My little brother wanted a ferret more than anything else in the entire world. Not just any ferret, though. There was one specific ferret that he just had to have. He fell in love with the little guy the second he saw him. The ferret was a registered albino, specially bred, fixed, and tattooed. However, my mother wasn’t convinced that it was a good decision. Ferrets are expensive, they need quite a bit of attention, and they do require a fair amount of regular care. Spencer has never been the most responsible, so I’m sure the thought running through my mother’s mind was that the ferret would keep his attention for a few weeks and then she would end up taking care of the little thing.

She told him that he would have to pay for the ferret and all of its accessories, and before he could even think about buying it, he had to read an entire book on how to care for ferrets. My brother is definitely not the reading type, but he read the entire book—really quickly, too. We were all somewhat shocked, but very impressed. He used his first paycheck from his first real job to buy the little baby ferret.

The two became inseparable. They were definitely best friends, and Spencer did absolutely everything necessary to take care of the little critter. He named the little guy Jax, and even went so far as to celebrate his birthday (July 4th, 2004). Spencer and Jax went everywhere together. They even took showers together every now and then. Spencer taught Jax how to do tricks, like rolling over for fruity cheerios, playing dead, and fetching. My mom never had to take care of the little critter at all, but found herself almost as attached to him as Spencer was.

My brother joined the army when he graduated from high school and, unfortunately, had to leave Jax behind. It wasn’t a big deal because my mom loves him and takes care of him without any trouble. Jax is so well behaved that he’s never needed to be caged, but ran around the apartment on his own, sleeping in his cage in the homemade sleeping bag I made him.

This summer, I moved home after college before moving away to start my new teaching job. It was the end of June, and stifling hot. We left the patio door open, not worried about anyone getting in because we’re on the third floor of our apartment building. However, the screen door does not lock shut. Somehow, Jax managed to slide the screen door open and get out on the deck. He hopped down onto the air conditioner below and then down onto the ground. The building was right on the lake, with a walking path running through our back yard.

When we woke up, we had no idea where Jax was. We tore the apartment to pieces, looking everywhere and didn’t find him. We went down by the lake, shaking a box of cheerios, just waiting for him to come running. My mother and I went all over town to the vet clinics, pet stores, and the humane society. Nobody had seen him, and nobody called later. After a few weeks, we just had to give up looking. We talked to my brother in Afghanistan pretty regularly, but didn’t have the heart to tell him what happened. The first question out of his mouth was always, “How is Jax doing?” We tried to change the subject and avoid the question as often as possible.

My brother is coming home from Afghanistan on December 4th (three days from now), and my mother has been stressing over how to tell my brother that his baby is gone. She thought it best to tell him in person, but it was going to be very difficult for both of them, and she knew it.

This morning, she was finishing up a bit of her Christmas shopping at the mall, calling me occasionally to get an opinion on this or that. On a whim, she decided to go into the pet store, which she never goes in unless my stepsister is with and begs to go (which is very rare). Sitting there in the cage was an albino ferret, about the same size as Jax. She called me to help her decide if it was worth it to try and fake another ferret, but we both decided that Spencer would definitely be able to tell the difference. Plus, Jax had a tattoo on his ear, and he knew how to do tricks. There was no way.

She called me back about a half an hour later, though, crying. She said that she had Jax. I was confused at first, and told her to slow down and start at the beginning. The conversation was a little like this.

“What now? I’m confused.”

“Well, I was in the pet shop, just looking at the animals and I decided to look closer at this white ferret. He popped right up and knew me. It was Jax!” she sounded so happy through the tears.

“What? That’s not possible. It’s been like seven months since he disappeared.” I was skeptical.

“No, seriously. It’s him. He’s got the same tattoo that’s on his papers. He sat right on my shoulder. I just broke down crying when I saw him, and the sales lady came over to see what was wrong. I told her that this was my ferret. I explained how I knew, with the markings and the tattoo, showed her a trick, and she believed me. She got the owner on the phone and explained.”

“Yeah, but Mom, how did he end up in a pet store?” I asked.

“Well, the owner said that he just came in the other day, and she paid a bit for him. She asked how much I would offer, but we finally came to a deal that I would give her the $50 I was saving for my winter coat. I don’t know how much she bought him for from the people, but I was just so excited to have him back. He hopped right up on my shoulder and tried to dig in my purse for papaya chunks.”

I was laughing through the tears, just like she was. The baby was back and JUST in time for my brother to get home. He was healthy and had been taken care of. And somehow, he ended up with us because my mother just happened to walk into the right store at the right time and he was there. A miracle? Maybe. A coincidence? I doubt it. I don’t know how it happened, but it did and we are all very thankful. Now the biggest worry is whether or not to tell my brother the whole story or pretend like nothing ever happened.