Christmas with Nick Klaas

Part 25: Sound the Alarm

"And now you don't know where this person is?" Ronja asked, tapping her fingers on the desk in front of her as if Noelle's exposition was boring her to the point of irritation, but humoring her was a necessary evil.

"I don't. And I get that to you losing track of Santa Claus is a huge deal and would take precedence, but I'd appreciate it if you'd also pretend to care about finding my friend, especially when the two might be connected," she said.

Nick furrowed his brows. "Connected? Why would you think that?"

In spite of being completely on edge, Noelle almost laughed at the absurdity of his question. She'd thought he was smart enough to figure it out, but it looked like she overestimated Nick Klaas.

"Well, your kooky-ass frost fairy was helping your even weirder goat-man cousin screw up Christmas, and seeing how said cousin was also hanging out with Avery for most of the last three days and now she disappeared while Christmas might actually be screwed up, I'd wager there could be a connection," she said, releasing all the pent-up sarcasm she'd been holding in.

The room went completely quiet. Even Otso, who'd been trying to nip at Cat Damon's tail as Noelle cradled him, stopped his mischief and sat still at her feet with his ears perked.

"What?" Noelle asked when she still hadn't gotten a response to her diatribe.

"Your friend has been associating with Piet Mustapukki?" Nick asked in astonishment.

Noelle grimaced. "Well, yeah. You've seen them together. I mean, I kind of had a bad feeling about him from the start, but since you—"

Nick stepped closer and grabbed her upper arm before she could finish. "You've also spoken with Piet personally?" he bellowed the question.

Backing away, Noelle shook off his hold. "You know that I have. Nick, you've seen us all together. Piet was in your reindeer stables the other day, for goodness sakes," she said as fear gradually bubbled up inside her. It was the same fear she saw reflected on Nick's face as he processed each new word she spoke. And because this information appeared to be completely new to him, it could only mean one thing.

"You were right, Noelle," Nick admitted as he shook his head in disbelief while raking his fingers through his hair. "The Black Buck shouldn't have been able to enter city limits and even if he had, none of us should have stood for it. The only reason he succeeded is because everything is interconnected. And your friend Avery is the key."

Noelle never wanted to be wrong as much as she wanted to be right now. "How?" she squeaked out the question, remembering Avery's inexplicably black-colored lock of hair and sudden illness while already fearing the answer.

Nick sighed. "Enchantment? Curse? Spell? Whatever you call it, Piet is using the girl as a conduit for his depraved magic against my father, against me, and actually, against all of us," he said. "We've obviously been blind to his presence ever since you arrived."

Momentarily shocked into speechlessness at the revelation, Noelle was beaten to the punch by Ronja. "So what now?" asked the woman from behind Nick. "If the girl is the key, then I'm assuming we'll need to find her, break the spell, and drive Piet out of Keskitalvi before Sinter Klaas can resume his journey. How do you suggest we go about this?"

For the first time since the alarms sounded, Nick smiled. "I have thirteen little friends who just might be able to help."

He had a plan. Just a smidge under her clavicle, Noelle felt a spark of hope. It warmed her up from the inside, radiating through her torso and spreading out to her limbs until she also managed a weak smile.

The act disappeared as soon as a man in a thick, furry coat burst through a side door. "Mr. Klaas, sir. I think you'd better come look at this," he said between ragged breaths, the look of pure terror on his face unmistakable.