Page 54 of This Christmas

Thy started to head across the street, but Charlotte tugged on her hand. “Can we see the lights, Mommy?”

“Of course, baby,” Ally said softly, her gaze lifting toward the twinkling tree that sat in the center of the town square. There were decorations on each lamp post and each of the trees in the town square had lights wrapped around them. The gazebo was fully decked out in blue and white lights, and Santa’s sleigh sat at the base of the trees.

She knew that during the main holiday event that was coming up, the jolly man would be sitting front and center with his Mrs. and all the elves. There were rumors that a few live reindeer would be in attendance as well.

Charlotte was looking forward to it.

Joe took her other hand as they strolled down the pathway. “We’ll get through this,” he said quietly, voice low enough that only she could hear. “And we’ll keep it from her.” He motioned to her daughter, who was chasing Olaf through the snow.

“I know,” she whispered back, leaning slightly into him as they walked toward the town’s center. The chaos of the day faded a little, at least for a while, as they strolled under the quiet glow of Christmas lights.

When the sun started to dip behind the snowy rooftops, the three of them walked hand in hand through the town square, waiting for Aiden’s call that everything was clear for them to return home. Strings of Christmas lights twinkled above them, draped between lampposts and trees. The air smelled of cocoa, cinnamon, and gingerbread as holiday music drifted from the speakers.

Charlotte squealed and ran ahead of them, spinning under the lights while Olaf barked excitedly.

Joe’s gloved hand brushed Ally’s. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah,” she said softly. “I’m just now sure how I’m going to be able to sleep there, knowing…”

He stopped and pulled her into his arms. “There was nothing we could do last night to stop it.”

“I know,” she agreed. “Who killed him? Why?” She shook her head.

“I’ll figure that out.” He took her hand and continued walking. “I promise.” He pulled her close and kissed her under the lights. At that moment, she could almost believe in anything.

Then, a dark figured stepped out from behind a tree and yelled, “Get away from my wife!”