#Naughty or # Nice (The Holidaze Book 1)

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Meri groaned when the inevitable knock came upon her hotel room door. She didn't want to see anyone, let alone speak to anyone. Why couldn't the inhabitants of Santa's Village just leave her alone?

"Meri, dear, are you there?"

Martha Claus was the one who stood outside of her door and that left Meri in a conundrum. If it had been Sander, she could've and and would've ignored him. Instead, it was sweet Martha who'd made her a coat, gloves and beanie. Martha hadn't wronged Meri in any way, not like her son.

With a sigh, Meri stepped away from the window where she had stood since she left Sander. Right now, all she wanted was to leave and return home. If Sander thought she had betrayed him then there was no reason for her to stay here.

Upon opening the door, Martha greeted her with a cheery, supportive smile. Meri, who hadn't even bothered to remove her sparkly dress/overalls, couldn't muster any cheer.

"My son acted like a buffoon to you, and I am sorry," Martha said as she held her arms open for a hug.

Meri didn't move, even though she craved the hug and appreciated the sentiment, "why would he think that I would steal anything from Santa's Village?" Meri asked as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"I'm not here to defend his ridiculous actions. I thought you might like a bit of background knowledge on my boy. It might help explain the way he acted tonight. May I come in?" Martha gestured into the room.

"Oh, yes, of course."

Meri stepped out of the doorway to allow the older woman entry. She closed the door and returned to where she had stood next to the window staring out at the gently falling snow.

"Has Sander mentioned anything about us finding him as a child?" Martha asked once she had sat down upon the couch near to where Meri stood.

"He said you found him surviving in the wilderness."

"It goes a little further than that and he doesn't like discussing it anymore. The problem is that it's engrained within him. No matter how much he tries he cannot escape its burden."

"What do you mean?" Meri asked with a frown.

"When we found him, we thought the boy was just aimlessly wandering, until we realised that his actions were all about hunting. Every day his family shoved him out the door to hunt for the town."

"What? He was a kid," Meri sounded aghast.

"His family were hoping he'd lose his direction back to the town, or that a wild animal might attack him. They wanted it badly. Every day when he returned was a day his family grew more discontent.

"You see, he was born on the time of a full moon and in his culture that was a big taboo. It was said that one born under a full moon was an evil doer and bad for everyone. From birth everyone tagged him as evil and he lived with that burden until we found him.

"We stayed in that town for a while trying to understand their beliefs. When they started sharpening knives because Sander's ninth birthday was the following week, we took him. If the one born of the full moon lives then they do a sacrifice of the person on their ninth birthday. The moment we realised that, we left and took Sander with us.

"Even now I do believe that he retains thoughts of being this evil doer. With the introduction of both you and Ivy, it has brought back insecurities from his youth," Martha explained as Meri stood there stunned.

"What are you trying to say?" Meri asked.

"Do you believe people can change, Meri?"

"Yes. We all make mistakes but I think it's the way you make your way past the mistakes that matters. If we can't change ourselves then how can we expect others to change for us?"