Page 66 of Mistletoe

“Felix, please,” Emma pleaded.

So, this was the brother, Felix.

The man stared at the monster. The monster stared right back.

Hal heard two sets of footsteps on the porch—Agatha and Oscar. Now, the entire family was present to witness his shame. “Felix, you’re home!”

Everyone spoke at once, talking over one another, making demands and threats.

“Felix, put the pistol away! Are you trying to shoot your sister?” Agatha scolded.

“What’s the monster planning with that goat?” Felix demanded, waving the pistol.

Hal set Buttercup down. The goat trotted away, unscathed and unbothered.

“A monster? Who’s a monster?” Oscar asked.

“The orc!” Felix answered.

“Hal isn’t entirely human,” Emma said, her tone calm and even.

Hal wanted to turn around to see Oscar’s reaction. He thought the older man was his friend, but the silence was damning.

“This whole time?” Oscar finally asked.

The betrayal in his voice made Hal turn around.

The man clutched his wife’s arm. His sightless eyes swung from left to right in search of the offending orc.

“Yes,” Hal said.

Oscar’s head snapped in Hal’s direction. “How dare you come to my home!”

With a raised hand, he marched in Hal’s direction. Agatha clutched his arm, hauling him back.

“Let’s discuss this inside,” Emma said, her hands held out like she was trying to calm a nervous animal.

“That thing will not set foot in my house,” Oscar snapped.

“I will leave. I will not stay where I am not welcomed,” Hal said.

Emma’s shoulders slumped in exhaustion and she sighed. “Everyone?—”

The De Lacey family spoke at once, each attempting to drown the other out.

“Everyone, will you hush?!” she shouted.

No one paid her the least bit of attention.

Hal clapped his hands and shouted. Only then did the De Laceys cease their chattering.

“Inside the house—now,” Emma ordered. She turned to Hal and said in the same commanding tone, “Wait for me in the bunkhouse. You need to have your arm looked at.”

“It’s fine. I’ve had worse.”

Her expression softened. “I’ll be out as soon as I can. I don’t imagine Pa’s in the mood for conversation.”

Oscar and Felix filed into the house. Agatha hung back until the door closed. “Actually,” she said, “go around back to the kitchen. That arm needs seeing to sooner rather than later.”

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