A Krampus Country Christmas: Day 18

 

Chapter 18: The Storm Breaks

(Restricted Log — Krampus, Vice Director of Naughty List Enforcement, Northern Hemisphere Division)

There are certain lines a demon is never supposed to cross.

You don’t show weakness.

You don’t question orders.

And you absolutely, under no circumstances, allow mortals to see your true form.

Tonight, I broke all three.

I barely remember leaving the town square.

One moment I was standing in the lantern glow, trying to keep myself contained — trying to keep them contained. And the next, I was swallowed by the forest, stumbling through the trees like a creature hunted by its own shadow. The minions were closing in. Krampusnacht was calling. And I was losing control of everything that made me look human.

My claws itched beneath the gloves. My horns pressed hard against the glamour that hid them. My spine burned with the weight of what I am.

I made it to the Winters’ farm, just barely. The house lights glowed warm through the snow like a sanctuary I had no right to enter. But I needed to see them before the change took hold.

I slipped inside through the back door — silent, unnatural, uninvited. The kitchen was faintly lit, the smell of vanilla and pine lingering in the air. I stood there gripping the counter, breathing in the warmth of a home that should not feel comforting to me.

My reflection in the window wavered between human and something else. Tall. Long-limbed. Horns beginning to show through. Eyes the color of dying coals.

I hated it. For the first time in centuries, I hated what I looked like. Holly deserved better than a creature who dragged children into the dark. Max deserved better than the one with his name on a cursed list.

And yet, I was here.

Because I could not stay away.

I heard the front door open — hurried footsteps, frightened whispers. Then Holly’s voice, sharp with fear:

 “Nick?”

I closed my eyes.

“This is a mistake,” I whispered to myself. “Walk away.”

But I didn’t. I turned toward her. She froze.

Max pressed against her side, eyes wide but not screaming. Just staring at me with the same look he had the night he dreamed of the red forest.

“Nick…?” Holly whispered, her voice cracking on the single syllable.

I stepped into the lantern light. No glamour. No disguise. No carefully curated human face. Just me.

Krampus.

Ancient.

Horns curved back from my temples. Fur creeping along my jaw. Tall enough to touch the rafters. Chains coiled at my waist, softly clinking in a rhythm older than Christmas itself.

Her breath hitched. Max didn’t move. I wanted to apologize. Explain. Reassure. But my throat worked around nothing. I felt ashamed. Finally, I managed a whisper.

“Miss Winters… Holly… I’m sorry.”

She stared, trembling. “Nick… what are you?”

I took a step back, afraid of frightening her further. “A servant of December. An enforcer. A monster of tradition.”

Max swallowed hard. “Are you here to take me?”

The question struck like a blow.

I dropped to my knees — claws digging into the wood floor. “No. Not anymore.”

Holly blinked, still pale. “What does that mean?”

“It means,” I said, voice shaking, “that I am failing my assignment. That every instinct I have tells me to complete the task and yet every part of me that has touched your home, your kindness, your son…” I exhaled, shaking. “…refuses to harm you.”

Silence.

Holly stared. Max stared. The storm outside pounded against the walls like a warning.

“I should leave,” I said. “Before the night forces my hand.”

But Holly took one step forward. And then another.

“Nick,” she whispered, “look at me.”

I did.

Her eyes weren’t filled with terror. They were full of something worse — compassion.

“You should have told me,” she said softly.

“I wanted to,” I breathed. “But wanting is dangerous for my kind.”

Max stepped out from behind her, small and brave. “You’re not going to take me.”

“No,” I said, chest tight.

“You’re not going to hurt Mom.”

“Never.”

He swallowed. “Then we can figure this out.”

Children should not have to comfort monsters.

A long, low, hungry howl cut through the storm outside. I stiffened.

Holly flinched. “What was that?”

“My minions,” I said grimly. “And the night itself. They know I’m hesitating. They know you… matter.”

She reached toward me, then paused just inches from my cheek, fingers trembling. “Nick, are we in danger?”

I closed my eyes. When I spoke, my voice was little more than a growl.

“Yes.”

And the storm outside broke in earnest, rattling the farmhouse with the promise of what was coming.

Krampusnacht had begun.

My new comedic sci-fi novel, Someone Else's Book Club, is available on my website or through Amazon!