Murder Santa
Seen from behind, a broad man in a red fur-trimmed coat stands at a frosted cabin window at night, holding the end of an enormous scroll that unrolls across the floor; a reindeer waits among the pines outside.

North Pole · December 23rd · 11:58 p.m.

Someone tried to murder Santa.

A toppled workbench. A snapped candy cane. A trail of cocoa to an open window. Santa is fine. Santa is making a list. And this year he is checking it a great deal more than twice.

Pull your file Examine the scene

58 days until he comes down the chimney. He's already started.

Incident report · Eyes only

To: All workshop staff, all reindeer, the Gingerbread Union
Re: Last night

At 11:58 p.m. a person or persons attempted to take out the Big Man in his own workshop. The attempt failed, as they always do. He has asked that nobody leave the Pole, that the cocoa machine stay on, and that whoever did this think very hard about what they want for Christmas.

Workshop is sealed. Do not touch the nutcracker. Do not "tidy up the glitter." He has seen the glitter.

Head of Workshop Security (Elf, Grade IV)

Pull your file

Everyone has one. Type a first name (yours, your brother's, your boss's) and the North Pole will hand over the dossier. The name never leaves this page. Same name, same file: he doesn't change his mind.

Exhibit A: the workshop

Nothing has been moved. Click anything that looks wrong. Find every clue and the Head of Security will tell you what really happened.

Santa's workshop as a crime scene: an overturned workbench of wooden toys, a toppled nutcracker, a trail of cocoa and glitter to an open window, a chalk outline of a gingerbread man, a row of elf boots, and a red armchair with a snapped candy cane on the seat.

Clues found: 0 of 0

    The suspects

    Jingles Senior toy engineer

    Motive: passed over for Head of Workshop, three centuries running. Alibi: "Re-gluing a rocking horse." The rocking horse says otherwise.

    Blitzen Reindeer, lead contract

    Motive: a pay dispute about carrots versus "exposure." Alibi: on the roof. Reindeer are always on the roof. That's what makes it a bad alibi.

    Mrs. Claus Co-founder

    Motive: she's the one who actually runs the place. Alibi: none offered. "If I'd done it," she says, refilling your cocoa, "you'd never have found a candy cane."

    Krampus Contractor, Alpine office

    Motive: professional jealousy. Alibi: airtight. He was in Austria, on video, frightening a choir.

    Things we might make for December

    Tap whatever you'd actually buy. Nothing is charged; this tells us what to build before he arrives.

    Get on the right list

    We'll email when the party mystery and the mailed dossiers are ready, well before Christmas Eve.