Cassandra O’Sullivan Sachar is a writer and associate English professor in Pennsylvania. A member of the Horror Writers Association, her horror writing has appeared in publications including The Horror Zine, The Stygian Lepus, Wyldblood Magazine, and Tales from the Moonlit Path. She holds a Doctorate of Education with a Literacy Specialization from the University of Delaware and an MFA in Creative Writing focusing on horror fiction from Wilkes University. Her novel, Darkness There but Something More (Wicked House Publishing), and her short story collection, Keeper of Corpses and Other Dark Tales (Velox Books), will be published in 2024. She has acted as the fiction editor at River & South Review and will soon take over as the creative prose editor of Pennsylvania English.
Read her work at https://cassandraosullivansachar.com/
CHRISTMAS KARMA
by
Cassandra O’Sullivan Sachar
Jade clutched Nikolaus’s hand tighter, embracing the scene before her: the enormous tree with sparkling fairy lights; the gleaming ice rink with its merry revelers; the postcard-perfect snowflakes fluttering to the ground; and the glamorous, backlit architecture conjuring forth the ghosts of Christmases past. Breathing in the rich, cinnamon aroma of her mulled wine—glühwein, they called it here—she sighed in contentment.
It was all worth it, everything she had done to get to this point, to this very Christmas market in Munich with a handsome German stud standing beside her. Jade curled her lips into a seductive smile and gazed up into Nikolaus’s eyes. “I’m so happy we’re finally together.”
Nikolaus bent down for a light kiss, nothing like the heavy make out session they’d enjoyed back at the hotel but delectable all the same, sweeter even than the wine on Jade’s tongue. “I am happy you are here, also, after all this time we have gotten to know one another. You are so different than I expected, yet so real, and right here where I can touch you, not an ocean away and through a computer,” he said.
As Nikolaus ran his gloved hand over her arm, Jade felt a tingle even through her thick jacket.
Anticipation for the night to come? Certainly not her conscience.
She’d done what she had to do to get what she wanted. Wasn’t that what life was all about, taking the bull by the horns? She’d missed too many opportunities, and now she was grabbing on.
Jade blinked to dispel the images from her mind’s eye: Kylie waking up to find her phone, credit card, and passport gone, along with her roommate and so-called best friend. But what did Kylie think would happen after years of flaunting her looks, money, and overall success in Jade’s face? Kylie made it too easy for Jade, who had been forced to work hard for everything she ever got in life—which was only a fraction of what Kylie had.
It was Jade’s turn now.
“You’re even more beautiful in person than in your photo, Kylie,” Nikolaus whispered into Jade’s ear, and she couldn’t help but agree. She really was well-suited as a redhead.
And Kylie was oblivious to it all—Jade’s incessant questions about the cute guy she’d met in an online Metallica fan group (when Jade didn’t even like Metallica), not to mention Jade’s slow-but-sure copycat style: dishwater blonde hair dyed auburn; quirky glasses traded for contacts; and slouchy slacks and baggy sweaters swapped for more tailored clothing. All Kylie said was that Jade looked great. In her blind trust in the world where she wanted for nothing, Kylie hadn’t a clue that Jade was coming for her.
It’s not that Kylie was a bad friend; she’d always been kind to Jade, but there was that certain way she made Jade feel like a charity case rather than an equal, like when their friend group had gone out for lunch together and Kylie said not to worry because she’d treat Jade—but she said it in front of everyone. Humiliated, Jade muttered that she had plenty of money and promptly ordered a water and side salad while the rest of the girls gorged in seafood and pricey cocktails.
So Jade didn’t feel bad when she started pilfering a few dollars from Kylie’s purse every now and then, or swiping a lipstick or bottle of perfume from her roomie. Kylie never even noticed. How could Jade not seize an opportunity when she saw one?
Carpe diem.
Jade was no one’s project—she was Kylie’s actual competition. Thinking about all the times Kylie had made her feel less than, Jade raised on her tiptoes to meet Nikolaus’s face for a deeper kiss. She heard someone say something that sounded rude, but it was in German, and she didn’t care. The world was hers for the taking.
***
Smiling, reveling in her deception, Jade declined Nikolaus’s offers to buy food and more drinks and urged them to go back to the hotel. She needed to stake her claim on him just in case Kylie somehow managed to contact Nikolaus. Once Jade gave Nikolaus a taste of what she had to offer, she doubted he’d go back to pretty but boring Kylie. Kylie was vanilla—Jade felt more than that, chocolate, peppermint, or maybe passionfruit. Jade was excitement.
Kylie probably wouldn’t even call the cops—she’d be embarrassed and wouldn’t want to cause trouble. There was nothing for Jade back in the U.S. She could live a new, dazzling life in Germany. She’d taken enough out of Kylie’s account to float herself for a few months even if Kylie cancelled the credit card, and she’d find a job once the cash ran out. It’s not like the German police would knock down her door for credit card and identity fraud. She was an American. They wouldn’t care.
But, as Nikolaus nibbled her ear a little too hard, Jade felt it was time to let him know the truth. “I’m not actually Kylie. She’s my roommate, and she doesn’t deserve you. I’m Jade, and I’m yours,” she admitted, leaning in for another hungry kiss.
Nikolaus’s lips contorted into a smile as his tongue, long and pointed, lapped out of his mouth. He, too, was hungry.
“Oh, I know who you are. And I’m not Nikolaus. I’ve come for you, Jade, because you’ve been a naughty, naughty girl.”
His eyes, no longer blue, glared red in the dim lighting of the hotel room. As he whipped off his beanie, horns uncurled from his head. He arched his back and stretched, elongating to his full height of eight feet tall, and long hair erupted from his scalp and face.
Jade screamed as Krampus bared his sharp, glistening teeth, pointier than the evergreens and shinier than the lights at the Christkindlmarkt.
It was time for Jade to pay for her transgressions. Krampus opened wide.