Our First Christmas Read Online Free PDF

cup. With a splash of milk, the fresh coffee tasted good and revived many of her lagging senses. Foolish to drink the brew so late at night, but she knew herself well enough to know she’d work until dawn and then, with no school tomorrow, fall into bed to sleep the day away.
    Her phone buzzed again.
    She picked it up and read: Sacrifices will be made.
    More annoyed than worried, she imagined a drunk in a bar texting a girlfriend or someone’s ex too hammered to make sure the call was sent to the right person.
    As she set the phone aside and settled back in her chair to review the notes she’d written, there was a loud bang on her front door. She jumped, sloshing her coffee. Hissing as the brew scorched her hand, she rose and backed away from the door until she bumped into her kitchen counter.
    The pounding grew louder, and when the handle of her front door rattled as if someone was trying to tear the doorknob out of its setting, she realized the text was no mistake or joke.
    Her phone buzzed a third time and she glanced at the word, Sacrifice.
    Someone was sending her a message. A warning. A threat. She looked toward the scattered, coffee-stained pages on her table and at the door. The rattling and pounding stopped, and a shadowed figure passed in front of her thick sheer-covered front window.
    Her hands trembled as she drew in a breath and catalogued the names of the people she could call. The cops made sense, of course, but that would put her in the position of explaining the documents, and Lucas had asked her to keep the work she was doing for him a secret.
    There was Bradley, but she imagined him nestled next to Jennifer, waking to take the call. He would come, but there’d be some price, no doubt, to her pride. Her father would lecture and demand she stay at his house for the holidays.
    The door handle rattled again, not with the urgency of a madman but of someone trying to calculate its strength. Whoever was out there was stalking, searching for a chance to strike.
    She scrolled through her list of contacts and settled on one. Embarrassment fluttered for just a brief moment and then she dialed.

Chapter 4
    Saturday, December 20, 3:00 A.M.
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    Lucas parked in front of the Hyde Park house within a half hour of receiving Marisa’s call. Lights in all the rooms burned bright and set the house apart on the darkened, quiet street. Out of his SUV, he put on his hat. Hand on his gun, he surveyed the porch that stretched across the front of the house, the tall windows, and the brick façade. It was a fine house, no doubt expensive, but it was in need of work.
    He saw no signs of a threat, but still kept his hand on his gun as he moved to the front steps and knocked. He could easily imagine Marisa meaning to tend to the house just as she’d meant to buy those presents before it was almost too late. Cracked brick and peeling shutters weren’t enough to pull her from work.
    Footsteps inside the house ran to the front door and hesitated. “Marisa, it’s Lucas Cooper.”
    The rattle of chains scraped against locks and the door opened. Light from the interior shined behind Marisa, casting a glow on the long black hair hanging loose around her shoulders. Her skin was pale in the light, and the spark of annoyance had vanished, making her look a bit fragile. “You had some trouble.”
    She pushed open the screened door, which squeaked and groaned. “I’m feeling just a little foolish right about now. It’s been quiet since I called you. Not a rattle or a text.”
    He stepped inside the foyer, removing his hat as he surveyed the living room. As worn and neglected as the exterior, it was furnished with just a few brand-new outdoor chairs and a table that looked more suited for a picnic. One chair still had the red clearance tag dangling from an arm. He guessed she’d sold her furniture before her Mexico trip, likely still angry over Bradley’s affair, and believing