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The place looked empty of customers. Built into the back wall was a tunnel entrance framed in colored lights, and above it, a sign readingSanta’s Grotto. Behind the counter was a young blond woman in a green-and-white striped elf costume, and behind her, pointing to something on a tablet, was Katya Solovyova, one of my—admittedly few—friends from high school. She and I were both a bit stouter than we’d been as teenagers, and we each had a few wrinkles, but I’d have known her anywhere. Dark-haired and dark-eyed, with a voice like marbles rattling in a bag, Katya had come to Christmas Valley as an exchange student and had gotten a summer job at Elfwood. Her dry, indifferent, Russian-accented, “Welcome to Elfwood, where it is Christmas every day, let me know how I can make your shopping experience a holly jolly one,” had become so popular with customers that she’d stayed in the U.S., studied business at the community college, and now—according to Mom—owned and managed Elfwood.
Katya was wearing a pair of sparkly Christmas sunglasses with plastic Santa hats sticking up from the rims, making her look like some sort of bizarre bug. She didn’t even glance up as I entered, though the blond woman did. Katya spoke while jabbing at the tablet, “Welcome to Elfwood, where it is Christmas every—” She lifted her head. “Hooooly fucking—Frances?”
Her large eyes were wide behind the glasses. She came around the desk. “Fuck my face!”
I drew back, startled. “Um, I’d rather not.”
“No, I mean fuck, my face hurts when I move it.” She pressed a palm to her cheek. I realized one side of her nose was swollen, and she had what looked like a shiner under the sunglasses.
“Oh my God,” I said. “What happened to you?”
She waved a hand dismissively. “This is what happens when you tell elf not to snort cocaine off Rudolph’s ass.”
“An elfpunchedyou?”
“No. He was startled because I caught him, and then he knocked reindeer statue over in attempt to flee the scene, and bam!” She motioned to her eye. “Antler to the face.”
“Jesus.”
“The reason for the season.”
Her accent had become less pronounced since I’d last seen her—fewer dropped articles, her R’s and L’s lighter. I’d visited Christmas Valley a few times over the years, but not often. Mom had taken a liking to Boston, so she’d mostly come to me. And when the girls were smaller, I’d been in no hurry to take two babies on a plane, even with Ben’s help. Em and Ada could travel fine now, but I’d just...gotten used to not going back. Our last visit had been short, and we’d mostly hung around Mom’s house, so I’d avoided running into people I knew. But seeing Katya now, I wondered why, in eighteen years, I hadn’t come into Elfwood to say hello.
Because I’d felt guilty. About the choices I’d made and who I’d made them for. About what I’d done to Cass. And because once I’d left, I’d been busy with school, then busy with work, then busy with the girls, busy with Ben, busy with the breakup... It had just seemed easier to forget about Christmas Valley altogether. “So is the elf fired?”
She shrugged. “He’s adding dogs to the Dickens village in the back. He is young. Jesus would want me to forgive.”
“Because I heard you already lost a Santa to rehab.”
“Why are you smiling?”
“Sorry. I just thought it was kind of—”
“Addiction is serious illness, Frances.”
“I know.”
“It’s sad, and I hope he gets better.”
“Me too.” I was uncomfortably aware of the blond woman watching us from the desk. She no doubt thought I was an asshole.
“But yes, ’tis season for accidents and drugs. In Russia, my town, every December everyone is in hospital with drug overdose or injury.”
“What...kind of injury?”
She shrugged again. “They break Christmas ornament and cut themselves. Or they fall off roof putting lights up. They get burned on stove making Christmas dinner. You know.”
“Or they get an antler to the face.”
“Yep.”
“Well, my mom wants more garland for her banisters. So I said I’d pick some up.”
“Oh, good. I love your mother.”
“Yeah, I’m pretty fond of her too.” Mostly. Ish. I glanced around. “The place looks great. I wanted to say congrats, by the way. My mom told me you bought it a few years ago.”
“Yes. Now it is Christmas every day in my life. So happy.”
