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Cats. They can get really obsessed about stuff sometimes. Like when their favorite letter carrier suddenly doesn’t show up. In that respect they’re pretty much OCD. Five minutes later, they were meowing up a storm to be let out again, so I dragged myself from my seat, opened the glass door, and watched them strut off. Why I had a pet door installed in the kitchen I do not know, as they rarely seem to useit, preferring their human to play butler instead.

I returned to my desk, and put in a solid two hours of work on the Christmas tree piece.

Chapter 2

I decided to walk to the office, as the roads were a little tricky to navigate by car, and I don’t like driving in these conditions. And since the sun was out and the air was crisp and fresh, a little walk was exactly what the doctor ordered. Max and Dooley were nowhere to be seen, and neither were Harriet and Brutus, the cats that belong to Mom and Chase, my boyfriend the cop. I wasn’t worried. They were old and wise enough to take care of themselves, and not get into any trouble.

Twenty minutes later, I breezed into the offices of the Hampton Cove Gazette, and knocked at the door of Dan. The editor was in, though he did not look happy.

“Hey, Dan,” I said from the doorway. “I’ve finished the article on the new Christmas tree.” He was frowning at me, as if I’d just called him a bad name, so I frowned back. “Everything all right?”

Dan is a wizened old guy with an impressive white beard, wire-rimmed glasses, and eyes that always seem to smile. Except now. Now they looked positively menacing.“No, everything is not all right,” he grumbled. “In fact everything is horrible. Do you know what the council has just decided?”

“Um, to change the new Christmas tree for the old one?” One could only hope.

“No, they’ve decided that I won’t be their Santa any longer! Can you believe it?!”

Quite frankly I couldn’t. Dan, since he looks pretty much like Santa, has been Hampton Cove’s resident Santa for years. He’s the one that presides over the Santa Parade and rides on the biggest float, the one shaped like a sleigh, officiates the Christmas tree lighting, the opening of the holiday movies film festival at the Hampton Cove Movie Theatre, and graces dozens of other activities with his cheerful presence. Christmas in Hampton Cove isn’t really Christmas without Dan.

“But they can’t do that!” I cried, aghast.

“Well, they did,” he said, holding up a letter. “Two days before Christmas! They even made it official. Said that in light of my negative review of the new Christmas tree, my services as Santa are no longer required.”

“They fired you because you don’t like the new Christmas tree?”

“Yep.” He took off his glasses and settled back in his chair. “I called the Mayor and he told me that the council viewed last week’s editorial as a personal affront. Said that my negativity has swayed public opinion against the tree, and if only I’d toed the line, Hampton Cove would have accepted the tree just fine.” He spread his arms. “But how can I accept a tree that ugly? It’s hideous!!”

“So what are you going to do?”

“What can I do? They’re going in a different direction for the final few days.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning they’ve hired a different Santa to officiate the Christmas Eve Celebration.”

“Who? I frankly can’t imagine a better Santa than you, Dan.” And I meant it. Dan has been Santa since I was a little girl, and I just couldn’t imagine Christmas without him. I remembered how he used to come to Hampton Cove middle school, and dole out the presents, and how he would officiatethe Christmas celebration in the school’s cafeteria, with all the kids spending a few precious moments on his lap, telling him how good they’d been and giving him their Christmas wish list.

“Thanks, honey,” he said warmly. “You’re not the only one who seems to feel that way. Lots of people have called to tell me they think the council is wrong. But the politicians are not budging. They’ve already gone and hired some shmuck from New York. A department store Santa, no less.”

“A department store Santa?”

“Yeah, one of those guys that does the big department stores. You know the type. Young guy that tapes on a fake beard once a year and goes through the motions.” He thoughtfully rubbed his own beard, which wasn’t fake at all. “I think they’re going to regret it, Odelia. They can’t mess with Christmas traditions like this and get away with it.” He pointed a stubby finger in my direction. “I want you to find out who this new guy is. I want you to find out everything you can about him.”

“And then what? The council isn’t going to change their minds, Dan. You know how stubborn they can be.”

“Oh, of course I know. But once I expose this new Santa, they’ll have to change their minds.”

I shuffled a little worriedly.“Expose Santa?”

“Sure! Dig up the dirt on the guy. Show people what a fraud he is.”

“And what if he’s not?”