Geesh, he sounded just like Pippa. “It’s not hygienic to have a pine tree in the middle of a place that sells food!” I said, trying to justify my position. “Maybe if it was a clothing store, or we sold mountain bikes or something…but no one wants pine needles in their cupcakes!”
“You could always get a plastic tree,” Andrew pointed out. I hated how reasonable that sounded. I’d told Pippa to get a small fake tree for her living room, but I had refused to take my own suggestion.
“Well, Pippa didn’t exactly give me that option,” I said, growing more frustrated. “She kind of bombarded me with the tree.” I stopped and thought about it, then sighed. “I might have had a knee-jerk reaction. I do tend to judge things a little too harshly. And immediately.”
Andrew and I drove back to the mall separately. I took a deep breath before we stepped inside the caves. The only job I had was to wait while Andrew spoke with Ellon. I was just going to have to be patient while he went and put in a good word for Pippa.
But there was something else I wanted to do. “I’ll just pop my head into Cave Number One and say hello,” I said, my heart beating faster. Andrew didn’t seem to notice that anything was up.
I braced myself to see Jarod and took a deep breath before I ducked through the curtain. “Hi…”
Oh. The Santa sitting on the throne was not young and skinny, but old and…well, let’s just say he didn’t need to add a lot of extra stuffing to his costume.
“I was…um, I was looking for Jarod,” I said, feeling silly as I started to back out.
“He’s not in,” Santa said, his nose in the air. “He no longer works here.”
“Oh.”
I backed into the hallway again, feeling flustered. Jarod had quit? Been fired?
Something was puzzling me about the Santa who had replaced him. He looked awfully familiar.
I found Andrew in the hallway. “Andrew, was that the Santa who was on the float yesterday in the parade?” I grabbed the newspaper, which was still tucked under his arm, and quickly pulled the pages open to find the photograph. Yes, all Santas look similar when they were in the costume, but there was no mistaking it. This was the same guy from the parade. The new “real” Santa. But he’d only gotten that position because someone else had died.
“What is he doing back here in the caves?” I asked Andrew. “I thought he was too scared to work here after the other Santa was killed?”
Andrew shook his head. “Maybe that’s what he told Pippa, to save face, but the truth is he was let go after he started making demands. The guy’s an actor. He’s played Santa in television commercials and stuff like that. It’s kinda gone to his head and he can be difficult to work with. After he had a diva tantrum last week, Ellon told him not to come in again. I don’t think he was too happy about it, to be honest.”
I gulped. “But now that Jarod is gone, Santa Number Three has his job back.”
Andrew nodded slowly. “And he got to be front and center in the parade yesterday.”
I shoved the newspaper back into Andrew’s arms. “The favor can wait a little while,” I said, rushing out of there. “I need to go and make sure that someone I care about is all right.”
“I know you’re still angry at me about the tree, but this is important,” I said, almost yelling into the phone, I was so frantic. “Please, Pippa, you have to help me find him.”
“You don’t really think that Santa Number Three would have killed Jarod, do you?” Her voice was suddenly a whisper on the other end. Her words might have sounded like she was in disbelief, but her tone sounded like she knew it might be true. Maybe she even wanted it to be true. At least it would mean that Marcello was off the hook.
“If he killed Santa Number Two to get rid of him and get his job and his place on the float, then of course he could have killed Jarod for the same reason,” I returned frantically. I mean, there was no chance that Jarod was ever going to get a spot on a float or in a parade, but he had gotten a job at Christmas Village beyond all odds. “Otherwise why wouldn’t Jarod turn up for his shift?” I asked. Andrew had told me that Jarod hadn’t quit or been fired, he just hadn’t shown up. I could hear how frantic I was. I needed Pippa’s help. We had to save Jarod’s life before it was too late.
My stomach sank. What if it was already too late?
“Okay, I’ll be there in five,” Pippa said. “Just try to stay calm in the meantime.”
“I don’t even know where to look,” I said, pacing in front of my house. Jarod wasn’t returning any of my messages… Was it already too late?
“Here, have a drink of this,” Pippa said, handing me some sort of brown liquid in a small mug.
“What is this?” I asked, thinking that it was a strange-looking hot chocolate. I wasn’t in the mood for anything sweet.
“Brandy.”
I spit it out and shook my head, handing it back to her. “No.”
“It’s festive, don’t worry!” Pippa said, handing me the mug again. “And it will calm you down. Come on.”
I sighed and took another sip, then another. Why not? It was Christmas after all, wasn’t it?
I had the sudden idea that we should sell brandy-soaked cakes down at the bakery. “They will be huge sellers,” I said, my eyes growing wide as the Christmas spirit filled me.
“I can’t believe you aren’t selling Christmas cakes yet,” Pippa said, sounding disapproving. It felt a little sad to hear her saying “you” instead of “we.” Was she ever coming back?
“I’ll put it on the menu tomorrow, Pippa, I promise.”
We had to take it easy on the roads. Partly because there was still heavy snow, and partly because Pippa had to drive my car and she wasn’t used to driving a stick. But I’d had too much brandy to be able to operate a vehicle. We were still on the west side of town, and our first stop had to be Jarod’s house. I tried to direct her to the right place, past the lake and the art gallery.
I blinked a few times as we approached Sue’s gallery. Something didn’t look right.
“What is the light doing on at Sue’s gallery?” I asked, leaning forward. Sue was very budget conscious about her gallery, so there was no way that she would go away for two weeks and leave the lights on.
Unless it had been a mistake. In that case, I should really find out whether she’d left a spare key behind and go in and fix it for her.
Pippa didn’t even slow down, however. She was dismissive of my concerns. “Is that the most important thing to be focused on right now?”
I told her to pull the car over. I had a feeling it wasn’t just negligence on Sue’s part. Someone was in the gallery. And I needed to see who it was. “Something’s wrong. Sue is on vacation in Boston for the next two weeks. The gallery is closed until then. If the light is on, then we need to check it out.”
Pippa rolled her eyes, but she turned the car in the direction of the gallery, which was on a small hill, and stopped the engine before I ran inside. The brandy made me a lot less safety conscious than I usually would have been, running into a building late at night that I was sure was being robbed.
I gasped when I saw a figure standing there, removing a painting from the wall. A tall figure, lanky, with blonde hair that was slightly spiky on the top.
“Jarod?” I asked, my heart in my throat. I didn’t know whether to be thrilled or outraged to see him standing there. So I guessed he wasn’t dead then. Unless I was staring at a ghost.
He spun around. “Rachael…” His face fell.
“You broke in here?” I asked in disbelief, the sense of betrayal flooding me. He wasn’t just a ‘bad boy’ with a good heart underneath it all, he was an actual sociopath. Who takes advantage of someone’s trust and confidence like that, and breaks into their friend’s gallery?
The betrayal was quickly followed by guilt. I had been the one who’d told him about this place. And I’d been the one who told him that Sue was away for the next two weeks. This was all my fault. Sue would never trust me again.
“I can’t believe you did this…” I said, taking a few steps backward as he strode toward me. I almost tripped on an installation in the middle of the room, and I pushed Jarod away when he tried to help me steady myself. We weren’t on the lake now, but he was on very thin ice.
“Please, Rachael, this isn’t what it looks like. Please let me explain.”
I was still backing away. I shook my head. “I thought you were dead!” I yelled at him, before dropping my head into my heads. “Oh my gosh, I am so stupid…”
“Why are you stupid?” Jarod asked gently.
“For ever trusting you! For worrying about you! For caring if you were alive or dead!” I said before I yanked the door open and pointed for him to go out into the freezing cold. “Quick,” I said in a shaking voice. “Before I change my mind and call the police.”
Jarod nodded sadly, his head dropping as he started for the door.
“I’ll leave then, Rachael. I am sorry. For everything.”
Chapter 9
“I can’t believe you did this for me!” Pippa said, bouncing up and down, her bells jingling all the way. Her elf slippers were back on her feet and my ears were being subjected to Santa Claus is Coming to Town for the hundredth time that week. It was good to be back inside Christmas Village.
At least Pippa was happy. Someone needed to be. It was good to see her this way. She even had bright pink hair sticking out from under her elf’s hat. It was good to see that she’d taken my advice. The old and new Pippas could mix together; she didn’t need to be two separate people.
“I can’t believe it either,” I said, craning my neck to look for Andrew. He really was a miracle worker. Somehow, he had convinced Ellon to give Pippa her job back. I really owed Andrew big time.
But there was something more pressing to worry about. I looked at the line of anxious parents and their confused children snaking out the door. Most of the children might be excited now, but as soon as they came face to face with Santa, they would be screaming, their faces red and wet. “Are you sure this is actually what you want?” I asked. “You can always come back to the bakery.”
Pippa nodded and jumped up and down a few times again. “Most definitely. I mean, I know it’s not going to be forever, but it’ll be fun to be a kid for a few more days, right?”
I nodded and reached into my bag, pulling out a round tin.
“Brandy cake,” I explained as I took the lid off. “Baked fresh this morning.”
Pippa reached over and took a piece. “It’s delicious,” she said around a mouthful of cake. “The best thing I’ve eaten all Christmas season!”
I gave her a second slice and then returned the lid.
“I don’t suppose…”
“No, there has been no mention of Jarod.”
“It’s okay,” I said, staring down at the tin. “I don’t want to hear from him again anyway.” There was nothing he could say or do that would make breaking into Sue’s gallery all right.
I agreed to help Pippa out with photos for an hour or so before I headed off. It was all relatively peaceful, but as soon as one of the toddlers came out of the caves screaming, it put the other children on edge and they started gripping their mother’s hands and getting worried about what was beyond the curtain. After the eighth lot of waterworks, I was starting to remember why I worked at a bakery for a living and not as a children’s photographer.
“Well, I think that is my cue to leave,” I said, longing for the relative peace and calm of the bakery.
But suddenly, we had a new customer coming down the hallway.
Gilda. Her blonde bob shining in the fairy lights.
“Oh gosh, what is she doing here?” Pippa asked, ducking behind a tree. I could hear Gilda talking to Ashley in a snappy tone. “I want my photos to be perfect this time! And I hope I don’t get stuck with that horrible Santa’s Helper!”
Outraged, Pippa came out from behind the tree to confront her.
“I thought you were fired,” Gilda asked, her eyes lighting up like she was a dragon.
“Yeah, you would have liked that, wouldn’t you…”
“Of course I would. It was what I demanded!” Gilda spun around like she was looking for a manager to save her, but Ellon was away for the day and Pippa was the most senior member of staff on the floor.
Gilda’s daughter Sandy gasped as she looked at the top of the nearest tree. “Look, Mommy! It’s an angel in a white dress!”
“Yes, darling, I can see that,” Gilda said, but she was still far more distracted by trying to find a manager who could reassure her that Pippa’s presence in Christmas Village was nothing more than a mistake.
But Sandy was entranced by the angel sitting on top of the tree, like it was calling to her. She walked over to it, her little neck craned in awe and wonder, her own white dress—which matched the angel’s—floating as she wandered over to the tree.
She was going for it. She was going to climb the tree to get to the top! She wanted that angel.
“Sandy, no,” I said, frozen for a moment, trying to decide whether to chase after her or to go and get Gilda’s attention. “Gil—” I tried to call out, but she was already storming off.
The whole tree was shaking, and it would topple over if Sandy went up one more branch. Her chubby little arm was still reaching for the angel, which was out of reach. “Sandy, no!” I said, knowing that if I got any closer, I might make it worse, and I might end up getting crushed as well as getting her crushed.
Pippa saw the whole thing and gasped, racing over at lightning speed.
“I told you those things were a hazard!” I yelled as the whole thing fell over. She had managed to grab Sandy at the last second, and we all went toppling over onto the hard floor. I landed on the side that had already been bruised twice and yelped in pain.
But this wasn’t the time to gloat about how right I was about Christmas trees.
Sandy was screaming and holding her left wrist. It looked limp.
Gilda came rushing over, her face dropping in horror. “How could this happen?” she gasped.
“Well, maybe if you had been watching her instead of trying to get me fired again, none of this would have happened!” Pippa exclaimed.
“I’m so sorry, darling…” Gilda kneeled down and pulled her daughter to her. This was going to require a trip to the hospital. And Pippa was convinced she needed to go with them.
“Oh my goodness, Rachael, I’ve got to deal with this. Please, I need you to go into the cave and help Andrew take the photos!”
So much for making my escape.
Santa was very grumpy. He had his arms crossed and was refusing to cooperate with Andrew.
“I thought you were supposed to be jolly?” I asked, arching an eyebrow.
“I told you, he’s kind of a diva,” Andrew whispered to me, rolling his eyes a little, though he seemed to find the whole thing highly amusing. “I think that float ride through town really went to his head. More so than the acting gigs.”
“But what is his problem now?” I asked, turning around. The temperature? The costume too heavy and hot? The screaming kids? Jarod had never complained about any of this stuff. He’d just been happy to have a job.
Andrew shook his head and turned around so that Santa couldn’t see him or read his lips. “He wants to be back in Cave Number Two,” he said. “His cave. He says the lighting in here isn’t right. That it dulls the color of his suit.”
“Can’t we just fix the coloring on the computer?” I asked. “That’s where all the photos are stored, right?”
Andrew shook his head. “Not good enough, apparently. He also says the throne in Cave Number Two is more comfortable…”
I shivered. “I don’t care how good the lighting is or how comfortable the seating is, someone was killed in there,” I whispered. “Why would he want to go in there?”
“I agree,” Andrew said, snapping the cap off his lens. “That’s why I’ve told him that it’s too bad. This
is where we are stuck for the time being, so he’d better just get used to it.”
It was time for Andrew’s break and Pippa still wasn’t back. She’d sent me a text saying that she had accompanied Gilda and Sandy to the emergency room and they were still waiting for Sandy’s wrist to get looked at. At least she no longer wants to get me fired. She even apologized to me. Do you believe that!
No, I didn’t believe it.
I gulped. Now I was on my own, with no backup and a very diva-like Santa who was only growing worse the longer the day dragged on.
Now he was refusing to take any more photos. Full stop.
“Santa, please, the line is still snaking out the door and you are the only Santa on roster today…”
“Of course I am!” he snapped at me. “I am the only true Santa!”
Oh geez. I did not know how to deal with this. I glanced at the clock on the wall. How long until Andrew came back from his lunchbreak?
“I want to go into Cave Number Two and I will not take a single photo until that happens,” he said, sticking his rosy nose in the air.
I sighed and tried to think of a way out of this. There was no way I was going to spend the afternoon trapped in the death cage. Where was Andrew? He had been able to be firm enough to keep Santa seated. I didn’t have the same authority. He was walking over me
A parent who’d jumped the line stuck her head in through the curtain, making me jump. “Excuse me, how much longer is this going to take?”
It was the night before Christmas Eve—one of the last chances for these parents and children to get their photos this year—and they weren’t going anyway. If I didn’t start letting them in, they were going to start pushing their way in.
I pulled the curtain back.
“All right, Santa. We can go into Cave Number Two.”
I’d been in there only once since the crime—the night Pippa and I had broken in and gone through the camera roll and found the photos of Marcello and Lolly.
Killing Santa Page 7