Fear Feast

What the Dolls Did: Dessert

What the Dolls Did: Dessert

Paisley sat on the floor of the playroom crying. All her dolls were gone. Her face still stung, putting an added damper on her mood. She did not bother to look for the dolls. She knew Nanny Malison must have confiscated them. They were probably in Malison’s room, in a pile in the corner, all torn up. Paisley wept even more bitterly.

The dolls gathered all their strength. The newly bare mattress with the large red bundle on it was so heavy but they managed to drag it off the bed frame. They pushed it to the foot of the window. How fortunate were they that the mansion had floor-length windows? They flung one set of windows wide open. They pushed the blood-stained mattress width-wise, Malison and all, out of the the window. They heard a thud and a sickening crack. They peered over the edge, looking at the ground below. The red bundle that contained Malison had rolled off of the mattress midair and hit the ground on its own. It lay a few feet from the mattress in the wet grass. Rain battered the bundle and the mattress. 

The dolls needed to hurry. They could not let the sun rise before they were done. It was almost two in the morning by the guest room clock. They surveyed the room. The carpet was clean. They had contained the crimson to the mattress and the bundle. Most of the dolls had been splattered with blood but the red liquid had already soaked into their soft bodies and would not be transferred to anything they touched. Jessminda’s once immaculate apron had been sullied. The rest of her was pristine. The empty bed frame was suspicious but they could not worry about that now. They fled the room. Onion shut the bedroom door behind them. The dolls scurried down the stairs, leaping and bounding as they went. They went back to the kitchen. There was a doggy-door in the exit that led from the kitchen to the vegetable patch. Jessminda had seen Chef Bill’s cat use it from time to time. The dolls tumbled headfirst out of the kitchen and into rows upon rows of lettuce, cabbages and cauliflower. They kept to the perimeter of the mansion. The rain had regressed to a drizzle but the dolls still needed to hurry. If they got too wet, they would become heavy, making it more difficult for them to move. They spotted the red bundle and mattress. Both were soaked and heavier than ever.

“This way!” commanded Jess, pointing to the garden shed.

They retrieved several shovels. They chose to dig up the empty area of the garden where Chef Bill intended to grow pumpkins in time for the year’s end. Every single doll worked tirelessly until they had made a hole deep enough. The digging was too difficult for Cupcake so he looked on. Jess patted him on the head and told him he had done more than his share. They chucked the red bundle into the open grave and hastily covered it with earth, smoothing the spot. The rain had stopped and the mattress had slowly begun to dry. They dragged the mattress to the dirt floor of the garden shed. It was still a bit damp. Jess took the second item out of her apron, a box of matches. It took her several tries but finally she set the mattress aflame. The dolls stood in a semicircle around the fire, careful not to get to close to the burning mattress. They watched it burn. Jess tossed her soiled apron in the flames. She was glad to be rid of it. She preferred her dress without it. They scooped up the ashes with their shovels and mixed them in the compost heap. That should do. Jessminda was worried but there was no helping it now. Dawn approached. 

The dolls cleaned off their muddy feet and hands on the wet grass but they could do nothing for their blood-streaked, mud and grass-stained torsos. What a dreadful sight these dolls were. Poor dears. Jessminda always knew what to do. She led them to the washing room where they piled themselves under a towel into the hamper.

Paisley was shuffling slowly back to her room. She noticed the door to Nanny Malison’s room was shut. She thought it was proof that Malison was harboring the dolls captive in the guest room. Paisley went to her bedroom, hid under her covers and fell into a fitful sleep. 

Yvette, the maid, was in for a horrifying sight. She reported for duty at seven and found the dolls lying motionless under a towel in the hamper. They were crusted with dirt and soot and...ketchup? What had Paisley been doing? Jessminda was at the very top. Yvette loved that doll. She was so beautiful. Yvette set about cleaning Jessminda up first. She was such an expensive doll. Yvette was too afraid to toss her in the washing machine with the others. By midday all the dolls were clean and happy. Yvette left them lying on a fresh towel in the sun on the patio to dry. They liked Yvette, not as much as Paisley or Chef Bill, but still they liked her. She was welcome at the mansion.

Chef Bill had realized Nanny Malison was missing at breakfast time. Paisley had no idea where she was. They found her suitcase still in the guest bedroom with the mattress and sheets missing. How strange. Chef Bill sent Paisley off to school. He was secretly glad Malison was gone. She was a nightmare and he suspected she was maltreating Paisley. Chef Bill thought to call the police but decided to call the nanny agency first only to find the number listed in Malison’s resume to be “not in service”. The agency was a nonexistent, a fabrication on Malison’s part. He wondered where she had come from. He pushed those thoughts aside. It did not matter now. The crook had made off with the mattress of all things. He checked around to see if she had stolen anything else. Everything else was in order. The playroom was devoid of its dolls but they were out on the patio. Yvette must have washed them. Chef Bill supposed they had gotten dusty as Paisley played with them so much. How nice of Yvette to clean them so painstakingly. They practically glistened. It was as though they were beaming with joy. Lovely. Chef Bill did not bother to call the police as nothing important was missing. He threw Malison’s stuff out and called Paisley’s parents to tell them that the strange and evil nanny had abandoned their daughter. The mister and madame booked a flight to return the same night. Chef Bill, pleased with their response, returned to his work. He planted pumpkin seeds in the empty part of the garden. The soil was strangely loose. It was quite aerated. A good sign. The pumpkins and subsequent pumpkin pies would be delicious come four months from now. 

When Paisley came home, she found her dolls had been put back into the playroom. Her heart swelled with happiness. She pulled them all down from their shelves and hugged each one. She threw an emergency home-coming tea party and she and all of the dolls were immensely happy.  

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Hope you enjoyed the first Fear Feast! Thank you so much for reading! Don't forget to vote and/or comment if you like the story! Fear Feast will be an ongoing series of short stories with each story containing three parts so stay tuned. ~ Joanna <3