One corner of his mouth pulled into a slight grin. “Have another drink,” he said, refilling my glass. “You’ll need it.”
“Fuck yes!”
Chapter 2
It probably said a lot about me that the moment before I was about to scare the ever-living shit out of my sister was the happiest I’d been in months. But I’ll work that out in therapy later. Tonight, an icy wind howled the song of vengeance through bare branches and to me it carried the tune of a Christmas miracle.
As car lights pulled into the driveway, I cast a glance at my partner in crime, only to find the space beside me empty. Shit, did he leave? “Krampus?” I whispered.
His deep voice sounded all around me, making me jump. “I’m still here. Are you ready to take your spot?”
“Yeah, what do I do?” No sooner had the words left my mouth than my body dissolved into mist. “WHAT THE F-” My sentence was cut off when my mouth disappeared. The world shifted and I got the feeling of being thrown toward the wall before everything snapped into place again. I looked around to see delicately painted rose bushes. My own hands looked painted on as well. Except with a lot more wrinkles than I remembered. “What just happened?”
“I’ve hidden you inside your grandmother’s painting. Now, stay quiet until I give you the signal.”
“YOU CAN DO THA-”
“Shh.”
“Right, right. I’m cool, I’m focused.” Keys jingled just outside the door as Louis fumbled with the lock. I relaxed into my position in Nana’s rocking chair and folded my hands in my lap, doing my best to imitate the pose. Judging by the slurred words and giggles coming from the entryway, Charlotte and Louis were probably too tipsy to notice anything amiss.
“Was the doorknob always upside down?” Louis asked.
Whoops.
Charlotte snorted before jiggling the lock open and stepping inside. “Must have been the repair man. I just called the first guy available so I could get the locks changed ASAP. You know how bitter Daphne is.”
Louis stumbled into the dimly lit foyer after her, wrapping his arms around her waist with a laugh. “She’ll get over it, eventually. Not much she can do now that she’s lost the lawsuit, anyway.” He took her by the hand and spun her around.
Charlotte brought a hand up to stifle her giggles. “Still, it’s too bad she chickened out of dinner. I would have paid good money to see her face when we told my parents we’re engaged.” She lifted her hand with a triumphant smirk, admiring the rock on her hand. Even from a distance, I’d recognize that sapphire centerpiece anywhere. It was my ring. Well, the one I threw at Louis’s head after I found him balls deep inside her, but still.
That. Fucking.Bitch.
Rage boiled my blood and I damn near leapt out of the painting for a good old fashioned sister smackdown. I felt the presence of brawny arms wrap around my waist, stilling me.
Krampus leaned into me from behind and his body shifted as if made of dark smoke. He looked nearly transparent, but his hold on me was firm. “Be silent,” he whispered against my temple. “You’ll spoil the fun.”
There’s that damn panty dropping voice again. I pressed my legs together and tried to fight the overwhelming need to turn my face into his neck and breathe in that peppermint evergreen scent. He moved his lips to my ear before he faded into nothingness. “Watch how it’s done.”
I couldn’t help but grin when the door slammed shut on its own. Charlotte jumped with a shriek, clinging to Louis’s arm. “It’s just the wind,” Louis said with a laugh.
“That wind nearly had me jumping out of my skin,” she breathed. The lights flickered and she cursed. “This damn old house. It’s just one thing after another. I’m half tempted to just sell it and be done.”
Louis collected her in his arms. “Don’t be like that. A bit of new wiring, some paint and the place will be good as new. Next week we can start getting rid of your Nana’s things. Right now, this place looks like a depressed nursing home.”
“It is very grandma chic,” she agreed. Charlotte plucked an old family photo from the wall and curled her lip. With a flick of her wrist, the picture was tossed into the trash bin. “We’ll start with these god-awful picture frames.”
All at once, every photo was sent tumbling to the floor, their clattering echoed through the quiet house. Charlotte froze, her eyes widening in unease. She peered at the painting I was in, the only thing that remained in place and swallowed thickly.
Louis rubbed the back of his neck, the way he always did when he was nervous or lying. Or nervous about lying. “Must be a draft in here or something.” The last of his words came out in visible puffs as the temperature plummeted. Ornaments jingled on the Christmas tree and their shadows danced. Krampus made the flights flicker again and each flash of light morphed the shadows into grotesque monsters that crept along the walls. I reveled in the terror that crept across Charlotte’s face.
“That’s not a fucking draft Louis, what the hell is going on?” she asked.
“Don’t panic, I’m sure it’s-” His words cut off with the lights. Charlotte screamed. Static crackled from the radio before jingle bells started to play. Its cheery melody felt deeply out of place with the sinister chill in the air.
Dashing through the snow
In a one-horse open sleigh
