The Sleigh Maker

by Candace Sams

She was ahead of him when they climbed the fire escape, so she got to the roof first. She looked down to watch his ascent and that’s when she noticed that Gavin was having trouble keeping his right hand on the ladder rungs.

  When he finally got to the roof, the muted light from a nearby utility pole revealed he was much paler than he should have been. Pru dodged his tall frame and moved behind him. She pulled his cape from his shoulders and saw the jagged tear in his leather jerkin. Even in the poor light emanating from the rooftop, she could see the spreading blood from the wound. “You’re bleeding!” she whispered.

  “He put a knife in me. I shouldn’t have turned my back on the little bastard!”

  Pru now understood his actions and felt a knot forming in her stomach. Bile seemed to pool there automatically; she briefly put her hands over her mouth and closed her eyes until she could quell her shock. A moment later, she was able to utter, “We’ve got to get you home.”

  “Can you drive a team, honey? There’s not much to it from here on. The deer know the way North. Once they figure that’s where we’re heading and that we aren’t making any more stops, they’ll need little guidance.”

  She nodded. “I-I can handle it.”

  He grinned but it was a weak imitation of his usual smile. “That’s the spirit. I’ll finally let you take charge.”

  She tried to smile at that bit of irony, but the forced grin quickly faded from her lips. She started considering options. There were emergency measures she could take. Pru knew how to fire the blue, magic flare that all sleighs carried under the seat. But her efficient mind stood her in good stead now. She questioned its use even though Gavin was badly injured.

  To humans, the flare would look like a falling star, but another sleigh crew would understand the distant distress signal and would respond. She glanced at the sky and knew that by the time help arrived from some far-away location, it’d be sunrise. The magical flight capability of their team would be greatly hampered by the sunlight. That meant that two sleighs and their crews would then be in danger of being witnessed by humans, some of whom might not understand the magic they’d observe. And humans who didn’t understand that magic might react inappropriately to it. That was the reason for their covert movements during the entire night. Human adverse response to magical entities was the reason so many mythical creatures hid from mankind. Regular people didn’t tolerate each other all that well, never mind Elves and sleigh makers.

  She could just imagine trying to explain their existence to some cop or worse…some government official! She and Gavin would either be locked away, or placed under arrest until such time as they could identify themselves. And what would happen to the precious, magical reindeer? They couldn’t exist in the normal world for long.

  The imaginary scenario grew to include Mrs. C trying to rescue them and then getting into trouble herself. Pru almost panicked at a situation that could implode their entire, mythic existence. But she gathered her courage and got a grip on her nerve. Her best course of action was obvious. She lifted her chin and took charge.

  Chapter Ten

  “Gavin, I’ll have to bandage that wound. Get in the back of the sleigh so you can lie down.”

  He did as she asked but she saw him waiver as soon as he knelt in the now empty space where the packages had once been stored. He shook his head as if he was fighting to stay awake, but his efforts were useless. He slumped and she finally knew that he was unconscious.

  The best Pru could do with a man Gavin’s size was pull his limbs into the sleigh and tuck the thick throw rug around the lower half of his body. As required by the union rules, there was a first aid kit under the front seat, but it didn’t have anything that would stop pain. She decided to do the best she could with what she had, thanking her lucky stars that she’d studied some first aid―as also required by the new union rules she’d helped institute.

  Meticulously, Pru used the kit scissors to cut away his leather jerkin and the shirt beneath, and that took time. When she had the clothing off the top part of his body, she saw something that made her hesitate and stare for a few moments.

  Around Gavin’s neck was a long leather cord. On it was her engagement ring. She remembered having flung the lovely, blue-star diamond at him on the night she’d caught him with those Snow Fairies. She’d have bet her last gumdrop that he’d have had it reset and given it to someone else.

  “Why did you keep my ring?” she asked. But a soft moan from him brought her attention back to his dilemma. She let the leather cord stay around his neck and finally got a good look at his wound. It was a gash about six inches long and an inch deep. The blood seemed to have stopped, but she took no chances. Using a flashlight to help her see, she carefully pressed several sterile bandages to the wound and then affixed them with an entire roll of gauze. This she wrapped around Gavin’s chest to hold the bandages firmly in place. If he started bleeding again, she decided to add more bandages to those already on the wound and not remove what was already there. In this way, she was more-or-less creating a pressure dressing.

  After she was through, she pushed his hair back to take another look at his face. His color seemed better and his breathing was good. It hadn’t looked as though the wound was all that bad, but it had bled quite a bit as he’d climbed the ladder. The exertion must have made him dizzy.

  She checked his pulse, then cupped his cheeks in her hands. “Dammit, Gavin…you’re the only man I know who could find trouble while delivering packages on Christmas Eve. I guess you’re just my good luck piece,” she sarcastically whispered, then kissed his forehead and crawled over him.

  Up in the front seat, she took the reins and carefully snapped them the way she’d seen Gavin do. She hadn’t had all that much experience flying since it was usually her job to see to the package delivery and let her partners take care of the team. But experience had taught her anything could go wrong, so she’d spent last summer boning up on her flight skills. That foresight came in handy now.

  She soon perceived that the team knew they were headed for home, as Gavin had told her. Their heads bobbed jauntily. To her this seemed an anxious sign to get back to their warm stalls. She looped the reins over the front peg and crawled back over the seat to take a look at Gavin again.

  Using the starlight as her lantern so she could keep her hands free, she found him too still. Frightened by the time it would take to get home and his unresponsiveness, Pru pulled the thick throw rug over his body and tucked it around his bare chest. Then, she stretched out next to him to keep him warm.

  “Gavin? Can you hear me?” she asked. She saw him fight to open his eyes; his lids fluttered in the attempt. He then lifted his hand toward the wound. “Don’t move around too much,” she instructed as she pushed his hand back down to his side. That simple touch let her know that his hand was far too cold and he began to shiver shortly thereafter. Her arms went around him automatically. There was no way she could actually pull a man his size into her embrace, but she could at least put his head on her chest. “Just rest, Gavin. We’ll be home soon. Can you understand me?”

  “I-I can. It’s a b-bit chilly,” he murmured back.

  Pru knew that giving him food or drink might hamper the doctor’s job when the got back to the Pole, but she still couldn’t let him lie there freezing. “I’ll get you some hot tea. Would that be okay?”

  “S-sounds good,” he calmly responded.

  She searched for her thermos, finally found it among the sacks of Christmas cookies under the front seat, and then poured a large cup of the steaming liquid into its screw-on drinking lid. He tried to sit up, but she saw him shake his head as if dizziness was an issue.

  “You lie back against me and I’ll help you drink. The last thing you need is to aggravate that wound.”

  Gavin carefully maneuvered his body so his head was next to her right shoulder. She gently pulled another throw rug forward and covered them both with the second layer of blanketing.

  “Here, take small sips.
It’s hot, so be careful,” she instructed.

  He lifted his left hand up to take the cup from her. “I-I think I can handle it.”

  She cuddled next to him and watched as he slowly drank the tea. “Gavin Frost, you’re the craziest person I’ve ever met. Nobody else would take on three men at once. You’re out of your mind.”

  “When we were still together, I think you mentioned that a time or two.”

  She gazed at his face for a long moment. The wind whooshed around the sleigh as they picked up speed, but the seat protected them in their little niche. The wind only lifted his long hair a little, but his profile was captivating. Her mind told her not to look too hard or care too much, but her heart couldn’t help it. She decided to talk about something that wouldn’t cause either of them any grief. He’d already had his share of bitching the entire night. She’d made sure of that, but was now sorry for all the pettiness.

  “The team is flying by themselves, but do you think I should use the GPS to check our location?”

  He turned his head to look at her. The entire world or what he wanted out of it was in those blue eyes, but she didn’t want him. Prudence Berry wanted work. He decided to stick to the safer topic she’d chosen. “The team will be fine. Stay here.”

  “Are you warm enough?”

  “I think so.”

  She took one of his large hands in hers. “You still seem cold to me.”

  He sipped some more tea and nodded at the brew. “You’d better drink something hot. We’ve got several hours of flight ahead.”

  She nodded, found his container of hot chocolate, and poured herself some of that instead of tea. “Do you think you should eat something? I didn’t offer before because I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea.”

  He shrugged and decided that if he ate, she’d be less anxious. “What have you got?”

  She pulled her lunch bag forward. “Candy canes, sour balls, mints, cinnamon discs, marshmallows, hard rock candy and, of course, we’ve got tons of different kinds of cookies.”

  He grinned. “I was thinking more of a ham and cheese sandwich.”

  “You know Elves don’t eat anything but candy and snack food.”

  “Yeah…well it’s been a long time since I dated one. I do recall now how you used to stash all kinds of sweet stuff in my cupboards so you could snack while we were watching a weekend movie.” Soon after, she’d had no time for even a late night flick, never mind him.

  She smiled. “Remember how we used to sit in front of the TV when the worst of the January blizzards hit? We watched old re-runs all night. You’d fix some popcorn in the fireplace and we’d fall asleep there.”

  “Those were good times,” he quietly mused, then frowned. He hadn’t meant to reminisce. The dreams they’d shared were over and it hurt too much to talk about it. But Pru wasn’t in the mood to let go of her recollections.

  “Why are you wearing my engagement ring around your neck?” she softly queried. ”I was thinking you’d have probably given it to your mother or one of your sisters or something,” she tactfully mused while pulling at a stray thread on the throw rug.

  He glanced down at his bare chest and could have kicked himself for not taking off the ring. He always wore it and hadn’t imagined any situation would ever arise where it might become visible. “I…I just wear it,” he lamely offered.

  “I didn’t know you’d want to keep it after I threw it at you.”

  He briefly turned away. “Can we talk about something else? That’s an old situation down the drain. Just let it go.”

  She studied his profile for a few moments. Gavin wasn’t a man who’d hold on to mementos. Not unless there was some very particular reason. The presence of her engagement ring became a curiosity no self-respecting Elf could overlook. For now, however, she’d let the subject slide until he was feeling better. She noted his continuing pallor and put her hand against his shoulder. “Lean forward. Let me take a look at that cut.”

  “Never mind. It’s fine.”

  “Don’t be stubborn, Gavin. I stopped the bleeding as best I could, but it might have opened up again.”

  “Leave it. Just eat something, drink your chocolate, and try to stay warm.”

  She did as he asked, but saw him shivering harder. When he put his tea down and refused more, Pru’s anxiety grew. He turned his head away from her, staring outside the sleigh as if there was something there. As his gaze became more and more fixed on nothing but the midnight blue of the cold sky, she finally slid her hand behind his back, withdrew it, and found her palm covered in blood.

  “You’re bleeding again!” She pushed him forward, but there was no resistance this time. He seemed numb and listless to what she was doing.

  Pru quickly placed more compression bandages on top of the first set and tied the lot around his body with another long roll of cotton gauze. She gently pushed him backward only to find his gaze was fixed and he was barely responsive.

  Climbing over the seat, she grabbed up the reins and urged the team to go faster. There was simply nothing else she could do but get Gavin back to the Pole infirmary as soon as possible. The combination of cold and blood loss were sending him into a lethargic state from which he might not recover.

  She kept glancing back over the seat, fighting a growing sense of panic and remorse. “I should have landed someplace. I shouldn’t have lost my damned bag of magic dust. This is my fault.”

  Over and over she murmured self recriminations concerning Gavin’s injury. Truly, it wasn’t his doing. Of course this weird and dangerous incident had to happen now, on her watch…and with her ex-fiancé.

  She snapped the reins urging the team to fly at a pace that would almost put them in another dimension. All her thoughts were with the man lying so quiet and still behind her.

  Chapter Eleven

  After what seemed like an interminable length of time, she finally saw the lights of the Pole. For anyone not riding such a magical conveyance, the light would be invisible as well as any trace of the entire Pole town and its population.

  As she approached, options she might have taken began to fill her brain. But getting back fast had been the only course of action. If she’d been able to contact help in the field with her Pole phone, those responding could have done no more than she; the same for having employed an emergency flare. She nodded and knew her first choice―to get back fast―had been the best solution. It would have taken precious time for others delivering gifts to get to her location and her actions would have endangered another flight crew as the dawn approached. The rising sun’s rays would have weakened all their collective magic. Most importantly, Gavin hadn’t had the time to wait for help to arrive.

  Being within range of the Pole now―where her communication equipment would work much better―Pru finally grabbed her Elvish, spruce green cell phone from under the seat and dialed. She pushed P911 to alert the Polar guards that she was making an emergency landing, but didn’t take the time to give any information. She had to focus on landing fast, but safely.

  As the sleigh got closer to touching down, she could already see people scrambling. Even if the call hadn’t been made, the guards should have been alerted by her rapid rate of descent and the team’s unbelievable speed. No one ever came in landing as she was about to. Such a crazy touchdown was unheard of and quite unsafe.

  When the sleigh hit the snow with a decidedly less-than-professional bang, Pru headed the team right by the waiting guards and straight to the infirmary. The security staff rushed to meet her when they saw the deer being driven in such a reckless manner.

  “Get him inside, he’s lost a lot of blood,” she commanded, and proceeded to tell a quick version of how Gavin had been hurt. Someone on the staff immediately called for a stretcher, and Gavin was placed on it by six strong men. When the guards she’d originally passed by finally caught up to her, she grabbed the nearest one. “Get Mrs. Claus. She needs to be informed about the sleigh maker’s injury. Santa probably won’t be back ye
t.”

  The guard ran to do as she bid. Pru followed the stretcher into the infirmary, but the doctor closed the doors of the emergency area in which he’d been wheeled. The physician simultaneously pushed her away in the process.

  Everyone, including the doctor and his staff, were acknowledging the fact that she hadn’t been Gavin’s fiancé, or even his girlfriend, for many years. That being the case, she had no right to be with him now. All she could do was stand there, staring down at the drying blood on her hands.

  “Why didn’t he tell me?” she whispered. Gavin knew he was bleeding and that the situation was more serious than he’d originally let on. He’d just sat in the back of the sleigh sipping tea.

  She sat heavily on a bench to wait for Mrs. Claus or any news of Gavin—whichever came first. It was a full hour later when Mrs. C made an appearance. Pru saw the robust woman enter the infirmary, through the emergency doors. She quickly got up and ran toward the large, red-clothed figure.

  “It’s my fault,” she unceremoniously blurted. “I lost my bag of magic dust while we were on our last stop.”

  Clarinda put her hands on Pru’s shoulders. “Was that the delivery I warned you about?”

  “Yes. We were done handing out our packages. I hid my appearance as much as I could so no one really got a good look at me…just like always.” Pru stopped to collect her thoughts. Her voice sounded desperate and had a babbling quality, even to her own ears. So she took a deep breath and tried again. “There were some young punks hanging out in an alley. They got between us and the sleigh. Gavin took one of them on and got knifed in the back.”

  “Dearest merciful heavens! This is unbelievable,” Clarinda fretted. “Nothing like this has ever happened, Pru. You were in charge of the flight. You know that,” she gently chastised.

  “Yes, I know. I take full responsibility. It wasn’t Gavin’s fault,” she breathlessly responded, looking toward the room where Gavin had been taken.