Tracy Tam: Santa Command by Krystalyn Drown Page B

around. Was that what had changed her mind? The drink in the library? No, it wasn't, said a voice inside her, although it didn't tell her why. She set her cup down before it sloshed out and she also got on Mary's bad side.
    Jared finished mopping up his mess, then plopped back down in his seat. He pushed his mug to the center of the table. When Mary glared at him, he said, “I'm done, thank you.”
    She wasn't so easily satisfied. “Jared Astor, when have I ever served you a tainted drink?”
    He scoffed. “Probably always.”
    Mary opened her mouth to argue, but Chris put his hand on hers. “My dear, I believe Jared has been going through a tough time. Perhaps we should allow him to speak.”
    When he put it that way, she couldn't very well say no. She gave him a curt nod and took a slow breath, because slow breaths always calmed adults down. “Very well, then. Jared, what makes you think I would do anything to hurt you?'
    “I didn't say you were trying to hurt me. You're just trying to trick me.”
    “Trick you?” Mary asked. “How?”
    “I believe I understand,” Chris said. He wiggled his fingers again and shifted into the Santa look he had worn a few moments before. Tracy looked around for cameras or strings. When she didn't see any, she realized she hadn't uncovered a single secret since she stepped through the mirror. Santa Command hadn't been very good at hiding their technology. Why was Chris' house so different?
    Mary took one look at Santa Chris, and her face softened instantly. The harsh lines around her mouth were replaced with a glowing smile. Her eyes carried a spark that seemed to leap across the table and land in the corner of Chris' eyes.
    Tracy looked at the two of them, and she could see how Mary fit in perfectly with Chris' Santa image. They both had gentle eyes and dimpled smiles.
    “It's been a hundred years since I've seen you in that. I didn't think you still…” Mary's thoughts drifted off as she reached a finger up to dab at her eye.
    “A hundred years? Come on!” Jared's snotty voice broke through the moment, and they all turned to look at him.
    Tracy gave him a nasty look. Even she knew better than to be that rude.
    “What?” he said. “Are you going to tell me you believe all of this stuff? They're playing with our minds.”
    “I…” Tracy began. “Well, I…”
    Chris and Mary watched her as she struggled to find the truth. There was a war happening inside her, between all of the proof she had collected over the course of the night and the gnawing feeling in her gut that had begun sometime in Chris' presence. She spoke timidly as she pulled at the cuffs of her coat. “Well, there is that dust that makes people see things.”
    “Right,” Jared said smugly. “And the zombie Santas, and that ride he has in the barn.”
    Chris gave a weary sigh. His Santa image slipped off of him, but he didn't quite return to his normal self. His skin turned pasty and paper thin as if his previous appearance had been a costume as much as the Santa outfit was. Even his clothes seemed looser on him. The whole effect made him seem much, much older. “Well, I can't argue with the first two. Unfortunately, the world has changed over the centuries, and many things have become a necessity. I can assure you, however, that the sleigh ride I took you on, was one hundred percent genuine.”
    Jared leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “Yeah, whatever.”
    “What about jets?” Tracy suggested. “There could have been jets on the sleigh. That would have made the ride real.”
    “Did you forget that we just popped back into the barn? How do you explain that, Miss I Wanna Be A Scientist?”
    Tracy had no explanation. She'd forgotten about that part.
    Chris saved her from having to answer. “Well, I suppose I could have a theme park ride in my barn. Or I could have dusted you like the Inklings do. I could have done any number of things to trick you.” He paused long