I’m about to turn around when a figure pops up from the bushes, two horns protruding from a demonic face. Its hands reach out to tap an eerie cadence against the window. I screech, stumbling backward, grabbing at air. With a quick twist, I crouch low, instinctively assuming a defensive stance. Thankfully, I manage to avoid the embarrassment of falling on my ass. I swiftly right myself in time to see the creature remove its head to unmask Corinne, bent over, laughing hysterically.
“What the hell’s going on?” Lanie says, rushing into the room with Nina and Ava right on her heels.
I motion toward the window, working to calm my racing heart.
“That asshole,” Lanie says, throwing her head back and laughing. “I love her.”
Leave it to Lanie to find this funny. I about had a coronary, but who cares about that minor detail?
Nina throws open the front door, standing to the side, giving Corinne enough room to enter. “Get in here, you menace.”
I take a step forward, hands planted on my hips. “What were you trying to do? Give me a heart attack?”
She shrugs out of her coat, throwing it over the chair. “Playing Krampus. Have you been naughty?”
“It’s not Krampusnacht, idiot. You’re a few weeks off,” Lanie says, half rolling her eyes.
“Idiotis too kind a term.” I grab her coat and head toward the office, where the others have been stashed.
“What are you doing here? I thought you were tied up with Moradi Madness,” Lanie says, but I miss Corinne’s reply as I step away from the group.
I deposit the black bomber jacket into the pitch-black room and give myself a moment to laugh at the absurdity that just occurred. I almost went down, and if it had been Lanie, I would be rolling on the ground laughing.
That’s the thing about the friendships I have with these girls. They all bring something unique to the group. Corinne’s happens to be youth and the reminder that no matter our age, laughter and silliness is the best medicine.
I chuckle to myself before rejoining my friends who are all gathered in the front room, chatting away about Corinne’s brother, Darian. From what I’ve pieced together, he was ordered to bring her here to ensure something goes down.
“What exactly is going down?” I ask, glancing around the room for someone to explain.
“Not you,” Lanie says, chuckling at herself.
My nose scrunches, and I glare daggers at Lanie, looking out of the corner of my eye at Ava, who clearly got the joke, if her giggling is any indicator.
Nina sighs heavily. “Do you always have to be so crass, Lane?”
Lanie doesn’t answer, and Ava has inquired about the lore surrounding Krampus. Corinne is far too eager to give all the horrific details. I zone out, knowing the story behind the Christmas devil.
My head turns toward the window, and I watch as large flakes continue to fall from the sky, blanketing the ground. It’s a winter wonderland out there, the perfect scenery for the holiday.
Movement to the left has my eyes narrowing as I lean forward.
“What the…” My words trail off as I stand to get closer to the glass. “Is that Mrs. Fields?”
Standing on the sidewalk, out in the dark, cold, winter night, a barely dressed Mrs. Fields appears to be talking to thin air. She’s in her pale pink nightgown, hair secured under a white shower cap, finger lifted as if she’s in the middle of a lecture.
The others get to their feet, joining me at the window.
“Is that a nightgown?” Nina asks, and I nod.
“She’s not wearing shoes?” Ava says, nose practically pressed against the window.
“Looks like she’s wearing slippers,” Nina replies to Ava.
The frail woman has her fist raised into the air, moving it around like she’s moments away from crashing it against someone’s head. Something isn’t right with her.
“She’s going to freeze out there,” I say, heading toward the door.
With my hand on the knob, I look down, recognizing that I’m not exactly dressed appropriately either.
