Black Christmas

Chapter 18

The sleigh touches down in Paris, and the elves quickly find their home to camp out at. They look in and see a situation similar to the one in Khatanga. Three bedrooms. A son, a daughter, parents. It's a family.

Greg shifts into high gear now. He doesn't know exactly how to stop Santa, but he knows that their plan last time did not work. He's thought about what went wrong and decides he needs some elves outside. "Alan, Drew, Gavin, Eric. You guys are all going to stay out here. You'll be at the windows of the family room, rifles ready. Do not let Santa see you when he lands, and fire when you get a clean shot. I want the fucker down as soon as possible."

The four elves nod. They don't plan on disobeying any orders Greg gives them.

"James, that darkness last time was unbearable. We couldn't do a damn thing. You're going to be in there with me, and we'll both have these." Greg hands James one of the two flashlights he holds in his hands. He knows that this time, they'll need to be put to use.

James nods as well. He understands that this situation is the most important of his life and plans to follow Greg's orders as he tucks the flashlight in his pocket next to his knife.

"Jerry, covertness is key for you. You'll be on the roof."

Gavin blurts out what the others are thinking. "That's suicide. He'll be dead moments after Santa lands."

The others agree.

"It's a necessary risk. Jerry, you've got to remain unseen. Hide under the snow, it's really the only way. You'll know when Santa lands."

Jerry doesn't want to question Greg's authority but does anyway. "And why exactly am I up there?"

"Because once Santa goes in, he's not coming out that chimney. We have to trap him. That way, even if everything else goes wrong, James and I will have our battle."

Jerry understands. He's going to be scared shitless up on that roof, but it must be done. He thinks about his family back home and how badly he wishes to protect them. He'll do anything to keep them safe, and stopping Santa is still the best way to do that. "Fair enough, Greg. I'll do it."

Greg is relieved to hear that everyone is on board. He doesn't know how effective his plan will be, but in the amount of time he had, it's the best he could come up with. And with everyone pledging to follow, its chance of failure is decreased.

The elves have about twenty minutes until Santa should arrive for his next set of killings. Before assuming their positions, they wait.