by Lani Lenore
A pair of mangled puppets with missing arms lingered motionlessly in the dark. One was still, sitting against the wall. The other was balanced enough to remain standing, but too stiff to move himself. They did not know who they had been or what they had done. There was no consciousness or memory. There was no life.
A group of toy soldiers that had locked in battle with rodents simply lost their balance and fell over onto the hard floor. They did not feel pain from their wounds, and they did not struggle to rise.
The mice that had been fighting the soldiers sank down onto four legs. They looked around with their beady eyes, raising their noses into the air to sniff about. They did not know any languages save for their own squeaking chatter, and they knew no master. The mice examined the fallen soldiers, sniffing around their bodies. The rodents determined that there was no food here. They scurried off into the dark.
A small doll with a mass of golden curls leaned against the wall of a shaft, her glass eyes wide open but unseeing. She had become what she had never truly been–a lifeless doll. A doll head without a body rested against her knee, black hair spilling all around. If someone ever found it, they might guess that it had belonged to a young maiden doll whose hair had never been fixed and whose face had never been painted. No one would know the truth about the head, for no one would ever find it. With its child lover, it was lost in the darkness forever.
Deep within the house, a fire burned.
Chapter Thirty–Nine: London Bridge is Falling Down
1
Todd moved hastily up the stairs, being careful not to make much sound. He did not want to alert anyone as to where he was headed. The key that he’d found on the hallway floor was in his hand. He had guessed that it was a skeleton key–at least, he hoped. It must have fallen out of William’s pocket. The lying bastard! He’d said he didn’t have a key to Olivia’s room on him. But Todd was diligent. Todd was on top of things. Soon, he would get to the bottom of this.
He managed to get to the third floor unnoticed, knowing that William would likely be downstairs where the scream had been heard. Todd knew it was not Olivia’s scream–it did not sound like Olivia at all. The sound was much too childlike to be Anne’s either, and so Todd was uninterested in it. He only wanted to see that Olivia was alright and be certain that Anne had done nothing to her.
He moved to the attic room and anxiously slid the key into the lock. One full turn and there was a click, the latch undone. His hands shook with fury as he clenched the knob, remembering that the door was blocked from within by something large. Todd lowered his shoulder against the door and pressed with all his might, his shoes gripping the rug beneath his feet. The door slid open a tiny crack and he hurriedly threw his weight into it. It opened a bit more with a loud disturbance. He could see into the room now. It was a wreck. Of course, hadn’t he left it that way? Yet it seemed worse than what he’d done by breaking a few dolls.
One last good jolt and the door opened enough for him to squeeze through. Todd entered, twisting up the light on the wall lamp to see more clearly. He had to stare for a moment and blink several times before he believed what he saw there before him. Once he understood, there was no denying it. His eyes blazed.
“What in bloody hell is going on?” he demanded in his rage.
He received no answer.
2
Anne was in a cloud of white. Where was she? Had she lost her way back to herself once her body had been released? After everything else, she wouldn’t have been surprised. But where was Olivia? Anne was supposed to look after her. The girl was her responsibility.
Off in the distance, the woman saw a small figure. Was it Olivia? No, it was much too small, but it was certainly a girl. Anne could see the outline of her dress. The girl stared back at her even though the woman could not see her face through the cloud. Anne could not feel the ground she was standing on.
Where am I?
A taller figure emerged from the mist. It was a man, but he was just as blurry as the girl. He stretched out his hand to the child and she accepted it, joining together like old friends. Anne saw him lean forward as if the girl was speaking and he wished to hear her better. He had long hair. It hung down over his shoulders. When the man leaned back up, both figures turned to look at her.
At their gaze, Anne felt frozen at her core. Who were they? Why were they looking at her? Where was she? As she looked on, the fog began to clear, and suddenly she recognized them.
She gasped as her heart sped to a rapid pace. She could see their faces, and though she had never seen them before, she recognized them. Clara and Armand… Was this a dream? No; something was telling her that this was real. So, it was over then? Armand had destroyed his enemy and lost his own life, just as he’d planned. Now he had gotten what he’d wanted. He was with his daughter again. Anne did not feel jealousy for this. In fact, she couldn’t help but smile. She could not stop a tear from rolling down her cheek. She’d fallen in love with a nutcracker, but to see him as a man–even though not so clearly–was a gift. Even without him, perhaps she could learn to be content now. Anne turned to go, done here, but a certain movement stopped her.
Armand had reached out toward her, stretching out his arm, but not as an offer. It was in desperation. He saw her; he wanted to get to her. There was a troubled look on his face, as if he knew that no matter how far he stretched, he could not reach her. That seemed to distress him. His lips moved, but she could not hear his words.
But, over all else, she desired to go to him.
Anne stepped forward, reaching out her own hand even though he was still a great distance away–and then she was being pulled back. Something unseen was drawing her consciousness back toward her body, away from Armand. She struggled against it fiercely.
No! I want to go. I need to be with him!
She fought, but she was losing. When she looked up again, she could not see Armand or Clara at all. They had vanished.
No! No it was not fair! Why was she being forced to go back? What she wanted had been right in front of her and she’d not been allowed to have it. Why? How could anyone tease her so?
A firm smack against the side of her face tore her away from those thoughts. She didn’t know where she was, but she was no longer in the white cloud. Someone was screaming at her. Anne felt a jolt to the opposite side of her face. Why was she being slapped?
It was Armand, she knew. She’d been screaming again after he’d told her not to. He’d told her that she had to keep control and she’d disobeyed.
“I’m sorry,” she managed to choke out.
He slapped her again.
“That’s not good enough!” he yelled. “Tell me! How could you do something so disgusting? How!”
“I…won’t do it again. I promise!”
“You won’t do it again? I’ll kill you for it once!”
What?
This was not Armand’s voice at all. She heard it now. Anne managed to open her eyes and look into the face of the one who attacked her. It was a young face. Her eyes focused on dark hair and sharp blue eyes that were lit with fury.
“Todd?”
Anne received no response except for her head being slammed into the wall with great force. Why was he trying to hurt her? What had she done? Her head hit against the wall repeatedly, and the woman was not strong enough or aware enough to resist.
She managed to catch a glimpse of Olivia, sitting against the side wall with her head tucked into her knees, naked and vulnerable, hiding from the sound of Todd’s screams. Anne’s vision blurred as she was knocked back into the wall once again.
She could not save herself.
3
William did not blame his young Elizabeth for screaming at the sight that she found in the hall. All the dead mice, all the destroyed presents were enough to shatter any child’s innocence. He wasn’t even sure that his own mind was intact after seeing this. Could someone have broken into the house and done this as some sort of cruel joke? Or perhaps it did n
ot take a break–in to have such dark humor.
Todd. Of course it must have been that youth. Who else could it have been?
Once Elizabeth’s nanny had come into the room to secure the girl–since she too had been awakened by the scream–William set off up the stairs to find his accomplice. He had never expected such reckless behavior from his nephew, but tonight, he would expect anything.
William might never have known that Todd had gotten into Olivia’s room if not for a steady thumping noise above his head as he walked the second floor. From that, he heard a man’s muffled yells, and that lead him to move swiftly to Olivia’s room.
William did not know what he would find past the door that sat partially open, and he did not even try to guess. He moved to the crack where the light was escaping and pushed himself inside.
His first glimpse was that of Olivia, sitting on the floor with her hands over her head and covered with nothing but her hair. William’s vision was turned immediately away from that and drawn toward the source of the noise. Todd was there with his back to William, gripping Anne, slamming her head back into the wall unyieldingly. The woman was wearing just as much as his daughter, but at the moment, William was more interested in rescuing her from Todd’s rage.
William rushed forward and forced the younger man to release her. He shoved Todd back and steadied the disoriented Anne before she fell to the floor.
“What have you done now?” William demanded, not allowing his voice to grow too loud. He hurriedly ripped a quilt from the bed and threw it over Olivia’s shoulders before turning to do the same for Anne.
Todd stared only at Anne, puffed up like an enraged primate.
“Ask that whore why she was laying naked on the floor with Olivia!”
“What?” The word barely came out.
William looked down at the woman leaning against him. She made no attempt to defend herself against this accusation, but that must have been because Todd had been beating her so. Her cheek was reddened and a bruise was forming on her forehead. Certainly Anne would never participate in such behavior. She could not have done what she was being accused of–and yet, what other explanation could there be?
“That’s what I found when I came in,” Todd went on, pacing in his fury. “They were asleep, but there’s no knowing what she made the poor girl do before then. Make her talk!”
Olivia made no sound, keeping her head down. The girl’s father took a step back from the woman he’d desired so strongly. This was a stab at him if it was true, but he could not believe that it was. At the same time, however, he could not deny it.
“Is this true?” he asked toward Anne. He could not mask his disgust. And for the first time, he wondered if everything he’d planned had been for naught.
4
Her grey eyes trailed up to see his face. William’s voice had been calm, but his eyes were set and very serious. Anne’s head hurt and she felt a bit dizzy, but she did not appreciate his mistrust. She tugged at the blanket around her body, for once gaining more power in her dignity rather than her nudity.
“Why don’t you ask him what he made her do,” Anne countered weakly, but stopped then, remembering suddenly who she was talking to. She remembered what she had uncovered about him; how he had enlisted the aid of Todd to help him murder his wife. Obviously William had feelings for her because of his plans to marry her once his wife was dead, but she could not look at him the same way. He was not trying to understand. He was demanding that she explain herself.
She pulled away from him, folding her arms to shield herself. Nearby, the clock atop the fort of books was ticking.
“How could you?” she hissed at him. “How could you be so vile?”
Nearby, Todd looked nervous, confused, and even angrier.
“What’s she talking about?” he demanded.
“Don’t act so ignorant,” Anne screamed at him. “I know what you were doing. Both of you!”
“What in–” Todd started before realization hit him. He looked at William accusingly. “You told her, didn’t you?”
“There’s nothing to tell,” William insisted through his teeth with a sharp look in his eyes. “You just beat the poor woman senseless. She’s obviously confused.”
Todd averted his eyes and clamped his mouth shut. He kicked a toy soldier that was lying face down on the floor. It slid under the bed.
William took Anne’s arm gently. “Come on, Anne dear. Let’s get you some clothes and we can talk this out.”
For the first time, Anne pulled away from his touch. She was lost. She could not think straight. She was not aware enough to know that it would be better to simply keep her mouth shut for now. The woman fell back against the wall.
“Something has got to be done about this,” Todd said through clenched teeth.
“Anne, whatever you think you know–”
“I heard you!”
Before William could stop him, Todd gripped the woman’s arm and pulled her near him, pinching her face in his hand to force her eyes on his.
“You should consider that we have a shocking and embarrassing claim we can make about you just now. I’m certain that if you took the time to consider it, you would understand that we should both keep quiet about the other’s business until we can make an arrangement. Hm?”
He waited, and the time seemed to tick by with each second slower than the last. His anger was urgent, but the clock was not, and even as he continued to stare at her, demanding answers, the woman remained silent.
5
When Anne grew quiet, realization dawning in her eyes, Todd released her, and she was quickly made aware of her situation. Of course! She knew what had happened now. She and Olivia had been left unconscious and naked after their sudden transformation, and when Todd had come into the room, they had both been laying there…
Oh God…
Olivia had stood by now, wrapped in her quilt with the dolls stitched upon it. When Todd turned from Anne, he hugged Olivia in a comforting sort of way, only the girl did not appear pleased. She stared at Anne with pleading eyes, and the nurse could not help but stare back.
Save me, those eyes said. You’re the only one who can save me. Don’t let me down again.
Anne’s mind was a chaos of thought. She wanted to save Olivia, but she wanted to save herself just as strongly. She did not believe she could have both. She thought of Armand. She thought of how many years he’d spent regretting his inability to save the one he cared about. She thought of Brooke and his sense of morality that he had given up his very existence for. Anne looked deep into Olivia’s desperate eyes. The woman knew what she had to do.
“Anne?” William asked, her voice calmer now. To hear that brought on a feeling of comfort, but she would not be fooled. There was no comfort in this place anymore.
“Alright,” she consented. “I’ll confess.”
She gained their trust with a shaky sigh of surrender, but as soon as William stepped back from her, Anne fled from beneath the security of the blanket.
The woman tore out of the room and flew down the stairs. There was yelling and shuffling feet behind her, but she did not stop to give that any attention. She had to get out! She had to get help!
The second floor was an easy stretch and the footsteps behind her were still on the stairs. Perhaps all the running she’d done recently had proved useful. They were not going to catch her. She could not allow them to!
On the first floor, she saw figures standing about as she streaked past, but she did not care that they saw her. She ran past them, her hand already outstretched to grip the knob that would let her outside.
The knob was icy. When Anne opened the door, a burst of Winter’s fury hit her. The freezing temperatures rolled over her bare skin, threatening to dry her out and wither her quickly into the old hag she never believed she’d become. The sight was beautiful really; with everything slicked over in ice and powdered by snow, it was a frozen Wonderland. Anne did not stop to look at it.
&nb
sp; She dashed out the open door, not bothering to close it. She threw herself against the handrail and jumped down the ice–covered steps. There was more yelling behind her–several different voices–and though they all seemed close, she could not hear what they were saying. Her feet pounded against the walkway beside the street. The snow had wet her feet, causing them to stick and then tear away against the ice with every step. Still, she did not stop.
Her body protested. It was too cold to go any farther, but Anne could not stop. I have to save Olivia, she thought, and it was with that thought in her mind that she finally spotted the one she was looking for.
He was beneath a street lamp, bundled in thick clothes, but she had known he would be somewhere nearby. He always was. She did not know him personally, but she relied on him. This was a quiet street, but it was never without police patrol.
Anne screamed something she didn’t even understand in order to get the copper’s attention, but since her voice was the only sound on the silent, frozen street, it grabbed the man’s notice immediately. Anne did not wonder what he must have thought. Not only was she coming at him like she was rabid, but how could she have forgotten her clothes in such terrible weather? She did not care about any of that.
“Please…” she gasped, falling into the officer. “Help…”
The officer, very new to his post, hesitated in shock before he managed to wrestle his coat off.
“My God…” he said in a way that admitted he did not know what to say.
He pulled the coat around her tightly, unable to even ask her where she had come from. Anne’s legs shook and then gave way. He caught her before she fell down into the snow. A short distance away, she heard yelling.
“Please…” she said again, drawing his attention back to her just before her vision began to waver. “Help us.”
6
Officer Franklin Jefferson did not appreciate being called out in the middle of the night–especially on the eve of Christmas–but apparently the situation was urgent, but even after he had arrived at the Ellington house and the situation had been explained to him by the young patrolman, Scott Blanchard, he still didn’t understand why this couldn’t have waited until morning. His grumpiness had turned a rather serious situation into an absolute bother.