Return to Doll Island

by Ocean

  Then, a nightmare image of Devin with burnt eyes, or worse, an entirely burnt face. She couldn’t risk it. The familiar sensation was happening. Pressure behind her eyes, an itchiness of her nose and a squeezing sensation in her throat. What always occurred just before she was about to burst into tears.

  She opened her eyes and pushed Devin aside. Devin had been so focused on Naomi that the movement by Rosie caught her off guard. Her mouth opened to object, but no words escaped. Rosie closed the distance between herself and Naomi.

  “Okay,” Rosie said. “Put the flame down. Let’s talk.”

  Naomi took a step back but did not lower the flame.

  “Rosie–” Devin protested, but Rosie’s palm placed firmly on her chest quieted her.

  “There has to be a solution that works for us all.” Rosie lowered the hand that had held Devin back.

  “All we want is to be human again,” Ria said. She still cowered behind Naomi. “We’re really not bad people.”

  “Not bad people? You stole our bodies!” Devin shouted over Rosie’s shoulder.

  “Shush.” Again, Rosie placed a palm against Devin’s chest to calm her, and Devin backed down. “There’s no need to shout. Let’s work through this like grown, mature adults. Shouting isn’t going to get us anywhere.”

  Naomi lowered the flame from her face but still clutched the lamp with one hand. With the other, she rubbed her chin. The flame had chapped it, giving it a reddish tinge.

  “Look, we’re sorry we took over your bodies. Like Ria said, we were desperate. After being stuck as dolls on that island for centuries, we would’ve done anything to be human again. Can’t you find some other bodies to change into and leave us alone?”

  “Those are our bodies!” Devin's voice strained as she wrestled with keeping her temper in check. “You go find some other bodies.”

  “It’s not exactly an easy thing to do,” Naomi said.

  “Tell us about it,” Devin retorted.

  “We didn’t deserve what happened to us!” Naomi’s voice grew louder each time she spoke.

  Devin’s voice raised in volume to match.

  “Well, we certainly didn’t deserve what happened to us. We weren’t the ones who cheated on a Shaman. What a dumb–”

  “Okay, okay!” Rosie raised both hands and Devin and Naomi silenced. “Let’s keep our voices down. We don’t need the entire camp to hear us airing our dirty laundry.”

  Naomi and Ria swapped a quick glance. The anger fell from their faces, replaced by a look of stunned confusion.

  “Who told you we cheated on the Shaman?” Ria asked.

  “The Mambo herself did,” Rosie said.

  “Oh, she did, did she? Well, isn’t that something? This should be interesting.” Naomi said. “Tell us what she told you.”

  “She told us that not only did you cheat on her with Ria,” Devin counted off each item on the list by tapping a finger of one hand to the fingers of the other. “But you also broke your oath to remain faithful to the honor of being a Shaman, that being a Mambo went to your head, you didn’t keep sacred secrets, and you used spells for your own personal pleasure. She admitted she made a mistake in choosing you and felt she had to right it by taking away your powers. The only way she could do that was to banish your souls into the wax dolls.”

  “And, just so you know,” Rosie added. “If she hadn’t banished you to the island, Guede Nimbo would’ve come for you since your souls were evil.”

  “Yeah,” Devin said. “She cursed you in order to save your souls from Satan. It was the only way to save you. She loved you, that’s why she cursed you. To protect you from spending eternity in hell.”

  Naomi and Ria made eye contact with each other. A brief silent conversation passed between them. Naomi was the first to smile, then Ria’s face softened, and a grin spread across her lips. Naomi released a chuckle then shook her head.

  “What?” Devin asked. “What’s so funny?”

  “Well, I have to give her credit. That’s a good one. But it’s far from the truth.”

  She placed the lamp down.

  “Sit, and I’ll tell you what really happened.”

  40

  There’s always a story

  Ria and Naomi sat on the edge of the bed while Devin and Rosie climbed up onto fold out chairs.

  Naomi started.

  “The story she told you is a good story. But, it’s not the truth. This is what really happened. I was young–”

  “We were in love,” Ria blurted.

  “Yes, we were young and in love.” Naomi looked adoringly toward Ria, but to Rosie, it was Devin looking at her. She recognized that look. Devin had looked at her many times that way since they’d met. It was a soft, loving, caring look.

  Ria reached for Naomi’s hand.

  Rosie watched as her and Devin’s bodies sat side-by-side before her, holding hands.

  Naomi continued, “The Mambo was older. Much older. Everyone in the village was afraid of her. She was mean, vengeful. If you crossed her in any way, she’d threatened to turn you into a toad, a snake, a zombie, or whatever else struck her fancy.”

  As Naomi spoke, Ria nodded in agreement.

  “Regrettably,” Naomi said, “she took a liking to me. I don’t know why–”

  “Because you were hot,” Ria interjected.

  Naomi blushed and kept talking.

  “For whatever reason, she wanted me. She chose me to be her successor and unfortunately, that also meant being her lover. Her intention was for us to be merged together in body and soul, so she could teach me the ways of being a Shaman. I was to continue the practice when it was her time to pass.”

  “So, you were her lover?” Devin asked.

  “No. I mean, yes. For a while, I was.” Naomi released a long sigh, and she lowered her gaze. “It’s complicated. She cast a spell on me. A love spell. I was, I guess you’d say, hypnotized to fall in love with her.”

  “She was like a zombie,” Ria interjected.

  “Yes. A zombie,” Naomi agreed. “When it was over and I looked back, I couldn’t believe that I’d acted that way.” She again turned a loving look toward Ria. “I completely disavowed my relationship with Ria. I’ll never forgive myself for that.”

  “It wasn’t your fault, sweetheart.” Ria rubbed a hand along Naomi’s arm.

  Naomi wiped a tear from the corner of her eye with a knuckle and swallowed hard before continuing.

  “So, you see. I didn’t really cheat on her, the Mambo. If anything, I cheated on Ria.”

  “How did you get out of that situation?” Rosie asked.

  Naomi rubbed the back of Ria’s neck.

  “She got me out of it.”

  A shy smile blossomed on Ria’s face.

  “I snuck in one night when I knew the Shaman was at a ceremony. Naomi was sleeping. Otherwise, she’d never have let me near her because she believed she loved the Shaman. And I found that book,” she pointed to the book that lay beside Rosie. “I turned to, “How to break a spell,” chanted the words, and to my amazement, it worked. No sooner had the words left my mouth, Naomi jerked awake and snapped out of the curse. I had my old Naomi back.”

  “It was strange,” Naomi said. “It was as if I’d woken from a dream. I mean, I remember everything that had happened, but couldn’t believe it had been real. Ria convinced me it was.”

  Ria and Naomi’s fingers intertwined and gripped tightly together.

  Rosie couldn’t help but keep looking at the joined hands. It was odd looking at herself holding hands with Devin from outside her body, but it looked natural. Right. She glanced sideways toward Devin and saw that Devin’s gaze was also fixed on the pair of hands.

  “We escaped into the jungle,” Naomi said. “Our plan was to run away, go join another village. But the Shaman had many men under her spell that would do whatever she commanded. As I said, everyone was fearful of her magic. We were soon found and brought back to her. She made us drink the poison and took us to the isla
nd. There she performed the curse of the damned and transferred our bodies into two wax dolls that she’d carved.”

  “And in three hundred years you couldn’t switch bodies until we came along?” Devin asked.

  “It’s not exactly easy to find two good bodies,” Naomi said. “Every once in a while, a drunk would row to the island. Neither of us wanted to change with him.”

  “We wanted to be human again, but human women. Together,” Ria said.

  “How’d you get to be nuns?” Rosie asked.

  “About fifty years ago, a group from a Catholic school brought a bunch of children to the island for a picnic. This was before there were so many dolls there and the island had the reputation of being haunted. They left before dusk, so we didn’t have the chance to change with any of them–”

  “You would’ve changed with children?” Rosie asked.

  “Not the children, but the nuns we would’ve,” Naomi admitted.

  “Okay, finish the story,” Rosie said.

  “So, we didn’t have the chance to change with any of them, but one of the little girls left two nun dolls on the island. We chanted the curse and switched with them.”

  “How’d you know the curse?” Devin asked.

  “Some of it was from memory from when the Mambo had performed the curse on us. It was a nightmare, of course. Even though we’d been poisoned, the words tormented us, many of them were seared into our memories. Between that and the limited training I’d had, we were able to piece it together.” Naomi squeezed Ria’s hand. “It took us a while and many failed attempts, but finally, we got it right.”

  “The nun dolls were better than the small wax dolls the Shaman had made,” Ria said.

  “Yeah, much better bodies. They moved about better.” Naomi added, “It was an upgrade.”

  “So…we changed with the nun dolls and have been waiting for an opportunity to become human again ever since. Over fifty years. Then you two showed up, and…” Her voice trailed off.

  “And you figured you’d ruin our lives.” The words spit from Devin’s mouth.

  “We’re sorry!” Ria said. “Truly. If there’d been any other way.”

  “Well, there is going to be another way right now.” Devin motioned between herself and Rosie. “We’re getting our bodies back. I’m sorry for what you went through, but that doesn’t concern us. You’re going to have to figure out another solution to your problem.”

  Naomi reached for the gas lamp again. Ria gripped her arm, stopping her.

  “Wait,” she said. “I have an idea that will provide an acceptable solution, so everyone gets what they want.”

  41

  Next plan?

  Rosie, Devin, and Naomi all turned their attention toward Ria.

  “Think about it logically,” Ria said. “You want your bodies back. I don’t blame you. We want to be human again. You can’t blame us for that, right?”

  Reluctantly, Rosie gave a half shrug.

  “Okay, so far so good,” Ria said. “Now you know we’re not the evil wenches you thought we were. We’re not really cheaters.”

  “That jury’s still out,” Devin said.

  “What?!” Naomi practically choked on the word. “It was the Mambo that actually cheated us.”

  “Maybe so, but what you did to us was still horrible.” Devin crossed her arms.

  “Agreed,” Ria said, “but, you’d done the same thing. As we said, we were desperate. Can I finish now?”

  “Go on,” Devin said. “What’s your idea?”

  “As I was saying, you want your bodies back, and we want to be human again. So, here’s what I suggest. We simply need to find another set of bodies for me and Naomi, then you two can have yours back.”

  “Oh no. No. No,” Devin’s head and hands both shook. “Us getting back into our own bodies is not conditional on you finding new ones. No deal.”

  “Please help us,” Naomi said. “We promise, help us find new bodies to change into, and we won’t damage yours. You can have them back, as good as new. Well, only slightly used.”

  “Damage ours!” Devin’s voice raised again. “That’s another thing. You’re smoking. With my lungs!”

  Naomi hung her head. “I know I should quit. But it had been so long since I’d smoked.”

  “You used to smoke? In the 1700’s?” Rosie asked.

  “Of course! Mostly in clay pipes. We smoked tobacco of course, but also hashish, opium. We smoked all kinds of leaves. In fact–”

  “You will quit! Immediately!” Devin stomped her tiny doll foot.

  “Ladies!” Rosie held her hands up again. “Enough of the bickering. We only have a few hours until sunrise to agree on a plan. What are we going to do?”

  “Do you agree to help us find new bodies in return for yours?” Ria asked.

  Devin planted her hands on her hips and did that head tilt thing that she did when she was annoyed.

  “And how do you plan to find new bodies. They’re not exactly just lying around like spare car parts.”

  Ria and Naomi exchanged a glance.

  “Oh no,” Devin said. “We’re not interested in this deal if it involves murder.”

  42

  Let’s do this

  “We said nothing about murdering someone,” Naomi said.

  “How else do you plan on finding two bodies that no one else is using?”

  Ria and Naomi spoke at the same time.

  “A cemetery.”

  Now it was Devin and Rosie’s turn to say the words in unison.

  “A cemetery?”

  “Listen,” Naomi said. “I know it sounds terrible but think about it. We won’t be hurting anyone. Those people are done with their bodies. I mean, it’s not like they’re going to use them anymore. They’ll just rot in the ground.”

  “Why didn’t you think of this years ago?” Devin asked. “Just go dig up a couple of bodies. Why wait ‘til now?”

  “We didn’t have that book.” Ria pointed to the book Rosie still clutched. “We didn’t know the curse that would put a soul into an inactive body.”

  Rosie felt her own nose crinkle in disgust.

  “By inactive, you mean dead?”

  Ria and Naomi nodded.

  “You can’t just dig up a body and use it,” Rosie said. “First of all, the way they process bodies for burials now, you know with formaldehyde and all that. I think they take all the organs out, don’t they Devin?”

  “Right,” Devin said. “You’d have to go someplace where they just bury their dead like they used to in the old days. Some remote area like a jungle.”

  “Cuba,” Naomi said.

  “Cuba?” Devin’s eyes grew wide.

  “For some religions in Cuba, they still follow the old practices of burying their dead naturally. And, because of the heat and lack of refrigeration, the deceased are buried within twenty-four hours. They simply wrap them in a canvas blanket, place them in a simple pine box, and that’s it,” Naomi said.

  “They bury them that way?” Rosie asked.

  “Yep.” Naomi gave a firm head nod.

  “This is gross. I can’t even believe we’re discussing this,” Devin said.

  “Do you have a better idea?” Naomi asked.

  Rosie took hold of Devin’s arm and led her toward the other side of the tent.

  “Come on. Let’s talk.”

  When they were out of earshot from Ria and Naomi, she spoke in a hushed voice. “What do you think?”

  “I think it’s crazy we’re even considering helping them,” Devin replied with a voice that was equally hushed. She kept her gaze on Ria and Naomi. “What do you think?”

  “I think we don’t have a choice. As soon as I start the chant, by the time I’m done, your face will be burnt. I can’t risk that Devin.” She reached up and caressed the side of Devin’s face.

  Devin’s lips pressed together as she thought.

  “What do you think about the digging up bodies idea?” she asked.

 
Rosie cringed.

  “It’s disgusting, obviously. But if they’re willing to change with a couple of dead people, that’s their choice, not mine. If it’s a way for us to get our bodies back, both in one piece, I say let’s go for it.”

  Devin placed her hands on her hips and exhaled.

  “But,” Rosie continued. “We have to do it fast. I want to be back in my body by sunrise. We only have a few hours.”

  “Rosie, think about it. We need to find a boat and get to Cuba. That’ll take hours. Then we have to find a burial ground where they’ve buried bodies without preparing them. Then, we have to hope that luckily, well, luckily for us, not luckily for the deceased. Hope there’s two women that have been recently buried, so their bodies haven’t decayed, and Ria and Naomi will want to spend a lifetime in those bodies. I mean they won’t change into any body that’s old or has been deformed in an accident. Not that I blame them for that. But think about it, this could take days, weeks, even.”

  “You’re right Devin. It could. And it might be a crazy idea. But it’s the only one I can think of that might work for all four of us,” Rosie said.

  “Rosie. They lied to us once already. What if they’re lying to us now, again? What if that story about the Shaman isn’t true, and they really did cheat on her? What if when the sun rises and we’re immobile, they tear us apart and throw our limbs into the ocean, like they said? I guess what I’m saying is…Do you trust them? Or do you trust the Mambo? Who do you think is telling the truth?”

  Rosie inhaled. She glanced at Ria and Naomi, watched as her and Devin’s body also leaned in close together and spoke in hushed tones. The thought of having the doll body she was in now torn limb from limb and the pieces discarded into the ocean certainly was troublesome.

  If that happened, what would happen to my soul?

  As much as their current situation was far from ideal, at least she was in one piece, sort of, and was with Devin. Devin’s question echoed.