To: MayaR-31

From: Your Secret Santa

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house...

There were creatures still stirring. The cats. They had gotten into the ribbon and wrapping paper again. The children were burning off the last of their sugar-cookie high.

But, what rose to a quick summit settled just as fast, like cherubs on a bed of new-fallen snow.

Maya closed the storybook, grateful they were asleep before Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

She made sure they were snug in their beds and placed kisses on their cute, sleepy heads.

At long last, she finished wrapping the presents and artfully placed them beneath the tree's twinkling lights. She stuffed stockings until they were overflowing with goodies. She played Father Christmas, nibbling on treats she'd rather not worry about until January 2nd.

After tidying up and one final check, Maya closed shop for the night. Surprisingly, she finished ahead of schedule and had a twinkle of energy to spare.

So, with a cat in her lap, her feet blissfully up, and a glass of wine in hand, she opened her favorite reading app. Before long, she got swept away in the romance scene she had fretfully abandoned earlier that day.

The call of motherly duty had been like the toll of a bell. It began early, it was loud, constant, and it never went away. And finally, the ringing in her ears dimmed to be inaudible beneath her cat's melodious purr.

When out on the porch there arose such a clatter.

A knock? Who could it be at this hour?

She paused to consider that it must be some mistake.

Yet, in the rap that followed, the desperation rose through the rooftops.

Maya lurched to see what was the matter. As she headed for the door, she glanced toward her bedroom. There came not a sound. It was likely her husband had just settled in for a long winter's nap.

With a shrug, she reached for the knob, nonetheless.

When what to her wondering eyes did appear?

Her gaze awkwardly collided with a stranger in black.

His boots matched his trench coat. His trench coat was as dark as his hair and eyes. Though far from a giant, there was something about his stance, presence, aura . . . the set of his jaw, the acuity of his gaze that conveyed both mystery and danger.

With a lack of any preamble, the man sputtered this: "I heard you were the best."

"I beg your pardon?" she replied, taking a step back.

At her reaction, there was something about him that softened and saddened.

Gave me to know I had nothing to dread...

Slowly, he pulled open his trench coat. He revealed not a parcel or a weapon, but rather a tiny white kitten asleep in his palm. And yet it wasn't a peaceful or restful sort of slumber. The little creature was struggling to breathe and stay warm. It had teeth marks and blood streaks...

It would be a miracle if it survived at all.

"Please," the young man said, urging her to take on a crisis she was not qualified to make right.

Still, her hands rose to accept the poor little kitty. It gave her the most pitiful meow she had ever heard. And she thought she had heard them all. "You need a vet, not..."

She looked up to finish her assessment. Unfortunately, the man was gone in a flash.

"Merry Christmas to you too," she muttered into the still night air.

So much for joining her husband for that long winter's nap!

Since the kitty was shivering up her own winter storm, Maya didn't linger. She shut and locked the door. And turned out the front lights. This wasn't an all-night emergency clinic!

Still, she got right to work. What else could she do? There wasn't a moment to spare.

So, she bundled the kitten in warm towels. She cleaned and patched her up. She tried hydrating the poor little bundle with a syringe but only had a little luck. Would it be enough?

With nothing more she could do except wait, Maya set the kitten on her stomach and pulled up the blanket. As she was trying to get as comfortable as she could on the couch, she was joined by her two other cats. At least they'd all stay warm...

And though it would have been even more heartbreaking if things didn't end well, she still found herself sorting through ideas for a name. Snowy? Eve? Midnight? Winter?

Her last conscious thought was Angel. It seemed apt for the situation. Then she dozed too deeply to make much sense of the strange encounter with the man in black.

He was no Father Christmas. Even so, there was something magical and altruistic...

❄❄❄

At the patter of happy children, Maya rubbed some life into her tired eyes.

"A new kitten!" was the first thing her son squealed.

It wasn't a dream, she realized with a gasp.

Her hand flew to the little bundle curled up beneath her chin. The kitten was warm, soft, and sleeping peacefully this time. Was it actually possible she'd be all right?

"Her name is Angel," Maya announced, yawning, stretching, and sitting up.

Through a sleepy haze of his own, her husband expressed his confusion. This is news to me.

She simply smiled, pecked his cheek, and placed the new kitten in his only slightly unwilling hands.

He'd come around. He always did.

❄❄❄

The presents were opened. The mess was cleaned up. Their guests had left the house merry and stuffed.

Then, when everyone else had turned in for the night, Maya found herself back on the couch, ready to unwind and finish up that steamy chapter she had abandoned not once but twice. And she had an abundance of warmth and company. She was buried beneath a three-kitty blanket once again.

Not more than a sentence or two later, she had this feeling she was being watched.

Something tapped against the window. Snowflakes were fluttering by. It must have been the ice.

She resumed reading on her app. And yet, what could have passed for footsteps crept into her awareness. They came from outside.

Although reluctant to disturb her kitties, she went to the door and cracked it open.

What did she expect to see? Footsteps in the snow? A message scrawled into a tree? A note pegged to the door with something sharp and intimidating, like a knife?

No, there was nothing like that. Perhaps she was just going a little mad. Too much Christmas. Too little sleep...

And at that precise moment, her phone buzzed in her pocket, scaring her half to death.

She grabbed it. She tapped. And she read.

A story dedication? At this hour? On a holiday?

And it was from someone she had never heard of, no less!

DarkAngel_177

The cover was a sheet of black, and on it, not a word.

With a shiver from both a chill and the fear, she closed the door. With her back pressed against it, she opened the first and only chapter.

To Maya,

Thank you. Merry Christmas. And God bless.

~DA~

Thank you for reading! Did you enjoy this story? Do you think it was a fun and festive way to say thank you and happy holidays? Would you like to play "Santa" yourself? 

Check out the Introduction/Guidelines and get your entries ready! You have until December 21st, 2018.