watching over the two brothers for a long time to come.
Nighttime had fallen when the plane touched down at the same airport from which the boys departed six days earlier. The limousine driver who met them and drove them home said that the big storm had dropped a foot and a half of snow. “Should be getting a little bit more tonight, so we’ll definitely have a white Christmas this year,” he added with a big smile on his face.
The outside Christmas lights were on when Archibald and Jockabeb arrived home. The drivewayand walkway had been shoveled, and the boys knew a fire was burning in the fireplace by the stream of smoke rising from the chimney. Their driver’s prediction had been right as the first snowflakes started to fall just as they reached their doorstep.
A kiss to remember
Even though Special Agent Quade had called ahead to let the boys’ parents know exactly when the plane would be touching down, their family was overjoyed when Archibald and Jockabeb finally walked through the door. With Oh Come All Ye Faithful playing in the background, their mother and Tess ran to hug them, exclaiming, “You’re home! Christmas Eve can now begin!”
Before going into the kitchen for dinner, and after giving each of his sons a hug, the boys’ father pulled them aside and said, “Just so you know, Special Agent Quade has already told us that you can’t discuss anything that happened over the past week, so we won’t ask you about it. It drove Tess crazy when I told her, but she finally accepted the fact that she’ll never know where you were, or what you were up to.
“Even though what happened up in the Arctic is classified, Special Agent Quade said enough on the phone for me to know you did your country proud. And, boys, I also want you to know just how proud your mother and I are of you. Okay, now let’s go get some of your mother’s famous chowder. I’m sure you haven’t had a decent meal since you left home!”
After the traditional Christmas Eve meal of corn and crab chowder, tossed green salad, and peppermint stick icecream with chocolate sauce had been finished, everyone gathered around the Christmas tree to share their favorite Christmas story. This year Jockabeb was given the honor of reading The Christmas Token, a heart-warming holiday tale about friendship, memories, and family. Before going to sleep, another family tradition was carried out. Each of the children was given a present to open. And, as was the case every year, they all slept in new pajamas that night.
Welcome home
Jockabeb was ready to turn out the lamp on the bed stand when he asked his brother a question that had been on his mind during the flight home. “You’re sixteen and I’m fifteen now. Do you think we’re getting too old for all this adventure stuff?”
“You’ve got to be kidding!” Archibald laughed. “It’s not like we go looking for it. It just somehow seems to find us. You know as well as I do that there’ll be something else that pops up and gets us in trouble. I just hope it doesn’t have anything to do with Special Agent Quade!”
“Just checking,” Jockabeb replied, then adding as he turned out the light, “and roger that on Quade.”
A minute or so had passed when Archibald rolled over and said, “Hey, Jockabeb, one more thing.”
“What’s that?” Jockabeb, asked.
“Merry Christmas,” Archibald said, smiling in the dark.
“Merry Christmas,” Jockabeb answered back.
And so it was!
FIRST EPILOGUE
On New Year’s Eve day a letter arrived with a familiar New York City post office box number listed as the return address. The letter was from Willow. In it she wrote about the limousine ride home. With all the traffic, it was close to midnight when she’d finally arrived back in New York City.
She went on to say that her best Christmas gift came the next morning when a government agent arrived at Sub-Station Zero with a handwritten note from Director Blair. In his note, Director Blair said
Nighttime had fallen when the plane touched down at the same airport from which the boys departed six days earlier. The limousine driver who met them and drove them home said that the big storm had dropped a foot and a half of snow. “Should be getting a little bit more tonight, so we’ll definitely have a white Christmas this year,” he added with a big smile on his face.
The outside Christmas lights were on when Archibald and Jockabeb arrived home. The drivewayand walkway had been shoveled, and the boys knew a fire was burning in the fireplace by the stream of smoke rising from the chimney. Their driver’s prediction had been right as the first snowflakes started to fall just as they reached their doorstep.
A kiss to remember
Even though Special Agent Quade had called ahead to let the boys’ parents know exactly when the plane would be touching down, their family was overjoyed when Archibald and Jockabeb finally walked through the door. With Oh Come All Ye Faithful playing in the background, their mother and Tess ran to hug them, exclaiming, “You’re home! Christmas Eve can now begin!”
Before going into the kitchen for dinner, and after giving each of his sons a hug, the boys’ father pulled them aside and said, “Just so you know, Special Agent Quade has already told us that you can’t discuss anything that happened over the past week, so we won’t ask you about it. It drove Tess crazy when I told her, but she finally accepted the fact that she’ll never know where you were, or what you were up to.
“Even though what happened up in the Arctic is classified, Special Agent Quade said enough on the phone for me to know you did your country proud. And, boys, I also want you to know just how proud your mother and I are of you. Okay, now let’s go get some of your mother’s famous chowder. I’m sure you haven’t had a decent meal since you left home!”
After the traditional Christmas Eve meal of corn and crab chowder, tossed green salad, and peppermint stick icecream with chocolate sauce had been finished, everyone gathered around the Christmas tree to share their favorite Christmas story. This year Jockabeb was given the honor of reading The Christmas Token, a heart-warming holiday tale about friendship, memories, and family. Before going to sleep, another family tradition was carried out. Each of the children was given a present to open. And, as was the case every year, they all slept in new pajamas that night.
Welcome home
Jockabeb was ready to turn out the lamp on the bed stand when he asked his brother a question that had been on his mind during the flight home. “You’re sixteen and I’m fifteen now. Do you think we’re getting too old for all this adventure stuff?”
“You’ve got to be kidding!” Archibald laughed. “It’s not like we go looking for it. It just somehow seems to find us. You know as well as I do that there’ll be something else that pops up and gets us in trouble. I just hope it doesn’t have anything to do with Special Agent Quade!”
“Just checking,” Jockabeb replied, then adding as he turned out the light, “and roger that on Quade.”
A minute or so had passed when Archibald rolled over and said, “Hey, Jockabeb, one more thing.”
“What’s that?” Jockabeb, asked.
“Merry Christmas,” Archibald said, smiling in the dark.
“Merry Christmas,” Jockabeb answered back.
And so it was!
FIRST EPILOGUE
On New Year’s Eve day a letter arrived with a familiar New York City post office box number listed as the return address. The letter was from Willow. In it she wrote about the limousine ride home. With all the traffic, it was close to midnight when she’d finally arrived back in New York City.
She went on to say that her best Christmas gift came the next morning when a government agent arrived at Sub-Station Zero with a handwritten note from Director Blair. In his note, Director Blair said
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