Mall Santa Murder: A Cozy Christmas Mystery (Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery Book 1) by Willow Monroe Page B
Authors: Willow Monroe
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she did her best. And then it dawned on her that she might get to spend Christmas with her parents after all. The gun shot echoed around the mall, sounding much louder than anything she could have imagined. She was surprised that there was no pain, only a strange deafness.
And then Grady fell on top of her.
Confused, Gemma scrambled to get out from under him as quickly as she could. And then strong hands lifted her to her feet and she was face to face with Nick.
Gemma knew Nick was talking to her as he touched her face, her arms, her hands but she couldn't hear a word. Her knees were weak and she held onto Nick just to keep from falling down. Ross was on his cell phone and bending over Grady, who lay face down on the floor.
“I was so scared,” Gemma shouted, looking away from Grady. “How did you get back in the mall?” Then she realized her hearing was slowly coming back. "Sorry."
“We’ve got Ross to thank for that. He saw Grady lock the front door behind us and suspected something was going on. Especially when your car and his were the only two in the lot,” Nick explained.
Gemma knew she was going to have to sit down soon. Her knees felt like jello and her head was spinning.
“He managed to get us to a service entrance door in the back that had been left unlocked,” Nick finished.
“What took you so long to find me?” Gemma asked.
“By the time we got inside, he already had you out here,” Nick told her.
Ross finally stood up and came to where they were standing.
“Is he...,” Gemma asked.
Ross shook his head. “No. An ambulance is on the way,” he told her.
“His office is full of stolen merchandise,” Gemma told Ross.
“I’ve got back up on the way, too,” Ross said. “It’s gonna be a long night.”
Gemma thought he already looked exhausted.
“Take her home,” he said to Nick. “I can get a statement from her tomorrow.”
“My purse and coat,” Gemma said, pointing toward the HealthGems kiosk.
Nick went after it.
“Thank you, Ross,” Gemma said. “I know you saved my life.”
Ross brushed her hair back off of her face, tucked the wild locks behind one ear. “You did good, deputy. You did good.”
Chapter Fifteen
O n Christmas day, Gemma awoke to at least three inches of new fallen snow. She hummed to herself while she showered and picked out her outfit for the day. A pair of dark green slacks and a soft blue sweater shot with silver and gold threads. The bruises left from her evening with Grady were looking better and better every day and most of her sore muscles were feeling better.
Downstairs she smiled when she saw the Christmas tree, lights twinkling and much-loved decorations glowing softly. It looked so pretty she couldn’t figure out why she’d been so reluctant to put it up in the first place. In the kitchen, she found a radio station that played Christmas carols and then made a pot of coffee. She opened a can of cinnamon rolls, separated them carefully and placed them in a baking pan.
While the delicious smell of warm cinnamon filled her kitchen, she sipped coffee and tried to imagine the look on Rosalie McLear’s face when the gifts they had purchased for the children were delivered that morning. She wondered if Rosalie would guess who it all came from since there were no toys, only warm coats, boots and clothes for four little ones.
Nick promised to come by early for coffee and a snack and to get his present, which she refused to give him before Christmas. She was just drizzling the icing from the little pouch when he knocked on her door.
“Perfect timing,” she said as she opened the door.
“Merry Christmas,” Nick said.
Once the door was closed, she caught his hand and led him toward the kitchen. In the doorway to the kitchen, he stopped, took her in his arms and kissed her warmly. Gemma was a bit surprised and then she remembered hanging the plastic mistletoe there. She held on tight and kissed him back.
“It scares me to death every
And then Grady fell on top of her.
Confused, Gemma scrambled to get out from under him as quickly as she could. And then strong hands lifted her to her feet and she was face to face with Nick.
Gemma knew Nick was talking to her as he touched her face, her arms, her hands but she couldn't hear a word. Her knees were weak and she held onto Nick just to keep from falling down. Ross was on his cell phone and bending over Grady, who lay face down on the floor.
“I was so scared,” Gemma shouted, looking away from Grady. “How did you get back in the mall?” Then she realized her hearing was slowly coming back. "Sorry."
“We’ve got Ross to thank for that. He saw Grady lock the front door behind us and suspected something was going on. Especially when your car and his were the only two in the lot,” Nick explained.
Gemma knew she was going to have to sit down soon. Her knees felt like jello and her head was spinning.
“He managed to get us to a service entrance door in the back that had been left unlocked,” Nick finished.
“What took you so long to find me?” Gemma asked.
“By the time we got inside, he already had you out here,” Nick told her.
Ross finally stood up and came to where they were standing.
“Is he...,” Gemma asked.
Ross shook his head. “No. An ambulance is on the way,” he told her.
“His office is full of stolen merchandise,” Gemma told Ross.
“I’ve got back up on the way, too,” Ross said. “It’s gonna be a long night.”
Gemma thought he already looked exhausted.
“Take her home,” he said to Nick. “I can get a statement from her tomorrow.”
“My purse and coat,” Gemma said, pointing toward the HealthGems kiosk.
Nick went after it.
“Thank you, Ross,” Gemma said. “I know you saved my life.”
Ross brushed her hair back off of her face, tucked the wild locks behind one ear. “You did good, deputy. You did good.”
Chapter Fifteen
O n Christmas day, Gemma awoke to at least three inches of new fallen snow. She hummed to herself while she showered and picked out her outfit for the day. A pair of dark green slacks and a soft blue sweater shot with silver and gold threads. The bruises left from her evening with Grady were looking better and better every day and most of her sore muscles were feeling better.
Downstairs she smiled when she saw the Christmas tree, lights twinkling and much-loved decorations glowing softly. It looked so pretty she couldn’t figure out why she’d been so reluctant to put it up in the first place. In the kitchen, she found a radio station that played Christmas carols and then made a pot of coffee. She opened a can of cinnamon rolls, separated them carefully and placed them in a baking pan.
While the delicious smell of warm cinnamon filled her kitchen, she sipped coffee and tried to imagine the look on Rosalie McLear’s face when the gifts they had purchased for the children were delivered that morning. She wondered if Rosalie would guess who it all came from since there were no toys, only warm coats, boots and clothes for four little ones.
Nick promised to come by early for coffee and a snack and to get his present, which she refused to give him before Christmas. She was just drizzling the icing from the little pouch when he knocked on her door.
“Perfect timing,” she said as she opened the door.
“Merry Christmas,” Nick said.
Once the door was closed, she caught his hand and led him toward the kitchen. In the doorway to the kitchen, he stopped, took her in his arms and kissed her warmly. Gemma was a bit surprised and then she remembered hanging the plastic mistletoe there. She held on tight and kissed him back.
“It scares me to death every
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