After a bit of waiting, Mr. Vermeil was walked into the meeting room by two armed guards. He did, indeed, look like Santa. It wasn't just that he was still wearing a big red Santa suit,It wasn't just that he was fat like a big bowl of jelly, it wasn't even the fact that he had what was clearly a natural white beard and moustache. Just the look of his face and the aura he gave off gave you the feeling that he might actually be the real deal.
I, of course, knew he wasn't Santa. At best, he was just a fat older man with white facial hair, who was very good at putting on the persona of Santa. As he sat down and we began to talk though, any feelings I had that he could be Santa washed away.
"Hello, sir. My name is Ozwald, and this is my assistant-"
I loudly cleared my throat as I looked over at Oz.
"Sorry, this is my business partner Victoria. We're here to take on your case and try to prove your innocence."
"I'm sorry. Are you guys lawyers? Cause I thought I already talked to my lawyer a few hours ago."
"No, we're not lawyers. We're private detectives. We help solve crimes for the police department."
"Detectives? Sounds like something-"
"Out of a TV show, I know. But we're serious. And, as I said before, we fully plan on proving your innocence."
"Well, if you can do that, I'd be amazed. The way the cops have been talking, they seem to have me dead to rights. Even my own lawyer is talking about plea deals."
"Well, we-"
Another throat clearing.
"I think you're innocent. I mean, Santa killing an elf, that's crazy."
"You do know I'm not actually Santa Claus, right?"
"Sure you're not."
Oz gave a slight wink at the man.
"Is this guy all there?"
"He's mostly sane."
"What do you mean mostly sane? I'm probably the sanest person in this room."
"Dude, you literally believe this man is Santa!"
"Anyways, I… a very sane person, believe you're innocent. Now, why don't you tell me what happened this morning."
Mr. Vermeil gave a big huff and lowered his head a bit.
"My life is in the hands of someone who believes I'm Santa Claus."
"I'm afraid to say that you're not wrong."
"Alright, look. I'll tell you what happened, but I came in early this morning, at around six in the morning. Morris came in a few minutes later. We both walked into the changing room together. After I got dressed in this suit, I left the changing room and walked around the mall for a bit. Sometime after eight, Frank, the security guard, found Morris's body in the changing room. I was arrested about two hours after that."
"Why were you there so early?"
"The mall doesn't open till Ten, but since it's my first day on the job, the manager wanted us to come in a few hours early so we could practice."
"So, if this was your first day, did you and Morris know each other?"
"Actually, yes. I knew him from a previous Santa job I had a few years back."
"And you had no problems with him, no issues, arguments, anything like that?"
"No. I mean, this was years ago. Who would hold a grudge for that long?"
"Oh, I've seen some people who have held onto grudges for entire generations."
"Well, I think I got enough information from you. Although, I do have one more question. Which rain deer is your favorite?"
Mr. Vermeil lowered his head until it was flush with the table before him and let out a long sigh. It was very clear to me, the man was done with Oz's nonsense.