(Here’s the link to the beginning of the story) Please share with others!

Located in the small town of Cumberland in the northeast corner of the United States’ smallest state, Rhode Island, Diamond Hill has never yielded one diamond. The name was always a source of amusement to some or an invitation to be the first to discover there was more to the name than just the reflection of the sun off tiny crystals in the rocky peak.

Many a child growing up in Cumberland dreamed of finding diamonds there. Perhaps this lure for children and their imaginations drew the Heart of Darkness to the place. At least that’s what Jane Joyful Angelica believed when she’d thought of the area.

It took a while for Levi to master the challenge of flying the sleigh. Jane told him if he was gonna be part of this team, it was his job to fly. Levi suspected other reasons, but he set his mind to learning.

This involved several close encounters with tree branches, giant snow mounds, and one unfortunate incident when his too-fast, too-low approach to landing caused the reindeer herd to stampede from the barn. The mess on the barn floor alone, a side effect of the stampede, would take hours to clean up.

The flight down was a bit of an adventure. For all Jane’s bravado and bluster, it turned out she had a touch of air sickness. It caused concern that if someone spotted them flying, with Jane hanging out of the sleigh, it might cause permanent trauma to anyone seeing it.

But off they went and were now circling the top of Diamond Hill.

“You really think they’re hiding here?” Levi asked.

“Well, I’m not sure. But I remember a particularly enthusiastic group of kids coming out of Cumberland in the 60s and 70s. They weren’t bad kids; most were borderline naughty, but some were wild. Particularly the group that graduated in 1974.

“It seemed to make sense that something was inspiring their hijinks. Maybe the Heart of Darkness was just rehearsing various ideas to stop Christmas.”

“What happened to that group of kids?”

“Oh, most grew out of it. But there are a few who left lasting impressions.” She looked over the edge and pointed. “Head down there; we can hide the sleigh in the woods near the reservoir and hike to the top of the hill.

“And please be careful. My stomach has finally calmed down, and I don’t want to…”

Later, Levi would say he didn’t know what made him do it. Something just came over him, and he couldn’t help himself.

Taking the reins tighter in his hand, he tugged gently on the right to start the turn, then pulled tightly on the left, putting the sleigh upside down. He then let the speed drift away as the sleigh arched toward the ground.

He pulled the sleigh upright at the last minute and slid into a perfect landing. Dropping the reins, he looked at Jane, but she was gone. Then he heard her. A moment later, her head popped up, her face pasty white.

“I’ll remember that.”

Levi chuckled. “Sorry, couldn’t resist. Now what?”

Jane looked around. To the untrained eye, things looked normal, just trees, rocks, and leaves, but Jane saw what she believed to be evidence of magic. The trees were too perfect, placed to force anyone trying to get through here to turn away.

This wasn’t a forest; it was a wall to keep intruders out.

“Do you see that?” Jane said.

“See what?”

“This is all planned. I may not have been sure before, but I am now. They’re here, no doubt about it.” She stooped down to examine the ground and saw a small, almost imperceptible hole beneath a large rock.

“There,” she pointed. “That’s a way in.” She turned around to show Levi, but he was no longer behind her.

Levi was gone, and there was a note on a tree.

“So nice of you to come here, Jane. And thanks for the elf. It’s been a while since we’ve had one to entertain us. Don’t bother trying to get in here. Such a brilliant investigator. We took your little friend from right under your nose. Do you really think we wouldn’t see you coming?

“You can’t win, Jane. Go home. Forget about Christmas. Forget about Levi here. Just go.”

Tomorrow: Who Rescued Who?