{"id":253175,"date":"2026-07-13T02:38:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T23:38:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1kitap1.com\/en\/a-mysterious-christmas-collection-michele-pariza-wacek\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T02:38:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T23:38:09","slug":"a-mysterious-christmas-collection-michele-pariza-wacek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1kitap1.com\/en\/a-mysterious-christmas-collection-michele-pariza-wacek\/","title":{"rendered":"A Mysterious Christmas Collection – Michele Pariza Wacek"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I had a sister. But Daphne is an only child.\u201d I put the dish down and reached over to give Claire a clumsy hug. \u201cWe\u2019ll figure it out,\u201d I said. \u201cYou\u2019re not alone. And Daphne isn\u2019t alone. I promise.\u201d Claire nodded a little. \u201cI just \u2026 I get so scared, Charlie. And when I get scared, I don\u2019t want to see anyone.<\/p>\n

I just want to crawl into a hole and disappear.\u201d \u201cI get it,\u201d I said. \u201cTruly I do. But I\u2019m not just any person, I\u2019m your friend, right?\u201d Claire smiled a tiny smile and nodded. \u201cYou are.\u201d I gave her one last squeeze, then reached for the next wet dish to dry. \u201cTell you what. I\u2019ve got loads of cookies at my house, and you know how I love baking \u2026<\/p>\n

so why don\u2019t you come by next week and bring Daphne? We can overdose on sugar and get caught up. Okay?\u201d Claire laughed a little, sounding almost like her old self. \u201cThat\u2019s all I need \u2026 a hyped-up toddler on sugar.\u201d She raised her head and looked me in the eye, and in that moment, the years fell away, and she was the same Claire who had welcomed me to Redemption.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like that.\u201d *** \u201cCharlie, got a minute?\u201d Wyle stood by the kitchen door, his pose casual. At least, it looked like he was trying very hard to appear casual. Instantly, my senses went on high alert. Had something happened? Had Anastasia somehow disappeared? Claire nodded at me. \u201cGo on. I can finish up here.\u201d \u201cI\u2019ll see you next week?\u201d I asked. She grinned. \u201cAbsolutely. I need a Christmas cookie sugar rush.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you\u2019re coming to the right place,\u201d I said with a smile before hanging up the dish towel and following Wyle out of the kitchen. He led me through the house, toward the family room.<\/p>\n

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A Mysterious Christmas Collection Copyright \u00a9 2025 by Michele Pariza Wacek. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any manner or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording, retrieval system, without prior written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in a review.<\/p>\n

For more information, contact Michele Pariza Wacek, PO Box 10430 Prescott, AZ 86304. info@LoveBasedPublishing.com. ISBN 979-8-89351-033-1 books included in this compilation: Secret Santa Murder Copyright \u00a9 2025 by Michele Pariza Wacek ISBN 979-8-89351-035-5 The Mysterious Case of the Dead Elf Copyright \u00a9 2025 by Michele Pariza Wacek ISBN 979-8-89351-037-9 . . 1kitap1.com\/en For my family, for always believing in me. 1kitap1.com\/en Secret Santa Murder Chapter 1 \u201cCharlie, thank goodness you\u2019re here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pat immediately ushered me into her foyer, taking my coat off before she had even shut the front door. \u201cIt\u2019s already falling apart, and the party has barely even started.\u201d \u201cHow can a Secret Santa party fall apart?\u201d I asked, trying to juggle the three Tupperware containers full of homemade Christmas cookies and my wrapped Secret Santa present. The sounds of laughter and holiday music floated in from the back of the house, and I grimaced. I didn\u2019t like to be late, especially to one of Pat\u2019s parties, but at the last minute, I had decided to bake a batch of gingerbread cookies to go along with my famous Merry Christmas Butter Cookies and Pecan Fingers, and it took longer than I anticipated.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just friends and family members, right?\u201d Pat gave me a frazzled look. \u201cThat was before half the guest list bailed on me. Now, I have people here I barely know, and I\u2019m not sure I\u2019m going to be able to feed them. I already burned the baked brie.\u201d \u201cYou made baked brie?\u201d As far as I knew, Pat had never even attempted to bake before. She was more into eating food than in preparing it. Pat looked at me in exasperation. \u201cWhat part of \u2018burning\u2019 don\u2019t you understand? No, I didn\u2019t make baked brie!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s burnt! That\u2019s why I need your help!\u201d Pat was a good decade or so older than me, and the best way to describe her was round\u2014plump, with a round face, round black-rimmed glasses, and short, no-nonsense brown hair that was turning gray. She had been one of my first tea customers and had become a good friend. \u201cOf course. Whatever you need,\u201d I said as soothingly as possible while simultaneously wondering if there was time for me to run home to get some of my extra-strength calming tea.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.<\/em><\/p>\n

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