“Open it.”
“Wh-what if we wait?” Nick knotted his hands on the arms of the chair. “I mean what’s a little more time? I’m probably a better fighter without a soul.”
The entire room burst into laughter.
“You’re also lazy, selfish, and venal. You would run at the first sign of a fight to save yourself.” Scrooge tapped on the bow. “Now open.”
Nick’s mouth scrunched up, and he glowered at the room. He acted irritated, but I saw his fingers shaking as they tugged at the bow. He was scared. None of us knew what would happen when he opened it. Would it be painful? Flooded with memories and trauma Nick was able to keep to the side? Whatever he went through was so bad, even with a split soul, his pain and torment still came out in nightmares.
Glacially slow, Nick pulled the ribbon loose, shifting in his chair and breathing heavily.
Hare hopped next to me as we all watched Nick with a silent apprehension, all hanging on the edge of a cliff.
“Oh, for fuck sake, just rip the band-aid.” Hare moved to Nick quicker than I thought he could, grabbing the box lid and ripping it off.
A distressed cry came from Nick, who slammed back in the chair with panicked eyes. Santa’s soul floated out of the box, and like the ones I saw in the Land of the Lost Souls, it twinkled with a warm light. It pulsated, glowing brighter than the North Star. My hand went to my eyes, shielding them from the brilliance.
“No! No! I don’t want it!” Nick cried out, his head waggling back and forth, his eyes and mouth wide in fear. The soul glittered and dashed forward, darting into his open mouth, glowing as it moved down his throat, disappearing into the darkness.
Nick’s eyes whizzed around the room nervously, as if he were waiting for something. Slowly his body relaxed as more seconds ticked by.
“Nothing happened. I feel like me.” A smile grew on his face. “Ha, ha, asswipes! Santa’s ‘goodness’ is lost for good. Can’t compete with the dark side.” His hand went to his belly, rubbing it. “Actually, I feel good. All warm and toasty insi—”
His form jerked, horror rounding his eyes as light blasted from deep under his skin, a chilling scream tearing from his gut. His hand went to his head, clawing and wailing. Like a dying fish, his body flopped and jerked, sliding off the chair, crumpling onto the floor.
“Make it stop! Make it stop!” he bellowed, writhing on the ground. His gut-wrenching pleas fired chills over my skin, my chest knotting up.
“No! Please.” Nick thrashed on the floor, tears spilling down his face, his expression twisted in agony. “Stop. Please, stop!”
“Santa,” Dee cried out trying to get to him. Scrooge grabbed her, pulling her back into him.
A long agonizing wail tore through the room, piercing the air in my lungs. Then he froze, the cry shutting off like a faucet, his body sagged onto the wood.
Silence.
“Santa?” Dee whispered, Scrooge’s arm still wrapped around her.
A heartbreaking sob came from Nick, his huge frame quivering as if his entire heart and soul were broken, as if every memory and feeling had been returned to the owner to experience all over again. Another excruciating sob whimpered from him before he went still.
Silent.
Only the sound of the fire crackling and our tense breaths hummed in the air.
“Santa?” Scrooge finally spoke, moving around Dee as he inched closer. “Hey.” Scrooge nudged his arm with his boot. “You okay?”
“Do I fucking look okay, asshole?” Nick spat, his head jerking up, his nose flaring with hate.
“Nick?” Scrooge peered back at us, confusion riding his brow. “Where’s Santa?”
Nick sat up, his face angry, streaked with tears and red blotches. “The gallant, bleeding heart is sniveling like a little girl in here.”
“Hey,” both Dee and I responded.
“What a great fucking hero you have.” Nick scanned the room. “The man you put all your belief in is curled up in a ball. Can’t take it. Oh, my friends. Jessica cut off their heads. Oh, I can’t handle it.” Nick mocked in a whimpering voice. “Pussy.”
Scrooge’s shoulders lifted, his chest puffing out in anger.
“Oh Jessie, how could you? How could you hurt them? Oh, my elves. My family. They’re all dead,” he parodied, raising his pitch in a woeful voice.
“Shut up,” Scrooge growled.
“No, stop, Jessie.” Nick rolled his eyes. “Fuckin’ pathetic.”
Crack!
The bottle in Hare’s hand whacked across Nick’s temple, jolting his body to the side, his chest smacking down onto the floor again, knocking him out instantly.
“Baked biscuits, that was… amazing!” Hare looked over at me. “Am I right? I feel so much better.”
“Dammit.” Scrooge placed his hands on his hips. “I should have done that.”
“Ha! Too late,” Hare cheered. “I thought of it first.”
“Next time, it’s me.” Scrooge pointed at himself.
“Not unless I do it.” I winked. “I am the trailblazer.”
“There is something seriously wrong with all of you.” Rudy stomped by us, squatting down next to Nick. He tapped his cheek softly. “Hey, wake up.”
“Want me to do that?” Hare asked, wiggling his ears.
“No.” Rudy narrowed his eyes at the rabbit, patting at Nick’s face again.
Nick snorted awake, his lids blinking as he came back to himself. Glancing around, his head finally lifted to us. Innocence rounded his cheeks and eyes as he looked around at each one of us, then down to himself.
“Oh my!” Nick’s voice came out, but it sounded smooth around the edges and calm. He used his beard to make sure he was completely covered, his cheeks reddening. “I am not decent for mixed company.”
“Santa?” Dee’s voice trembled, her tiny little feet pushing away from Scrooge as if she were in a trance. “Santa, is that you?”
His glistening blue eyes went to her, blinking with emotion.
“Oh, my dear Dee Puck.” He gripped his heart, then leaned forward, holding out his arms. “How I’ve missed you.”
“Santa!” She ran into him, jumping into his arms, happy sobs muffled by his beard. He shut his eyes, sighing deeply into her hug.
Joy filled the room as two lost friends were finally reunited.
Best friends.
Chapter 33
Dum and Penguin joined in on the hug, leaping and squealing for Santa’s attention. The happiness and love in room were palpable with pure innocence.
Santa dominated the space with his magic, turning me into a little girl lost in adoration. The power he exuded was tangible, sparking joy and warmth down my spine. I couldn’t fight the emotion behind my lids, a smile expanding over my face at their giddiness and the genuine affection they all felt for each other.
Eventually, they eased back, letting Santa rise.
“Rudy, my dear friend.” Santa reached his hand out to him, shaking it, then smoothing down his long beard. “Would you be so kind as to grab me something to wear. I feel quite exposed.”
“Certainly.” A smile drifted over Rudolph’s face. “It is so good to have you back.”
Santa blinked, nodding, a sadness lowering his shoulders.
“It is good to be back…” There was a but he left off, but everyone here understood. “There is so much to do.”
As Rudy left the room, doing Santa’s bidding, the white-haired man turned to Scrooge.
“At one time you and I never saw eye to eye.” He took Scrooge’s hand, his white bushy eyebrows crinkling. “What you have done for me?” A lump hitched in his throat. “There are no words for your gallant, selfless act, my dear Scrooge. You have been a true friend to me, a leader to Winterland, and a father to these beautiful souls.” He nodded down at the three dancing around him. “You could even say your acts would put you on the good lis—”
“Don’t say it.” Scrooge shook his head. “Don’t even think it.”
S
anta’s smile curled higher, his glinting eyes sliding to me for a second.
“I promise I will keep it between us.” He squeezed his hand, letting it go and turning to me.
“Alice.” He stood before me.
“You know who I am?” I might as well have turned into a five-year-old, my eyes wide with awe. The aura coming off Santa Claus was ten times stronger than what Nick carried. Staring into the same face, he looked completely different to me, like the jolly-happy man the songs sang about.
I wasn’t just standing in front of an icon, but a worldwide legend, fairytale, myth, and idol.
“You are her.” He bowed his head in acknowledgment. “The Spirit of Christmas Future.”
“Wha-what?” I blinked, my mouth dropping open.
“You have shown you are worthy of the lore, my dear girl. Strength, courage, loyalty, and determination. You are exactly what we need to change what is yet to come.” He smiled down at me. “And when I say spirit, I mean character. You are a force, Alice. You have set all of this in motion. I thank you for waking us up.”
“You-you’re welcome.” I stuttered under his overwhelming personality and praise.
“Hare…” Santa faced the rabbit.
“Yeeeaaahhh… let’s not do this.” Hare gestured between them. “Blah, blah, I’m awesome… I know.”
“Of course, if that’s what you wish.”
“What I wish for...” He bounded back for the table. “…is another drink of mead.”
For a brief moment, I saw Santa’s eye twitch, his jaw setting, before it was gone, the jolly man back in place, smiling at Hare. It was so fast I wasn’t sure I witnessed it.
“Santa?” Rudy came back into the room, holding out a pair of red pants and a white shirt.
“Thank you.” He clutched the fabric to his chest. “I will be right back. Make myself presentable.” Santa headed down the hallway, Pen, Dee, and Dum following him all the way to the bathroom door, not wanting him out of their sight.
At the table, I glanced back at Scrooge. He stood in the same place an odd expression on his face.
“What’s wrong?” He jerked at my words, his hand running through his thick hair.
“Nothing.” He strolled up next to me, his hand sliding down my lower back to my ass.
“Try again.”
“No, it’s nothing. Just me being paranoid.” The hand on my ass slipped around, grabbing the bottle in my hand, swiping it from my grip.
“Hey!”
“Need to be careful.” His eyebrow cocked up, mischief written over his lips as he took a slug. “I’ve heard I can be a real greedy bastard. Endless appetite.”
Prickles of desire flamed up the back of my legs, traveling all the way to my cheeks.
“Ugh.” Hare downed a huge gulp, falling into the chair, his lips smacking. “You guys are going to be intolerable now, aren’t you?”
“Extremely.” Scrooge took another drink, groaning with happiness under his breath at the taste of mead before handing it back to me. “But you get a reprieve for at least a day. Now that Santa is back, I need to head off.”
“I’m going.” I looked up at him.
“No, you’re not.” His brow wrinkled, his blue eyes lowering. “We already discussed this.”
“No. You discussed it, and I vetoed your plan.”
“You vetoed my plan?” He seemed bewildered by my claim. “That’s not how it works. This isn’t a democracy.”
“Well, it is now, and I voted, I’m going with you.”
“Ms. Liddell…”
“Ms. Liddell me all you want. I’m. Going.” I put my hands on my hips. “No point in trying to stop me. Think we both know how well that went for you before.”
“Alice.”
“You’re so adorable when you think you have a say in this.” I patted his cheek.
He rumbled dragging his hand over his face. “Fine. But you stay close. Listen to everything I say.”
“Oh. So caveman of you.”
He glared at me, only widening my smile.
“Whoa. Whoa!” Hare waved his arms, almost falling out of the seat. “If she goes, I go.”
“No. No-no-no-no.” Scrooge shook his head. “We talked about this. You need to stay here, and…”
“If you say watch these fiends and bake, I will knock you in the head with a bottle.” Wobbling with drink, Hare stood on his seat. Teetering to one side. “Why don’t you stay back and be the nanny this time. I’m tired of being unappreciated, ignored, and treated like a slave.”
“Welcome to parenthood,” Scrooge smirked.
“Do you see me with a bunch of bunnies bouncing around me?” He waved around him. “No! I wrap that shit up so I won’t. I was supposed to be your partner… not your maid.”
“You’re right.” Scrooge nudged me with his elbow. “He is my fucking wife. Nag, nag, nag.”
“Gah!” Anger rolled Hare’s chin, grunting noises coming from his throat, too furious to form words. “Gahhh!”
“Hare, you can come with us,” I declared.
“What?”
“What?”
Both stared at me.
“Listen, you did leave,” I said to Scrooge. “Hare and I became a team. We got through because of each other. So yeah, I have his back. If he wants to come, he’s coming.”
Scrooge blinked at me as a wicked smile stretched over Hare’s mouth.
“Sorry, fucknutter. She and I are a team. Guess you’ll just have to deal.”
“No,” Scrooge blurted out. “Who will watch them? As you’ve seen, Dum and Pen can’t take care of themselves.”
“You have the perfect babysitter now. Who better than Santa?” Hare pointed down the hall, where the group huddled around the door waiting for the man himself to reappear.
“Yeah…” Scrooge rubbed his chin, glancing down the hall, the same odd look I had seen earlier appearing briefly.
“Rudy is here, and also Dee has the run entire elf workshop.” Hare tossed up his arms. “They are in better hands.”
“Dee is the only one I trust out of those.” Scrooge took a deep, defeated breath.
Hare and I grinned, knowing we won.
“Shit.” He scoured at his face, dropping his head forward. “My wife now has teamed up with my girlfriend.”
Not everyone was thrilled with us leaving again, but as soon as Scrooge asked Dee to be in charge, to keep the place running like her workshop, her character completely shifted, turning serious, her warrior, no-nonsense attitude kicking in.
“I will not disappoint you.” She got a piece of paper and started making a list, using a book as a clipboard, she started issuing everyone their duties.
“I hate you.” Dum stuck his tongue out at us. “She’s ruthless when she gets this way.”
“Shush, Dum-puck.” Even her voice commanded attention. “If you have time to complain, you have time to clean.” She clicked her fingers, motioning him to the pick up the stuff in the living room.
Santa had decided to take a nap claiming a headache and exhaustion from the trauma his mind and body went through. Rudy glowered from the sofa, not happy with being left behind. Pen was asleep, his head on his thigh, while Dum pretended to clean up.
“Where was this person earlier?” I gaped at her. When I left, she was still unconscious, but she had been part of the mess when I returned, not at all the one laying down the law.
“You never asked.” She shrugged, causing Hare’s mouth to drop open.
“S-s-seriously?” he sputtered. “I asked you to clean up all the time.”
“You ordered and screamed at us.” She twisted back and forth, letting the long t-shirt she still wore of Nick’s swish around her ankles. “You never asked me to take charge.”
Hare’s mouth opened, then shut, and opened again, his lids blinking at an unnatural rate.
“You all acted like gremlins.” He spoke slowly, fury stressing each word. “Making my life hell… because I didn’t ask you to manage the r
est?”
“Elves are all or nothing.” Scrooge tried to hold back a grin, winking down at Dee. “And you have to know how to ask them. It takes a certain finesse.”
Dee’s rosy cheeks bled into her entire face, her head lowering bashfully.
“Yeah.” Hare snorted, pulling on a backpack full of snacks and kitchen knives. “I think I can see finesse comes with ripped abs.”
“Let’s go.” Scrooge squeezed Dee’s shoulder, strolling to the table holding more kitchen knives. He stuffed one in his boot and another one in his waist band. “Should only be a half-day trek to the top.”
“That’s where we’re going? To the top?” I rechecked the ice pick I had in my boot, adding a knife to a slit I put in the pair of sweats at my hip. I had changed back into the tight tank, letting my arms move freely again. In an attack, the sweatshirt would just tangle me up and give the enemy something easy to grab onto.
“Yeah.” Scrooge’s gaze met Hare’s, sharing something.
“What?” I responded, realizing I hadn’t asked many questions about what we were doing or where we were going. “What am I missing? What are we doing?”
“Sometimes knowing just makes the knowing long for the unknowing.”
“Ugh. We’re gonna start that shit again?” I headed around the table.
“Start what, Ms. Liddell?” A glimmer of mischief twinkled in Scrooge’s eyes. “I have no idea what you’re referring too.”
“Talking nonsense again.”
“We never spoke nonsense or have never stopped. You just didn’t understand the sense in our nonsense, or you finally understand nonsense in our sense.”
Scary, it was probably all true. “You are all bonkers.” I bumped by him, my hand brushing over his ass.
“As you are, Ms. Liddell,” he rumbled into my ear. “Completely and utterly mad.”
“The best people are.” I winked at him, making my way over to the sofa, kissing Pen softly on the head. Dum leaped up for a hug, while Rudy bowed his head to me. A distance between us had developed the moment he knew Scrooge had “claimed” me, though I think we’d always have a connection.
“We’ll be back hopefully by tomorrow,” Scrooge said to both Dee and Rudy, heading for the door, Hare trailing behind.
Ascending From Madness Page 25