A Unity Falls Holiday Story
It’s the insider tradition nobody talks about. But every resident of Unity Falls knows it’s coming.
The lights go down. The lines are drawn.
For one night, everyone has to choose a side.
Welcome to the coziest sabotage of the year!
Previously in Decoration Games:
Ben learns Riley’s sitting out and while he’s sent on a mission with her friends.
Chapter 7
Once again, Ben found himself following other people’s footsteps through deep snow on a dark night. This sky had crystallized with the cold and the stars were easily seen. If Ben was with Riley, they could have stopped to admire it. Instead, he was trudging along.
At least he knew where he was going this time. They were headed towards the Whitcomb’s house to do a “little light sabotage.” The home of Riley’s ex-fiancé and where his parents still lived. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He was still salty about being manipulated into the role of Alvin’s best man. He was still angry about how Alvin had treated Riley. At the same time, he was grateful. If Alvin hadn’t been such a colossal ass, Ben might have pined for Riley forever. The idea of a little light sabotage felt… vindicating. And extremely petty— which didn’t feel great.
His orders? To do whatever Dani and Kei told him, which didn’t sit particularly well. Maybe he was just going to be an extra set of hands.
Just as they approached the hedges that marked the back alley to the Whitcombs’ house, two figures moved out in front of them.
Nobody said anything creating a weird type of standoff where the loser spoke first. He wasn’t particularly worried for his safety. Both figures were short and slight even though they wore puffy jackets.
“Hey, Ms. Nakamura,” one of the voices said.
“Hey, Dani,” said the other.
“Hey,” Dani responded.
And another awkward silence fell over the group with that gold-star conversation. Then the two focused their attention on him. He couldn’t really see their faces. The little bit the night’s illumination provided was behind them.
Kei’s students, Ben decided. It wasn’t just that they called Kei Mrs. Nakamura, they sounded young.
“Marley. Katie, what are you two doing out here?” Kei asked.
Ben had to do a double take. Riley had mentioned Kei’s teacher voice before, but he’d never heard it. Her voice was stern but not accusatory. It did firmly establish her as in charge.
The taller girl, Ben didn’t know if it was Marley or Katie, said, “We could ask you the same question. What are you doing out here? And with Riley’s boyfriend, no less.”
Ben felt two things at once. The first, he was highly offended at the implication in the young girl’s voice. And second, he had some admiration for the girl not being cowed by an authority figure.
Dani just laughed and said in a whispered falsetto, “Someone grew a shiny steel backbone!”
“You still didn’t answer my question,” Kei said. Her voice still held that neutral authoritative voice, though she shot a dirty look at Dani.
“Auntie Jean,” the shorter girl said. “She insisted that Katie and I weren’t busy enough, so she sent us outside to look for anything suspicious.”
“Yeah?” asked Dani. “See anything suspicious?
The girls stepped closer, out of the shadows of the bush and just enough into the dim moonlight that Ben could see their skeptical faces flicking over the three of them.
Dani laughed again. “Okay, let’s cut to the chase. You two are obviously old enough to be in the Decoration Games—.”
The girls laughed cutting Dani off. The taller girl, Katie, said, “We’ve known about it for ages. Everybody knows.”
“Like since elementary school,” Marley added.
Kei and Dani exchanged surprised looks. Things had changed since they were kids, Ben guessed.
“Where’s Riley?” asked Katie.
“What do you mean?” asked Ben.
Katie grinned and pointed at Kei and Dani. “The four of them are thick as thieves. Everyone knows that. And Harri always keeps the book shop open.”
Marley gave more context. “Auntie Jean, Mrs. Whitcomb and mum were having coffee at my house, and Mrs. Whitcomb was quite bitter. She went on and on about how Riley was a traitor and had changed sides.”
Katie nodded seriously. “I’m not going to say that she didn’t say bad words, but I’m not, not saying that either.”
Ben stared at them, trying to puzzle out that phrase. Evidently, it made sense.
Dani snorted. “Yeah, okay. Always with the drama, those three.”
“But that doesn’t really answer why you’re out here,” Kei said. “I hope I don’t have to ask you a third time.” The warning was clear this time.
The girls, very politically astute, said nothing.
Until Katie admitted, “They’re paying us.”
“We had dates planned and weren’t going to cancel,” Marley added.
“Really?” Ben asked. “You’re allowed to pay people to be on your side?”
He turned to Dani. “Really?”
Dani gave a what-can-you-do shrug. “There’s never been a rule about it either way.”
“So, if it’s not written on that piece of paper pinned on the wall at Soapy’s it’s all fair?” Ben asked sarcastically. She simply smiled and patted him on the shoulder. “See? You’re getting it.”
Want to see how Riley and Ben got together?
Their story begins in Riley and the Love Jinx → link
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About the author:
Cleo Croft writes sweet contemporary romance set in the fictional town of Unity Falls. → About Cleo