Hollow Dolls

by MarcyKate Connolly

  While she speaks, I stretch my talent out, searching the tunnels to see if Sebastian and Rachel are clear yet. To my relief, they’re already on the path through the woods, hurrying back to the library.

  “Where do you think that is?” I ask.

  A coy glint sparkles in Maeve’s eyes. She opens her mouth to speak, but her face suddenly falls. Her expression shifts into something new.

  “What have you done? Where is he? Why can’t I sense him? How did you get to him?” she sputters.

  I straighten my spine and tilt my head up, letting my ghostly hair fall back from my face. “You’re not our only friend.” I don’t mention that he has obsidian protecting him now. If she doesn’t know what the black stone can do, I don’t want to give that away.

  Her expression hardens. “It was a librarian then.” Her fists clench. “I bet it was Rachel. She always was a bit too fond of you. Maybe I should have taken her instead of Ida.”

  All of a sudden, my friends release me and march single file into the cavern. She’s sending them after Sebastian and Rachel.

  “Wait!” I cry. “Let him go. You don’t need him. Let him go, and I’ll stay. I promise. I won’t try to run away.” The most terrifying thing about those words is that I mean them. Maeve is my mother, the one person I’ve wanted to find ever since I can remember. While she isn’t at all what I expected, leaving her is not so simple now that I’ve found her.

  I’m her daughter. I may be the only one who can reach her. The only one who can stop her. What she’s doing is wrong—horribly wrong—but she’s doing it out of grief and desperation. That I can understand.

  I peek inside her head, and while her thoughts are still well concealed, they’re also confused. “Why would you do that?” Suspicion begins to brew. I need to put a stop to that immediately.

  “Because I’m your daughter.”

  The other shells halt their march, frozen in place waiting for commands. Confusion reigns in Maeve’s head.

  “But that’s…that’s not possible,” she says, though I can see from her thoughts that part of her hopes it’s true.

  I nod vehemently. “It is true. I swear it. Rachel and I discovered an old town report from Wren that was poorly labeled. That’s why we missed it earlier. It was included in an account of a strange rich woman coming to the village and charming the townsfolk—right up until she disappeared with nearly all of the talented people. Among those stolen were a mother and daughter—the mother was a body walker and the daughter a mind reader. It’s us. My name was on the list. Your full name is Romana Maeve Casares, and it was on there too. There’s no doubt.”

  Maeve sags against the wall, then moves to sit in front of the fire. Her mind races through all sorts of scenarios, too many and too fast for me to keep up, without heed to the careful order she usually keeps.

  “That’s unusual, for two generations in a row to be talented. And to be so specific to ours…even our names…” Maeve shakes her head, then looks at me again with new eyes. “It must be true.”

  “That’s why I won’t run away from you. I know you won’t hurt me. I know you won’t release my soul, because I’m who you’ve been searching for.”

  Tears glisten in Maeve’s eyes. Her thoughts reveal how terrified she is of believing me only to find out it’s a trick. But with every second that passes, she becomes more convinced.

  “It’s like we knew. That day when we met. I hadn’t intended to take on traveling companions. But there was something about you. Something special.” She stares at her hands resting in her lap. “I simply chalked it up to the idea that you must somehow resemble one of my daughters. I never dreamed you actually were one of them.”

  “You had three children, right?”

  She looks at me askance. “Yes. But I can’t recall their names or faces. Just their ages and that I loved them fiercely. The Lady stole everything else about them from me.” Her hands ball into fists.

  A choking laugh wells up in my throat. “She let me keep the opposite. All I had left was a list of names. Nothing more.”

  “She always was a cruel woman,” Maeve spits out.

  I step toward her, a hint of panic flaring up in my gut, but I shove it down. “I know you’re different from her. You found me. You don’t need to ruin other people’s lives to bring back the others.”

  She frowns. “But I need them. I need my—our—whole family back. Don’t you? We can help each other, Simone. Don’t you see?”

  Her words cut into me. She isn’t wholly wrong. I’d give almost anything to have my entire family back. To know my father and my brother and sister. I swallow the lump in my throat. But I have no choice but to let them go and try to salvage what little of my family is left instead.

  “No, I won’t help you hurt my friends in the same way Lady Aisling did. If anything, what you plan to do to them is worse!” I dig my nails into my palms, almost surprised by my sudden outburst. Fury that my own mother would do this floods me.

  Maeve looks as though my words have physically struck her. “All I want to do is put our family back together. Why is that wrong?” She points to my friends, now listlessly hovering nearby with blank faces like silent sentinels. “Their minds are weak and terrified. They’re barely living the second chance at life they’ve been granted. If anything, I’m doing them a favor. It’s better to use their bodies for people who’ll really make the most of them.”

  Ice begins form into a hard lump in my gut. Somehow she’s convinced herself that this is not only the best thing for her, but somehow good for my friends as well. How do you reason with someone who is already so far beyond it?

  My hands shake, and I plunge them into my skirt pockets. “Where did you get this idea, anyway? I don’t understand how you would even know this was something that could be done, especially after having been a flower for many years.”

  Maeve gives me a shrewd look. “You’re smart. I’m glad of that,” she says. “After I was freed from the garden and discovered my family had vanished, I went to see Lady Aisling. I intended to kill her outright, but she offered to help me instead. I was surprised, but I agreed. We made a deal.”

  The ice in my belly begins to spread. A deal made with Lady Aisling can’t possibly spell anything good. “Why would you do that? You can’t trust her. Not for a second. She always has an angle.”

  Maeve shrugs. “I went in fully aware she was using me, and I know exactly what she’s using me for. The truth is I’m using her too. My eyes are wide open. Getting our entire family back is worth any price.”

  I’m terrified to ask the question I know I must ask. “What was the deal?”

  “You don’t need to know that. I’m your mother. I’ll take care of everything, and you needn’t worry about a thing. Come here.”

  “I’m already worried. I need to know what the deal was.” I fold my arms across my chest.

  She shakes her head. “Fine, I’ll tell you. But I have everything under control.” She takes a deep breath, and I look into her thoughts almost by instinct. Despite her protests, there’s a part of her that’s not entirely sure about this deal. I just need to find a way to latch on to that and bring it to the forefront.

  But before I can dig deeper, she speaks again. “We agreed to an exchange. She would tell me how to repair my broken family”—she looks wistfully at me for a second—“and I would fetch something for her in return.”

  “What did she want?” I ask, dread holding me in a vise.

  Maeve waves me off. “That doesn’t matter. She told me I need to find a soul summoner and that they can be used to bring the dead back to inhabit a new body.” Her eyes practically glow with desperate longing. “She told me where they were last seen.”

  I shudder. “And where was that?”

  “As luck would have it, Wren. Your village. Our village, I suppose.”

  My jaw drops. “Wre
n?”

  “Oh yes. Our missions turned out to be beautifully aligned.”

  My mind scrambles to wrap around this revelation. The journal she stole from Connor was supposed to be written by a soul summoner. That report Rachel found mentioned a soul summoner who had escaped Lady Aisling’s clutches since they were away while she was visiting the village. If that’s the soul summoner Maeve seeks, that also explains why she kept that map of where Wren once was located. I just don’t understand how that would help when the remains of Wren have long been underwater.

  “That’s why you were so eager to help us and go to the Archives. You thought we might know something about the soul summoner.” My heart sinks into my toes. “You didn’t even like me and Sebastian. Not really.”

  Maeve reaches for me, but I shrink back. “That isn’t true. I’ve grown fond of you both. Wouldn’t you like Sebastian to really be your brother? He could be if you help me get him back.” Terrible hope lights Maeve’s face.

  “Never,” I say, louder than I intended. She frowns. “Lady Aisling must have wanted something big in return for such information.”

  Maeve snorts. “You won’t let go of that, will you? I have it under control. I agreed to track down a gift giver for her in exchange.”

  Horror trickles over me. Gift givers can give someone a talent.

  Lady Aisling wants her magic back. And she’s using my mother to do it. She’s playing off Maeve’s desperation and letting her believe she’s in control.

  I have no doubt Lady Aisling has a plan in place for every contingency. And if she gets her talent back…

  I can’t even bear to think about the ramifications.

  My head aches and I sink down the cave wall, wrapping my arms around my middle. “No, no, no. Maeve, no. That’s too awful to even consider. She’ll just imprison you and all of us all over again.”

  “She most certainly will not. I made her shake on the deal and gave her a taste of her own medicine. When she regains her powers, she’s promised to leave me and mine alone. And she knows that if she touches my family, I won’t hesitate to use her for my own ends.”

  I shudder. “What if she doesn’t keep her promise? What if she gets close before you notice?”

  “I won’t be taken unaware again, and she knows it.”

  “But that is so risky.”

  “As I said, I cannot put a price on the value of my family.” Maeve straightens up. “Now, it’s late. You should get some sleep. Tomorrow, we’ll retrieve Sebastian, and then we’ll find the soul summoner together.”

  She leaves the little cave, stationing Melanthe in the doorway. I try to read my old friend’s thoughts, but Maeve is holding the reins too tightly. All I can hear is Melanthe’s faint cry for help. She can’t hear me. It’s unbearable to be this close to my friends and my newfound mother and to know they’re all working against me, willingly or not.

  I curl up on the floor near the fire, letting tears fall until they’re all dried up and I’ve drifted away to sleep.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  The next morning, no light wakes me. Only someone shaking my arm.

  “Come, eat. Then we’ll go,” Maeve says.

  I rub my eyes. “Go where?”

  “To get Sebastian. Remember?” She laughs. “We’re going to fetch him, and then we’ll go far away from here now that I have an idea where the soul summoner is.”

  That makes me sit straight up. “You know where they are?”

  “Do you think I would’ve risked leaving the library if I didn’t?”

  Of course she wouldn’t have. Maeve is always well prepared for everything. It just hadn’t occurred to me last night.

  “Where are they?” I ask.

  Maeve laughs again. “I shall keep that to myself for the time being. But in good time, perhaps I’ll share that with you too.” She crouches next to me and puts a hand on my shoulder. I force myself not to shudder. “I wish to share so much with you, my precious daughter. But I have to be sure I can trust you first. You’re too concerned with things that shouldn’t worry you right now, and I’m afraid you might do something rash to ruin my plans.”

  “What could I possibly do that would ruin everything for you?” All I can do is read minds. While useful, I don’t see how that could possibly impact Maeve’s plans. Physically, I’m no match for Maeve, if it came down to that.

  “It’s a risk. And I’m very cautious about risks.”

  She stokes the fire and begins to toast some bread over it. The smell makes my stomach rumble. My last meal was yesterday late afternoon. When she hands me a piece of toast and some cheese, I tear into it like I haven’t eaten in weeks.

  Running through the woods and being held captive can really work up an appetite.

  We eat quietly, neither of us sure what to say to the other. I can tell from unguarded parts of Maeve’s thoughts that she wants to know more about me, but the trouble is that neither of us can remember much about ourselves. Lady Aisling’s cruelty only continues to ripple through our lives.

  I remain quiet until I can’t stand it any longer. Too many questions bubble inside me until I feel as though I will burst.

  “Why Euna?”

  Maeve frowns. “What do you mean?”

  “Why did you take her over? What did you want?”

  She laughs and shakes her head. “Access. I took her over several times, but the last was the longest, and the only one she or anyone else noticed.”

  Now it is my turn to be confused. “Several times? Why didn’t we notice?”

  “It was just for a brief moment. Long enough to make her say things like ‘Let them in’ and ‘Find them a room.’ Or ‘Yes, you can have full access to the ancient archives section.’”

  My mouth drops open. “She wasn’t going to let us in. But you made her say yes. Why didn’t she realize it?”

  “I took her over just long enough to make it seem as if she’d changed her mind, leaving her surprised and confused but unaware of what really happened. Nearly every time I’ve done that, the person won’t admit it wasn’t them. Their minds can’t handle that someone else could be controlling them. And they keep quiet to save face to the people around them. Pride is very predictable.”

  Disappointment fills me. “Oh. I thought Euna liked us, but she only gave us special treatment because you forced her to do it.”

  Maeve shrugs. “In all fairness, she grew to like you and Sebastian. She just needed a big nudge to let us in the door.”

  I frown again. “But what were you doing with her that night when we found you controlling her?”

  “Again, access,” Maeve says. “She can access any room in the Archives—more than any other librarian. In order to get the information I needed, I had to use her.”

  “Why didn’t you just make her change her mind?”

  “Because I needed her to take the action, not just say something to make others do something. Even if I made her agree, she’d never actually do it. Taking her over was the only option.”

  I shudder. It’s incomprehensible to me that Maeve can speak of using another person’s body against their will in the same manner as she might discuss the best route to the nearest village.

  I don’t know what else to say, what more I can try to make Maeve see reason. I let my talent wander, seeking out anything living in these caves. Anything that might be useful. I have to warn Sebastian and the others. Maybe even begin thinking about how to escape with Jemma.

  At first, all I find are small creatures, mostly insects and bats, and a little warren of wild rabbits and a fox den not far from the cave entrance. I don’t know how I could use any of them to help.

  But then I find the familiar shape of a human mind. Quite a few minds, in fact. Sebastian and Rachel have returned. And they’ve brought guards from the local village. My heart soars, but I do my best not to re
act. I don’t wish to give them away.

  Rachel! I call out to her.

  I’m here, she responds. So is Sebastian.

  I know. I’m with Maeve. She wants Sebastian back. Her plan is to return to the Archives for him. We’re leaving very soon.

  I can hear the smile in Rachel’s thoughts. Good. We’ll be waiting in the woods to ambush her.

  Be careful.

  Anxious knots form in my stomach, making it impossible to eat any more. I set the remains of my breakfast down, which doesn’t escape Maeve’s notice.

  “Done already?” She shrugs. “Well, we ought to be going anyway.” She packs up the rest of the food and gets to her feet. “Come,” she says, holding out her hand. I take a deep breath and let her pull me up to standing.

  I’m not sure how to navigate this strange relationship with my newfound mother, who is also the person I’ve been fleeing for weeks. But right now, going along with her is the best course. And the safest one for my friends.

  To my surprise, we don’t exit immediately. Instead she holds me at arm’s length and looks at me with a strange expression. One glance at her thoughts tells me that emotion is sincere regret.

  “Simone, I know you’re not thrilled about me using these other children as hosts for your sister and brother. I’m sorry about it. What you said last night about being as bad as Lady Aisling… I never intended that. I just want our family to be back together again.” She rubs my arms in a manner that should be comforting, but all I feel is cold and confused. “If there is another way to get them back that doesn’t require me to use your friends, I will do it. I’ll see if I can find a way, I promise.”

  I do my best to smile as if this pleases me. And to be fair, I can sense that she means what she says. But she still doesn’t see that what she’s doing is wrong, and that’s what worries me the most.

  She takes my silence as assent and pats my head as she straightens up.

  Discovering that I’m her real daughter has only served to make her even more determined to carry out her plan, as I feared. Despite her regrets, if no other options present themselves, she will follow through with her plan. That much is clear.