She was in Miami, coming home to surprise us for Christmas, and she's bringing a fiancé, some doctor she just met down thereThere was a twinge of guilt as he admired the two neat lines of snowmen guarding their quiet streetHe was within two miles of home when she announced, 'I need a few things from the grocery Luther was aware that Swade Kerr was down there, as were Ralph Brixley and John Galdy, and some of the older boys on the streetFor the third time that week Luther sneaked away just before lunch and raced to the mall 'Oh that,' she saidIt wasn't working, though'Old tough-as-nails Walt had moist eyes too Welcome home!'The party is waiting,' he said as they stuffed their things into the trunk Zapatillas Asics Hombre of a police car, which was parked illegally at the curb in front of the taxis For her, the holidays began in late October and steadily gathered momentum until the big bang, a ten-hour marathon on Christmas Day with four meals and a packed house After a few turns the cord and rope were tightly braided together, and the spinning stopped'How's Blair?''Fine, Vic, thanks No one at Wiley & Beck could force him to do anything The shoppers wasted no time as they hustled in and out of the stores Then he realized that Nora should not see the poster Her teeth had been whitened, her hair lightened, her skin darkened, and for a second Luther wondered what she looked like before the project She was in Asics Gel-Kayano 18 the bathroom flushing and flipping lights, then she left for the kitchen, where she fixed an herbal tea, then he heard her down the hall in Blair's room, no doubt staring at the walls and sniffling over where the years had gone Then, at some point in the near future, Luther and perhaps Spike would strip it again, haul it across the street, put the Trogdon junk back on it, and everybody would be happy''Merry Christmas, Mitch The snow was still light, but the ground was covered I really can't say no to him Abigail just spent six hundred bucks on a dress for the Christmas dinner, don't know why she couldn't wear the one from last year or the year before, but why argue? Shoes were a buck-forty He was well dressed, in a cardigan under a handsome trench coat'You didn't, Nora,' he said'Hey, Walt, Ned here Spike leaned in above him, gently shoving the tree to one side, then the other Merry Christmas 'Thanks He pulled out a three-pound block of Cheddar cheese, a large wedge of Swiss, boxes of crackers, clam dip, and three two-day-old chocolate pies Asics Gel-Nimbus 14 from a bakery Nora had always avoided Getting plastered was accepted behavior You didn't, Nora, please say you didn't''He was educated in LondonAs Luther would remember after, he and Nora stopped their dancing and laughing on the second ring, maybe the third, and for some reason paused and stared at the phone'How are you, dear?' he asked'No thanks,' Luther said, his teeth chattering''Get in the backseat That's all Luther swore he tanned in the nude, but she wasn't stripping for anyone Halfway through the obituaries, he would take a cup of coffee, the same lavender cup every day, with two sugars, to his dear wife Things were useless The shoppers wasted no time as they hustled in and out of the stores There were a dozen partners in tax, including Luther, and twenty or so in auditing 'I'll send 'em back to Peru Eight bucks a ticket, for what Luther knew would be another dull two hours of overpaid clowns giggling their way through a subliterate plot'Do you think she's safe?' she finally askedSo he stayed in his office with his door locked and tended to last-minute details It was another annual ritual, another perfect example of what was wrong with Christmas''That's ridiculous Mr'Benny said he might drop in It would take daysShe'd made it safely out of Tans Forever and rounded a corner when she came face to face with the Reverend Doug Zabriskie, their minister Why should they take a break for Christmas?''That's a little harsh, Luther 'I'll send 'em back to PeruWhen the police cars slowed in front of the Kranks', a cheer went up, a loud hello from the kids on Hemlock He well remembered flying off the roof, headfirst, with the concrete driveway awaiting him Luther was behind the wagon, hanging on, letting it roll slightly No tree, no shopping, no meaningless gifts, no tipping, no clutter and wrappings, no traffic and crowds, no fruitcakes, no liquor and hams that no one needed, no 'Rudolph' and 'Frosty,' no office party, no wasted money'Down to six One of those dark silhouettes out there had squealed on him 'Half now, half when the job is done Might as well be 'Frosty the Snowman The Mayor was incensed as complaints flooded city hall Their Christmas special was twelve sessions for $60 She'd survived the ladies' luncheon and spent two hours at the children's clinic, part of her grinding volunteer schedule Gotta say, I liked it better at the Trogdons' 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer rattled from a hidden speaker above the sidewalk in front of Mother Earth, where the crunchy people were no doubt still wearing their sandals Thirty-one Frosty cards had now been received, two all the way from Vancouver His ankles were raw Frohmeyer'd told him'Wiley & Beck, sixth floor,' Luther said without removing his eyes from the floating palaces, the endless beaches'His English is perfect,' Nora whispered to Blair The drive to the airport took twenty minutes, plus more for parking, shuttling, walking, pushing, shoving'Tonight, actuallyThe tree, of course, was wider than the door to the garage, as all trees are' Walt was standing next to the driver's door, all smiles He froze for a split second, sucking in lungfuls of cold air, cursing the old Mexican and his robots and his fans and the damned pistachios And that, of course, does not include my time, your time, the traffic, stress, worry, bickering, ill-will, sleep loss-all the wonderful things that we asics nimbus 14 pour into the holiday season