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She pushed the covers away and sat up quickly, startled from a sound sleep. As her mind began to function she realized it was still dark outside. She listened intently, but the only sound was the monotonous ticking of the big grandfather clock out in the hall.

Swinging her bare feet onto the floor, the woman in the blue nightgown snatched up the loaded shotgun standing next to the bed. She crossed silently to the window, listening further for any telltale noise.

Several mercury-vapor security lights illuminated the front yard of the mansion, rendering everything a ghostly, bluish color. Contrasting the well-lit areas were deep shadows formed by the shrubbery, grotesque images that seemed to stretch endlessly across the open areas. An unseen, but vigilant presence was the alarm system, installed after recent incidents in Tibet and Silverado.

The alarm system had been installed just in time, for not a week later there was a full-scale attack on her home by people seeking vengeance. She had shot four men and a Doberman in her own bedroom and others just inside her front door. Had it not been for the thirty-second warning, she might have been murdered in her bed.

But tonight it was quiet. Lara Croft sighed and rested her head against the windowsill. Would she have to live like this for the rest of her life?

* * * * *

It was mid-morning when she finally came downstairs, still a little groggy from her broken sleep. Susan, her new assistant, was already at her desk and looked up with a smile. "Good morning, Miss Croft."

"What's good about it?" Lara snapped, finding a way to vent her frustration.

Susan was new, but she had been working for the famous adventuress long enough to know a bad mood when she saw one. "Well, it's three days before Christmas."

"So? I suppose you're gonna want the day off, eh?"

"Why, yes, ma'am," Susan replied. "Thank you. I'm driving up to my parent's home. Are you going somewhere?"

Lara turned away quickly, not liking the question, and headed into her office. "Bring me a cup of tea, would you please?"

"Yes, ma'am," said the voice from behind her. "The mail is on your desk."

Susan had replaced her old assistant, who had been hurt in a car accident a month or so ago. The thirty five year old woman had proven herself competent enough, but it was hard to get used to seeing another face.

More bills, Lara snorted as she sat down and saw the mound of envelopes. But when she got near the bottom of the pile, a smile crossed her face.

Her eyes lifted from the return address on the envelope to the wooden frame just above her desk. The left side of the frame contained a glossy, black and white publicity photo. A slender, blonde-haired cowgirl in her mid-twenties stood next to the brown and white paint horse, a silver-studded gunbelt circling her hips. Eight or ten handwritten words covered the bottom part of the picture and a Silverado logo adorned the lower left corner.

On the right side of the picture frame, next to the photograph, was a newspaper clipping. "New outlaw heroine comes to Silverado," shouted the headline. "Crowds flock to old west theme park," said the subhead right below it. Lara smiled fondly. Julie had found the perfect job and Lara was glad she had played a small part in her young friend's happiness.

Still smiling, Lara swung her feet up on the desk and tore open the envelope. It was a Christmas card. The front cover showed a wooded area with a horse-drawn sleigh plowing through deep snow. Inside, Lara found the hand-written note.

Dear Lara,

I miss you! You promised to come back and visit me. So tell me you're coming to visit us again soon!

Gosh, it's been four whole months and so much has happened. I have my own little apartment now, the first time I've ever lived away from home. It's a real adventure, just learning to fend for myself without mom and dad looking over my shoulder all the time.

Alison and I have become good friends. She's not nearly as much a stuffed-shirt as I thought. She got me this apartment in the same building as hers and we hang out together all the time. The men have given us a lot of trouble and it's great to have a friend among the outlaws. I think I told you how they threw us in the water that first night.

And you know what? I think she likes Spade, too. They work together a lot now and I've seen her looking at him.

With the cold weather, Silverado operates only on the weekends. I perform in three shows each day. Between times, I'm supposed to walk around and sign autographs. Sign autographs? Ha! It's amazing, Lara. I never dreamed I'd be a star! Even a small one. We have good crowds and Mr. Trimble says it's because of Alison and I. That's unbelievable, but I do enjoy working here…at least most of it.

Because we only operate two days a week, Spade has us fixing up the place on the off days. I've never done so much hard work! But it's been fun being with the men and once in a while I run into Arizona. I hope that he'll ask me out. He's really a great guy. Handsome, too!

When are you coming to visit me again? How about in the spring, after it warms up? We could go on a camping trip, maybe explore some of the old caves near here. How does that sound?

Alison and I are leaving in a few minutes to go Christmas caroling. We're going with some of the guys to a nearby home for seniors. It'll be fun.

With much love,

Britches

Lara glanced at the photograph of the smiling young woman and remembered meeting her that first day at the train station in Silverado. Julie had come a long way since that time.

Standing the card in a prominent place on her desk, Lara picked up the pile of mail again. More bills…until she got to the last envelope. Her eyes widened in surprise and her lips curved upward as she eagerly tore it open. It was another Christmas card, this one showing a small log cabin nestled at the base of a snow-covered mountain.

Her fingers paused as the memories of another little cabin pushed their way into her mind. They'd shared so much together in that little house at the base of the hill. It had been a week of dreams. But they were dreams that couldn't come true. For the commitment he had wanted of her, she could not give.

This was the first time he'd written since she rode away on her rented Harley four months ago. What was he going to say? Did he regret their time together? Were he and Alison…?

Why does that bother me? We're just friends, aren't we? He can do as he wishes, can't he?

With a small degree of anxiety, she opened the card.

Merry Christmas, Tiger.

I hope you are well and having a pleasant holiday.

A great deal has happened since you left. Julie and Alison are working out great. That was a great idea, Lara. Thanks. It's really surprising how the people have reacted to them and we've been drawing some good crowds, even with the colder weather. Come summertime, we'll learn whether it's a long-term attraction.

Julie has been a real crowd-pleaser and I'm delighted to have her. She's patient with the autograph-seekers and in general has conducted herself like the young star that she is. My only fear is that some Hollywood producer-type will snatch her away from me.

Alison has been a real surprise, too. We've worked together before, of course, but since her job change she's loosened up a lot. Her new hairstyle looks a lot less formal and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt she's really different from the front office woman you knew when you were here. She's taken Calamity Jane as her handle and I must say the name fits her.

Remember the cabin? It feels empty now that you've gone. The place is dark, too, without the sunlight of your smile. How is it possible to miss someone so much? Every night I come back here and picture you standing on the porch or waiting just inside to try and wrestle me to the floor. The place is filled with things that you've touched and memories that I'll always carry with me.

Confound it, Lara, I never thought I'd get so hung up over a memory. I'm a tough-guy, right? We're not supposed to get all hung up over a woman. Well, okay, you're not just any woman, but you know what I mean. The next time you come back…

Matt, Arizona and the others send you their love. Everyone wants to know when you'll visit us again.

Missing you…

Jim

Lara got up and paced around the room. Blast the man! Why did he have to write something like that? She'd been trying to put it behind her, to make herself forget about him. Or at least about that second week they had shared together. And now he had to drag it in front of her again!

It was a dead end. It was. It couldn't be anything else. He was unwilling to settle for anything less than a gold ring and a forever promise.

She liked him. She liked him a lot. But marry him?

Lara returned to the desk and sat down, glancing at the second picture frame. The two of them were standing next to his bike at a scenic overlook in the mountains. A friendly tourist had taken it for them. The couple in the picture was having a good time. And it was true, they did have a good time. But what did that mean for the future?

And now Alison was in the picture. She was a good lady, no doubt about it. And it was clear that he had noticed her. Lara found herself in a quandary. On one hand, she couldn't commit herself to him. But on the other, was she ready to see him with someone else? And maybe lose him forever?

A knock on the doorframe brought her back to reality.

"Excuse me, Miss Croft," said Susan's voice. "I have your tea ready."

Lara sighed. Try as she might, she couldn't get Susan to call her anything but 'Miss Croft.'

"Bring it on, Susan," she replied. "I could use a cup about now." But then Lara's eyebrows lifted at the sight of the teapot on the tray with the china cup and saucer.

"I thought it might be a two-cup morning, ma'am," Susan said with a smile. "So I brought the 'pot, too."

"Excellent!" Lara brushed aside the stack of bills and set the tray on the desk. Tea came before bills. Always.

"There's something else, too, mum," Susan said, heading out to her desk. A moment later she returned, carrying a good-sized Christmas-wrapped package. "The gardener found this next to the front door this morning. It has your name on it, but no return address."

The package was moderately heavy, about twenty-five pounds (12kgs), and Lara set it on the desk next to the tray. It didn't occur to her to wonder how it got on the front porch without setting off the alarm system. That would come later.

"Any idea what it is?" Susan asked.

Lara shrugged. "Not a clue. I guess we'll just have to open it and see." And, so saying, she cut the bowstring with a pair of scissors and tore away the fancy paper. She opened the box…and her mouth dropped open in surprise.

"Good heavens," exclaimed Susan. "Who would send you something like that?"

The box was filled with bricks. Bright, red bricks. And an envelope.

Curious, Lara picked it up. Ten seconds later she sat down heavily in her chair, her heart pounding at what she'd just read.

The bricks? Oh, just a little surprise gift, nothing special.

But imagine the bricks being twenty-five pounds of C-4. Know what that much explosive would do to this stone edifice you call a home? Now imagine the C-4 connected to a spring detonator. When you open the box, you'd have about two seconds to stare before you and half of this building disappear.

I'm gonna visit a man next week and we'll talk about a contract. Then I'll be back to see you.

You're still an amateur as far as I'm concerned…so…watch your back, lady.

Oh, yeah, you have a Merry Christmas, too.

"Miss Croft? Are you all right? Is something wrong?"

Lara looked up to see Susan's anxious expression.

"What did the note say?"

Lara took a deep breath. "Oh, nothing much. Just a death threat."

Susan's right hand went to her mouth. "A death threat? Here?"

Lara nodded. "That's right. It's seems there's a man who wants to kill me."

Susan paled at the words and Lara couldn't help but smile. "Cheer up, Susan. It's Christmas."

"But…but what about…" She gestured at the box.

"Don't worry about it. That's my job. Yours is to keep me organized. You can do that, can't you?"

"Well, yes, but what if he…"

Lara put her hand on the other woman's shoulder. "It's all right. Have you ever fired a gun before?"

"Me? Good heavens, no," Susan replied, her eyes wide. "I don't like guns."

Lara laughed. But maybe she should take Susan down to the range next week, just in case.

The phone rang. Susan turned and headed back to her desk.

"I'll get it, Susan."

Lara picked up the phone, half expecting it to be Ned with another death threat. "Hello?"

"Hello, my dear," said the familiar voice in her ear. "I trust you are well this morning?"

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Hello, father. It's been a long time."

Unseen, Susan smiled and stepped outside.

"Yes, well, umm," continued the voice in her ear. "Oh, rubbish. I just called to wish you Merry Christmas and all that."

"Thank you, father. How have you been?"

"Well enough, I suppose, although listening to all the yelling and screaming in Parliament is getting a bit wearisome. Maybe it's time to do something else."

"But, father," she protested. "How in the world would they get along without you? You're one of the few sane people in the whole place."

She could hear him smile on the other end. "Thank you, my dear. That was well said. Although there are doubtless many of my esteemed colleagues who would take exception, I fear that you are correct."

"You won't leave 'till they carry you out," she teased, her mood lightening. "And you know it!"

He laughed. "Yes. I suppose you are right." There was an awkward pause. "You know, Lara, it's been a while since we've been together. Would you…ah…would you consider sharing Christmas dinner with me? Just the two of us?"

Lara took a deep breath. Christmas dinner? At their home?

"I know we've had our differences, m'girl," he continued. "But let's agree to disagree on some things and set them aside, at least for Christmas. Would that be all right?"

"That would be just fine, father," she replied with a smile. "A Christmas truce, is it then?"

* * * * *

Sitting at her desk, Susan Oliver chuckled at hearing Lara's end of the conversation. Acting just like a schoolgirl. She'd be on the phone for a while, it seemed.

Wanting a stick of gum, Susan opened her large handbag and looked inside. There was one stick left…lying right next to the silencer and the automatic pistol.

The end…for now.

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Author's Note:

Lara Croft is an adventurer and a woman of courage. It's exciting to watch her on the screen and read about her exploits. But at the same time, she is a cartoon, a fantasy created by a computer company and nurtured by the rest of us.

Do you know a real person of courage? Someone who has shown uncommon valor in the face of great danger? I know such a man. I know him well. I know him because he stepped in front of me and took a bullet meant for me. A man who sacrificed himself so that I might live.

Actually, it was not a bullet he took, but a nail. Several of them, in fact. And on December 25^th, it is his birthday that we celebrate.

So then, tell me, why did our creator send a part of himself to die a hideous death two thousand years ago…so that we might live? Why would he do such a thing? The answer is simple:

He did it because He loved us.

Once in a while, I picture in my mind what it must have been like to hang nailed on that piece of wood for hours. Not being to move my hands or feet, in terrible agony...if I let it, it really scares me. And to think that Jesus did it willingly...for me...when he could have walked away...man, that's something else.

He's a real hero in my book.

Merry Christmas, everyone.
Chuck Brite
December, 1997

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The fiction on this page is copyright 1998, Chuck Brite, and intended sole for your personal enjoyment. The Lara Croft character and her likeness are the property of Core Designs and Edios Interactive. For information on the Tomb Raider game, and Tomb Raider 2, be sure to visit Lara's website at http://www.tombraider.com. I've played all the Tomb Raider games and they are awesome!