Santa Sleuth (15 page)

“We never did get to take that sleigh ride in town with the storm and all. Maybe we still can,” I offered.

“Yeah, maybe.”

“For now, let’s talk to Tina and get out of here. It’s hot with all these bodies.”

Zak looked around the store. He was a tall man who was able to see over the heads of most people, and I was a short woman who wasn’t able to see much of anything, so I figured having him look for Tina was our best bet.

“I don’t see her.”

“Maybe we can ask one of her coworkers if she’s in today. It’s possible she has the day off.”

Zak spotted the owner of the store, shelving ornaments a row over, so we pushed our way through the crowd to ask her about Tina.

“Tina’s gone.”

“For the day?” I clarified.

“For good. She came in yesterday and told us she was moving out of the area. She left something for you. Hang on; I’ll get it.”

The store owner walked into the back and then came out a few minutes later with an envelope in her hand.

“I’m not sure what’s in it, but she seemed to think you’d be by looking for her and wanted me to be sure you got this.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

Zak and I left the store. We headed back out to the truck and climbed inside. I opened the envelope and pulled out the letter.

Dear Zoe,

I figured it was only a matter of time until you figured out I was the one who killed Jason, so I decided to get out of town while the getting was possible. By the time you read this you’ll probably have figured out that I really wasn’t over Jason. That man used me. He made me love him when all the while he was using me as a pawn in some twisted game he was playing with Kelly. I hate to admit it, but his lies wormed their way into my soul and at some point my love turned into an obsession to destroy him the way he’d destroyed me.

I began stalking him, but I didn’t plan to kill him. I followed him to Lucky’s on the day of the fire and then hid in the background while he partied the afternoon away with Riley. She didn’t love him the way I did. He should have seen that. He should have been with me.

When he left the bar I followed him to the restaurant only to find him chatting up the woman he’d sworn he was done with. I was all set to confront him when you came by. I hid in the shadows while he hit first Kelly and then you. He picked up a piece of the broken chair he’d already hit you with and was preparing to hit you again, and I picked up a knife that was sitting on the counter and stabbed him in the back. He never saw it coming.

When I left the building wasn’t on fire. I swear it. You’ve always been nice to me and I would never have risked your life.

I won’t leave a forwarding address for obvious reasons, but I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. You’re actually one of the good ones.

              Sincerely,

Tina

“Wow,” I said after I finished reading the letter aloud to Zak. “I kind of feel sorry for her. And grateful. She most likely did save my life. If Jason had hit me again I might not have regained consciousness and Kelly and I would have both perished in the fire.”

“What do you want to do?” Zak asked.

“I guess we could hand this over to the deputy who comes to replace Salinger and get on with our Christmas, though I suppose if we decided to wait to give it to Salinger when he recovers no one would really blame us.”

“Waiting will make it harder to catch her,” Zak pointed out.

“True. But she’s been gone for a whole day already. It’s going to be pretty hard anyway.”

“How about we take it to Salinger when we visit tomorrow and let him decide?” Zak suggested.

“Sounds like a plan.”

Chapter

Friday, December 25

I had a feeling this Christmas was going to go down in my memory as one of the best ever. The incident with the sleigh in the Christmas store had finally given me an idea of what to get for the man who had everything. I rented a horse and sleigh for two days and had it delivered the afternoon before Christmas Eve. To say that Zak was shocked would be putting it mildly. The entire Donovan-Zimmerman clan had shared a memorable evening gliding through the woods under a silver moon, singing carols while snuggled under a blanket drinking hot cocoa.

We’d even taken the sleigh into town for Christmas Eve services, and Zak and the kids had had a wonderful time providing rides for their friends.

After we got home we gathered by the fire and shared our favorite moments of the day, and then the kids went to bed and Zak and I shared our own magical Christmas Eve night.

Of course peace and serenity had given way to chaos once Christmas Day arrived.

“I think we’re going to need more folding chairs,” Jeremy said to me as I struggled to make room in the refrigerator for the cheesecake he’d brought to share.

“In the attic. One of the kids can show you.”

“Do you have a larger pot to boil the potatoes?” Hazel asked as soon as Jeremy left to find the chairs.

“Bottom shelf in the very back of the walk-in pantry,” I answered.

Zak had shopped for all the food and had prepared everything that could be done ahead of time, but once our guests arrived everyone wanted a sleigh ride, so he’d been outdoors while I was left in the kitchen. Maybe covering for him while he played with the kids was my actual Christmas gift.

“Everything looks perfect.” Mom hugged me as I tried to peel carrots.

“Thanks. Zak put a lot of thought into the meal. He’s been poring over cookbooks for weeks.”

“I’m sure your dad can handle the sleigh if you think Zak would rather be in here preparing his feast.”

I looked out the window. Zak had just pulled up with the latest group and he had the biggest grin I’d ever seen on his face. “Thanks, but I think he’s having fun.”

“Well, at least let me help you.” Mom pulled on an apron.

“I never got the chance to talk to you about your trip. How was it?”

“It was wonderful. I love my life in Ashton Falls and wouldn’t trade it for anything, but I didn’t realize how much I missed my family until I walked into the chalet.”

“I’m glad you had a nice time. How did Harper do with so many new faces?”

“She was great. She was a little shy the first day or two, but after that she was toddling around like she owned the place. I really want to take you and Zak there for a visit. I know you have a lot of responsibility with the kids and the new school, but maybe a short trip sometime.”

I smiled. “I’d like that.”

“Do you need any help?” Ellie walked in through the back door, which led out to the deck that overlooked the lake. It was a sunny day, so Zak had lit a bunch of portable fire pits so anyone who wished could stay warm while enjoying the view.

“Do I!” I answered. “Zak left a list of everything he’d planned for the meal. I’m trying to prepare things in a logical order, but I wouldn’t mind the help of an actual cook.”

Ellie picked up the list. She looked around the kitchen and frowned.

“That bad?” I asked.

“Not at all. Look, you’ve been stuck in here for most of the day. Why don’t you go out and get some fresh air and I’ll take over for a bit?”

Thank you, Ellie.

I untied my apron and got out before she changed her mind. I’d really wanted to take over for Zak so he could relax and enjoy himself for a while, but cooking wasn’t my forte.

It was unseasonably warm, which, combined with all the fresh snow, made for a perfect day for snow sports and other outdoor activities. Zak was out on a sleigh run, so I took Charlie and the other dogs for a quick romp down the beach. When I returned Zak was speaking to a man wearing a dark jacket. Standing next to him was a little girl who looked like Tabitha, although her back was to me.

“Tabitha?” I said when I got closer.

The girl turned around and ran over to me. She put her arms around my waist and gave it a good, hard hug.

“Thank you for talking to Santa for me.”

My look of confusion must have been evident so her father joined in. “When we got up this morning Cupcake was sitting under the tree waiting for us.”

“She was?”

“Tabitha wanted to thank you. I wanted to thank you. I can’t tell you how much having Cupcake means to both of us.”

“I didn’t really do anything.”

“You talked to Santa, just like you said you would.” Tabitha pulled my head down so she could whisper in my ear, “I knew you were the Santa in town when I came to the shelter. I didn’t want to spoil my wish by saying so. I know you spoke to the real Santa about Cupcake. Thank you.”

She kissed my cheek and then stepped away. I was pretty sure I was going to cry.

A few minutes later Zak had my dad take Tabitha and her dad for a sleigh ride. He claimed he was getting cold, but I thought he just wanted to speak to me in private.

“I thought you said you couldn’t find the dog.”

“I couldn’t. I didn’t. Maybe the dad found her and wanted to surprise his daughter.”

“No. He said he was as surprised as she was when they came downstairs this morning and Cupcake was sitting among the gifts he’d bought.”

“You don’t think the real Santa…?”

Zak pulled me into his arms and kissed the tip of my cold nose. “Yes, Zoe Donovan-Zimmerman, I do think the real Santa brought some Christmas magic to a sad little girl.”

Note to reader:

As you’ve noticed by now, I didn’t include the interactive component in this book. Some people loved it and some hated it, but I realized after doing it a few times that continuing with that format would be limiting given some of the plots I have lined up.

I do like the idea of seeing the world through the eyes of the minor characters, however, so I’ve decided to break
Zimmerman Academy
off from the main Zoe books and publish short stories (15K–20K) during the gaps between the main books. These shorts will be offered for $.99 and will be told from differing perspectives. I’ll continue to have stories told from Phyllis’s perspective, but there will also be shorts told from other characters’ as well.

The first
Zimmerman Academy
short I have planned is scheduled to go on sale on January 15. The book is titled:
Zimmerman Academy: The New Normal
and will be told from Ellie’s perspective. Ellie will have a mystery to solve and a new math teacher to welcome to Ashton Falls, while Zoe and Zak are out of town.

I plan to publish three or four shorts in 2016.

I’ve included a short story in this book told from Phyllis’s perspective. It takes place after this book ends. The format is different from the previous
Zimmerman Academy
shorts, the format used more closely resembling the one for the new independently published short stories. I hope you enjoy it.

Zimmerman Academy

Something Lost, Something Found

As told from the viewpoint of Phyllis King

Chapter 1

They say sixty is the new forty. I certainly hoped that was true because I’d just spent the last four hours boxing up all my old lady
clothes to make room for the new wardrobe I planned to buy when the girls and I went on our first annual post-holiday clearance shopping spree. I realize that donating 70 percent of my wardrobe is an extravagant thing to do, but the past few weeks have been an emotional roller coaster and I feel, for the first time in my life, that I want to leave my old self behind and invent something entirely new. I haven’t worked out all the details yet, but I do know that the Phyllis King who will return to work at Zimmerman Academy, where I am both the principal and a teacher, will be a new and improved version of the sixty-two-year-old who went on break just under two weeks ago.

On the upside of the roller coaster, I had a wonderful Christmas with the three teenagers who now share my life: Brooklyn Banks, a gorgeous and sophisticated sixteen-year–old; Prudence Pepperton, a friendly and energetic fifteen-year-old; and Eve Lambert, a brilliant and introverted fourteen-year-old. We really did have the perfect holiday, and although we are not a real family, I feel that we have started traditions that will endure wherever our paths take us.

Having the girls in my life has given me a new perspective, as well as a renewed enthusiasm for the magic of everyday moments. Who knew how much joy could be had from simple things such as buying trinkets for stockings, singing carols as a family, or working together to create a big Christmas brunch? Prior to the arrival of the girls my holidays had been simple, solitary, and uneventful. I may be a bit late out of the gate, but I feel like Phyllis King the academic is finally blossoming into Phyllis King the woman.

On the down side of the roller coaster is the fact that the one and only man I ever felt I could love has left Ashton Falls to be with his elderly father. I cannot fault Will or his decision to do what he knew in his heart needed to be done. It is a noble man who will put the needs of his family above his own desires. Still, I find that Will has left a hollow place in my heart and an emptiness in my life that I feel an overwhelming desire to fill. The girls are doing their best to keep me distracted, thus the suggestion of the shopping trip in the first place.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I said to my cat, Charlotte, who was lying on my bed watching me box up the clothes I’d picked out of my closet. “I have not lost my mind. It’s more that I’ve
changed
my mind, and these old clothes no longer fit my new paradigm.”