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Purrfect Santa

Purrfect Santa Mysteries of Max Short 1

Nic Saint

Puss in Print Publications

Contents

Purrfect Santa

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Excerpt from Purrfect Crime (The Mysteries of Max 5)

About Nic

Also by Nic Saint

Purrfect Santa

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Chase’s grandfather is missing, and he asks Odelia to help find him. And since Odelia’s editor has told her to find out who the new Hampton Cove Santa is, she gladly agrees. After traipsing all over New York City in search of Grandpa Kingsley, and the new Santa, they have to declare defeat. Lucky for them, there’s still Max and Dooley, Odelia’s feline sleuths. Will they find out what happened to Grandpa Kingsley? And will they figure out who the new Santa is? Get into the holiday spirit with Max and Odelia and find out in Purrfect Santa.

This Mysteries of Max short story (20.000 words) stands alone, and is told from the viewpoint of Odelia, featuring Chase, Odelia’s family, Max and Dooley, and offers a rare glimpse into Chase’s past. It’s accompanied by two more short stories, Purrfect Christmas Mystery and Purrfect Christmas Miracle, written from the viewpoint of Max, exclusively available to mailing list subscribers: nicsaint.com/newsletter. The three short stories are best read in this order: Purrfect Santa, Purrfect Christmas Mystery and Purrfect Christmas Miracle.

Chapter 1

I’d actually been looking forward to sleeping in a little. Probably the cold and the darkness slowing down my metabolism or something. When the days get shorter and the nights longer I want to curl up in bed and sleep forever. Like badgers. Or is it bears? Unfortunately, I am neither. I am human and I own a cat, so no hibernation for me. I woke up when there was a loud crashing sound nearby, and when I opened my eyes I saw that Max, my red tomcat, and his buddy Dooley, my Gran’s ragamuffin, had managed to destroy my curtains. Tearing them down, curtain rod and all.

I groaned against the sudden light that hit my eyes. “Max! Dooley! Are you serious?”

“Sorry, Odelia,” said Dooley sheepishly. “We didn’t mean to destroy your curtains.”

“They’re not destroyed, Dooley,” said Max. “They’re just… temporarily displaced.”

I swung my feet from beneath the comforter and into my fuzzy pink rabbit slippers. “Oh, they’re destroyed,” I said, then yawned cavernously and stretched out.

I got up and walked over to the window to assess the damage. All in all, it wasn’t that bad. Nothing that couldn’t be fixed. I blinked at the world outside. A thick layer of snow had fallen overnight, covering the world in a blanket of white. The sun was out and lit up the snow like a field of diamonds. Ugh. Like a vampire, I shielded my eyes from the brightness, and wished I could go back to sleep.

“Can we go out and play, Odelia?” asked Dooley excitedly.

“Sure. But I have to warn you guys. It’s a lot colder than it looks.”

The two cats scrambled from the room and down the stairs. I decided to follow at a much more leisurely pace, and not before fixing my curtains. They weren’t actually ruined. The rod had tumbled down from its support. So I dragged up a chair and returned it to its original position.

Once downstairs, I started up the coffeemaker, took my favorite cup from the cupboard—the one that says ‘crazy cat lady’—and ambled over to the sliding glass door to look out. The cats had already made their way outside, and were gingerly testing out the snow. It was a cute sight. They carefully sunk their paws into the mass of white, then quickly extracted them again. No matter how many times they experienced snow, each time it seemed like the first time. Five minutes in, they were inside again, shaking off the snow.

“Too cold!” Dooley lamented.

“Too wet!” Max grumbled.

“I told you,” I said with a smile, and watched them hop onto the couch and promptly doze off. Cold and wet. Two things all cats seem to hate. I didn’t think I’d get them outside again this winter. Which was a pity, as my work as a reporter doesn’t stop just because temperatures drop. And my cats are my eyes and ears. They spot things that remain hidden to humans, and are my best sources of information. My name is Odelia Poole, by the way, and I’m not just a reporter at the Hampton Cove Gazette, but also a civilian consultant with the local police, helping them solve crime from time to time, something else my feline sleuths help me with.

I poured myself some coffee, gratefully curling my fingers around the cup, and took little sips.

Today I was working from home, so after hitting the shower I dressed in sweatpants and a raggedy fleece Garfield sweater, and plunked down at my computer. My editor, Dan Goory, wanted to publish an article on the new Christmas tree the town council put up in Town Square. The official unveiling of the tree was a disaster, with many townies expressing their horror and shock. The tree wasn’t so much a tree as much as a metal frame in the shape of a tree with a high-tech light show attached. The council called it the modernization of Christmas, and claimed it would put us on the map as a progressive and forward-thinking town. Most Hampton Covians thought it was just plain ugly, and a disgrace to our Christmas tradition. All in all, it had more or less ruined the festive season for many people, and Dan was one of the most vocal opponents of the monstrosity, as he called it.

I had only written the intro to my article when the doorbell rang. I ambled over to answer it. Max and Dooley had magically woken up and were eagerly waiting at the door before I got there.

I smiled. My cats simply adore our mailwoman, because Bambi always comes bearing cuddles and sometimes even gifts. She’s a cat person, just like me, and is crazy about Max and Dooley.

I opened the door and was surprised to find it wasn’t Bambi delivering the mail today but her husband Randi. I didn’t think too much of it. It was the holidays, after all, and Bambi was probably enjoying a day off. I grabbed the mail, said goodbye to Randi, and closed the door.

“Where’s Bambi?” asked Max.

“Mh?” I asked absentmindedly as I scanned the mail.

“Bambi,” he said. “That wasn’t Bambi. Where’s Bambi?”

“Of course she is,” I muttered and returned to my computer.

“Where’s Bambi?” Max asked again.

“Max, can you please be quiet?” I asked. “I have a ton of work and I need to focus.”

Cats. They can get really obsessed about stuff sometimes. Like when their favorite letter carrier suddenly doesn’t show up. In that respect they’re pretty much OCD. Five minutes later, they were meowing up a storm to be let out again, so I dragged myself from my seat, opened the glass door, and watched them strut off. Why I had a pet door installed in the kitchen I do not know, as they rarely seem to use it, preferring their human to play butler instead.

I returned to my desk, and put in a solid two hours of work on the Christmas tree piece.

Chapter 2

I decided to walk to the office, as the roads were a little tricky to navigate by car, and I don’t like driving in these conditions. And since the sun was out and the air was crisp and fresh, a little walk was exactly what the doctor ordered. Max and Dooley were nowhere to be seen, and neither were Harriet and Brutus, the cats that belong to Mom and Chase, my boyfriend the cop. I wasn’t worried. They were old and wise enough to take care of themselves, and not get into any trouble.

Twenty minutes later, I breezed into the offices of the Hampton Cove Gazette, and knocked at the door of Dan. The editor was in, though he did not look happy.

“Hey, Dan,” I said from the doorway. “I’ve finished the article on the new Christmas tree.” He was frowning at me, as if I’d just called him a bad name, so I frowned back. “Everything all right?”

Dan is a wizened old guy with an impressive white beard, wire-rimmed glasses, and eyes that always seem to smile. Except now. Now they looked positively menacing. “No, everything is not all right,” he grumbled. “In fact everything is horrible. Do you know what the council has just decided?”

“Um, to change the new Christmas tree for the old one?” One could only hope.

“No, they’ve decided that I won’t be their Santa any longer! Can you believe it?!”

Quite frankly I couldn’t. Dan, since he looks pretty much like Santa, has been Hampton Cove’s resident Santa for years. He’s the one that presides over the Santa Parade and rides on the biggest float, the one shaped like a sleigh, officiates the Christmas tree lighting, the opening of the holiday movies film festival at the Hampton Cove Movie Theatre, and graces dozens of other activities with his cheerful presence. Christmas in Hampton Cove isn’t really Christmas without Dan.

“But they can’t do that!” I cried, aghast.

“Well, they did,” he said, holding up a letter. “Two days before Christmas! They even made it official. Said that in light of my negative review of the new Christmas tree, my services as Santa are no longer required.”

“They fired you because you don’t like the new Christmas tree?”

“Yep.” He took off his glasses and settled back in his chair. “I called the Mayor and he told me that the council viewed last week’s editorial as a personal affront. Said that my negativity has swayed public opinion against the tree, and if only I’d toed the line, Hampton Cove would have accepted the tree just fine.” He spread his arms. “But how can I accept a tree that ugly? It’s hideous!!”

“So what are you going to do?”

“What can I do? They’re going in a different direction for the final few days.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning they’ve hired a different Santa to officiate the Christmas Eve Celebration.”

“Who? I frankly can’t imagine a better Santa than you, Dan.” And I meant it. Dan has been Santa since I was a little girl, and I just couldn’t imagine Christmas without him. I remembered how he used to come to Hampton Cove middle school, and dole out the presents, and how he would officiate the Christmas celebration in the school’s cafeteria, with all the kids spending a few precious moments on his lap, telling him how good they’d been and giving him their Christmas wish list.

“Thanks, honey,” he said warmly. “You’re not the only one who seems to feel that way. Lots of people have called to tell me they think the council is wrong. But the politicians are not budging. They’ve already gone and hired some shmuck from New York. A department store Santa, no less.”

“A department store Santa?”

“Yeah, one of those guys that does the big department stores. You know the type. Young guy that tapes on a fake beard once a year and goes through the motions.” He thoughtfully rubbed his own beard, which wasn’t fake at all. “I think they’re going to regret it, Odelia. They can’t mess with Christmas traditions like this and get away with it.” He pointed a stubby finger in my direction. “I want you to find out who this new guy is. I want you to find out everything you can about him.”

“And then what? The council isn’t going to change their minds, Dan. You know how stubborn they can be.”

“Oh, of course I know. But once I expose this new Santa, they’ll have to change their minds.”

I shuffled a little worriedly. “Expose Santa?”

“Sure! Dig up the dirt on the guy. Show people what a fraud he is.”

“And what if he’s not?”

Dan’s face took on a mutinous expression. “He has to be. All of those guys are frauds, Odelia. There’s only one real Santa and that’s me.” He thumped his chest defiantly. “And once the council sees what a chump they hired, they’ll come crawling back to me—begging me to take the job.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know, Dan.”

“Well, I do,” he snapped. “Bring me this new Santa’s head, Odelia. I’ll crucify the imposter!”

They weren’t exactly the words a real Santa would employ, nor did they reflect the holiday spirit, but whenever Dan was in one of his moods, I knew better than to try and argue with him, so I simply accepted the assignment and breezed out of the office again. I had a Santa to find and not much time to do it. It was going to be Christmas in two days, and if Dan still wanted to be Santa, I’d have to move fast. Faster than Santa’s sleigh.

Chapter 3

My first port of call was Town Hall. If anyone could tell me who the new Santa was, it was the Council Manager or the Mayor or any of the councilpersons in charge of any of the departments. When I arrived there, the secretary at the front desk was my first hurdle. When I asked to speak to either the Mayor or the Council Manager, she said I needed to make an appointment first, as both men were exceedingly busy. Since I’d seen the Mayor shoveling snow from his driveway that morning, I knew he couldn’t possibly be that busy.

“Besides,” said the woman, who was sporting a purple perm and patting it proudly, “it’s almost Christmas, Odelia. I think you better come back in the New Year. I’m sure the Mayor will be more than happy to see you then.”

“But I want to talk to him about Santa, so it has to be now.”

“Santa?” Her face lit up. “Oh, I just love our new Santa, don’t you?”

“You’ve seen the new Santa?”

“Well, only his picture, of course. He’s just wonderful, isn’t he? I think he’s going to prove a big improvement over that old curmudgeon—what’s his name?” She snapped her fingers.

I leveled a critical look at her. “Dan Goory? My boss?”

Her lips formed a perfect O as she realized who she was talking to. “Well, Dan isn’t the worst Santa we’ve ever had, of course,” she said quickly. “I just think he’s not exactly the face of the new. More the face of the old, wouldn’t you agree?”

“No, I wouldn’t,” I said. “I think Dan is the perfect Santa. The ultimate Santa. The one and only.”

“Well, you’re certainly entitled to your opinion, dear,” she said, her lips curling down in a look of disapproval. She was patting that purple perm again, making sure not a hair was out of place.

“So where can I find this new Santa?”

The secretary’s lips pressed together, and she made a sign of locking them with a key. And when she opened them again, it was to say, “We’ve been instructed not to talk to the press, dear. And you are the press, aren’t you?”

“You mean you’ve been instructed not to talk to Dan.”

“Him, too,” she admitted.

Just then, the Mayor emerged from an office further down the hall. The moment he caught sight of me, he made a beeline for the men’s room, moving at a surprisingly rapid pace. I intercepted him just before he managed to make his escape. “Mayor Moss,” I said. “Odelia Poole. You remember me.  Is it true that you’ve decided to replace Dan Goory with a new Santa?”

“Yes,” he said, his eyes shifting uncomfortably between me and the secretary, who lifted her shoulders in a helpless shrug. “Yes, that’s quite true. Look, Miss Poole, I’m not going to beat around the bush. We at the town council were all very disappointed when we read Dan’s editorial on the unveiling of the new tree. Instead of fully endorsing the bold step the council took into a bright future, he seems to be stuck in a past where only a real tree can be considered a, well, a tree.”

“You have to admit the new tree is ugly, Mayor Moss.”

Gus Moss’s brows knitted into a disapproving frown, his round face reddening slightly. “It appears that Dan’s backward vision on Christmas trees has rubbed off on his staff. I would advise you to remove yourself from the toxic influence of Dan Goory, Miss Poole. Embrace the new and do away with the old once and for all.”

“I happen to like a regular Christmas tree,” I said with a shrug. “There’s nothing Christmassy about that cold steel contraption.”

“It’s modern,” he snapped. “And modern is good.”

“Nuclear war is modern. You don’t like nuclear war, do you?”

He eyed me as one might eye an annoying bug, indicating he actually liked nuclear war, as long as it didn’t happen in his town. “Look, the die has been cast and there’s nothing more I can do about it. Dan will just have to learn to live with the consequences of his erroneous decisions.”

“So who is the new Santa?”

He held up his hand. “No comment.”

“The people of Hampton Cove have a right to know.”

“The people of Hampton Cove will simply have to wait until the Christmas Eve Celebration. The new Santa will be revealed then.”

“Is it true he’s a department store Santa?”

“No comment.”

“What department store did he work at?”

He gritted his teeth. “No. Comment.”

Without another word, he stalked off. When I looked at the secretary, she beckoned me over, looked left and right, then held up a tiny scrap of paper. It read, ‘Thornton Fifth Avenue.’ The moment I’d read it, she crumpled it up and… popped it into her mouth, then swallowed it! I flashed her a smile of gratitude for this brave act of defiance. She gave me a feeble smile. Paper doesn’t taste good.

On my way out, I bumped into Chase Kingsley, my cop boyfriend. He looked worried today, his handsome features contorted into a frown. His dark hair was covered with a stylish knit cap, and he’d raised the sheepskin collar of his biker jacket against the cold.

“Hey, Chase,” I said by way of greeting. “What’s up?”

“I’ve lost my grandpa,” he grumbled with a dark look at the secretary, as if she was to blame.

“You… lost your grandfather? How do you lose a grandfather?”

“I’ve been trying to reach him all week. I wanted to invite him over for Christmas, but he’s not answering his phone and he’s not responding to any of my messages.”

“So? Maybe his phone is broken. Or maybe he doesn’t want to talk to you.”

“I also asked one of my old buddies at the NYPD to drop by his apartment and he’s not answering the door either. He’s gone, Odelia. My grandfather is officially missing.” He shook his head. “I’ll have to go down there and look for him myself. Will you come with me?”

I stared at him. “You mean… come with you to New York to look for him?”

“You’re a natural at finding out stuff about people. And I could use the company.”

“Sure. But on one condition.”

He gave me a grin, pulled me in and placed a kiss on my lips. When he finally released me, my breath was coming in gasps. “Make that two conditions.”

“Okay.” He pulled me in again but I placed my hand on his chest.

“I have to find the new Santa. If you help me find him, I’ll help you find your grandfather.”

“Why? Is Santa missing, too?”

“The council fired Dan and hired a new Santa, and Dan is itching to dig up some dirt on the new guy so he can make the council change their minds.”

He studied me for a moment. “All right. We’ll find your Santa and we’ll find my granddad. But Granddad is our priority. I can’t imagine finding Santa is as urgent as finding an old man who may be in really big trouble right now.”

“Deal,” I said, and held out my hand.

Instead, he pulled me closer and kissed me again. I could get used to this.

Chapter 4

Chase drove while I relaxed in the passenger seat, wondering how to go about finding this illustrious Santa the council had hired. I looked up when Chase cleared his throat. “So what’s the big deal about this Santa business?” he asked.

“Dan’s been the Santa for so many years he was shocked when the council fired him. He’s grown attached to the role, I guess. And he’s a great Santa. Kids love him. Grownups love him. In fact the only people who don’t seem to care for him are the Mayor and his council. And that’s got nothing to do with Dan’s qualities as a Santa and everything to do with politics.”

He shook his head and grinned. “Small-town politics. You’ve got to love it.”

“It’s not just that. Dan is in a position of considerable influence, as the editor of the town’s only newspaper. Both parties have tried to make him endorse their candidates and he’s always refused. But instead of appreciating the fact that he prefers to remain neutral, they resent him for it. And this whole Santa business is their way of getting back at him.”

“All sounds pretty petty to me.”

“It is.” I turned to him. “What did you think about the new Christmas tree?”

He shrugged. “It’s a Christmas tree.”

“It’s not a tree. It’s a metal frame supporting a light installation. It looks like a reject from one of Lady Gaga’s shows.”

“And it just might be. But why do you care so much? It’s just a stupid Christmas tradition.”

“Why do you care so little? It’s Christmas. It’s important.”

“No, it’s not. It’s just a stupid holiday. A way for big business to shove a lot of stuff down our throats. It’s got nothing to do with tradition or what Christmas should really be about.”

“Which is?”

“Family,” he said with a shrug. “Togetherness. Celebrating  with the people you love.”

“It’s about that and a lot more.”

“Look, I don’t care about this stupid tree, all right? All I care about is to be with you and your family.”

Touched as I was, I thought he’d forgotten about one important thing. “What about your family? Don’t you want to celebrate Christmas with them?”

He sighed. “It’s… a little complicated.”

“What about your mom? You still have your mom, right?”

He grimaced. “That’s the complicated part.”

“How so?”

“You’ll see. Oftentimes she doesn’t even know who I am. When I went to visit her last time she thought I was Johnny the milkman. She was rummaging around in her purse to come up with the nickel she thought she owed me.”

Now I saw why it was so important he found his grandfather. Since his dad had died, and his mom was in this state, the old man was probably a great support for him.

I placed my hand on his arm. “We’ll find your grandpa, Chase. And when we do we’ll invite him to spend Christmas with us.”

“Thanks,” he said, his voice a little husky. “I would like that.” He cleared his throat. “How are things with your cats?”

“My cats? My cats are fine. A little annoyed with all the snow, which is why they won’t be venturing outside anytime soon.”

“I thought I saw them as I came looking for you.”

“You saw them? Where?”

“Outside your dad’s office. They were just heading inside.”

“My dad’s office?” I remembered they’d been worried about Bambi not showing up that morning. Was it possible they were out looking for her? If they were, maybe it would do them some good. Being cooped up inside all winter wasn’t healthy. Especially for Max, who had a tendency to gain weight if he didn’t get his exercise.

“You know, I heard the weirdest rumor the other day.”

“Oh?”

“Someone told me that the Poole women could talk to their cats. It’s, like, a tradition.”

I tried to look as innocent as possible. “It’s the first I’ve heard of that tradition.”

He glanced over. “So it’s not true?”

“Of course it’s not true! Cats can’t talk. That’s just crazy.”

“That’s what I thought. People tell me the weirdest things. Do you think it’s because I’m new in town? That they think they can make a fool of me by trying to sell me this ridiculous gossip?”

“Wouldn’t surprise me, Chase. They must think you’re pretty gullible to believe a bunch of nonsense like that.”

“Yeah. I told him I wasn’t buying it, and he seemed offended.”

“Who told you this?”

“Some guy that came in this morning to file a complaint about a customer who refused to pay his bills. Wilbur Vickery. He runs the Vickery General Store.”

“I know Wilbur,” I said.

“He even told me that his own cat likes to chat with your cats, and that he’s pretty sure they exchange information, which makes its way into your articles. I told him you don’t need any cats to be the ace reporter that you are.”

“Thanks.”

“Sure thing, babe. Nobody is going to make a fool of me and accuse you of using a crew of feline sleuths.” He laughed. “Simply the idea!”

“Yeah,” I agreed as I swallowed away a lump of uneasiness. “Pretty ridiculous.”

“What pisses me off the most is that Wilbur would think I’d fall for that crap.”

“Yeah, he probably figures you’re pretty thick.”

“Which I’m not.”

“No way. You’re former NYPD. You’re the smartest cop in town.”

“Absolutely. Imagine I wouldn’t know you can talk to cats.”

“Ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.”

I stared out the window, biting my lip. Damn that Wilbur Vickery. He must have had too much eggnog, spreading rumors like that. Most people in town knew about the Poole women’s abilities, but didn’t mention it to outsiders. I would have to have a little chat with Wilbur. Remind him to keep his mouth shut. The other option was for me to come clean to Chase. I glanced over at the cop, taking in the sweep of dark hair as it dangled across his brow, and the rigid set of his face. This was not a man who believed in fairytale stories about talking cats. This was a man who relied on reason and logic to solve his cases, not feline intuition. There was no way he was ever going to believe me.

Just like he hadn’t believed a word Wilbur Vickery had told him. And a good thing, too.

Chapter 5

Chase parked his car across the street from where his grandfather lived. It was an old apartment building in downtown Brooklyn. It had once been brown, but was now all blackened from years of decay and exposure to the elements and big city smog. An old dog lay on the steps to the front door of the building, which was ajar, and looked up when we approached. It opened its mouth to bark, and I saw it was missing several teeth. Its hide was mottled and he did not look healthy. I crouched down to tickle it behind the ears but Chase pulled me back up.

“Don’t. These dogs are riddled with all kinds of pests and diseases.”

“Poor creature,” I said. “Someone should take care of him. Or her.”

“Someone should take care of the people that live here, too, but nobody does.”

His face had taken on a grim expression and I could see why. If my grandfather lived in these squalid conditions I wouldn’t be too happy either.

“How old is your grandfather?” I asked as we headed inside.

“Old. Well into his eighties.”

“How come he’s not in a retirement home?”

“You know how much those cost? His pension will never stretch far enough. And neither,” he added when I opened my mouth to make a remark, “will my paycheck. The only option is that I take him home to live with me, but since I’m still shacking up with your uncle, that’s not possible either.”

“Have you had any luck finding your own place yet?”

“Not yet, but I’m working on it. You wouldn’t believe how expensive Hampton Cove is.”

“Oh, I believe it,” I said. And I could see that Chase would be hard set to afford a decent place on his policeman’s salary. My family had owned the houses we lived in for generations. At the current real estate prices, we probably wouldn’t be able to afford to live in Hampton Cove either.

We tried the elevator, but a sign said it was out of order. The hallway was as decrepit as the outside of the house had heralded, and so was the stairwell. An old wino was lounging on the bottom step. He was sucking from a liquor bottle and gazing up at us with rheumy eyes. Some local color.

We arrived on the third floor and Chase quickly found the door to his grandfather’s apartment. He rang the bell and pounded the door but to no avail. So he tried the door of his grandpa’s neighbor. A pensioner appeared after what seemed like ten minutes, and peered out through a crack in the door, the security chain well in place.

“Yes? What do you want?”

“Hampton Cove Police Department, sir,” said Chase. “Detective Chase Kingsley. I’m looking for my grandfather—your next-door neighbor. By any chance have you seen him?”

The frown on the man’s face turned into a smile. “Detective Kingsley. I recognize you. You used to come and visit your grandpa a lot, right?”

“I used to,” Chase admitted. “I moved to Long Island this summer and haven’t had a chance to visit him as much as before. Do you know where he is? I’ve tried calling but he never picks up.”

“I have no idea, Detective.” The man unhooked the chain and opened the door. He was short and squat, and dressed in a bathrobe and slippers. The smell of cigars wafted from the room and my throat clogged for a moment at the acrid scent. “All I know is that he had some sort of argument a couple days ago. It was so loud I could hear it over the sound of Criminal Minds. Almost made me miss the big finale.”

“Who was it? Did you see?”

“When I looked out, the argument was over. All I could see was some guy walking off.”

“What did he look like?”

“Well-dressed guy. Youngish. Nice clean suit. Not the kind you see around here, I have to say. He looked more like a banker than a drug dealer. Unless he was a drug-dealing banker, of course. I’ll bet there’s more of them than you might imagine! Heh heh!” The man laughed a croaky laugh that was infectious and I had to smile.

“So you never saw this guy before?” asked Chase, not even cracking a smile.

“Nope. Never saw him before and haven’t seen him since.”

“What did they argue about?”

“Money, I think. Your grandpa seemed to think the guy owed him and the guy didn’t agree. But that’s all I got.”

“And you haven’t seen my grandfather since?”

“Nope.”

Chase rubbed his chin. “To your knowledge… was he involved in anything suspicious?”

The man’s bushy brows shot up. “You mean like drugs? No way. In fact I think me and him were the final few on this block who were clean. Apart from my cigar. Heh heh. But as far as I know smoking a cigar is still not illegal, no matter what those damn busybodies over at the Health Department might claim! Cigars are good for you, son, and don’t let anybody tell you different!”

“Sure they are,” said Chase, clapping a hand on the old-timer’s shoulder. “Thanks, buddy. And if you happen to see my granddad, tell him Chase is looking for him.”

“Will do, son! And if you see him first, tell him to bring me more of those Cohibas. I have no idea where he got them, but they’re damn fine cigars, and at the rate I’m going, I’m almost out!”

Chapter 6

We left the building feeling a little conflicted. Chase wanted to bust down the door to his grandfather’s apartment and look for his dead body, which by now he was sure the well-dressed man had left inside. I told him there was no reason to assume something bad had happened to his grandfather. Maybe the well-dressed man was a representative from the Publishers Clearing House and Grandpa hit the jackpot and was now sipping a piña colada under some palm tree somewhere.

“Then why was he arguing with this well-dressed man?”

“Maybe he was trying to increase the payout? You have no idea who that well-dressed man is, Chase, but I think it’s safe to say he wasn’t some hitman working for the Brooklyn mob!”

“I just want to take a look,” he said, glancing up at the building.

The dog produced a loud whine. He wanted to take a look, too. And a bite to eat.

“You’re a cop, Chase. You know as well as I do you just can’t go breaking down doors. You’ll get in trouble if you do.”

“I could get a warrant.”

“You’re not NYPD anymore. You won’t get a warrant. What you need to do is talk to that NYPD buddy of yours and maybe he can take a look.”

“She.” He produced a sigh. “All right. I’ll give her a call. Maybe this cigar-puffing neighbor can even provide a description to a sketch artist and we can find this mysterious well-dressed man.”

“I’m sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for whatever happened to your grandpa.”

He gave me a skeptical look. “Like winning the Publishers Clearing House.”

I shrugged. “Hey, it’s Christmas. It’s the season for miracles.”

He smiled for the first time. “You’re funny. And I can’t wait for you to meet my grandpa.”

“What are you going to tell him?”

He placed his arm around my shoulder. “That he’s in luck, for he’s about to meet the nicest, sweetest, prettiest girl in all of Hampton Cove.”

“Only Hampton Cove?”

“All right. In all of New York State.”

I cocked my head at him.

“In the entire country! There. Are you happy now?”

“I’m getting there.”

We walked to Chase’s car, and I spotted a Santa walking down the sidewalk, swinging a big bell with one hand, hoisting his prosthetic belly with his other. He looked a little seedy, the red of his costume more a dirty copper, and his beard tied up with string. He reminded me of something, though. We weren’t just here to find Chase’s grandfather, but also to find Hampton Cove’s new Santa.

I turned to Chase. “We have to go down to Thornton Fifth Avenue.”

“Why? You want to put in some last-minute Christmas shopping?”

“No, that’s where the new Hampton Cove Santa used to work.”

He nodded. “Get in. There’s nothing more we can do here anyway.”

The seedy Santa had drawn even with us, and the reek of alcohol came off him in waves. Ugh. Not what I needed to get me into the holiday spirit. “Ho ho ho!” he hollered. “Who’s the pretty lady?”

“I’m good, buddy,” I said, trying to get away from him. He grabbed my arm.

“Have you been naughty or nice?”

“Both.”

He gave me a leering grin. “Wanna get naughty with me?”

“No, I do not.”

His grin faded. “Give Santa a kiss.”

“I’d rather kiss that dog’s butt.”

But he was already puckering his lips and closing his eyes. I tried to push him away but his grip on my arm was pretty firm for someone as drunk as he was. Luckily help arrived in the form of Chase. “The lady said she’s not interested, buddy,” he said, and disentangled me from Seedy Santa.

The guy opened his eyes, his lips still puckered. “Hey, what happened to the pretty lady?”

“She turned into pretty old me,” Chase growled, getting into the guy’s face. “Now buzz off.”

Seedy Santa stared at Chase, a look of confusion on his face. “Weird things are happening,” he muttered, then staggered off. “Dames turning into dudes. Must be a Christmas miracle.”

Yeah, that was probably it. “Thanks for saving me from Santa,” I told Chase.

“If that was Santa, I’m Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” said Chase.

“No, you’re not. You’re my hero, that’s what you are. My dashing knight in shining armor.”

He grinned. “I like that.”

We got into the car and Chase drove off in the direction of Midtown Manhattan. Traffic was heavy, as was to be expected, though the streets were all pretty much snow-free. Cars were honking, and we moved along at a snail’s pace each time we got to an intersection. Chase still managed to make good time, proving he knew his way around Manhattan. He navigated some of the back streets and side streets until we suddenly arrived on Fifth Avenue and at Thornton’s, the well-known department store. He ducked into a parking garage, managed to ditch the car and we got out.

The window displays of Thornton’s depicted the nativity scene and various other Christmas-themed representations. They looked really neat, and kids stood with their noses pressed up against the glass, their parents resisting the urge to do the same. Tourists snapped pictures and when I saw that one window display featured a very realistic Santa and his elves, I knew this was the place to be.

Rockefeller Center was just around the corner, with its huge Christmas tree and its ice skating rink, so I said, “Maybe we can go ice skating after this.”

“Maybe we can find my grandpa first,” he retorted.

“Right.” I kept forgetting we were here on a mission, and not to take in the sights.

“We can go ice skating in Hampton Cove when we get back,” he offered when he saw my disappointment. “It’s not the same as Rockefeller Center but it’s pretty neat all the same.”

“Deal,” I said, and we walked into the store.

Inside, the Christmas decorations were even more pronounced than outside, and so were the crowds. We muscled our way through the milling throngs, and finally arrived at the Christmas village that had been set up in the toy section. A long line of kids stood waiting for a chance to say hi to Santa, who looked pretty juvenile, even with his white beard. I wondered if the kids were fooled.

A handsome woman with long dark hair stood watching nearby, dressed in the Thornton uniform of black slacks, white shirt and green vest, and I approached her. “Excuse me, Miss, but I’m looking for one of your previous Santas.” I showed her my press pass. “Hampton Cove Gazette. Our new Santa is rumored to be your old one. What can you tell me about him?”

She smiled. “Not much, I’m afraid. I haven’t been here all that long myself. All I know is that the previous Santa was let go because he was too old. Management wanted to hire a younger Santa this year, so they went with this one.”

We both stared at the new Santa, who was so young he should be the one dandling on Santa’s knee. “Isn’t he… a little too young?”

“He is pretty young,” the woman admitted. “But so far he’s doing a great job.”

Just then, the kid sitting on Santa’s knee slapped his face. “I want Iron Man! Not stupid Santa!”

“Well, you’re gonna get Santa, you snot-nosed little—” Then he caught sight of the parents watching on from the sidelines and he quickly corrected himself, lowering his voice to the Santa timbre. “Ho ho ho. Aren’t you a feisty one?”

The kid jumped from Santa’s lap and kicked his shin. “I want Iron Man!”

Santa winced. “And you will get Iron Man, unless you’re naughty.”

“I’m not naughty. I’m nice! I’m always nice! Everybody says so!”

Santa, having had enough, said in his regular voice, “I saw Iron Man on the second floor, buddy.”

The kid’s face lit up. “For real?”

“Sure. Now run along. He’s waiting for you.”

“Yay!”

“Go get him, tiger.”

The kid’s mother shook her head disgustedly and stalked off, her kid prancing happily by her side. “Mommy! Iron Man is on the second floor. Can we go—pleaaaaaaaase!”

“He lacks experience,” the woman said, after witnessing the scene. “But he’ll grow into it.”

“The previous Santa—the one that grew out of it—what was his name?”

She frowned. “Um… Kris something. I think.”

I crooked an eyebrow. “Kris Kringle.”

She pointed a finger at me. “That’s it. Kris Kringle.”

“Are you sure?”

She shrugged, losing interest. “Pretty much.”

Yeah, right.

“And? How did it go?” asked Chase as we left the department store.

“The name of Hampton Cove’s new Santa is Kris Kringle.”

He frowned. “Now why does that sound familiar?”

“You never saw Miracle on 34th Street?”

“Is that the new Leonardo DiCaprio? No, wait. You’re more a Tom Hanks fan, right?”

I hooked my arm through his. “You’ve got a lot to learn about Christmas, Mr. Scrooge.”

Chapter 7

Our next stop on this impromptu tour of New York was the soup kitchen where Chase’s grandpa volunteered. The charity was located in an old church on Ninth Avenue, and when we arrived, there was a long line outside, waiting to get in and be served. The Holy Emergency Soup Kitchen was one of the largest in the city, and made sure over a thousand people a day got a good meal in them. We entered the building and I was surprised to see round tables set up inside the church building itself, right where I would have expected rows of pews, parishioners kneeling to catch a sermon. Instead, hundreds of people sat eating quietly, a piano player tickling the ivories.

“This is amazing,” I said.

“Yeah, it is. And this isn’t the only soup kitchen in the city either. There are dozens.”

“The needs are certainly a lot greater than in Hampton Cove.”

“A lot of homeless and hungry people in the city. It’s a good thing these charities exist.”

“And these volunteers.”

I watched as dozens of volunteers moved around, replenishing drinks in plastic cups and manning the long line where food was served. The line ran very smoothly, and it was obvious the people taking their trays were grateful for this service.

“For many of them this is their only meal of the day,” said Chase.

I watched as a mother with two kids sat at one of the tables, the kids happily biting into thick slices of brown bread and ladling up their soup. “But they’re so young,” I said, choking up a little.

“Tough times,” Chase said softly, also clearly touched. “I actually used to volunteer here myself, along with my grandpa. He’s the one that got me involved. It’s a very special feeling to be able to help others. Grandpa taught me that lesson, and it’s one I’ll never forget.”

We walked up to the person in charge, a heavyset woman with a can-do, no-nonsense attitude who oversaw the whole setup. When she caught sight of Chase, the frown on her face instantly lifted and was replaced by a smile. “Chase Kingsley as I live and breathe. Where have you been, Detective?”

“I got transplanted to The Hamptons,” he said with a smile that matched hers in brightness.

She raised her eyebrows. “The Hamptons, huh? A lot of soup kitchens there, I imagine?”

“Not really,” he admitted.

“Well, I sure hope the powers that be had a reason for taking you away from us.”

Chase cut a quick glance to me. “I’m sure they did, Macey. So how have you been?”

“Busy, as you can see,” she said, gesturing around. “The lines keep increasing every day, Detective. It’s as if the world just keeps on getting a little poorer with each passing year.”

“At least the world has you to make sure these people are fed,” said Chase.

“Well, that’s for damn sure.”

I raised an eyebrow of my own. And here I always thought cussing in church was a big no-no. Obviously things were different here in the big city.

“And who is this?” asked Macey, directing a curious eye at me.

“This is Odelia Poole. We work together in Hampton Cove. She’s a civilian consultant.”

“Oh, is that what you kids call it these days?”

Chase had the good decency to blush, then cleared his throat. “What can you tell us about my grandpa, Macey? I’ve been trying to locate him but he seems to have vanished from the face of the earth.”

“Your grandpa, huh? Well, to be honest, I haven’t seen him in days. I think he came in last week, but he hasn’t been in since.”

“Did he say anything to you?”

“Nope. I just figured he was busy doing other stuff and he’d be back.”

“Did he… look different?”

Macey frowned. “Well, now that you mention it, he did seem pretty downcast last time I saw him. He wasn’t his usual cheerful self. Well, you know your grandfather. Always a joke and a kind word. But that last time he was here he was unusually quiet. He also left pretty quick. Didn’t stay to help with the cleanup like he usually does.” Her face had taken on a worried expression. “Do you think something happened to him?”

“I don’t know, Macey, but I’m starting to think something might have.” He told her about the well-dressed man his grandpa was seen arguing with, and the fact that he didn’t respond to his messages.

“Oh, dear,” said Macey, raising a hand to her cheek. “I do hope you find him, Chase. And that you find him just fine. He’s such a wonderful man, and he’s done so much for this community. I would hate for him to be in trouble and not reaching out when he needs help himself.”

“Yeah, that would be just like Granddad.”

Macey nodded, and fixed Chase with a keen look. “Sounds like someone else I know.”

When we were walking back to the car, I asked, “What did Macey mean by that?”

He shrugged. “Beats me.”

“She sounded like she was talking about you. Have you ever been in trouble and refused to reach out and ask for help?”

“That may have been me,” he admitted. “But that was before I met a certain stubborn female, who, in spite of my obvious refusal to ask for help, insisted on offering it anyway.”

I smiled at that. When we first met, Chase had been a different person. Obstinate, surly, standoffish and generally insistent on doing everything his own way without any help from anyone, least of all some nosy reporter like me. How much things had changed since then.

“Sounds like this move to Hampton Cove has done you some good.”

“Yes, it has,” he admitted, and placed an arm around my shoulder. And as we passed another Santa, this one not inebriated but also armed with a very large bell and happy to use it, I was starting to think this little field trip to New York might offer a glimpse at a side of Chase I didn’t know. A chance to get to know the burly cop just a little bit better.

Chapter 8

The police station where Chase took us next was exactly the way I’d imagined it: a bustling hubbub of noise and activity, where police officers worked at their desks while others interviewed civilians as they came in to file complaints, testify to crimes witnessed, or generally tried to make sure that wrongs were righted by New York’s finest. I could just imagine Chase in action, and the moment we entered, it was obvious he was in his element, as he waved greetings at various former colleagues, and bumped fists with uniformed officers and received hugs from more than a few of them. It was as if the long-lost son had finally returned home, and they were all happy to see him.

They also darted curious glances at me, probably wondering if I was one of them, or, more likely, a suspect Chase had dragged in here to be processed and locked up.

I followed Chase to a desk at the end of the large space, and a woman looked up from her computer. “Kingsley! Imagine seeing you here!”

“Hey, Borrell. Long time no see, huh?”

The woman rose from behind her desk and enveloped Chase in a warm hug. She was a slim and pretty young woman, with olive skin and pitch-black braided hair. She was also busty, or at least a lot more busty than me, and I had to admit to experiencing a pang of jealousy as I watched the two former colleagues exchange an obviously heartfelt embrace. Former colleagues or… former lovers?

The woman’s dark brown eyes turned to me, and she asked, “Is this my replacement?”

They ended their embrace and Chase said, “This is Odelia Poole. She’s a reporter and civilian consultant. Odelia, meet Sally Borrell. My partner back when I was with the NYPD.”

“A reporter, huh? I seem to remember you hated reporters. Called them scum of the earth.”

“Not scum of the earth, exactly,” said Chase with a smile.

“Oh, no, that’s right. You called them spume. That dirty foamy stuff that floats on top of the waves. The stuff that makes you afraid to go into the water and get all dirty and yucky.”

“Yeah, I might have been talking about a different kind of reporter,” Chase said. “The kind that works for one of the tabloids, not the Hampton Cove Gazette, which is a reputable paper.”

“So you’re the exception to the rule, huh?” asked Sally, folding her arms across her chest. “The small-town reporter who managed to turn Chase Kingsley’s head.”

“For your information,” I said, also crossing my arms, “I didn’t turn anyone’s head.”

“Yeah, she’s not the reason I got canned, Sally,” said Chase. “The opposite, actually. Odelia got that bogus charge against me dropped. If not for her, I would have been suspended from Hampton Cove PD as well, and might now be working private security in Poughkeepsie or something.”

“Huh. Is that a fact?”

Sally narrowed her eyes at me, so I did the same to her. And we would have stood there indefinitely, scowling at each other for no good reason other than that the woman seemed to have developed an instant dislike to me and me to her, if Chase hadn’t gotten between us and said, “Look, I’m looking for my grandpa. He’s gone missing and I could use some help finding him.”

Sally, after giving me one final disdainful look, finally relented. “So you want to file a missing person report?”

“I think that might be best. After you went round to his apartment, I did the same thing.”

Sally sat down and directed a worried look at Chase. “And?”

“Nothing. A neighbor said he saw Grandpa engaged in a verbal altercation with some guy, and that’s the last he ever saw of him.”

I studied Sally. So she was Chase’s former partner. She was obviously very protective of him. And as Chase supplied her with all the information about his grandfather, I glanced around. And that’s when I noticed that all eyes in the room were fixed on the three of us. The minor squabble between me and Sally had apparently been a lot louder and had attracted a lot more attention than I thought. The moment I looked around, they all looked away, and the hush that had descended upon the station was lifted as conversations resumed and the hum of activity returned in full force.

Finally, Sally had entered everything into the computer and she turned to me. “Look, I’m sorry, all right? I guess I got a little carried away just now.”

“That’s all right,” I said. “You guys must miss Chase a lot. He’s a great detective.”

“Yeah, we do miss him a lot. It just wasn’t fair the way he was set up like that. The Commissioner and the Mayor conspiring against him—it was a terrible thing they did.”

“Wait, you knew about that?” asked Chase, surprised.

“Sure. Who didn’t? Word gets around, especially since the Commissioner and Mayor Putin’s wife ended their affair and the Putins are getting a divorce. It’s all out in the open now, Chase.”

Chase had had the misfortune of walking in on Commissioner Montague and Malka Putin, prompting them to fabricate a complaint that got him suspended. Everything had been settled, and Chase had even been offered his old job back, but he’d decided he liked Hampton Cove a lot better than New York City. A lot less hassle. At least that was what he’d told the Commissioner.

“You could always come back, you know? We need you here, Kingsley.”

Chase smiled. “I’m fine with Hampton Cove. The atmosphere, the people, the peace and quiet. It just feels right, you know. Somehow this whole affair has been a blessing in disguise for me.”

Sally cast a dark look at me. “The people, huh? We’ve got people here in New York, too, you know. A lot of great people—people who appreciate you plenty.”

I rolled my eyes. This woman was just too much.

“Thanks, Sally,” said Chase, pressing her hand warmly. “But I feel like I’m just where I’m supposed to be.”

“Great,” she said acerbically. “I hope she’ll make you happy.”

“Who?” he asked, confused.

“Miss Spume here! Who else?”

“Hey!” I called out. “You take that back.”

“I’m not taking anything back! You deprived this department of a great detective.”

“I did no such thing!”

“You’re the reason he’s out there in the middle of nowhere, protecting rich fat cats from other rich fat cats! While he should be right here, helping us solve real murders of real people.”

“He is solving real murders of real people.”

“Admit it, honey. He’s just a glorified bodyguard these days.”

“I’m not a glorified bodyguard, Sally,” said Chase with a laugh.

She turned on him. “Yes, you are. Don’t think I haven’t followed your career. The only crime you’ve got out there are a bunch of celebrities getting whacked.” She threw up her arms. “Who cares about celebrities being whacked? Nobody!”

“They’re also people,” Chase said.

“Yeah, celebrities are also people,” I added. “And for your information, we don’t just have celebrities out in Hampton Cove. We have regular people too. People who deserve good police work.”

“Oh, you’re just too much,” said Sally, sitting down again.

“Sally, I…” Chase began.

“Go away, Kingsley. You and Miss Spume deserve each other. In fact you’re made for each other, anyone can see that.”

“We’re not even a couple!” I cried.

“We’re not?” asked Chase, confused. “I thought we were.”

I glanced up at him. “We are?”

“Of course we are. You’re my girlfriend. I’m your boyfriend. We’re a couple.”

“Well, if you put it that way…”

“Can you just go away?” asked Sally. “You make me sick, the both of you.”

“It’s just that, we go on dates, and we kiss and stuff, but you never said anything about us being a couple,” I told Chase, ignoring Sally.

“I thought that was a given,” said Chase. “Since we do go out on dates, and we do kiss a lot. And that’s exactly what couples do, right?”

“I guess so.”

“Get out of here!” Sally cried. “Go back to Hampton Cove to date and kiss!”

“I think we’ll do just that,” I said, lifting my chin.

“But first we have to find my grandfather,” said Chase.

“And my Santa,” I added.

“Right.”

“Out of my sight!” Sally yelled. “Get out.”

So that’s what we did. Stared after by the entire precinct. Then, as we walked out the door, they all cheered. Looks like they didn’t agree with Sally, and did not consider me spume. Besides, spume wasn’t always dirty. Spume could be nice and fluffy and pink, just like me. Maybe I was going to adopt this name and wear it proudly from now on. Odelia ‘Spume’ Poole. It had a nice ring to it. Or Odelia ‘Spume’ Kingsley. An even nicer ring.

Chapter 9

After some calling around, I finally managed to find out the name of a former manager at Thornton Fifth Avenue. If anyone knew the identity of Hampton Cove’s new Santa, it would be him. We caught up with the guy at Fun ’n Frolic, a modest toy store located on Amsterdam Avenue. Just like at Thornton’s, a Santa sat entertaining a bunch of kids. But the setup was a lot less exuberant than at Thornton’s, and Santa looked like an out-of-work actor making a dime, which he probably was.

Orrick McCastle was a man in his late sixties, with short, curly white hair, a small white mustache, and reverent bearing. In a previous life, he must have been a priest, for he carried himself like one and spoke in the same hushed tones. “Greetings,” he said when we approached him. “How may I be of assistance?” He was keeping an eye on a gaggle of kids messing around the ball pit.

“We’re actually looking for the new Hampton Cove Santa,” I announced, deciding to skip the usual preliminaries and get to the heart of the matter straightaway.

“Ah,” he said, studying me closely. “I’m afraid there I cannot help you. You see, I’m not familiar with that particular brand. If you seek the new Fisher-Price Santa, or the new Lego Santa, I’m more than happy to help, but the new Hampton Cove Santa? He will always remain a mystery to me.”

“Hampton Cove is not a brand,” I said.

“Which might explain why it is unfamiliar to me.”

“It’s a town located between Hampton Bays and Happy Bays, on Long Island’s South Fork.”

His eyebrows rose precipitously. “A town. And you’re looking for its Santa?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Once again, I must bow out respectfully. You see, I am not in the business of providing Santas, at least not the human kind. If it is a toy Santa you seek, let me guide you to our toy Santa section. As you can imagine, we have a large offering, especially at this time of year.”

“No, you don’t understand.”

“I don’t?”

“You see, the Santa I’m looking for used to work at Thornton Fifth Avenue. He was fired from that store and hired by the Hampton Cove council. I work for the Hampton Cove Gazette and my editor wants me to do a piece on this new Santa, but the council is adamant to keep him under wraps until the official Christmas Eve Celebration.”

“And you, being the intrepid reporter, cannot wait that long. I now see all.” He placed a thoughtful finger to his lips, a frown marring his noble brow. “It is true that I used to be employed by Thornton Fifth Avenue until very recently, when I was summarily dismissed, my services no longer required. And it is also true that for many years, we employed the same man as our store Santa.”

“But…”

“Thornton Fifth Avenue is a rather large establishment, with a vast staff of people.”

My shoulders slumped a little. “You don’t remember the name of your Santa?”

“Well, I remember his first name. You see, I pride myself on being on a first-name basis with all of my people, even the seasonal ones like Santa. His name was Kris—or at least that’s the name he provided—it’s not inconceivable he used an alias, as he was a humble and very private individual.”

“Kris?” I asked dubiously. “As in Kris Kringle?”

“Which is exactly why I have my doubts as to the veracity of the name of this individual.”

“Why was this Kris fired, exactly?”

“The same reason I was fired, my dear young lady. Age. The Thornton family, in all its wisdom, decided I was too old to function in a managerial role, a position I held for forty years, and deemed it necessary to replace me with a younger specimen, straight out of business school, and loaded up with all the exciting new wisdom his expensive education no doubt has instilled in him. To give you but one example of this wisdom he immediately replaced the old Santa with a new Santa, because that is what you do when you’re young and dynamic: out with the old and in with the new.”

“You sound a little…”

“Bitter? Oh, not at all. In fact I’m very grateful that Jurgen—that’s the new manager’s name—Jurgen Winklevoss—was chosen to replace me. I’m sure that for the next forty years he’ll succeed in running into the ground the very establishment it took me forty years to put on the map.” He gave me a radiant smile. “Now if I might make a suggestion as to your Hampton Cove Santa—be happy.”

“Be happy?”

“Yes, be very happy, for your village—”

“Town. We’re actually an actual town.”

“Even better! Your town has just acquired the very best Santa New York has to offer, even if he is a little long in the tooth, at least according to Jurgen Winklevoss. Our loss is your gain, Miss…”

“Poole. Odelia Poole. And this is Detective Chase Kingsley.”

“Oh, you have employed an actual detective to track down Santa, eh? Leave no stone unturned and all that. Well done, Miss Poole. Bully for you. I’m sure you’ll find your Santa, and when you do, give him my warmest regards.” The Santa that was gracing his own store had just allowed his beard to be ripped off by a little girl and Mr. McCastle regarded him disdainfully. “At any rate Kris was a much better Santa than this pimpled teenager whose face has never even seen a razor blade. Mike, put that beard back on this instant! Put. The. Beard. Back. On. Right now!”

We decided to leave Mr. McCastle to his work. He looked like he was a pretty busy man. And as we left, he was just trying to restore Santa’s beard with sticky tape, drawing shocked stares from a dozen boys and girls and their parents. They were going to have a lot of explaining to do.

Chapter 10

Chase decided to pay a quick visit to his mother, in case his grandfather might have dropped by. Not that he was likely to, as Martha was not his daughter. Still, they’d always shared a great connection, even after Chase’s dad died, so maybe he’d turned to her for help in his hour of need.

“So you really think your grandfather is in trouble, huh?” I asked as we walked from the car to the brownstone where his mom lived with her sister.

“There’s no other explanation for all this secrecy. The only reason he wouldn’t confide in me would be that he’s in some kind of deep hole he feels ashamed to tell me about.”

“But what could it be? Drugs? Alcohol? Gambling debts? What?”

“I have no idea. As far as I know Grandpa was always one for clean living, and tried to steer clear of any kind of vice. Though apparently he was not above selling cigars to his neighbors.”

“Not exactly a great crime.”

“No, but what if that’s only part of the story? What if he got involved with some shady characters? Maybe as a way to supplement his pension? I just wish he’d told me. I could have helped.”

I placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s not your fault. Your grandfather is a grown man. He knows how to take care of himself.”

“Or not.”

He rang the bell and moments later we were ensconced in the cozy kitchen of a small apartment that housed Chase’s mom and her sister. Aunt Ariadne was a forceful and voluble woman, apparently quite the opposite of Martha Kingsley. Chase had warned me his mom wasn’t exactly the life and soul of the party. After Chase’s dad died, she’d had a mental breakdown, and now lived with Ariadne, who was also a widow, though her husband hadn’t been a cop but an MTA security guard. And instead of dying from a gunshot wound, like Chase’s dad, he’d died of a coronary after a lifelong habit of enjoying all the best Kentucky Fried Chicken had to offer.

“So you finally come to see us, huh?” asked Ariadne, chopping an innocent onion on the chopping block with so much violence I was sure she was going to cut straight through the block.

“I told you, Aunt Ariadne. I’ve been busy.”

“So you say,” she snapped. “So busy you can’t even visit your own mother. Huh!”

I decided that maybe I should intervene on Chase’s behalf. “It’s true, Aunt Ariadne. Chase has been very busy. Lots of criminals to catch and all that.”

“Huh! Criminals in The Hamptons! Everybody knows they don’t have real criminals in The Hamptons! Only a bunch of teenagers crashing cars on Friday night.”

“Well, we do have our fair amount of murders.”

“Murders! A bunch of rich people killing other rich people is not what I call murder.”

“What would you call it then?” asked Chase, giving me a cheery wink.

“Good riddance! I hope they all murder each other! Every last one of them! The world would be a much better place without all those horrible excuses for human beings! Leeches, the lot of ‘em!”

It was pretty clear to me that, like Sally Borrell, Aunt Ariadne wasn’t big on celebrities. I couldn’t blame her. After living in Hampton Cove all my life, and meeting my fair share of them, I could honestly say a lot of them were indeed horrible human beings. But to say that they deserved to be murdered was a little extreme. Nobody deserved to be murdered, though when Ariadne attacked a sweet little carrot with the same fervor she’d destroyed that onion, I decided wisely to keep my mouth shut this time. I did not want to provoke a woman who could handle a knife like that.

“So how’s Mom?” asked Chase.

“Ask her yourself! She’s in her room!”

Drawn by all the shouting, a woman appeared in the doorframe. She shuffled in, all one hundred pounds of her. Chase warmly enveloped her in an embrace. “Hey, Mom,” he said softly.

“Chase,” she said croakily. “It’s so good to see you.”

She was smaller than me, which was saying something as I’m pretty pint-sized myself, and she looked even thinner than me, too. About the size of the average New York catwalk model, I would say. She had a lovely face, short gray hair, and large eyes. All in all, she looked healthy. Not the human wreck Chase had made her out to be. And she seemed to recognize her son just fine, even calling him by his actual name. None of that ‘Johnny the Milkman’ stuff this time.

The woman turned to me. “And who is this? A colleague of yours?”

“Yes, she is, and also my girlfriend.”

The woman’s large eyes went even larger. “Your girlfriend!”

“You didn’t tell us you had a girlfriend!” Aunt Ariadne harrumphed.

“Well, I do, and this is her. Odelia Poole. She’s a reporter.”

“A reporter!” Aunt Ariadne bellowed, as if I was Satan’s spawn itself.

“And a civilian consultant to the police department,” I hastened to add, hoping this would guarantee me safe passage from this apartment, in the event Aunt Ariadne didn’t kill me on the spot.

Both women studied me carefully. “She’s skinny,” Aunt Ariadne finally decided.

“She’s lovely,” said Chase’s mother.

“Thanks, Mrs. Kingsley,” I said.

“So where did you find her? asked Ariadne.

“Hampton Cove,” I said. “It’s where I live. And work.”

Aunt Ariadne snorted loudly. “The Hamptons again, eh? Are you a celebrity?”

“No, I’m not,” I admitted. “And I haven’t murdered one either.”

“Too bad. Everyone should murder a celebrity from time to time. Make a habit of it.”

“Odelia has actually solved a lot of celebrity murders,” said Chase. “She’s an ace sleuth.”

“Is she now?” asked Aunt Ariadne, giving me a dirty scowl. “Now why would you go and do a silly thing like that?”

“Because celebrities are just like people,” I said defensively, repeating something I’d told Detective Borrell. “I mean, celebrities are people, obviously, and when they’re murdered they deserve to receive the same justice as the rest of us.”

“Silly notion, if you ask me. Damn silly.”

“Oh, come off it, Ariadne,” said Martha. “I think it’s wonderful. Chase has found himself a fellow sleuth to go sleuthing with. I think it’s wonderfully romantic.”

“Sleuthing together? Romantic? You’re nuts, Martha.”

“No, I’m not. You’re nuts if you think all celebrities are scum.”

“They are scum! A bunch of useless wastrels, the lot of them. Wasting our time, wasting our money, wasting our humanity.” She wagged a finger in my face. “Next time a celebrity is murdered, you should give the killer the Nobel Prize, that’s what you should do!”

“I’m sorry, but it’s not in my power to dole out Nobel Prizes,” I said, feeling a little overwhelmed by this woman. I kept my eye on that huge knife, hoping I’d said the right thing.

“’Stop scaring the girl,” said Martha. “Is this really the first impression you want to make on your future niece-in-law?”

“Niece-in-law?” asked Ariadne with a frown. “Are you going to marry this stick figure?”

“She’s not a stick figure,” Martha protested. “She’s simply slim, that’s all. Just like me.”

“And haven’t I told you a thousand times you have to eat more?!”

“You have, and I do, but I’m not like you. I don’t gain weight when I look at a glass of water.”

“Oh, now you’re calling me fat, are you? Nice! I put a roof over your head, sister!”

Chase had sidled up to me. “Are you all right? Aunt Ariadne can be a bit… forceful.”

“Scary, you mean.”

He grinned. “She used to scare the crap out of me when I was little. Still does, actually.”

We both watched the woman wield that knife as if she was going to carve up Martha. Finally, she placed it down and continued the argument unarmed, and we both heaved a sigh of relief.

“Um, can I ask you something?” asked Chase.

“What?” grumbled Ariadne, who’d turned to her pots that were simmering on the stove.

“Have you heard from Grandpa Kingsley lately?”

“No, we haven’t,” said Martha. “Why? Is there something wrong?”

Chase frowned. “No, I’m sure there isn’t,” he said, clearly not wanting to cause alarm. “He hasn’t returned my calls is all. And when I went to see him this morning he wasn’t home.”

“I’m sure there’s a perfectly logical explanation,” said Martha.

“He’s probably drunk like a skunk and sleeping it off on some bench in Central Park,” said Aunt Ariadne, wiping her hands on her apron. “Typical.”

“Grandpa doesn’t do public intoxication,” said Chase. “So that’s out of the question.”

“I’m sure he’ll turn up soon,” said his mother. “He’s just being secretive. You know your grandfather. He likes to surprise people.”

“I would prefer if he’d just pick up his phone.”

“Can’t pick up the phone when you’re strung out on booze,” said Aunt Ariadne gruffly.

“He’s not a drunk,” Chase insisted. “In fact I’m pretty sure he’s a teetotaler these days.”

“Have you found yourself a nice place to live yet, Chase?” asked his mother.

“Not yet, Mom, but I keep looking and I’ll find something.”

She nodded, darting an anxious glance at Aunt Ariadne. I remembered Chase telling me how he wanted to take care of his mother but wasn’t in a position to do so. For a brief moment I suddenly saw all of us living in my tiny house: me, Chase, his mom, Aunt Ariadne, and my cats. I shivered. It was not a prospect I enjoyed contemplating.

I looked up when Aunt Ariadne plunked a plate of hash browns in front of my nose, stabbed a finger at it, and snapped, “Eat! Put some fat on those skinny bones of yours.”

It was a testament to the force of her personality that I obediently said, “Yes, ma’am,” and dug in.

Chase was shaking with laughter, until his aunt slammed a plate in front of him as well, and grunted, “Eat! I don’t like the sight of you, either. You’ve lost weight.”

“No, I haven’t,” said Chase.

“Yes, you have,” she said, and grabbed his face with one hand, digging her fingers into his cheeks and puffing up his lips. “Right here. These lines weren’t there last time you came to visit.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Chase mumbled.

Aunt Ariadne let go of Chase’s face and turned a kindling eye on me. “You have to feed him. Fatten him up.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I repeated.

She grunted with approval, and for the next half hour or so, watched us both eat, while Martha regaled us with an extensive report of everything that had happened to her in the last two weeks, which wasn’t all that interesting or entertaining. But at least we were going to escape this place with our lives. I mean, Aunt Ariadne wasn’t going to feed us only to kill us off later, was she? And we had one thing going for us: neither of us was a celebrity. Thank God.

Chapter 11

On our way back to Hampton Cove, Chase was quiet, which wasn’t surprising, given the enormous pile of hash browns his aunt had made him devour. Luckily she’d gone easier on me, and after I’d eaten one plate, hadn’t insisted I eat a second one, like she’d done with Chase.

“Your mom seemed fine,” I finally said, deciding to break the silence.

“Yeah, she had a good day.”

“You mean she’s not always like this?”

He shook his head. “Like I said, sometimes she forgets who I am.”

“Johnny the milkman, huh?”

“Yup. Or worse.”

“Bozo the Clown?”

“No. Sometimes she thinks I’m Dad, and tries to kiss me.”

“Oops.”

“Yeah. Last time she said we had to try for a baby. I graciously declined.”

“That can’t have been fun for you.”

“It was funny to Aunt Ariadne. She laughed her ass off.”

“She lacks delicacy.”

“Honey, Aunt Ariadne doesn’t even know the meaning of the word.”

I could see that. Aunt Ariadne was a little rough around the edges. We’d just merged onto the Long Island Expressway when a call came in. It was Sally Borrell. Chase put her on speakerphone.

“Yes, Sally. What have you got for me?”

“Well, he’s not in any of the hospitals—and he’s not in the morgue, either.”

“That’s great news.”

“Yeah, he’s not anywhere else, either, though. He just kinda went off the grid there, Chase.”

He balled his hand into a fist and bumped it softly against the steering wheel. “What could have happened to the old man?”

“We’ll keep looking, but so far we’ve got nothing. Is it possible he had no credit cards? No bank account? Nothing?”

“That’s possible. Grandpa doesn’t believe in banks or credit institutions. Says they’re all a bunch of crooks and thieves and he wants them nowhere near his money.”

“He’s probably right, but that only makes our work more difficult.”

“What about his cell phone?”

“Hasn’t been used for days.”

“Dammit.”

There was a pause. “Is Miss Spume with you?”

“She’s sitting right next to me.”

“Tell her I’m sorry. I was way out of line before.”

“Tell her yourself. You’re on speakerphone.”

“Kingsley!”

“Borrell.”

There was another pause. “Miss Spume?”

I leaned into the cell phone, which was in its cradle on the dash. “The name is Odelia Poole.”

“Whatever. I owe you an apology, Spume. I guess I got carried away.”

“That’s all right. I can appreciate what it must feel like to lose a partner.”

“That’s an awfully nice thing to say, Spume. Maybe you’re not so bad after all.”

“Thanks. I guess.”

“Yeah. Listen, take care of Chase, will you? He’s a great guy. And we all miss him down here.”

“I know,” I said, and I did. I would miss Chase if he suddenly disappeared from my life.

“Hey, why don’t you put in for a transfer to Hampton Cove PD?” Chase asked suddenly, and I could see he wasn’t kidding either. “That way we could be colleagues again, Borrell.”

“I’ll think about it, Kingsley,” said Sally acerbically, and promptly disconnected.

“Do you think she will do it?” I asked.

“Put in for transfer? I doubt it. Hampton Cove is considered the boonies. Nobody wants to work in the boonies.”

“The boonies, huh?”

“Nobody moves from the big leagues to the minor leagues, Odelia. And Sally is no exception.”

“You did. And you said you like it.”

He gave me a grin. “I’ve got my reasons.”

“Oh?”

“One big reason, actually, and her name starts with an O and ends with Delia.”

“Mh. That’s a tough one to figure out.” But I got all warm and fuzzy inside anyway.

I arrived home just in time to find Max and Dooley all atwitter. Apparently they hadn’t stopped looking for Bambi, same way me and Chase had been looking for his grandpa. They actually thought they’d found her, locked up by some kidnapper, and they’d even heard her scream. I immediately called Chase, who was already back at the police station. So him and Uncle Alec got into my uncle’s car and met me outside within five minutes. We all filed in, Max and Dooley and me, and then we were on our way to rescue Bambi Wiggins from ‘a fate worse than death,’ as Dooley described it.

“What’s this all about?” asked my uncle.

“Attempted murder,” I said without hesitation. “Someone’s trying to murder… someone else.”

“How do you know?” asked Chase, who, once again, was the designated driver.

“I, um… happened to walk past the house and suddenly heard a loud scream.”

I didn’t explain it hadn’t been me walking past the house, nor did Chase ask how it was possible I’d gone walking past this murder house when he’d only dropped me off ten minutes before.

We soon arrived, and that’s when I saw that it was actually the Wiggins place. Huh?

“Randi and Bambi Wiggins,” Chase said. “The postal duo.”

I had a strong suspicion I knew exactly what was going on here. For once, my two sleuthing felines had made a boo-boo. But there was no backing out now. We were going to have to bite the bullet. Chase looked through the window into the Wiggins living room as my uncle rang the bell.

“Be careful!” Dooley said. “He’s got an axe!”

And that’s when we heard loud screams coming from inside the house.

“There! That’s Bambi!” Max cried. “Hurry!”

My uncle pounded the door with his fist, and Chase said, “Can’t see a thing. Just the biggest Christmas tree I’ve ever seen in my entire life. That thing is huge!”

The entire house was dressed up for Christmas, actually, with a big sleigh on the roof, a Santa dangling precariously from the second-floor window, and Christmas lights all around.

The door swung open and Randi Wiggins appeared, looking as jovial and cheerful as ever. For the occasion the big guy was dressed in a knitted Christmas sweater depicting Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Cute. “Hey there, Chief,” he said. “What’s going on?”

“My niece heard screams,”’ said the Chief. “May we come in and take a look?”

“Screams? Oh, that must be Willa. She’s been screaming up a storm.”

Of course. I’d totally forgotten that Bambi was expecting. She must have had that baby by now, which would explain the screams, just like Randi said.

“He’s just trying to confuse you,” said Max. “Ask about Bambi!”

“Yeah, we want to see Bambi!” Dooley added.

“We want proof of life!”

“Is Bambi in?” I asked.

Randi shrugged. “She’s kinda busy. Now’s not a really good time, Odelia.”

“Don’t take no for an answer,” Max said. “Demand to see Bambi.”

“We still need to see her, I’m afraid.”

Randi stepped aside. “Suit yourself. But I’m warning you. It’s not pretty.”

“He’s killed her,” said Max.

“There’s blood all over the place,” said Dooley.

“Poor Bambi!”

“We’re too late!”

Uncle Alec walked past the man and entered the house, followed by Chase, me, and the cats.

“Um… what are these cats doing here?” Randi asked, surprised.

“Oh, those are mine,” I said. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Sure don’t,” said Randi. “I actually have one myself.”

The house was all dressed up for Christmas, and cozy as heck. A huge Christmas tree dominated the living room, and there were little lights everywhere. Bambi and Randi were obviously big on Christmas. I just wished my own home was as Christmassy as theirs, but I hadn’t really taken the time this year. Maybe once, when I had a family of my own, I would pay more attention to the holidays. I knew I wanted to. It just seemed like a lot of hassle to go through just for myself and Max.

“So where’s Bambi?” I asked, searching around. Not that I believed she was being held captive by her own husband, but it was the only way to calm down Max and Dooley, who’d gone berserk. And I actually wanted to see her, too. I liked Bambi, and had totally forgotten about her pregnancy.

“Upstairs,” said Randi.

“Nice place you’ve got here, Randi,” said my uncle.

“Great fan of Christmas, are you?” Chase asked.

“That’s more my wife. She’s big on Christmas. If it was up to her she’d have those lights up all year.”

“How the hell did you get that sleigh on the roof?” asked Uncle Alec.

“It wasn’t easy!”

“Less talk, more showing us Bambi,” Max growled.

We all moved up the stairs behind Randi. “Don’t mind the mess,” he said, opening the baby gate. He gestured at a bunch of toys lying around. A big Barbie and an actual nursery station. “I know it’s a little early, as we only brought Willa home last week. But you know how grammies and grandpas are. We told them she has no use for toys just yet but they just couldn’t help themselves.”

We all filed into the baby room, and I held my breath when I saw how gorgeous it was. Bambi and Randi had really outdone themselves. The theme was a pretty pink, and a collection of cat paintings adorned one wall, with a huge drawing of Bambi, Randi and Baby Willa dominating another one. It looked like the mural Cameron and Mitchell had on the wall of Lily’s room in Modern Family: Bambi and Randi depicted as angels, Willa’s cot right beneath it.

“Bambi, sorry about the intrusion, honey,” Randi said softly as he padded up to his wife, “but some of the neighbors must have heard Willa scream and called the cops on us.”

Bambi laughed. “Of course they did. She’s a real fire engine, this one, isn’t she?”

In her arms, she was holding tiny Willa, swaddled up in a cloud of pink. Willa had her eyes closed, and looked like a regular angel.

“Oh, my God, what a cutie!” I exclaimed.

Willa must have sensed our presence, for she let out a loud wail.

“So that’s the sound you heard, Odelia,” Chase said with a grin. “A baby crying.”

“I guess so,” I said, cutting a look to Max and Dooley, who were completely discombobulated by the sight of Willa.

“So… Bambi hasn’t been abducted?” Max asked.

“Bambi and Randi had a baby,” I explained.

“Baby Willa,” said Randi, sidling up to his wife and his newborn baby girl.

“Willa Wiggins?” asked Uncle Alec. “Really?”

Randi shrugged. “Hey, it wasn’t my idea.”

“My favorite great-aunt was called Willa,” Bambi explained. She flicked a switch on a miniature Christmas tree and the moment the lights flickered on, Willa stopped wailing and stared at it in fascination.

“So that’s the trick, huh?” asked Bambi. “You like Christmas lights just as much as your mommy does.”

“This is so sweet,” said Chase. “I’m sorry for the intrusion, Bambi—Randi.”

“Oh, that’s all right,” said Randi. “I guess not all of the neighbors have heard the news. That’ll change soon when we invite them over for the christening.”

“You’re inviting the whole neighborhood?” I asked.

“Sure. We can all share this miracle of life.”

Uncle Alec smiled. “I remember when Odelia was just a tiny bundle of joy. When my sister brought her home from the hospital and asked me to be her godfather, I was over the moon.” He wiped away a tear.

I rubbed his back. “When I have a baby you’re going to be its godfather, too, Uncle Alec.”

He looked up in surprise. “I am?”

“Of course.” For some reason, my gaze wandered to Chase. He caught it and came over to plant a kiss on my lips. Uncle Alec blinked at the sight, then gave me a wink. I knew that each time the holidays came around, he had a tough time—remembering how he and Aunt Ginny had wanted to start a family, too. At least he had Mom and me—and Gran, of course.

“Watch out!” suddenly Dooley cried, and rushed forward. Randi had picked up a package and was opening it. When he saw Dooley zooming in, he hesitated, and gave me a questioning look.

“Dooley, it’s all right,” I said, picking up the cat.

“But… he’s got an axe!” Dooley cried.

“I’m sure it’s fine,” I insisted.

Randi opened the package. “Got you something, babe,” he said, and handed his wife a pacifier in the shape of a Christmas tree.

“Oh, honey!” Bambi exclaimed. “You found it! And just in time for Christmas!”

“Of course I found it,” said Randi, his face creasing into a wide grin. “I’m Mr. Postal, aren’t I?”

“You sure are,” she said, and placed the pacifier between baby Willa’s lips. Instantly she began to suck on it, making happy noises.

“I just knew it,” said Bambi. “The only way to make a Wiggins baby happy is to give it a Christmas gift.”

“Runs in the family,” said Randi.

I set Dooley down on the floor and enjoyed the warmth of Chase’s arm around me. When Bambi offered to let me hold her baby for a moment, I was touched. Ever so carefully, I took Willa into my arms. She was such a cutie-pie! I caught Max and Dooley watching on with bated breath, so I crouched down and showed them the baby. Both cats looked on with amazement.

“It’s… so small,” said Dooley.

“And it smells so good,” Max said.

“This is Max and this is Dooley,” I whispered in Willa’s ear. “They’re the sweetest and smartest cats in the world.” A big orange cat, seated next to Max, cleared her throat. This was probably Randi and Bambi’s cat. “And so are you, of course, pretty one,” I added.

“That’s Ellen,” said Randi. “She’s already used to the baby, aren’t you, Ellen?”

“I think it might take my cats a little while,” I said. “They look pretty shocked.”

The visit over, we all returned to the car and Chase drove us home. And we’d just turned the corner to our street when Max said, “Whenever you and Chase want to have a baby, it’s fine with me and Dooley.”

I laughed. “Maybe you’re ready, but I’m not, Max.”

“What was that?” asked Chase.

“I think Max and Dooley have baby fever.”

He smiled. “I have baby fever.”

“Me too,” Uncle Alec chimed in.

The snow was coming down hard now, and all around us the world had turned white. Twinkling lights indicated Christmas was almost upon us, and I suddenly felt happy. I hugged Max and Dooley, who’d jumped up onto my lap.

“If you have a baby, are you still going to keep us?” asked Dooley.

I rubbed him behind his ear. “Of course I’m going to keep you. You’re my babies, too.”

“Odelia is talking to her cats again,” said Chase, shaking his head.

“You’re just going to have to get used to it, Chase,” said Uncle Alec.

“Oh, but I am,” he said. “In fact soon enough I may start talking to cats myself!”

“I hope not,” I said softly. “Cause then you’ll discover all my secrets.”

“Don’t worry, Odelia,” Max said. “Dooley and me will guard your secrets with our lives. Isn’t that right, Dooley?”

“Damn skippy,” said Dooley. “We will take your secrets to the grave!”

“Please don’t mention the word grave,” Max said with a shiver. “It gives me the creeps.”

“We will take your secrets to cat heaven!”

“Cat heaven?” asked Chase with a frown. “Did someone just mention cat heaven?”

Max, Dooley and I shared a look of alarm. Uh-oh… Had Chase just overheard a cat convo? Now that would be a first.

Chapter 12

The next day was the day before Christmas, and I decided to go into the office to give Dan the bad news in person. I’d waited until the last minute, hoping the Mayor would change his mind and answer one of the many messages I left on his phone, but no such luck. Dan wasn’t happy. He said it was a disgrace that the only newspaper in town did not have the scoop on the new Santa. More than that, though, I think he was offended that he’d been replaced, probably for the first time in his life.

When I left the office, I ran into Chase. “I’ve been looking for you,” he said, and his face was flushed. “I’ve got a lead on my grandpa. Guess where he is?”

“The hospital?”

“Right here in Hampton Cove! Someone saw him get on the Jitney two days ago, headed for The Hamptons. I talked to the dispatcher and they have him on the nine o’clock bus to Hampton Cove. The bus picked him up at 59th, between Lexington and Third. So I got in touch with the driver and he says he remembers him. Says he got off at the Hampton Cove stop and was met by some guy.”

“What guy?”

Chase shook his head. “No description. All he remembers is he was wearing a Knicks cap.”

“That narrows it down. So what do we do now?”

“No idea.” He looked unhappy. “Why would my grandfather come to Hampton Cove and not get in touch with me? It doesn’t make sense. The only thing I can think of is that he wanted to surprise me. Spend Christmas with me. But then he met Knicks Cap Guy and vanished into thin air.”

“First the well-dressed man and now this guy. Your grandfather keeps running into suspicious men.”

“And ends up disappearing.”

“But someone must have seen him.”

“I talked to some people but no one remembers. Which isn’t surprising. The stop is on Main Street. It’s a pretty busy place.”

“None of the shopkeepers remember anything? Wilbur Vickery?”

“Nope.”

“Looks like we both struck out. I still have no idea who the new Santa is and you lost your grandfather.” In the grand scheme of things, it was more important to find Chase’s granddad, though. Santa would be revealed tonight. His grandfather just might have run into the wrong people and be in big trouble.

“I can’t believe this,” he said, shaking his head. “He came here to see me and now he’s gone.”

“We’ll find him,” I promised. “Somehow we’ll find your grandfather, Chase.”

He gave me a hopeful look. “You think so?”

“I know so,” I said with more conviction than I was feeling.

“If anyone can find him, it’s you. I’ve never met a better detective than you, Odelia.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said with a grim smile. I wasn’t sure it was warranted, though. In fact I had only one more card to play. The feline card.

I was working on my article about Santa, what little I had gathered, when there was a soft scratching sound at the glass sliding door. I looked up, and when the scratchy sound was joined by a soft mewling, I smiled. My feline squad had returned from their mission. I just hoped they’d been able to accomplish more than me and Chase had.

I opened the door and Max and Dooley hurried in. Their coats were flecked with snow and they looked as if they’d just spent hours in the icy cold, which they had. They hurried to the radiator and plunked down right in front of it. Then, noticing I’d lit a fire in the fireplace, they gratefully moved over to the sheepskin rug in front of it and stretched out, their backs to the fire. It wasn’t a real fire with actual logs, just an electrical one, but it supplied a lot of heat, and the red radial glow was almost as good as the real thing.

“So? What did you guys find out?” I asked. Dooley was checking the socks dangling from the mantle, ascertaining if they were still in place. When he discovered they were, he contentedly placed his head on his paws and dozed off.

“Max?” I asked. “Anything?”

Max yawned, then closed his mouth with a click. “Well, we talked to Kingman, and he remembers an old guy walking around with another guy wearing a Knicks cap. He remembers because the old guy reminded him of Santa so much. The old guy had one of those rolling suitcases, which was a bad idea, as he kept getting it stuck in snowdrifts. But then the guy in the Knicks cap got tired of waiting and snatched the suitcase from his hands and carried it for him.”

“And this happened around the time the Jitney arrived?”

“He’s not sure. He’s learned to ignore the Jitney. Doesn’t even notice it these days.”

Which was to be expected. When your owner runs the store directly across from the bus stop, after a while you stop seeing the buses coming and going. “You’re sure this guy looked like Santa?”

“That’s what Kingman said. He had a nice white beard and one of those red Santa hats.”

It could be Chase’s grandfather. Of course, a lot of people wore those red Santa hats around the holidays, and a lot of eighty-year-old men had white beards. “Did he also see where they went?”

“They went into the Hampton Cove Star.”

I smiled and patted the big red cat on the back. “You did great, Max. You did really great.”

“Thanks. And now I need a nap. Traipsing in the snow all day is not my idea of a good time!”

I got up and picked my phone from the table. “I put some snacks in the kitchen for you guys.”

He looked up with an expression of relish on his furry face. “Cat Snax?”

“Yep. But you’ll have to share with Dooley.”

“Oh, I will. I’ll take seventy percent and leave thirty percent for Dooley. Or eighty-twenty.”

“Why don’t you make it fifty-fifty?”

“Have you seen me? I’m at least twice as big as Dooley, so I need twice as much food.”

“Fifty-fifty, Max. It’s only fair.”

“Oh, all right,” he said grudgingly, then promptly dozed off, just like Dooley.

I watched them with a smile on my face. Amazing. My cats had just found Chase’s gramps.

Chapter 13

I met Chase in front of the Hampton Cove Star, a small boutique hotel in the heart of Hampton Cove. It featured an actual indoor pool, wellness center, fitness club, and whatever other amenities its upscale clientele demanded. There were only about thirty rooms, but they were all top of the line. Pretty pricey, too, as was to be expected. Still, they were usually fully booked during the holidays, and now was probably no exception.

“Guess what?” said Chase when he joined me on the sidewalk. “I think I may have found your Santa.”

“My Santa? You mean our Santa. I mean Hampton Cove’s Santa.”

“He’s right here at the Hampton Cove Star.”

“No way.”

“Way. Your uncle Alec had a drink with a guy who works at Town Hall. And he said the Mayor has set the new Santa up at the Star, all expenses paid, in one of their best rooms. They’re treating him as their star guest. Or guest star. Or whatever.”

“He must be one special Santa. Dan never enjoyed that privilege.”

“Oh, he’s one of the top Santas, according to the Chief’s buddy. The best of the best.”

“He has to be, if they’re willing to spend so lavishly on him.”

He blew into his hands and stomped his feet to stay warm. “So what about my grandfather?”

“Well, turns out he’s also staying here. Someone saw him and Knicks Cap Man head inside.”

“Who’s your witness?”

“You know I can’t talk about that, Chase. I have to protect—”

“Your sources. Yeah, yeah, yeah.” He glanced up at the white façade of the hotel. “Why would my grandfather stay in such a fancy place? And why not tell me about it? None of this makes sense.”

“Unless he was lured here under some kind of pretext and now he’s being held captive.”

He nodded grimly. “Let’s find out, shall we? Solve this mystery once and for all.”

We went inside, through the ceiling-high doors, and found ourselves in a neat little atrium, a giant Christmas tree reaching to the second floor, a sort of bridge running over our heads, garlands and Christmas lights dangling down from it. The desk was straight ahead, and we made our way over.

“Hi,” said the receptionist, a neat little swarthy man with perfectly trimmed black mustache. His head was bald and egg-shaped. “How can I help you?”

“We’re looking for a man,” I said.

“Two men, actually,” said Chase.

“One is my grandfather,” said Chase, “and he’s missing.”

“The other is the new Hampton Cove Santa, who’s rumored to be staying at this location.”

The man clamped his lips together, his eyes widening slightly. Then he shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t help you.”

Chase gave him his best frown. “What do you mean you can’t help us?”

“Such a man is not staying at this establishment. He never has and he never will.”

I exchanged a puzzled glance with Chase. “You mean Chase’s grandpa or Santa?”

“Both. Neither. They’re not here. Neither one of these gentlemen.”

“But we have credible information that they are,” said Chase.

“Your informant has made a mistake, sir,” said the man. “No such person is staying at the Hampton Cove Star, I can promise you.”

With a grunt of annoyance, Chase took out his badge and placed it on the counter. “This is a police matter, buddy. Now think again, please.”

The man’s eyes widened even more, and he produced a soft whimpering sound. Then he leaned in and dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “IF such a man were to stay at the Hampton Cove Star—and I’m not saying he is—he would be staying in the Ambassador Suite.”

“Which man? Chase’s grandfather or the new Santa?” I asked.

“Both. Neither.” He produced another whimper. “I’ve said too much already!”

We turned away from the highly distraught receptionist to convene about the matter. “This is all very strange, Odelia,” Chase determined.

“You think? Who is staying here? Your grandfather or the new Santa?”

“Both. Neither,” said Chase with a tight smile. “Let’s find out, shall we?” He took out his gun, causing the man behind the reception desk to utter a startled cry and duck down to take cover.

“Is that really necessary?” I asked.

“Yes, it is. I’m pretty sure that my grandfather is the victim of foul play, and if I have to bust him out of that room where he’s being held captive, I’m not going in there unarmed.”

“Maybe we should call for backup. My uncle can be here in minutes.”

Chase wavered, then shook his head. “Let’s first find out what’s going on. We can always call for backup later.” And he set foot for the stairs.

I followed closely behind him, making sure I stayed hidden behind his broad back. I’m not a scaredy cat, but if Knicks Cap Man tried any funny business, I preferred not to get shot. From watching many, many movies I knew for a fact that it’s always the ditzy blonde who gets it first, while the big, burly cop makes it out alive.

We arrived on the second floor, and traversed the funny little bridge that stretched across the lobby. The Ambassador Suite was on the other side of it, apparently the best room in the house.

Chase had slowed his pace down to a crawl as he approached the entrance to the suite, and he had his gun cocked and loaded, aiming it straight ahead.

“No goons,” he whispered. “Whoever Knicks Cap Man is, he’s not very careful.”

“Must be an amateur,” I whispered back, still taking cover behind Chase.

“Well, he’s dealing with a professional now,” he said through gritted teeth, and tapped the door to the suite with the barrel of his gun. “Police!” he bellowed. “Open this door!”

From down in the lobby, a loud whimper came, and when I glanced over the railing, I saw the receptionist looking up at me, still huddled behind his desk.

“Don’t worry,” I whispered, then pointed at Chase and me. “We’re the good guys.”

He nodded, a look of extreme distress on his face.

Chase tapped the door again. “Hampton Cove Police. Open this door now!”

And then the door did open, and an old man appeared, dressed in a long red robe, and sporting the most beautiful white beard, white mustache, and white curly hair I’d ever seen outside of the movies. He even had twinkly blue eyes and wire-rimmed glasses perched precariously on the tip of a stubby nose.

“Grandpa!” Chase cried, lowering his gun.

“Chaser!” said the old man, and opened his arms for an embrace.

Chapter 14

But before the old man could wrap Chase—or Chaser—in his arms, the consummately professional cop went into a crouch and pressed his back against the wall. “How many?” he hissed.

“Huh?” asked his grandfather.

“How many guards?”

“Guards?”

“How many people are watching you?”

“Nobody is watching me, Chaser. It’s just me, myself and I, I’m afraid.”

Chase rose from his crouch, disbelief etched on his face. “You mean to tell me you’re not being held captive here?”

“Do you really think they’d let me answer the door if I was being held captive?”

“Good point,” said Chase after a pause.

“Come on in, Chaser, and who is the lovely lady?”

“This is Odelia Poole,” said Chase. “She’s my girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend! My, my. Well, do come inside. It’s much cozier here than in this drafty lobby.”

We stepped inside the suite, which offered a nice view of the bathroom through a glass wall.

When Chase’s grandpa caught my look, he shook his head. “Not really my style, I’m afraid, Miss Poole. I’m always afraid the maid will walk in while I’m taking a shower and catch a look at my nekkid willie. And trust me, it’s more her than me I’m afraid will be scarred for life.”

“It is… very modern,” I admitted. Near the window, there was a piece of art—at least that’s what I thought it was—with a bunch of iron rods sticking out of a concrete base. The rods were covered with LED lights and shone with a soft yellow glow. Very, very modern.

The old man offered us a seat next to the concrete construction, and only now did I see that what I’d assumed was a concrete platform was actually a couch with gray cushions. I gingerly took a seat. “Can I offer you some refreshments?” asked Grandpa Kingsley. “Martini? Scotch? I have the full use of the minibar, and the council has assured me I don’t need to stint. Oh, I know what you need. Some eggnog.”

“The council?” I asked. “The council set you up here?”

“Yes, they most certainly have.”

“Please tell me, before I go crazy, what the hell is going on,” said Chase.

“Well, Chaser,” said Grandpa, taking a seat across from us, “that’s a bit of a long story.”

“Tell me. I’ve got all night,” said Chase.

“I don’t. They’re picking me up in…” He checked his watch. “Exactly half an hour. Lucky for you I already had my shower, and now all I need to do is get dressed.”

“Get dressed for what?!” Chase cried. The suspense was obviously killing him.

“I think I know, Chaser,” I said.

“Please don’t call me that.”

Chase’s grandfather leaned in. “I’m the only one who’s allowed to call him that, I’m afraid.”

“And why is that?”

“Because he used to chase all the girls away, of course,” said the old man with a chuckle.

“Please, Grandpa,” said Chase. “Odelia doesn’t need to hear all that.”

“Grandpa, or… Santa?” I asked, with a keen look at the old man.

He grinned. “What gave me away?”

“The beard, the mustache, the hair… the red robe. You look exactly like Santa.”

“Thanks. I aim to please. After twenty years as the Thornton Fifth Avenue Santa I know a thing or two about transforming myself into Santa Claus, of course.”

Chase’s jaw dropped. “You were the Thornton Santa?”

“Of course I was. A man needs a hobby, Chase, and after I retired I needed one more than ever. So I went to one of those temp agencies and they thought I’d make a great Santa. Thornton gave me a shot and I’ve been their Santa for two decades—until they canned me.”

“And you never told me!”

“Every man likes to have his little secrets. And it was only a minor indulgence. Just a few days around the holidays each year. Hardly the big moneymaker.”

“So why did they fire you?”

“New management,” I said knowingly.

A loud ding-dong echoed through the suite and Grandpa Kingsley got up. “Yes, new management. They took one look at my birthdate and decided I was too old. Lucky for me word must have spread about my work, for suddenly a guy from the Hampton Cove council showed up on my doorstep and offered me a job! I had to haggle with him about the price, but eventually we managed to come to a mutually beneficial agreement.”

He went to open the door and Chase said, “The well-dressed man. He works for the council.”

I nodded. “Probably the same guy wearing the Knicks cap. And my uncle’s drinking buddy.”

Grandpa Kingsley opened the door and the receptionist with the egg-shaped head peered in.

“Everything all right, sir?”

“Why, of course! I just got a visit from my grandson and his girlfriend, so everything is just peachy. Oh, thanks, buddy,” he added, and took the tray with three glasses of eggnog from the guy.

“Very well, sir,” said the now pale-faced receptionist. “I’m happy everything is to your satisfaction.” He directed an anxious look at Chase, obviously wondering where he’d put the gun, but then the new Hampton Cove Santa closed the door and handed us our drinks.

The eggnog was great. Rich and creamy.

“So is your name really Kris Kringle?” I asked.

The old man laughed, his belly shaking. “Close enough! My name is Kris Kingsley.”

“Why didn’t you tell me, Grandpa?” asked Chase, wiping his lips. “I’ve been looking all over New York City for you. I even filed a missing person report, for Pete’s sake.”

“You did?” asked Kris with remarkable equanimity. “Well, I wanted to surprise you, of course. And I wanted to see the look on your face when you saw your old gramps mount that sleigh and make his way through the streets of your new hometown.” He took a sip of eggnog. “Mh. Really hits the spot, doesn’t it? Oh, and I was sworn to secrecy. Signed an actual nondisclosure agreement. They even told me specifically not to mention anything to you, as you were dating some hotshot nosy reporter and she was sure to spill the beans on the front page of the Hampton Cove Gazette.”

I blushed. “I’m afraid I am that hotshot reporter, sir.”

“Just call me Kris.”

“I wouldn’t have spilled your secret, Kris. Not if you’d asked me not to.”

“Well, apparently some guy called Dan Goory was dying to find out about me—so he could ruin Christmas for everybody. At least that’s what they told me when they first came to see me.” He laughed. “Made me feel extremely important, I can tell you! Like one of those football players that gets traded for millions of dollars! And at my advanced age, no less! Cheered me right up.”

“I just wish you’d told me,” said Chase with a shake of the head. “You had me worried sick.”

“Worried sick? But Chaser, you know your Grandpa Kris is like a cat. I always land on my feet!”

“I know,” he said with a slight smile. “So you’re the new Santa, huh? What do you know?”

“Yeah,” Kris chuckled. “Imagine that, Chaser.” When I gave him a questioning look, he said, “Oh, right. Well, Chase here was always driving the girls away. Mind you, he was only six at the time. Said he had no need for girls. So I started calling him Chaser. I was the one who picked him up from school, you see, so we developed quite a bond, didn’t we, Chaser?”

“I’ve stopped driving the girls away from me a long time ago, Gramps,” said Chase.

“I know! You started chasing them instead, so the moniker still applied.”

“Well, I’ve stopped doing that as well,” said Chase with a slight smile.

Kris directed a curious glance at me. “Yeah, I can see that. So when is the wedding?”

We both laughed uncomfortably, Chase and I. “We haven’t really discussed that,” I said. “I mean, we’re just getting to know each other.”

Kris patted his grandson on the cheek and tsk-tsked. “Still good old Chaser, huh?”

“No! We just met, Grandpa. There’s simply no—I mean, we haven’t—the thing is…”

“Nobody is chasing anyone away, Kris,” I said. “We’re simply taking it one step at a time.”

“As you should,” said Kris with a waggle of his remarkably white beard. He slapped his thighs. “And now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get ready for my big show! Santa’s in town!”

As he walked off to his bedroom, I noticed a box of Cohibas on a side table. When I opened it, I noticed several cigars were gone, and printed on the side of the box was a stamp that indicated the box was the property of Thornton Fifth Avenue. I shared a smile with Chase. Another mystery solved.

Chapter 15

The whole town was gathered in Town Square, around the huge Christmas tree. All around us the Christmas market was in full swing, with stalls having been set up all over the place, selling eggnog, glühwein, hot chocolate, and treats like gingerbread, bugle cones, Christmas tree brownies, candy canes, s’mores and a lot more. There was one stall where Wilbur Vickery sold Christmas trees, for people late to the party, but since they all looked a little worn-out, no one was buying what he had to sell.

“So where is this newfangled Santa?” asked Gran, who was shivering in her wool coat, her head drowning in a thick knit cap with Christmas motif. “If he’s not here soon I’m gone!”

“He’ll be here,” I said, hugging myself to get warm.

Snowflakes were gently fluttering down, covering Hampton Cove in a soft blanket of white. Chase was right by my side, a glass of glühwein in his hand—mulled wine with cinnamon—and so were my parents, Uncle Alec, and pretty much all of Hampton Cove. They all wanted to see the new Santa, so turnout for this traditional Christmas feast was great, which must have pleased the council and the Mayor, who were officiating the festivities. Even Dan was here, even though he’d told me he was going to sit this one out—a one-man boycott.

Outdoor heaters had been set up here and there, and people were taking turns getting warmed up before returning to their vigil in front of the tree.

“That tree is the ugliest tree I’ve ever seen,” said Gran, expressing the opinion of many.

“It’s not a real tree,” I told her. “It’s just made to look like one.”

“Well, they sure didn’t succeed. It doesn’t even look like a tree, just a giant clothes hanger.”

She was right. It was a giant clothes hanger. As if IKEA had decided to make the world’s biggest clothes hanger in some kind of Guinness World Record attempt and had created this.

“I’m sure it’s good for the environment,” said Mom. “Trees are not supposed to be used for decorative purposes and thrown away once Christmas is over,” she added when Gran cast her a scathing look.

“It’s tradition,” Gran snapped. “You don’t mess with tradition.”

“I think it’s not so bad,” said Dad. “If you squint a little it almost looks like a real tree.”

“If I squint a little you almost look like a real man,” said Gran, “but that has never fooled me!”

“Hey, that was uncalled for,” said Mom.

“A real man would have filed a complaint with the council just like I told him to,” said Gran. “And not weaseled out.”

“I didn’t weasel out,” said Dad. “I just didn’t see it as a priority. Besides, the Mayor personally assured me that he was going to take all the suggestions into consideration when deciding on next year’s celebration.”

“I like it,” said Chase. “It’s… art.”

“Some art,” Gran growled. “I suppose it’s European. French, probably. Like the Eiffel Tower. Another monstrosity.”

“The Eiffel Tower is not a monstrosity,” I said. “It’s romantic.”

“It’s a giant metal tower! There’s nothing romantic about it!”

“Well, I think it is. And I would like to visit Paris once—spend a romantic weekend there.”

Chase gave me a smile. “Oh, you would, would you?”

“Sure. Strut along the Champs Elysées, sit on the bank of the Seine. Visit Montmartre.”

“We’ll have to do that sometime,” said Chase, hugging me close. I took a sip from his glühwein. Pretty good.

“So what does this grandfather of yours look like?” asked Gran. “Probably some doddering old nutcase with a fake beard, huh?”

“Actually he looks exactly like Santa,” I said. “Even more than Dan.”

“Just make sure Dan doesn’t hear you say that, honey,” said Mom. “He’s still your editor.”

“Well, it’s true,” I said. “Kris is a much better-looking Santa than Dan ever was.”

“He is, isn’t he?” asked Chase. “He could actually be the real Santa.”

“Sure he is, Chaser,” I said with a grin.

He rolled his eyes. “Please don’t call me that. I stopped chasing girls away a long time ago.”

“I kinda like it,” I admitted. “As long as it’s all the other girls you chase away, not me.”

“You have my word on that,” he said, pressing a kiss to my lips.

And then the moment had finally arrived. The Mayor mounted a makeshift stage in front of the big Christmas tree—that wasn’t a tree—and cleared his throat. “Ladies and gentlemen. Dear fellow Hampton Covians. It is my honor and my privilege to introduce to you the new Santa of Hampton Cove. The moment you’ve all been waiting for. Here is… Santa!”

With remarkably sprightly step, Kris climbed the stage and waved at the crowd. There was a momentary hush when he appeared, then everybody started clapping and cheering.

“Hey, you were right,” said Mom. “He is the perfect Santa. Well done, Chase.”

“Oh, thanks, Marge,” said Chase, though it wasn’t really his credit to take.

“Not so fast!” a voice suddenly rang out, and we all watched as Dan Goory walked onto the stage and joined the Mayor and the new Santa.

“Oh, for the love of Mike!” said the Mayor. Then he reached out a hand like a traffic warden. “Now wait a minute, Dan. We talked about this.”

“I want to make an announcement!” Dan insisted, ignoring the Mayor. He unfolded a piece of paper, then placed his half-moon glasses on his face.

“You must be Dan,” said Kris, and walked up to his predecessor with outstretched hand. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

“Yeah, well,” muttered Dan, staring at the offered hand for a moment, not knowing what to do. Then, finally, he took it and shook it. “I’ve heard a great deal about you, too, Kris.”

“Only good things, I hope,” said Kris with a laugh.

“I wanted to ask you a few questions, Kris,” said Dan, a little stiffly.

Uh-oh. Dan stared out across the crowd of hundreds, all watching him intently. Right in front of him, a bunch of kids stood gaping up at the stage, drinking in his every word. He turned to Kris.

“Have you had a great trip from the North Pole, Santa?”

A collective sigh of relief could be heard, and Kris said, “Ho ho ho. I had a great trip, Dan!”

Dan stuffed his prepared speech back into his pocket and said, “I would like to officially welcome Santa to Hampton Cove. And wish him all the best! Long live Santa!”

And, like an umpire, he held up Santa’s arm. Kris patted the previous Santa on the back, and said, “Thanks, Dan. I’m very happy to be here, and I’m touched by your hospitality.”

Dan nodded. “You really are a great Santa, Santa, and I hope when you do your rounds tonight, you will think of me, too.”

“Oh, I most certainly will, Dan. At least…” he winked at the kids in the first row. “If you’re on my Nice list!”

Dan smiled indulgently. “I’m sure I am, Santa. I’m sure I am.”

“I’m not so sure,” Gran muttered. “Can we go home? All these Santas are creeping me out.”

And thus ended the introduction of Kris Kingsley as Hampton Cove’s new Santa. When I got home, Max and Dooley were nowhere to be found, but by the time I returned to stuff their stockings with goodies and treats, they were both on the rug again, looking exhausted and cold. Just as I was stuffing Dooley’s sock, Max opened his eyes. I placed my finger against my lips and gestured at Dooley, who was the baby in the Poole cat menagerie, and still believed in Santa. Max nodded and smiled happily, then went right back to sleep. I had no idea what they’d been up to, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they’d tried to catch a glimpse of Santa. I could have told them they were about to meet Santa in the flesh, as Mom had invited Kris to spend Christmas with us tomorrow. At least when he was done with all the activities the council had planned for him.

And as I lay my head on my pillow, Chase snuggled up to me.

“Finally,” he muttered. “I thought you’d never get back, Miss Spume.”

“Had to get the cats their Christmas treats, Mr. Chaser,” I said, enjoying the warmth of his embrace.

“You really love those cats, don’t you?”

“I do,” I admitted. “They’re my babies.”

“So you still want me to sneak out of here undetected before dawn?”

“Yes, I do.” I wanted Max and Dooley to get used to the idea of Chase moving in, and something told me that might take some time.

“The things I do for love,” murmured Chase.

“Love?” I asked, a ripple of excitement trembling through me.

But the big, burly cop had fallen asleep again. Love. Now if that wasn’t a Christmas miracle.

THE END

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Excerpt from Purrfect Crime (The Mysteries of Max 5)

Prologue

Donna Bruce was a woman profoundly in love with herself. From personal experience she knew there was no other person as amazing as she was. She was smart, successful, beautiful, and, above all, she was kind to humans, children and dogs, which cannot be said about everyone. She was a giver, not a taker. In fact she gave so much she often wondered if people appreciated her enough.

Her kids, for instance, could probably love her more for all the sacrifices she had made. For one thing, they’d pretty much ruined her figure. After the twins were born, something strange but not very wonderful had happened to her hips. They’d never looked the same again. And when she saw what breastfeeding did to her boobs, she’d vowed never to fall into that horrible trap again.

She now carefully tucked her golden tresses beneath the pink shower cap, wrapped the white towel embroidered with her company’s crest—a nicely rendered tiara—around her perfectly toned and tanned body, and stepped into the sauna cabin. She had the cabin installed only six months ago as a special treat to herself when donna.vip, the lifestyle website she’d launched a decade ago, had topped 200 million in revenue.

She languidly stretched out on the authentic Finnish wood bench, took a sip from her flute of Moët & Chandon Dom Perignon, and closed her eyes. She’d just done a conference call with her CEO and now it was time to relax. Later today she had a session with her private fitness coach scheduled, and to top it all off she was going to treat herself to a healing massage as well. Time to get pampered!

And she’d just reached that slightly drowsy state she enjoyed so much when a soft clanking sound attracted her attention. She opened her eyes and saw through the slight haze that filled the cabin that there was someone moving about outside.

She frowned, wondering who it could be. Her housekeeper Jackie wasn’t coming in until ten, and the rest of the staff knew better than to intrude on her alone time. It was hard to make out the person’s face, as the one small window was all steamed up. With a grunt of annoyance she got up and wiped her hand across the glass to look out. And that’s when she noticed something very disturbing: the person was wearing a mask of some kind. One of those silly Halloween masks.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she called out.

But the intruder just stood there, unmoving, staring at her through the black mask that covered his or her entire face.

“Who are you?” she asked. “Answer me at once!”

When the person didn’t respond, she shook her head and took a firm grip on the wood door handle, giving it a good yank. The door didn’t budge. She tried again, knowing that these sauna doors could be sticky, but to no avail. And that’s when she saw that someone—presumably the masked person outside—had stuck a long object through the door’s handle, blocking it. It was her long handle loofah, the one she’d intended to take into the sauna with her.

“Hey! This isn’t funny!” she cried, tapping the pane furiously. “Open this door right now!”

And that’s when the masked figure reacted for the first time by raising a hand and pointing a finger at her, cocking their thumb and making a shooting gesture. And in that exact moment, she became aware of an odd sound that seemed to come from somewhere above her head. A buzzing sound. She looked up in alarm, and when she saw the first dozen bees streaming into the sauna cabin, she uttered a cry of shock and fear.

She rapped the window again, more frantic this time. “Let me out! Why are you doing this to me?! Just let me out of here!”

More bees fluttered into the cramped space and soon started filling it. There must have been hundreds, or maybe even thousands! And as they descended upon her, she felt the first stings. She started swatting them away with her towel, but there were too many of them, and for some reason they seemed drawn to her, whipped into a frenzy by some unknown cause. And as she stumbled and fell, desperately flapping her hands in a bid to get rid of the pesky insects, she soon succumbed. Her final thought, before she lost consciousness was, “Why me?!”

Chapter One

Having spent most of the night outside, looking up at the stars and commenting to Dooley on their curious shape, attending a meeting of cat choir in the nearby Hampton Cove Park, and generally contemplating the state of the world and my place in it, I was ready to perform my daily duty and make sure my human Odelia Poole got a bright and early start on her day. I do this by jumping up onto her bed, plodding across Odelia’s sleeping form, and finally kneading her arm until she wakes up and gives me a cuddle. This has been our morning ritual since just about forever.

When I finally reached the top of the stairs, slightly winded, a pleasant sound emanating from the bedroom filled me with a warm and fuzzy feeling of benevolence: Odelia was softly snoring, indicating she was in urgent need of a wake-up catcall. So I padded over, and jumped up onto the foot of the bed. At least, that was my intention, only for some reason I must have misjudged the distance, for instead of landing on all fours on the bed, I landed on my butt on the bedside rug.

I shook my head, happy that no one saw me in this awkward position. With a slight shrug of the shoulders, I decided to try again. This time the result was even worse. I never even cleared the bed frame, let alone the mattress or the comforter. Like an Olympic pole vaulter who discovers he’s lost the ability, I suddenly found myself facing a new and horrifying reality: I couldn’t jump anymore!

“Hey, Max,” a familiar voice sounded behind me. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing, Dooley?” I grumbled. “I’m trying to jump into bed!”

He paused, then asked, “So why are you still on the floor?”

“Because…” I stared up at the bed, which all of a sudden had turned into an insurmountable obstacle for some reason. “Actually I don’t know what’s going on. The bed just seems higher now.”

“A sudden weakness,” Dooley decided knowingly. “It happens to me all the time.”

“Well, it doesn’t happen to me,” I said, scratching my head. Yes, cats scratch their heads. We just make sure we retract our claws, otherwise it would be a fine mess.

“You probably need food. Did you have breakfast? When I don’t have my breakfast I feel weak. Do you feel weak?”

I gave him my best scowl. “I feel fine. And for your information, yes, I did have my breakfast. The best kibble money can buy and a nice chunk of chicken and liver paté.”

“Wow, what happened?”

“What do you mean, what happened?”

“I thought Odelia only got you the cheap stuff? Why did she go out and splurge all of a sudden?”

“I guess she felt I deserved it. I have been helping her solve murder case after murder case lately.”

“Me too, but I didn’t get any special treats.”

“You have to file your complaint with Gran, Dooley. She is your human, after all.”

Dooley’s Ragamuffin face sagged. “Gran has been too busy to notice me lately.”

“Too busy? Why, what’s she been up to?”

“Beats me. She’s been receiving packages in the mail. A lot of them. In fact Marge and Tex are pretty much fed up with her. Seems like they’re the ones who have to pay for all those packages.”

Perhaps now would be a good time to make some introductions, especially for the people who haven’t been following my adventures closely. My name is Max, as you have probably deduced, and I’m something of a private cat sleuth. Since Odelia is a reporter and always in need of fresh and juicy stories, I’m only too happy to supply them. My frequent collaborator on these outings is Dooley, my best friend and neighbor. Dooley’s human is Vesta Muffin, Odelia’s grandmother who lives next door. Dooley is my wingcat. My partner in crime. Between you and me, Dooley is not exactly the brightest bulb in the bulb shop, so it’s a good thing he’s got me. I’m smart enough for the both of us.

“Why don’t I give you a paw up?” Dooley asked now.

“I don’t know…” I muttered. I glanced behind Dooley, making sure he was alone. If we were going to do this, I didn’t want there to be any witnesses.

Dooley followed my gaze. “What are you looking at?” Then he got it. “Oh, if you’re looking for Harriet, she was fast asleep in Brutus’s paws. Those two must have had a rough night.”

My face clouded. Being reminded of Brutus usually has a souring effect on my mood. You see, Brutus is what us cats call an intruder. He came waltzing into our lives a couple of weeks ago and has refused to leave ever since. He belongs to Chase Kingsley, a cop Odelia has taken a liking to, but seems to spend an awful lot of time next door, cozying up to Harriet, Odelia’s mom’s white Persian.

I made up my mind. “Let’s do this,” I grunted. If we didn’t, Odelia might wake up of her own accord, and I’d miss my window of opportunity to put in some much-needed snuggle time.

Dooley padded up to me and plunked down on his haunches. “How do you want to do this?”

“Simple. I jump and you give me a boost.”

“You mean, like, on the count of three or something?”

“Or something.” I got ready, poised at the foot of the bed and said, “One—two—”

“Wait,” Dooley said. “Are we doing this on three or after three?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do I boost you on three, or right after?”

“Why would you boost me right after? The count of three usually means the count of three, Dooley.”

“So, one, two, three and boost? Or one, two, three, pause, and then boost?”

“One, two, three, boost,” I said, starting to lose my patience. “Now, are we doing this or not?”

He thought about this for a moment, a puzzled look on his face. “Do you want to do this?”

“Of course I want to do this! Preferably before we die of old age.”

Dooley’s eyes went wide. “Die of old age? Do you think we’re dying, Max?!”

“No, we’re not dying! I just want to put in some snuggle time, is that so hard to understand?”

“Oh, right,” he said, understanding dawning. “I thought you said we were dying.”

For some reason Dooley has been obsessing about dying lately. Usually I can talk him out of it, but then he sees something on TV and the whole thing starts all over again.

“Are you ready?”

Dooley nodded. “I’m ready, Max.”

“One—two—”

“Wait!”

I groaned. “What is it now?”

“Where do I boost you?”

“Up the bed! Where else?”

“No, I mean, do I boost your butt or your hind paws or what? I’m new to this boosting business,” he explained apologetically.

“It’s not exactly an Olympic discipline, Dooley. There are no rules. You can boost me wherever you want.” On second thought… “Though stay away from my butt.”

“Right. Stay away from your butt. So where…”

“Anywhere but my butt! Now one—two—”

“Max!”

“What?!”

“What if I boost you too hard and you end up flying across the bed and down the other side?”

I fixed him with a hard look. “Trust me, Dooley, the chances of that happening are slim to none. I mean, look at us. I’m like the Dwayne Johnson of cats and you’re more like Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge, all scrawny and mangy. You’ll be lucky if you can boost me a couple inches, which is all I need,” I hastened to add.

“Do you think I’m too mangy?” asked Dooley with a frown.

“Not too mangy. You’re just thin is all. A very healthy thin.”

“Not a sickly thin? Like an I’m-about-to-die thin?”

Oh, God. I did not need this aggravation. “Absolutely not. More like a my-name-is-Gwyneth-Paltrow-and-I’m-willowy-and-gorgeous kind of thin.”

“I thought you said I looked like Andrew Garfield?”

“In a very Gwyneth Paltrow-y way.”

This seemed to please him, as he gave me a grateful smile. “Why, thanks, Max. That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Great. Now about that boost?”

“Oh! Right! I forgot all about that.”

“Focus, Dooley. Now, are you ready?”

“Ready,” he said, his face a study in concentration.

“One—two—three—”

“Boost!” he cried and placed both paws on my butt, giving me a mighty shove.

And… we had liftoff! Only it didn’t last very long, nor did it carry me where I was aiming to go. Instead, I plunked right back down again, landing on top of Dooley, who ended up squeezed beneath my sizable buns.

There was a momentary pause, while we both figured out what went wrong, then Dooley croaked, “Can you please lift your butt, Max? You’re choking me!”

Applause broke out behind us, and a loud cackling sound, and when I looked up, I saw we’d been joined by Harriet and Brutus. The latter was applauding, a Draco Malfoy-type sneer on his mug, and Harriet was doing the cackling, apparently finding the whole scene hilarious.

“What’s so funny?” I asked with an angry look at the newly arrived.

“You!” Brutus cried. “You’re so fat you can’t even jump on the bed!”

“I’m not fat! I’m just… experiencing some issues with my takeoff.”

“Issues with your takeoff! You’re not an airplane, Max. You’re a cat. A cat too fat to fly!” Harriet dissolved into giggles while Brutus was laughing so hard his belly shook.

“Max!” Dooley breathed. “You’re… choking… me…”

I released Dooley by lifting my butt, then resumed my scowling. “I’m not fat—I’m big-boned. There’s a difference. And Odelia probably bought a new bed, that’s all. I never had any trouble jumping into the old bed, which was still here yesterday morning. Isn’t that right Dooley?”

But Dooley was still catching his breath, taking big gulps of it.

“That’s the exact same bed as always,” said Brutus. He narrowed his eyes at me. “Girlfriend stealer.”

I rolled my eyes. “Here we go again.”

Brutus had walked up to me and poked my chest with his paw. “You kissed my girlfriend, Max. I saw you so don’t try to deny it.”

“I didn’t kiss anyone! She kissed me!”

“That’s what you say.”

“Because that’s what happened!”

He leaned in and dropped his voice to a whisper. “I thought we had an understanding, Max. I thought you and I were friends. And then you went and did a thing like that.” He pursed his lips. “You’re despicable. There’s no other word for it.”

“I didn’t kiss her,” I hissed. “She kissed me. I’m not even interested in Harriet!”

“What are you two whispering about?” Harriet asked with a laugh.

“Nothing, honey bunch,” said Brutus in his sweetest voice. “Just clearing up some stuff.”

“Max is right, Brutus,” Dooley loud-whispered. “Harriet kissed him, not the other way around. And he didn’t even like it, did you, Max?” These last words were spoken with a look of reproach in my direction. Dooley has always fancied Harriet, and he cannot grasp being kissed by that divine feline and not enjoying the experience.

“I heard you,” said Harriet, tripping up deftly. “And for your information, I didn’t kiss Max.”

“See?!” Brutus exclaimed triumphantly.

“My Inner Goddess did.”

“What?!”

Harriet raised her chin defiantly. “I can’t be held responsible for every little thing my Inner Goddess does, Brutus. Sometimes she wears a blindfold. I thought I was kissing you, actually. I only realized my mistake when I reached out and the only thing my paw met was a yielding fluffiness where rock-hard muscles should have been.”

Brutus stared at her. “Go on.”

She placed a paw on his chest and closed her eyes. “See, now that I’m feeling your steely pecs I know it’s you. That was my mistake. I kissed first and touched later.”

I groaned loudly. “Yielding fluffiness?!”

“Shut up, Max,” said Brutus. “Watch and learn.”

And then the two of them locked lips. Instinctively I held up a paw to cover Dooley’s eyes. He did not have to see this. He seemed to appreciate the gesture, for he didn’t slap my paw away. He only asked, when the smooching sounds finally abated, “Is it over yet?”

“Yes, it is,” I said, lowering my paw. Harriet had kissed me, no doubt about it, but if it made her feel better to lie to both herself and to Brutus, it was fine by me. I didn’t need Brutus going back to his old bullying ways. This détente we had going for us suited me fine, so I was happy when finally the kissing stopped and Brutus slapped me on the back.

“And that’s how you do it, buddy!”

“Great,” I muttered. “Now, can you give me a boost? I need to wake up Odelia.”

“Sure thing,” said Brutus, suddenly in an expansive mood. And as I got ready to take the leap again, he got into position directly behind me, not unlike a running back. And before I could initiate the launch sequence, Brutus was shouting, “Hut one—hut two—hut three—go!”

I made the mighty jump and… “Owowowow!” Brutus, instead of giving me a regular boost, had dug his nails into my behind! The result was that I flew up onto the bed and landed right on top of Odelia’s sleeping form, and it wasn’t a soft landing either.

“Ooph!” Odelia grunted, when a flying blorange obstacle landed squarely on her stomach. She stared down at me. “Max! Where’s the fire?!”

I gave her a sheepish look. “Wakey-wakey.”

I directed a scathing look at Brutus, who gave me a grin. “See, Max? I knew you could do it!”

Chapter Two

“So then Brutus gave me a boost and that’s how I ended up on your stomach,” I finished my account of the recent events.

Odelia, who’s blond and petite with the most strikingly green eyes, tied the sash of her bathrobe and gave me a worried look. “I better make that appointment with Vena. I knew I should never have put it off.”

My eyes widened to the size of saucers, which for us cats is considerable, since our eyes are a lot smaller than a human’s eyes to begin with. “Not Vena!”

“Yes, Vena. With everything that’s been going on I totally forgot to make a new appointment but it’s obvious now that she was right all along.” She placed a comforting hand on my head. “You’re overweight, Max. Totally overweight, and I’ve got no one else to blame but myself.”

“I’m not overweight. I’m just… big-boned. It runs in the family.”

“It’s for your own good,” she said. “If you don’t start dieting again, you’ll just get in trouble.”

“I won’t get in trouble, I promise!” I cried. Anything not to have to go to Vena, who is just about the vet from hell. For some reason she loves sticking me with needles and suggesting to Odelia that she feed me kibble that tastes like cardboard. The woman is my own personal tormentor.

“It’s not your fault,” Odelia said as she started down the stairs. “I indulge you. I keep buying those snacks that you like so much and I probably overfeed you, too.”

“No, you don’t,” I said, desperate now. I trotted after her, my paws sounding heavy on the stairs. “I only eat the bare minimum as it is. In fact I’m always hungry.”

She paused and listened to the pounding my paws made on the stairs. “You hear that? That’s not normal, Max. You’re not supposed to walk like that.”

“Like what?” I asked, pausing mid-step.

“Like an elephant trampling in the brush.”

“I don’t sound like an elephant trampling in the brush,” I said indignantly, but made an effort to tread a little lighter. Only problem was, it’s hard to tread lightly when you’re going downhill. Gravity, you know.

“And Vena said that when you get too big it’s bad for your heart. Fat tissue builds up around the organ and that’s not a good thing.”

“My heart is just fine,” I promised, tapping my chest. “Healthy as an ox!”

“And you look like one, too,” said Brutus. The black cat was right behind me, and obviously enjoying the conversation tremendously.

“I’ve booked you an appointment, too, by the way, Brutus,” said Odelia now.

We’d reached the bottom of the stairs and she walked into the kitchen to start up the coffeemaker. How people can drink that black sludge is beyond me, but then a lot of stuff humans do makes no sense at all. Like putting a perfectly healthy cat on a diet!

“Me!” cried Brutus. “Why me?!”

“Because Chase told me he doesn’t remember the last time you went. So it might as well have been never.” She frowned. “Though you are neutered, so you must have gone at least once.”

A deep blush crept up Brutus’s features. At least I think it did. It was hard to be sure with all that dark hair covering his visage. He cut a quick look at Harriet, who pretended she hadn’t heard. “I, um—I’m sure that’s not possible,” he said now.

“That you’re neutered or that you didn’t go to the vet in years?” Odelia asked deftly, taking a cup and saucer from the cupboard over the sink.

Brutus appeared to be shrinking before my very eyes, a sight I enjoyed a lot, I have to say. “Both,” he said curtly, now actively avoiding Harriet’s cool gaze.

“Don’t worry, Brutus,” said Dooley. “We’re all neutered. Max is neutered. I am neutered. Even Harriet is neutered. Isn’t that right, Harriet?”

“None of your beeswax,” Harriet snapped.

“Beeswaxed?” asked Dooley. “I’m pretty sure the right word is neutered.”

“Dooley!” Harriet said with a warning glare.

“What? What did I say?”

“Oh, come off it, you guys,” said Odelia, crouching down. “It’s nothing to be ashamed about. If you weren’t neutered I’m sure we’d have a fresh litter every couple of months, and we can’t have that now, can we?”

“I don’t see why not,” Harriet muttered. It was obviously still a sore point.

“Because I can’t take care of so many cats,” Odelia said softly. “You see that, don’t you?”

“Yeah, just do the math,” said Dooley. “Three litters a year times eight kittens a litter that’s…” He frowned, looking goofy for a moment, then said, “… a heck of a lot of cats!”

“It is,” said Odelia. “And I’d just end up having to bring them to the shelter. And I don’t need to tell you what happens to cats that end up at the animal shelter, do I?”

“They are adopted by loving humans?” Dooley ventured.

“They die, Dooley,” Brutus growled. “They all die.”

Dooley uttered a cry of horror and staggered back a few paces. “No, they don’t!”

“Oh, yes, they do. And then they’re turned into sausages and people eat them!”

“Brutus!” Odelia said. “Don’t scare Dooley.” She gave Dooley a comforting pat on the back. “They’re not turned into sausages. But they’re not adopted, either, I’m afraid. At least not all of them. Though I’m sure a lot of them find warm and loving families.”

“See!” Dooley cried triumphantly. “They’re all placed with their very own Odelias!”

“Thanks,” said Odelia, rising to her feet. “Now about Vena…”

Lucky for us the bell rang at that exact moment, and Gran came rushing in through the glass sliding door, looking like she was about to lay an egg.

“Is he here?!” Gran croaked anxiously. “Is he here?!”

“Is who here?” asked Odelia, moving to the front door.

“The UPS guy, of course!”

Gran is a white-haired little old lady, but even though she looks like sweetness incarnate, she’s quite a pistol.

“See?” asked Dooley, turning to me. “This is what I told you.”

“What did you tell me?” I asked. The morning had already been so traumatizing my mind had actively started to repress the memories.

“About Gran ordering a bunch of stuff online and Marge and Tex having to pay for it.”

Odelia had opened the door and Dooley was right: a pimply teenager in a brown uniform with ‘UPS’ on his chest stood before her, a big, bulky package in his hands. “Vesta Muffin?” he asked.

“That’s me!” Gran squealed and darted forward, grabbed the package from the teenager’s hands and ran to the living room with it.

Odelia signed for the package and sent the kid on his way. “What’s going on, Gran?” she asked.

“Oh, nothing,” said Gran, eagerly tearing open the package.

We all gathered around, and since it’s hard to see anything from the floor, we all hopped up onto the chairs to have a good look at this mysterious package.

Gran, licking her lips, finally succeeded in ripping away the packaging, and before us lay three shiny green eggs. Huh.

“Gran,” said Odelia in her warning voice. It’s the voice she likes to use when me or Dooley have been up to no good, which, obviously, practically never happens.

“What?” asked Gran innocently. “I need them. I’m dating again.”

What a bunch of green eggs had to do with dating was beyond me, but, like I said, humans are weird. And in my personal experience no human is weirder than Gran.

“You’re dating again?” asked Odelia. “I thought that after Leo you were done with all of that.”

Leo was a horny old man that Gran used to run around with. We kept bumping into them in the weirdest places, practicing the weirdest positions. All very disturbing.

“Done with dating?” asked Gran indignantly. “Oh, the horror! How can anyone be done with dating? Didn’t anyone ever tell you that sex only gets better with age?”

“Like a fine wine,” said Dooley, though I doubted he knew what he was talking about.

“The only thing that doesn’t improve is my hoo-hee. Which is why I need these.”

“What is a hoo-hee?” asked Dooley innocently.

Odelia blushed slightly. “Nothing you should concern yourself with, Dooley.”

“You don’t know what a hoo-hee is?” asked Gran, raising an eyebrow. “What about hoo-ha? Lady bits? Fine China? Lady garden? Vajayjay?”

Dooley shook his head. “Doesn’t ring a bell.”

Gran laughed. “You’re funny, Dooley. Doesn’t ring a bell. I’ll bet it doesn’t ring your bell, but it sure as heck rung Leo’s bell, and there’s plenty of Leos out there.”

“I’ll just bet there are,” Odelia muttered, picking up one of the green eggs. “So how do you use these?” Then she noticed four pairs of cat eyes following her every movement and she put the egg down again. “Never mind. I’m sure I don’t want to know.”

“And I’m sure you do,” said Gran. “If you want to entertain your fellow you need to practice the fine art of the jade egg, honey.”

“Something to do with energy and healing, right?” asked Odelia with a frown.

Gran threw her head back and laughed. “Of course not! It’s all about training those pelvic muscles. You want to get a good grip on your fella’s…” She cast a quick look at Dooley. “… fella. Increase the pleasure—his and yours. Trust me,” she said as she placed one of the green eggs in the palm of Odelia’s hand, “you’ll make your man very, very happy.”

“That happy, huh?” asked Odelia as she rolled the smooth green egg in her hand.

“Happier,” said Gran as she let the other two eggs disappear into the pockets of her dress. She gestured at the box. “Can you let this disappear, honey? Your mom and dad don’t need to know.”

“Wait a minute,” said Odelia. “You’re not going to have this… stuff arrive here from now on, are you?”

“Of course I am. I hate to break it to you, Odelia, but your parents are ageists. They think just because I’m old I’m all shriveled up down there.” She patted her granddaughter on the cheek. “Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact I’m pretty sure I get more nookie than those dried-up old prunes.”

“Hey, that’s my parents you’re talking about.”

“I know, which is why I’m so glad you’re nothing like them. You wouldn’t stand in the way of your grandmother enjoying her golden years, would you?”

“No, but…”

“Of course you wouldn’t.” She gave Odelia a fat wink. “Stick around, kid. You may learn a trick or two from this old dame.”

And with these words, she practically galloped through the sliding door and disappeared into the garden, no doubt eager to start practicing those eggs on her hoo-hee, whatever a hoo-hee was.

For a long moment, silence reigned, then Odelia said, “Right. I think I’ll just put that egg away, shall I?”

“So what is it for, exactly?” asked Harriet.

Odelia produced an awkward smile. “Decorative purposes?”

Harriet narrowed her eyes at her. “A decorative egg is going to make Chase very, very happy?”

“Yes, it will,” Odelia trudged on bravely. “Chase likes a nicely decorated… room.”

She was backtracking towards the staircase, and we all watched her go. Then, suddenly, she turned around and popped up the stairs. We heard her rummage around in her bedroom, a drawer opening and closing. Those drawers contained a lot of funny-looking stuff. Amongst other things, they also contained a small battery-powered rocket, though I had no idea why Odelia would need a pocket rocket in her bedroom.

Moments later, she returned, still that sheepish look on her face.

Humans. They’re just too weird.

Just then, the doorbell rang again.

“More eggs?” asked Harriet acerbically.

But when Odelia went to open the door, it was her uncle. Chief of Police Alec Lip. Like me, Chief Alec is big-boned. And, also like me, he’s a great guy. Always ready with a smile or a kind remark, which makes him real popular with the locals. He wasn’t smiling now, though, and when he opened his mouth to speak, it soon became clear why. “There’s been a murder. A really nasty one.”

Chapter Three

Odelia put the four cats in her old Ford pickup and followed Uncle Alec as he set the course in his police cruiser.

“So who died?” asked Max, who’d crawled up on the passenger seat, as was his habit when there was no one else in the car. No other humans, at least.

“A woman named Donna Bruce,” said Odelia, anxiously peering through the windshield. “She’s the one who sold Gran those green eggs.”

“She’s a farmer?” asked Max.

“No, she’s not a farmer. She’s a former actress who now runs a lifestyle website. A very popular one.” She shook her head. “I don’t know what’s happening in this town. It’s just one murder after another. If this keeps up, no tourists are going to want to come here anymore.”

“Why did Uncle Alec say it was a nasty murder?” asked Dooley from the backseat.

“Because the woman was murdered in a gruesome way.”

She could hear Dooley gulp. Gran’s cat was a sensitive plant when it came to things like murder, and she was starting to wonder if it was such a good idea to bring him along. Max, she knew, could handle himself, and so could Brutus and Harriet. But Dooley was the baby of the cat menagerie, and sometimes got spooked by his own shadow. “Maybe you better wait in the car, Dooley,” she suggested. “While the others snoop around.”

“But I want to snoop around, too,” said Dooley. “I love snooping around.”

She smiled. That was obvious. All her cats loved snooping around, which was why she took them along in the first place. They often talked to other pets, or even pets that belonged to the victims, and had proved invaluable when ferreting out clues.

Her uncle Alec was aware of this unique talent. Chase? Not so much, though by now he was used to this quirky side of her personality. He even thought it was cute. She’d never told him she could communicate with her cats, though, and probably never would. He might not take it too well.

She thought about Chase and a warm and fuzzy feeling spread through her chest. She’d never thought she would fall for the rugged cop but she had. And by the looks of things, he liked her, too, which was a real boon. They even shared a comfortable working relationship now, which was very different from the way things were when they first met. The burly cop, a recent transplant from the NYPD, wasn’t used to nosy reporters investigating a bunch of crimes alongside him. Fortunately she’d quickly proven her worth, and now he was more than happy to allow her to tag along.

As if he’d read her mind, Max asked, “So how are things between you and Chase?”

“Yeah,” Harriet chimed in. “When are you going to get married?”

She saw how Max and Dooley shared a quick look of panic and laughed. “Hold your horses, young lady. Who said anything about me and Chase getting married?”

“It’s all over town,” said Harriet with a shrug. “All the cats are talking about it.”

“Which means all the Hampton Covians are talking about it,” Max said.

That was true enough. The Hampton Cove cat community was like a barometer of the human community. She blushed slightly. “So what are they saying, exactly?”

“Well, that the wedding will take place later this year, though it might be sooner rather than later because the first baby is already underway.” The gorgeous Persian screwed up her face. “What is a shotgun wedding, Odelia?”

Odelia’s blush deepened. “A shotgun wedding? Is that what they’re saying?”

All four cats nodded. “I think it means that everybody brings a shotgun to the wedding,” said Brutus knowingly.

“Don’t be an idiot,” said Max. “Why would anyone bring a shotgun to a wedding? That’s just dumb.”

“Who are you calling dumb, fatso? They’re obviously bringing shotguns to make sure nobody crashes the wedding. Duh.”

“Crashes the wedding?” asked Dooley. “Is that even a thing?”

“Didn’t you see that movie last week? Wedding crashers? Two guys go around crashing weddings and having a blast,” said Brutus.

“Until they fall in love and get married themselves,” said Harriet. “I thought it was the most romantic thing ever. Though I didn’t like that they portrayed Bradley Cooper as such a nasty person. I like Bradley Cooper. He’s so handsome and cute.”

“He’s not that handsome,” said Brutus. “His mouth is too big for his face.”

“It is not. His mouth is just the right size.”

“The right size for what?” scoffed Brutus. “To load a Big Mac in one bite?”

“Listen, you guys,” said Odelia, interrupting this fascinating discussion of Bradley Cooper’s face. “For one thing, Chase and I are not getting married. And for another, I’m not pregnant so there won’t be a shotgun wedding.”

“That’s too bad,” said Harriet, her face falling. “I was looking forward to being a bridesmaid.”

“That’s impossible,” said Max. “Cats can’t be bridesmaids. That’s just preposterous.”

Harriet narrowed her eyes. “What are you saying, Max? That I wouldn’t make a wonderful bridesmaid? For your information, I would be the perfect bridesmaid. I don’t even have to wear a dress. I’m beautiful just the way I am.”

Odelia smiled. “That’s true. And if I ever get married, you guys will all get to come.”

Max groaned. “Do I have to? I hate weddings. Everybody is always crying. Those things are even worse than funerals.”

“People are crying because they’re happy, Max,” said Odelia. “Those are happy tears.”

“I don’t get it,” said the blorange cat. “Why cry when you’re happy? That doesn’t make sense.”

“Yes, it does,” said Harriet. “You wouldn’t understand, though, Max. And that’s because you’re a Neanderthal.”

“No, I’m not,” said Max. “I’m a cat, not a Neanderthal.”

“What’s a Neanderthal?” asked Dooley.

“It’s a kind of old human,” said Max. “With a lot of hair and a big mouth.”

“Like Bradley Cooper,” said Brutus.

“Bradley Cooper is not a Neanderthal!” Harriet snapped. “Bradley Cooper is gorgeous.”

“More gorgeous than me?” asked Brutus, stung.

Harriet’s face softened. “Of course not, cutie pie. Nobody can be more gorgeous than you.”

“Maybe you should have one of those shotgun weddings,” Max grumbled. “So I can bring a shotgun and shoot myself.”

“We’re here,” said Odelia cheerfully, cutting off all this nonsense about a shotgun wedding. She just hoped those rumors hadn’t reached her mother’s ears. Nobody likes to hear about their daughter’s supposed pregnancy and forced wedding because of gossip. Then again, maybe it was a good thing. If people thought she and Chase were about to get married, she should probably take it as a compliment. Though the town’s gossip mill was obviously getting a little ahead of itself this time around.

True, there had been a lot of kissing lately, but things hadn’t progressed beyond that. Yet. Did she want them to go beyond that stage? Maybe. Did Chase want to? She had absolutely no idea. Chase was one of those strong, silent types. The ones that don’t wear their hearts on their sleeves. Beyond those kisses they had yet to address whatever it was that was going on between them. Heck, he hadn’t even asked her out. Maybe he never would? Maybe those kisses were just a way of showing his appreciation for all she’d done for the community? Maybe it was an NYPD thing: instead of shaking hands, NYPD cops simply kissed their colleagues. It was definitely not something she’d ever seen on NYPD Blue. Then again, they never showed everything on those shows.

She parked right behind her uncle’s squad car and got out, allowing the four cats to jump from their respective seats.

“Let’s go, guys,” she said. “You know the drill. Talk to witnesses. Try to find out what happened here.”

She watched the cats traipse up to the house and smiled. Her own personal feline detective squad. She wouldn’t know what to do without them.

She watched her uncle take off his sunglasses and take in their surroundings. Donna Bruce had done well for herself, that much was obvious. The house was built in hacienda style, with a low red-tile roof and stuccoed orange outer walls.

“Nice place,” said Uncle Alec admiringly. “Though more like something one would expect in the Hollywood Hills than out here in Hampton Cove.”

“Isn’t Donna originally from Los Angeles?”

“She is. She only moved out here to put some distance between herself and her ex-husband. And because her company is headquartered in New York.”

“This is such a coincidence,” Odelia said as she watched the police activity around the house. Half a dozen squad cars were haphazardly parked on the circular driveway, and an ambulance stood, lights flashing, indicating the coroner was already there.

“What is?” asked her uncle, hoisting his pants over his bulk and patting down his few strands of hair.

“Just this morning a package arrived from donna.vip for your mother.”

Chief Alec closed his eyes. “God, not again. I thought Marge put a stop to that nonsense.”

“What nonsense?”

“Didn’t she tell you? Your grandmother has been ordering those packages for weeks now. She’s addicted to that Donna crap. And the worst part? Your mom has been footing the bill as Vesta doesn’t have a credit card. Marge told me she’s up to five grand now.”

Odelia’s jaw dropped. “Five grand!”

“Yeah, for a bunch of useless stuff. According to Marge she even bought one of those steamers for her, um, well, you know what.”

Odelia frowned. “A vegetable steamer?”

Uncle Alec suddenly looked uncomfortable. “Not exactly. She uses it on her… business.”

“Her business?”

He heaved an exasperated groan. “Her lady parts, all right?”

Odelia smiled. “She bought a vaginal steamer?” Uncle Alec grumbled something under his breath as he stalked off. She hurried to keep up with him. “No wonder Mom is mad. That stuff must cost a fortune.”

“And it’s not as if she needs it,” said her uncle. “I mean, she’s seventy-five, for crying out loud. What does she need a vaginal steamer for?”

“Well, she does have a very active sex life.”

Uncle Alec winced. He directed a pleading look at his niece. “Please, Odelia. I don’t need to hear all that.”

Which was probably why Mom had allowed this buying frenzy to go on as long as it had. Nobody wanted to sit down with Gran and have a serious conversation about her sex life. It wasn’t a topic one simply launched into.

“I’ll talk to Gran,” she promised. “Tell her to ease up on the spending.”

“You do that,” her uncle grumbled.

They walked into the house and Odelia admired her surroundings. Donna Bruce had taste, that much was obvious. The foyer had a homey feel, with its hardwood floors, soft pink wallpaper and white lacquered furniture. And as they progressed into the living room and then the kitchen, she had to admit she wouldn’t mind living in a place like this. Selling jade eggs and vaginal steamers had obviously been very lucrative for the founder of donna.vip.

They reached the spa area, where a small indoor pool awaited them, along with the sauna cabin where Donna’s housekeeper had found the body of her employer that morning.

“You better prepare yourself for a shock,” said Uncle Alec. “It’s not a pretty sight.”

She braced herself and stepped into the sauna. Donna Bruce was lying on the floor, partly covered by a towel, her face swollen beyond recognition. Every part of her body that was visible had suffered the same fate. The woman had literally been stung to death.

She swallowed. “How—how did they get the bees in here?”

Uncle Alec gestured at the fan that was placed in the ceiling. “They reversed the airflow and placed an entire batch of bees on top of it. The little beasties must have been pretty pissed off when they were propelled past the fan’s blades and into this extremely hot environment. They simply attacked the first thing they came into contact with. Which was Donna Bruce.”

“I’m guessing she died from anaphylactic shock,” said the coroner, who was standing in a corner, picking up the body of a dead bee and dumping it into a plastic baggie. Abe Cornwall was a shabbily-dressed man with frizzy gray hair but he was an ace medical examiner. “Though judging from the state of the body, she might have died from the venom itself. She must have sustained thousands of stings in a matter of minutes.”

“This entire cabin was full of bees when the housekeeper arrived,” Uncle Alec explained. “Thousands and thousands of them.”

“And there’s no question whether this was an accident or not?” asked Odelia.

“No way,” another male voice spoke.

She turned around with a smile, and got a small shock of pleasure when she found herself gazing into the gold-flecked chocolate eyes of Chase Kingsley. He filled the entire doorframe with his muscular physique, and the cabin with his powerful presence. “So it was definitely murder, huh?”

“Definitely,” said Chase with a smile of greeting.

“I’ll let you two kids come up with a theory as to who’s responsible,” said Uncle Alec. “I have to talk to the ex-husband about what to do with the kids.”

“The kids?” asked Odelia.

“Yeah.” Uncle Alec frowned at his notebook. “Sweetums and Honeychild. Good thing they weren’t here when it happened.”

“Oh, those poor babies,” said Odelia.

“Big babies,” said Uncle Alec. “Sweetums and Honeychild are six.” He shook his head. “Who gives their kid a name like that?”

“Donna Bruce,” said Chase, staring down at the victim. He glanced up at the chief. “So am I in charge of this thing, Chief?”

“Yes, you are,” said Chief Alec. “Along with Odelia—in an entirely unofficial capacity, of course.”

Chase gave her a grin. “Looks like the gang is back together, babe.”

She returned his smile. “Yay.”

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About Nic

Nic Saint is the pen name for writing couple Nick and Nicole Saint. They’ve penned 60+ novels in the romance, cat sleuth, middle grade, suspense, comedy and cozy mystery genres. Nicole has a background in accounting and Nick in political science and before being struck by the writing bug the Saints worked odd jobs around the world (including massage therapist in Mexico, gardener in Italy, restaurant manager in India, and Berlitz teacher in Belgium).

When they’re not writing they enjoy Christmas-themed Hallmark movies (whether it’s Christmas or not), all manner of pastry, comic books, a daily dose of yoga (to limber up those limbs), and spoiling their big red tomcat Tommy.

www.nicsaint.com

Also by Nic Saint

Washington & Jefferson

First Shot

Alice Whitehouse

Spooky Times

Spooky Trills

Ghosts of London

Between a Ghost and a Spooky Place

Public Ghost Number One

Ghost Save the Queen

Box Set 1 (Books 1-3)

A Tale of Two Harrys

Ghost of Girlband Past

The Mysteries of Max

Purrfect Murder

Purrfectly Deadly

Purrfect Revenge

Box Set 1 (Books 1-3)

Purrfect Heat

Purrfect Crime

Charleneland

Deadly Ride

Neighborhood Witch Committee

Witchy Start

Saffron Diffley

Crime and Retribution

Witchy Fingers

Witchy Trouble

Witchy Hexations

Witchy Possessions

Witchy Riches

Box Set 1 (Books 1-4)

The Mysteries of Bell & Whitehouse

One Spoonful of Trouble

Two Scoops of Murder

Three Shots of Disaster

Box Set 1 (Books 1-3)

A Twist of Wraith

A Touch of Ghost

A Clash of Spooks

Box Set 2 (Books 4-6)

The Stuffing of Nightmares

A Breath of Dead Air

An Act of Hodd

Box Set 3 (Books 7-9)

Standalone Novels

When in Bruges

Once Upon a Spy

The Whiskered Spy

The Ghost Who Came in from the Cold

Enemy of the Tates

Short Stories

Felonies and Penalties (Saffron Diffley Short 1)

Purrfect Santa (Mysteries of Max Short 1)

Purrfect Christmas Mystery (Mysteries of Max Short 2)

Purrfect Christmas Miracle (Mysteries of Max Short 3)

Copyright © 2017 by Nic Saint. All rights reserved.

Published by Puss in Print Publications.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval without permission in writing from the author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

Editor: Chereese Graves.

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