The sidewalk that Napoleon and Illya were walking down was a mess. Napoleon called it slushy, Illya called it something far less polite. Still, there was no getting around being where they were - one of their agents had disappeared and this block had been the last place he'd reported in from.
After a short debate, it was agreed that each of them would cover one side of the road, then swap in case one of them spotted something the other missed. They had both done their own side, swapped and now Illya was halfway down the block when he spotted something near the mailbox - an edge of an envelope that was otherwise covered.
Carefully, Illya eased the envelope out of the mess so as not to tear it. The ink on the envelope had run slightly but was still legible - it was addressed to Santa Claus.
A slight smile formed on Illya's face just before his eyes narrowed as he glanced as the return address. Virginia Wallace. The missing agent was also named Wallace. A letter found on the same block with the same last name? True, Wallace wasn't an uncommon name, but it still seemed a bit much to be a coincidence.
Seeing that his partner had found something, Napoleon re-crossed the street and joined him. Illya covered who the letter was addressed to with his hand as he pointed out the last name on the return address. Napoleon agreed that the name should at least be investigated after they took some time to defrost. They made their way to Napoleon's apartment where Illya took his time and slowly separated the envelope from the letter inside, spreading both out to dry as Napoleon made coffee for himself and started hot water for Illya's tea.
Part of the return address was smeared beyond reading, but between what remained and where it had been found, they were relatively sure that they had a good guess as to what it was. As Napoleon moved to the phone to make a few calls, Illya found himself drawn to the letter. Written in red crayon, the lettering on it hadn't run as the ink on the envelope had.
~Dear Santa.
My teacher, Miss Linda says that as a big girl of seven that I am too old to be writing to you, but Mommy said it was okay and Daddy helped me write this.
I would like for you to bring a stuffed dog for my baby brother. Please make it very soft because Billy still likes to throw things - please don't put him on the naughty list for that because Daddy says he's too little to know that he might hurt someone yet.
I know that Misses Claus must be very busy cooking for all of your elves, but do you think she could send us a few of your leftovers so that Mommy could have a day off? She works very hard and I think that would be a nice gift for her.
I asked Daddy what he would like but he says it's something your elves can't make.
For myself, I'd really like a pretty, new dress. If you have an extra doll in the workshop, I wouldn't mind that either. Mommy and Daddy both told me that while I did have to stand in the corner a few times that overall, I've been a good girl.
Mommy and I are making cookies and we will have a plate of them by the tree for you.
Virginia Wallace ~
Carefully tucking the letter away, Illya moved to join Napoleon. When Napoleon turned towards him, his expression was grim.
"Sounds bad for Wallace, partner. Mister Waverly said that Allen reported he had been watching Wallace and suspected he was in financial trouble. He might have turned for the money."
When Illya's eyes went hard and cold as he shook his head, Napoleon frowned.
"Okay, you seem to know something that I don't, chum. Spill it."
"Agent Wallace might be in trouble with Mister Waverly, but not for defection."
"You've lost me."
Illya left the letter safe in his pocket, but pulled out the envelope, this time pointing out who it had been addressed to.
"I do not believe that a man who went willingly would have dropped his daughter's letter to Santa in the snow in the process."
Napoleon reached out for the envelope, raising a brow as he noted the envelope was now empty, but then slowly nodding.
"I agree - both with your conclusion and the fact he's going to need to have a few words with Mister Waverly. So if we work this backwards with the assumption of Wallace's innocence, things take on an entirely different view, don't they?"
"They do indeed. Might I suggest we have a few words with Agent Allen?"
"I was about to suggest that myself, chum."
Back at Headquarters, Napoleon made the call that they would seek out Allen before filling Mister Waverly in on the situation. Neither agent was amused when they came upon Allen in Wallace's office, rummaging through his desk. Finding himself under Napoleon's critical gaze and the barrel of Illya's gun, Allen began to ramble off excuses - some of which might have sounded reasonable if it wasn't so obvious that he was grasping at straws. The one that sealed his fate was when he said that Mister Waverly had requested that he go through Wallace's desk.
Napoleon's smile was a thin one as he reached for the desk phone.
"That's quick enough to verify."
Panic about Napoleon calling Mister Waverly seemed to make Allen forget momentarily about Illya's presence. He seemed shocked when the dart hit him the second he lunged for Napoleon.
Summoning Section V to take Allen and lock him in a secured area, Napoleon motioned for Illya to follow him. Together, they searched Allen's desk and found a number of files among his regular work that he had no business having as they had nothing to do with his assignments. Files in hand, they headed to Mister Waverly's office.
Mister Waverly didn't seem at all surprised at their findings.
"I have known Agent Wallace to be a man of good morals, so it would have been more of a surprise to me if he had been involved willingly. I didn't mention it as I wanted you to investigate without my opinions coloring your view. You seemed to determine his innocence quickly. Might I ask how?"
Illya was reluctant to out Wallace as having a family, but he wasn't going to lie to Mister Waverly. Pulling out the envelope, Illya handed it to him.
"Agent Wallace was apparently in the process of mailing the letter to Santa from his daughter when he was taken. We surmised that had he gone willingly, he would have finished mailing the letter first."
To their surprise, a faint smile formed on Waverly's face.
"It is always the little details that shine the light on cases, isn't it, gentlemen? Now, please devote your efforts to finding and liberating Agent Wallace so that he is reunited with his family by Christmas."
Napoleon was the one to broach the subject.
"You already knew that he was married, sir?"
Raising a bushy eyebrow, Waverly waved the pipe in his hand dismissively.
"He is neither married nor actually a father in the technical sense. The mother of the children, Joan Wallace, is his sister-in-law. His brother tragically died in a plane crash shortly after Misses Wallace became pregnant with their young son. Agent Wallace took over responsibility for taking care of them all and is consequently the only father figure either child remembers. I was informed of all this after his brother's death and had the three of them noted as his dependents in his file. Now, gentlemen - you have a deadline."
Once he awoke and was presented with the evidence found in his desk, Allen became the model of cooperation though Illya later noted that the man was meowing up the wrong tree. Napoleon didn't bother to correct him as they headed for the address Allen said Wallace was being held at, taking April and Mark along as backup. Allen hadn't been able to send warning, so the THRUSH agents interrogating Wallace weren't expecting anyone to be searching for him. Four UNCLE agents versus three THRUSH agents meant that they quickly had the location secured and Wallace on his way to Medical.
The THRUSH interrogators had not been gentle and it was doubtful for several days whether or not Wallace would be able to be released in time for Christmas, but his infections were brought under control and enough progress made that the doctors felt comfortable with releasing him on Christmas Eve. Napoleon knew his partner was up to something and made no objection to being volunteered to help Wallace get home.
Formality was laid to the side as Wallace requested that Napoleon call him Sam during the drive. When they arrived at the door, Joan Wallace was in tears as Virginia and her little brother both squealed out 'Daddy!'. Only Napoleon's support kept the children's gleeful assault from toppling him to the floor.
Things had just started to settle when there was a knock at the door. Not expecting anyone, Joan cautiously looked out and, at her puzzled expression, Napoleon rose and took a look himself before smiling and opening the door. Illya, Mark and April were there with a loaded children's wagon, but it was how they were dressed that had Napoleon barely containing his laughter. April and Mark were dressed as over-sized elves and Illya, though still basically dressed as he usually dressed, had substituted a pale blue turtleneck for the standard black one. Subtly giving Napoleon and Wallace a shake of his head, Illya smiled and looked around the room.
"Is there a Miss Virginia Wallace here?"
The young girl with her mop of brunette curls and emerald green eyes popped up, staring with her mouth slightly open as Illya produced what she recognized as her letter to Santa.
"Ah, there you are. Santa sends you wishes for a very merry Christmas. Since you had some very specific requests, he asked that the three of us see to them."
Behind Illya, Mark and April were opening boxes and a very good, savory smell filled the air. An order from a catering establishment had been the last stop before arriving, so the ham, turkey, potatoes, gravy and other sides were still steaming hot. Not questioning what was happening after a nod from Sam, Joan hurried to fetch platters for the meats to rest on.
Once the last of the food, including a pie and a cake were on the table, Illya asked Virginia to inspect it before they moved on.
"Misses Claus hopes this will do for the request you made for your mother."
Virginia clapped her hands in approval and Joan, realizing what her daughter had asked for, swept her daughter up in a hug. Illya waited until they separated before asking Virginia to come back over.
"Santa told the elves to test this one very carefully, but he wanted you to have the final approval if it is as soft as you wished."
Mark pulled out a stuffed bright red dog softer than a pillow. Virginia gave it a tight squeeze and then beamed before presenting it to her excited brother.
"It's perfect! Thank you!"
Virginia's eyes strayed to the remaining boxes. April smiled and reached inside, pulling out a lovely doll dressed in a very festive looking dress before pulling out a matching dress in Virginia's size. A second box proved to have another set of matching outfits. Hugging the doll tightly, Virginia looked around to see Sam smiling at the sight of her joy. She turned immediately back to Illya.
"Did Santa send something for Daddy?"
Sam answered before Illya could say a word.
"Santa's already given me what I wanted most, baby. He sent people to help me make it home for Christmas."
Both Joan and Sam invited the four to stay and eat with them, but they begged off to allow the family to spend Christmas together. Virginia gave each of the three 'elves' a hug and insisted that each of them take one of the cookies for Santa before they left. Once they were gone, she picked her doll back up. Settling contentedly at Sam's side, Virginia looked up at him.
"I guess I can tell Miss Linda that she's all wrong about Santa when I go back to school."
Leaning down to kiss the top of her head, Sam agreed. He had come so close to losing absolutely everything and a simple letter to Santa had, in the end, been what saved him.
"Yes, Virginia - you can tell Miss Linda that Santa and the spirit of Christmas are very real. And if she has any questions about that, you tell her to talk to me about it."