Linzer Cookie Murder: Paranormal Cozy Mystery (Christmas Catastrophe Mysteries Book 3) by Trixie Silvertale

Author:Trixie Silvertale [Silvertale, Trixie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sittin' On A Goldmine Productions LLC
Published: 2025-09-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Mama helps me into my suit before standing back to admire Thimble’s work. She takes a minute to wipe tears from her eyes. “You look so much like your father, Cynthia. If I didn’t know better . . .”

“Thank you, Mama. You take care of Papa, and I’ll make sure every one of the presents gets delivered. We’ll save Christmas — together.”

She hugs me tight and leaves my room without another word.

Artikoa insists on walking me to the sleigh. “We can’t risk any further delays. Do you have everything you need?”

Patting the left pocket of my suit, I nod. “I have the sleep dust here, in case any children surprise me.” I pat the right pocket and chuckle. “And I have two spare gingerbread cookies in case I get peckish — in flight.”

I don’t believe I’ve ever seen the arctic fox roll his eyes before, but he absolutely does. “With cookies and milk at every stop along the way, how could you possibly get peckish?”

“You have me terrified, Artikoa. I probably won’t eat any of those things. Of course, I’ll make sure it looks like Santa ate them, but think about what you said. Alcohol? Sedatives? What did you expect?”

“I did not intend to cause a fear response, Cynthia. My goal was to keep you safe and informed.”

“Well, you’ve managed to do all three. We have to get going. If I don’t get that sleigh in the air in the next ten minutes, we’ll already be behind schedule.”

Arti bounds from my room and leads the way to the loading area at the rear of the factory.

My heart soars when I see the glossy red sleigh pulled by nine amazing reindeer. The loading crew puts the finishing touches on the bag, as well as running the final test on the navigation equipment as I approach.

“Are we ready, good elves?”

The flight captain makes a quick bow, glances at me, and falls speechless.

“Is there a problem, Captain?”

“Santa? Is that you?”

Attempting to mimic my father’s jolly laugh, I dip my head in the captain’s direction. “It’s me. Cynthia. In a beautifully made suit by Thimble.”

He swallows hard, and there’s still a hint of doubt in his eyes, but it’s clear he believes me. Elves can’t lie. “Everything is ready, Santa.”

The captain leads a brief cheer, and I walk toward the lead reindeer, Chip. Holding the joyous memories of flying in the sleigh with Papa, I stroke my hand across Chip’s back. He immediately lifts into the air with such power that he pulls the reindeer behind him off their forelegs.

Holding this precious magic, I continue down the team, stroking each of the reindeer in turn. Finally, I struggle to climb into a sleigh that is already taking flight.

Artikoa yips once from the ground, and I lean over the side. “Any parting advice, Most Venerable Elder?”

He lifts his pointed nose toward the reins in my hand. “The magic is potent this evening, Cynthia. I believe you can send it through the reins, directly to each harness.

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