Disclaimer: In part 1

AN: Trust me, there is method to my madness. Also, the next chapter will be a more respectable length. It wouldn't have flowed properly if I'd attached it to this one. Happy reading.

November 27, 2010

Toronto, Ontario

Brian Connelly, aka Santa Claus at Fairview Mall, was exhausted. His thighs actually ached as he stood up. The mall administration had gone all out for him this year and gotten him an ergonomic support for his chair and everything, but they couldn't control the exuberance with which some children bounced on his lap, or the size of some of his visitors. When did six-month olds start weighing thirty pounds!

Exiting through the loading dock of the mall, he slipped off his hat to replace it with his toque. It wouldn't do for Santa to get a cold during his busiest time of the year, now, would it, he thought, as he folded the red hat and tucked it into his jacket. Keys in hand, he pushed against the door and felt the first blast of cold air slap at his exposed neck. He was thinking he'd need to remember his scarf tomorrow, just as a flash caught his attention.

Before Brian could register danger, an arrow had pierced his chest. He grunted, then gurgled, in the space of two heartbeats; his last. His body slumped to the ground, trapped half in and half out of the mall.

TBC…