I’m working hard on Princess Claus and the Snow Globe Mystery and couldn’t wait to share chapter 1!
(**UNEDITED)
“How long do you think you have before she finds out?” Ebenezer asks.
I focus my attention on the secret conversation taking place between Dad and the evil elf Ebenezer and do my best to ignore the ache in my muscles. The cramped journey on hands and knees through the opening in the arboretum to my current location, hiding in the shadows behind the panel in Ebenezer’s cell, always leaves me needing to soak in a hot bath. For now I settle with wiggling my arms and stretching my neck.
I can’t hear Dad’s response, so I inch closer to the end of the vent.
Just to be safe I leave a few inches of darkness between myself and the panel made up of a combination of horizontal and vertical slits.
Suddenly, I feel the building sensation of a sneeze. “Ah, ah…” I pinch my nostrils shut, stopping the betraying sound from giving away my plan to learn what secrets Dad is still keeping from me.
“What was that?” Dad says. He is standing inside the cell, only a few feet away from Ebenezer. Dad peers around Ebenezer who is sitting on the cot, and looks right at me. Or at least into the darkness of the vent.
I hold my breath not wanting any loud noise to alert Dad to my presence or to muffle even one syllable from their conversation. Sneezing right now would be as bad as letting a child get a glimpse of me right before I shimmy up the chimney.
“Do you ever wonder if you are asking too much from your daughter?” Ebenezer’s tone is sympathetic. I’ve never heard him sound like that before.
“Don’t pretend you care about her.” Dad’s voice raises. This question must demand all of Dad’s attention, because he immediately forgets about any sounds coming from the vent. He looks at the elf. Ebenezer stands. As he does his bed creaks. I use the opportunity to suck in a deep breath of air then let it out slowly.
“Every Santa has done whatever it takes. Noelle will too.” Dad says this less like a declaration and more like a judge sentencing a criminal. “Besides, she has all the time she needs to fulfill the last commitment. I am still officially Santa. And she, my helper.”
What is the last commitment they are talking about? And why has Dad been keeping it from me? Sweat drips from my forehead. Mechanically, I use my sleeve to wipe it away as my mind races. Could it be some test like the Santa simulations? Do I have to beat a score? Or do I have to prove my motives to be the next Santa are pure somehow?
Ebenezer chuckles then places his hands on his hips. “Keep telling yourself that. But, you didn’t have all the time in the world.”
“That was only because of your handy work.” Dad takes two steps forward and sticks a finger in Ebenezer’s face.
“You’re right. Of course I can’t accomplish anything since I’m locked up in this cell,” Ebenezer taunts as he walks right up to Dad.
“I will make sure you won’t,” Dad says. Then he turns and motions at the guard on the other side of the makeshift door. The original wooden door was repurposed into a dutch door that was divided in half horizontally. The bottom is solid while the top’s thick frame encases ten vertical beams leaving an inch between them so it’s easy to keep an eye on Ebenezer. On the outside of the cell the guard turns the key. Since the special latch is currently interlocking both the top and bottom pieces, the entire door swings open.
The guard takes a defensive stance in case the evil elf tries to make a jailbreak.
“Double the guards,” Dad says as he walks down the corridor. Then he adds, “And, make sure Princess Claus never speaks to Ebenezer.”
STAY TUNED FOR MORE SNEAK PEEKS!