Crimson Christmas by Rain Oxford Read Free Book Online Page A

fight
back, but I didn’t know they were all so powerful.”
    Ron took Devon’s hand, startling the wizard. A second
later, Ron let go. “You have a lot of power,” he said.
    Just to be sure, Mordon inhaled deeply. Once again,
he got a clear scent of the man. Devon was powerful, but he was also
self-destructive in how he took his responsibility to heart. There was shame in
him and he held a grudge. There was another, lighter level to him, but it was
tentative, as if he was still learning to let go of things.
    He was very different from Dylan, who was extremely
laid back until someone needed his help. Dylan and Devon were both natural-born
heroes, but Dylan would rather come up with a plan to solve everyone’s problems
and Devon wanted the bad guys defeated. That wasn’t to say Devon was violent;
he could be violent, but he generally preferred to be peaceful.
    Rojan growled in Mordon’s mind.
    What’s wrong ?
    He is reading you as you are him , the dragon
said.
    “Now isn’t the time for this,” Mordon said aloud.
“We’ll split up and question everyone. Devon, you go to the station and wait
for people to come to you.”
    “Why?”
    “For one thing, you’re obviously injured.” Even
though I can’t smell it. That was weird . His dragon senses should have been
able to detect an injury or illness.
    “I’m perfectly fine.”
    “For another, you just sent our sheriff home to wait
for information.”
    “Right. I’ll go to the station then.”

Chapter 4
    Devon was halfway to the
station when his instincts made him stop and head in the opposite direction.
Then, after a few minutes, the intuition faded away. He looked around for a
moment. The town was empty as everyone hid at home, except for one young couple
who stepped out of a toy shop. Why is the toy shop open when there are kids
missing ?
    Devon crossed the street and entered the small shop.
A bell tolled above the door. Devon looked around. Something bugged him about
the cramped space, and it wasn’t claustrophobia.
    Then again… Devon thought as he came face to
face with the creepiest doll he had ever seen. It was one of those tall,
one-of-a-kind types. Its hair was far too yellow and its face was too
colorfully painted. It was propped on a tall stool that put it at eye level
with Devon, which was probably so little kids couldn’t get it down and break
it. What kid would want that ?
    An old man ambled out of the back. He was a decent
looking person, but Devon figured the man probably wasn’t aware of what was
really going on in town. “How can I help you?” the man asked.
    “Some Christmas presents went missing from houses
around here. Have you had any complaints?”
    “Like electronics and stuff?”
    “No. Presents like dolls, toy monkeys, and robots.”
    “Goodness! Who would steal from children?” the man
leaned against the counter. “I haven’t heard anything about these toys being
stolen, but you should talk to my brother. He owns this place; I’m just manning
it when he runs out for errands. Sylvester should be back in a few minutes if
you want to wait.”
    “Yes, I think I should. I’ll just glance around if
you don’t mind.”
    “Don’t mind at all! All of our toys are handmade and
come with gift boxes.” Devon stared at the doll again. “Isn’t that one a
beauty? Too bad not enough children know how to take care of dolls like this.
It was returned this morning.”
    “Returned?”
    “Yes. We have a very strict return policy; if you
don’t love it, bring it back. We aren’t satisfied until the child is happy.”
    Devon realized what bugged him so much about the shop
being so full. It was days from Christmas and while many of the toys were
creepy, they were very high quality. “I guess it’s been a slow year for sales?”
    “Not at all!”
    “How many did you have to begin with, then, if you
sold so many and you still have enough to stuff your shop full?” It shouldn’t
have been so full.
    “Oh, Sylvester does most