. GABBY Lucky me. GABBY Have you really looked at these war records? All those soldiers.... MANDY I know. It makes me think of Judith and her family, that Christmas she wrote the letter. MANDY Oh! Here's a Lewis! GABBY Really? I just found one too. MANDY Paul Lewis. GABBY Nathan Lewis. MANDY Okay, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that there's more than one Lewis. GABBY Should we make a pile? MANDY Yeah. GABBY I didn't think you'd get this far. MANDY I wouldn't have. Not without Jonah's help, anyway. And yours of course. GABBY Of course. GABBY It was nice of him to give you what he found. MANDY Yeah. GABBY Are you mad at him? MANDY No, it's more the other way around. I think I let it become too much. GABBY "It"? MANDY Our...relationship. Friendship. Acquaintances, really. He's just a nice stranger who helped me for a little while. GABBY A nice-looking stranger. MANDY Does it matter? GABBY Depends on how you feel. MANDY It's out of my control. He has his life, and I have mine. They're not going in the same direction anymore. It's Christmas. We should focus on that. MANDY And this. Found another one. Colin Lewis. PASTOR Jonah! How are you? JONAH Good, thanks. We're moving along well here. PASTOR I can hardly wait till I can clean up all the dust. JONAH It gets frustrating, I'm sure. PASTOR As much as I am eager to have the church back in operation, make sure you get some rest and enjoy Christmas. JONAH I will. PASTOR Good. Oh- PASTOR Here. JONAH What's this? PASTOR The balance of what I owe you for your work. JONAH But I'm not done. You don't owe me until-- PASTOR I know. I thought you might need it though. JONAH I... thank you. PASTOR Merry Christmas. JONAH Hey Pastor. JONAH How... how did you know? PASTOR A beautiful angel told me. JONAH "This is one of the few spy novels I've read. It's a 'first edition,' which seems less impressive since it was published just a couple of years ago. Even so, I loved it. I hope you will too. -- Mandy" COUNTY CLERK Merry Christmas. What can I do for you? MANDY I'm trying to track down a woman named Judith Lewis. She would have been born in late 1930s. COUNTY CLERK Oh, I remember you. MANDY Yes, sorry. I've made progress though. I know her dad is one of these men. COUNTY CLERK Well, is she deceased? MANDY I don't know. Could we look for her birth record? COUNTY CLERK No, that's private information, reserved for family members. Which I assume you are not. MANDY What else could I look for to narrow down who she is? Please, this is a matter of ... at least sentimental importance. COUNTY CLERK Well, you could look up a marriage license. If you know the father's name, they list that on the records. MANDY Even if he's deceased at the time of the marriage? COUNTY CLERK Yep. Better hurry though. We close early today and don't reopen until the 26th. MANDY What do we do? COUNTY CLERK All right. I'm narrowing the search to marriages in the 1950s-70s. Give me the name of the first father. MANDY Paul Lewis. COUNTY CLERK He's listed on the marriage licenses of two children. Dorothy and Samuel. MANDY Nope. How about Nathan Lewis? COUNTY CLERK Father of Joan? MANDY Hmmm. Any other children? COUNTY CLERK Nope. Give me another. MANDY Donald Lewis. Died in 1942. COUNTY CLERK Nothing under that name. MANDY Try Colin Lewis next. COUNTY CLERK He's listed under one marriage-- COUNTY CLERK For Judith Lewis. MANDY Really? Judith? Judith Lewis? COUNTY CLERK Married in 1957 to William Cross. You want a copy of this? COUNTY CLERK You going to pass out or something? MANDY No, no, I'm fine. Please, I'd love a copy. MANDY Excuse me, Merry Christmas! MANDY I found her! GABBY Merry Christmas. GABBY Seriously? MANDY Yep. Her dad is Colin, her mother is Ruth, and Judith married William Cross. It's her. GABBY You're sure? MANDY I checked all the Lewis soldiers just to be safe, but she's the only one. GABBY And she's alive? MANDY I even asked the clerk to search for a possible death certificate for Judith--and there is none. The clerk was about to toss me out by the time I left. I think she had a work Christmas party to get to. GABBY Wow. This is her. MANDY I know! GABBY So, Judith Cross. You just have to find her. MANDY Yeah. GABBY It's the 23rd of December. MANDY I know. I have a lot to do. GABBY Guess this means you could use some help till closing time. MANDY Is that okay? GABBY I would have made up an excuse if it wasn't. MANDY You're the best. I'll be at home GABBY I'll come over after I close up here. MANDY Thanks! Mandy leaves. MANDY No, it's okay. It sounds like I have the wrong Judith Cross. Thanks for chatting though. Okay. Bye bye. GABBY How many more? MANDY Keeping it within the county, I'm looking at three more. Beyond that... well, let's hope she's like most people in the area and loves it here. GABBY When you find her-- MANDY I like how optimistic you are now. GABBY Are you going to tell Jonah? MANDY Would you? GABBY Yeah. MANDY I want to. I'll agonize over that after I've found the right Judith Cross. MANDY Ugh. Voicemail. MANDY Hi, my name's Mandy, and I am looking for Judith Cross. I found something that I think belongs to her, but I'm not sure if I have the right person. If you could call me back, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks. GABBY What are you doing for Christmas Eve tomorrow? MANDY Uh, I am...I think I'm just going to have a quiet night to myself. Maybe watch a movie and actually use my fireplace. GABBY Sounds cozy. And Christmas Day? MANDY Maybe I'll make it a movie marathon that day too. GABBY You could come hang out with me and my family. MANDY Thanks, but you don't have to do that. GABBY I'm just saying, you might want a break and some company. MANDY I'm pathetic, aren't I? GABBY I purposely didn't say that. MANDY It's the first time you've held back. That's how I know it's a sympathy invitation. GABBY Well-- GABBY Fine. But promise me, that if you feel like it, you'll come over. MANDY Okay. Thanks. MANDY Hello? ABIGAIL Hi. We got a call from this number, about something that belongs to my mother? MANDY Your mother? Is she Judith Cross? ABIGAIL Yes. MANDY Hi! Hi, yes. Thanks for calling me back. JONAH Hi Mom. JONAHS MOTHER Merry Christmas Eve! JONAH Are you ready for Christmas? JONAHS MOTHER Me? You're the one doing all the work. I can't tell you how nice it is not to worry about cooking this year. JONAH Yeah, you just relax. I have everything planned. JONAHS MOTHER Good! Now, don't forget to thaw the turkey in advance. Or the ham--what are we having? JONAH Ham. I'll make sure it's thawed, and nice and warm when you come. JONAHS MOTHER Is your friend still coming? JONAH Ah, I...I don't know. She might have had something come up. JONAHS MOTHER Come up? It's Christmas. JONAH Don't worry about it. Drive safely. I'll see you tomorrow. JONAHS MOTHER All right now. Love you. JONAH Love you too, Mom. MANDY Oh! JONAH Mandy! MANDY Sorry, I was about to knock. JONAH I wasn't expecting you. MANDY No, I...I thought I'd just stop by. MANDY Here. I thought you could use it for tomorrow. JONAH Is this. JONAH Wow. Thank you. JONAH Was it MANDY I- MANDY Sorry. Go ahead. JONAH The pastor at the church paid me ahead of schedule. Was that... JONAH That was you. MANDY Sorry. I shouldn't have meddled. I It was the best thing I could think to... to make things better. JONAH Thank you. MANDY It was Pastor. JONAH Thanks for caring though. MANDY I found Judith. JONAH You did? MANDY I'm going there now. I thought you might want to come. JONAH Oh. I... I have some last minute Christmas errands, and- MANDY Oh, yeah. Of course. I just thought I'd check. JONAH Do you want me to come? MANDY Yes. I do. MANDY I didn't tell you everything I wrote in my letter to Santa. JONAH What do you mean? MANDY I asked that I would find Judith, but I also asked that you and I could give her the letter together. JONAH Let me put this in the fridge. JONAH You ready? ABIGAIL Yes? MANDY Hi. I'm Mandy--we spoke on the phone? ABIGAIL Oh yes! My mother just took my kids to the town square for the tree lighting. I tried to stop her but I didn't want to give away why. MANDY Oh--should we wait here? ABIGAIL I'm not sure how long they'll be. If you want, they should be easy to find. MANDY Her daughter said she was wearing a light blue coat. JONAH I don't see her yet. JONAH Come on. Let's try over here. MANDY Split up? TOWN MAYOR Good evening, everyone! In just 15 minutes, we'll have our grand Christmas Eve tree lighting! MANDY Could we have missed her? JONAH It's getting cold. Maybe they went back early. MANDY Wait. MANDY Look. JONAH Let's go. MANDY Excuse me. Are you Judith Cross? JUDITH CROSS Yes, that's me. JUDITH CROSS Why don't you two go buy us something warm? TEENAGE GRANDKID Be right back, Grandma. JUDITH CROSS So, you're Mandy. MANDY Yes. And this is Jonah. MANDY We've been looking for you, to return something that's yours. JUDITH CROSS What's this? Christmas isn't till tomorrow, you know. MANDY I can't wait till then. MANDY Please, go ahead and open it. JUDITH CROSS All right then. Just don't tell my grandkids. They'll want to open everything they can tonight. They'll deny it but teenagers are just as excited for presents. MANDY When you were a young girl, do you remember writing letters to Santa? JUDITH CROSS Oh yes. I wrote many. MANDY And was there a time when you wrote Santa, not for a gift for yourself, MANDY but for him to give a gift to someone else? JUDITH CROSS My father... JUDITH CROSS Victor's book! MANDY Jonah and I came across this book, and the letter was inside it. JUDITH CROSS Oh, look at my handwriting. MANDY When I read it, I knew it was something you'd want back. And the coin too. JUDITH CROSS I found this silver dollar after my father died. I knew it would have been a favorite for his collection. I missed him so much... And I thought if anyone could give it to my father, maybe it was Santa. MANDY It's worth a decent amount of money now. JONAH You'll want to keep it safe. JUDITH CROSS Thank you both. This is... JUDITH CROSS Amazing. JUDITH CROSS "Dear Santa. I have been good all year and tried to help my mother. I know we won't have much for Christmas. That is just fine by me. But could you help me? I found a coin I think my father would like. He died in the war though. For Christmas this year, could my present be you giving this to my father? He liked collecting these. I miss him and I know he would love it. Love, Judith." JUDITH CROSS Thank you. TOWN MAYOR It's the time you've all been waiting for! We welcome you all to our Christmas Eve tree lighting. We're so proud of our community, and look forward to sharing this special evening with you.... JONAH Thank you, for bringing me with you. MANDY This wouldn't have happened without you. JONAH I think you would have found a way. You believed in this, in how special this was... You wouldn't have given up. MANDY I don't know. But it certainly was better with you involved. JONAH Maybe faster. MANDY More fun. JONAH The librarian might disagree. MANDY Why did you volunteer to help me that day? At the church? JONAH Because, no one else would have given the letter a second thought like you did. They might have thrown it away, told a friend about it as a cute story, or gotten rich off the coin, but not you. MANDY Not you either. And no one else would have helped me. JONAH Yes they would have. If they saw what I saw in you... TOWN MAYOR Now, count down with me to light our glorious tree! 10, 9, 8, 7,-- JONAH Do you know what I put in my letter to Santa? MANDY What? JONAH I asked for you to ... to love me. TOWN MAYOR --6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! MANDY We both got our Christmas wishes. JONAH Merry Christmas. MANDY Merry Christmas. JONAH You're still coming tomorrow for dinner, right? MANDY I'd love to. JONAH Good. MANDY Have you started any of the recipes? JONAH I haven't even gone to the grocery store. MANDY At least we have pie.