Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, Volume 16 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle & Richard A. Lupoff & Jack Grochot & Laird Long & Marvin Kaye

Author:Sir Arthur Conan Doyle & Richard A. Lupoff & Jack Grochot & Laird Long & Marvin Kaye
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: elementary, sherlock holmes, mystery magazine, detective, ellery queen
ISBN: 9781479405770
Publisher: Wildside Press LLC
Published: 2015-04-25T04:00:00+00:00

SANTA AND THE SHORTSTOP, by Steve Liskow

I’m almost eight so I can read by myself, but I felt really tired and my throat was scratchy so I let Shenka read “The Night Before Christmas” to me on the couch.

* * * *

“It was the night before Christmas, and all through the house…” Her accent made the words sound like scissors snipping the paper on the presents under our tree. She was from Georgia, so when I first met her I thought she’d have a southern accent, but Mom told me it was a different Georgia, over in Russia. Her real name is Natyashenka Taracova. I’m glad I don’t have to write that on top of my papers at school. It would take up a whole page.

“The stockings were hung by the chimney with care…”

Her eyes flicked toward the fireplace, where the last log was still smoking.

“No stocking this year, Daniel?” She made it “stockinks.” She made my name start with a “T,” too. I snuggled against her and pretended my throat was really sore so I didn’t have to answer. She smelled good and her sweater was soft like my blanket. She put her arm around me like I was a little kid and asked me again.

“Uh-uh.” Dad said I was getting too big for Santa Claus. Mom told him I had plenty of time to grow up, but he said there’s no such thing as Santa and that he and Mom put the presents under the tree and in my stocking. It made my eyes burn and my nose feel stuffy.

“How come?” Shenka squeezed me a little closer and her big blue eyes looked down at me. “You’ve been a good boy, haven’t you?”

“Yeah.” I didn’t want to talk about it. Dad dressed up in a red suit with a white beard to go to his Christmas party. Mom wore green tights and red boots like an elf, too. They wouldn’t be back until late, not until I was in bed.

“So you’re going to have lots of presents for Christmas tomorrow, aren’t you?”

I looked at the pictures in the book again. Big boxes under a tree, people in funny caps they used to wear to bed, and stars and snow outside. I heard Mom say it was supposed to snow tonight, so they wouldn’t stay late.

“Can we read more of the story?” My voice felt like nails in my throat.

“Are you all right, Daniel?” Shenka’s hand felt cold on my forehead. “Do you have a fever?”

“Uh-uh.”

We read until the guy saw the moon on the best of the new-fallen snow. I never get that part. How can part of the snow be better than the other part? Mom told me it was “breast,” not best, but that doesn’t make any sense, either. Snow isn’t a lady like Mom. Or like Shenka. She’s a lady, too, almost.

But she plays softball really good. She’s shortstop on the high school team. Dad knows her dad from work and that’s how she started coming to sit for me last winter.

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