Christmas Peril. Margaret Daley

the holidays, but I don’t remember much about the town, except all the lights downtown and the huge Christmas tree in the park.” She glanced out the large picture window, a blanket of clouds darkening the late afternoon. “I need to talk with Sara this evening and then find a place to stay. My daughter is tired and hungry.” She hoped Sara would let her stay with her, but she hadn’t seen her in years and she might not open her home to her. If that were the case, she didn’t know what she would do. Her money was limited. Fear, always present since she’d last heard from Bryan, wormed its way deeper into her mind.

      “Sara fell a few weeks ago. She could use some help around the house, but she hates asking anyone to. Maybe you are an answer to a prayer. I’ll show you where she lives. You can follow me.” He turned to the lady behind the counter. “I just need a cup of your coffee, Marge.”

      “Already have it for you.” The woman took the dollar the police chief set on the counter.

      “Ready, Mrs. Madison?” He snatched up the cup.

      “It’s Ms. Madison. I’m not married.”

      She’d never been married. Although Bryan and she had discussed marriage when she discovered she was pregnant in college, she’d decided against it when he was arrested for driving under the influence. Too many red flags kept popping up in their relationship. When she’d met him as a freshman, he was an upperclassman with arresting blue eyes and an easy smile. He’d whisked her off her feet, and she’d given herself to him. She deeply regretted her choice back then, but one good thing had come from it: Jayden.

      Taking her daughter’s hand, she started for the door. “I appreciate you showing me where Sara lives. I probably could have wandered around until I stumbled onto Bethlehem. I remember what a big deal the holidays are here in Christmas.”

      “Yeah, the town grows at this time of year. We get people from all over Oklahoma and the surrounding states visiting during the season. We go all out.”

      “The thing I mainly recall is the festival of lights,” Annie said as she helped Jayden into the back and slipped behind the steering wheel of her ten-year-old Ford Mustang.

      “We added fireworks about twelve years ago.” He shut her door and strode toward his police cruiser.

      As she followed Caleb Jackson through the town, holiday spirit was evident everywhere she looked. Every street’s name had a Christmas theme: Noel Avenue, Candy Cane Lane, Mistletoe Street, Nativity Road. Usually Christmas had little meaning for her. She only celebrated it for Jayden’s sake.

      Although Bryan tried to help as much as he could, it had been a struggle supporting her daughter on an office manager’s salary. She was thankful when she called her employer, Ron Adams, that he’d been understanding about her suddenly taking some time off. She’d been with him for five years, and this was a slow time of the year for his roofing business. She hoped by the first of the year that she could go back to Crystal Creek and her old life. She wanted to believe that Bryan was all right and there had been no reason for her to flee.

      Six blocks off the main street through downtown where one store after another dealing with Christmas edged the thoroughfare on both sides, the police chief turned onto Bethlehem. Large houses—some Victorian, all decorated for Christmas—lined the street.

      He stopped in front of one of the Victorian homes, painted a powder-blue, with a black wrought-iron fence along the sidewalk. The lot Sara McLain’s place sat on was at least half an acre. In fact, all the houses on the street had sizeable yards. Memories of running and playing on the lawn flashed into her thoughts. She remembered feeling safe here.

      Annie stared at the three-story structure with a Christmas tree positioned in the center of a floor-to-ceiling window facing the street. White lights draped the pine with gold bows and white ornaments. “We’re here. Remember, your last name is Madison, honey. It’s important you don’t forget.”

      “Why, Mommy?”

      She didn’t want to tell her daughter the reason, but she had to say something or she would continue to ask. “That’s our new last name now. We’re on an adventure and in disguise.”

      “Oh, great!” Jayden unsnapped her seat belt and hopped from the car, hugging her doll.

      As Annie climbed out, she heard Caleb Jackson introduce himself and ask her daughter, “What’s your name?”

      Annie stiffened, gripping the door handle.

      “Jayden Madison.”

      Annie expelled a deep breath and rounded the front of her Mustang. She knew he was a police chief, but the words don’t trust anyone, especially the police had kept her up most of the past two nights, listening to every sound passing her motel room door.

      His gaze captured hers. “This is Sara’s.”

      “Yeah, I remember playing here, making—” Annie pointed toward a spot in the front yard “—a snowman right there.”

      “A snowman. I wanna make one.” Jayden looked up at the sky. “When’s it gonna snow?”

      Caleb chuckled. “In Oklahoma, if you don’t like the weather, just stick around a day. It most likely will change. But right now, there isn’t any snow forecasted.”

      Jayden’s mouth turned down in a pout. “I was hoping for snow. I’ve never seen any.”

      He winked at her little girl. “Maybe while you’re visiting, there will be some.” When he shifted toward Annie, Caleb gestured down the street. “I don’t live far from here. The last house at the end of the block.”

      “Thanks for showing us where Sara lived.”

      Taking her daughter’s hand, she started to open the gate that led into the front yard, when the police chief reached around her and swung it toward him. His arm brushed up against hers. Jolted by the contact, she stepped back, aware of the man only inches from her. His smile encompassed his whole face and made his eyes gleam.

      But she’d learned the hard way to be wary of strangers. Look what happened when she’d given into Bryan and his smooth-talking ways. She would love to trust the police chief with what was going on in her life, but at the moment she didn’t even know what that was. In a tight crunch she would appreciate someone like Caleb Jackson watching out for her. She hoped she never had to find out just how good he would be defending someone. The very thought sent a shiver down her.

      “Cold?”

      She nodded, although her chill had nothing to do with the weather.

      “It’s getting nippy. So, Jayden, you might get that snow after all. I’ve learned not to take the forecasters too seriously.” He mounted the stairs to the porch that wrapped around one side of the house and pressed the bell. “It’ll take Sara a bit to get to the door.” He leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms. “What do you think of our little town?”

      “I’ve never seen so many Christmas decorations in one place.”

      He quirked a grin. “Yeah, it does take some getting used to for newcomers. We go all out for a good three months a year. Personally, I like what Christmas stands for. We could use it year round.”

      “What? Rampant commercialism?”

      He laughed, a warm sound that Annie responded to. “A cynic. Before you pass judgment on the town, you need to experience the holidays here.” He straightened as the door opened. “And I wasn’t talking about the commercialism of Christmas but the celebration of Christ’s birth. It all started something awesome.”

      All words fled Annie’s mind at his answer. She hadn’t expected it. But the appearance of her cousin in the entrance gave her a reprieve from making any comment.

      A small woman, about five feet, her totally white hair pulled back in a bun, pushed open the screen and smiled at the police chief. “Goodness, I didn’t expect you for another hour, Caleb.”

      “I’m not