Shatter

Chapter Five

20 Cooper Square, Manhattan, NY

8:07 AM

Wednesday, September 30, 2025

Sylvia

Sylvia woke to the sound of birds chattering outside her window. After the night before, Willow had let Sylvia keep her own body. Sylvia loved the feeling of being able to control her body again, to speak and think freely. She had stuffed down three bowls of cereal in one go, while Willow watched, amused.

Willow sat on the windowsill, her plastic buttoned eyes fixed on the ground.

"Are you okay?" Sylvia asked. She honestly couldn't believe she was trying to be nice to the doll, but what Willow said last night had changed everything. "I mean...it must be hard having that memory of your mother...um...doing what she did."

Willow sniffled. "She was always cruel to me after...after my father drowned when I was a baby. She would always hit me and yell at me - and she had a really bad drinking problem as well. Sometimes, with her spending all of our money on alcohol, I would barely have enough to eat for days.

"The night I died...my mother just came back from buying more drinks. She was super angry with me for some reason...and then she pushed me into the table, and..." Willow sighed. "Apparently no one but my mother knew I was dead for days. And she was careful about the situation, too - she buried my body in the freaking backyard and ran away. The police found my body after a few weeks."

Sylvia was shocked. "Your mother abused you? How could she do such a thing? How did no one find out you were being mistreated?"

Willow shrugged. "Not many people knew I existed in the first place. And when people came, she just told them I was being homeschooled."

Sylvia was silent for a moment as she took another bite of cereal. "Then...why are you a doll?"

Willow thought for a second. "Well...I can't remember. After I died...oh, I was at my old friend's house. Her name is Mara."

"How did you know Mara?" Sylvia asked. "Were you two neighbors or something?"

"Um...no, I don't think so," Willow replied thoughtfully.

Sylvia took a sip of water and stood up to put her dirty bowl in the sink.

"Wait."

Sylvia turned around to face the doll. "What?"

"I think...Mara...is my...secret stepsister."

***

502 Shadow Brook, Manhattan, NY

7:00 AM

Wednesday, September 30, 2025

Scarlett

Scarlett's eyes fluttered open due to the sunlight streaming through the house's windows, where the shutters had been closed just last night. She looked to the floor next to Ash's bed, but Ash was gone. "Ash?"

Last night, after they had seen the doll, Ash had immediately jumped into action. When he tried to grab the knife from the doll, it just disappeared, leaving them both in shock. He had dragged Scarlett back upstairs, where he went back to sleeping on the floor and Scarlett on the bed.

Scarlett carefully stood up on the carpeted floor and slumped outside into the hallway. She still hadn't gotten used to this house - and the places on her body where she bumped into things still ached. Scarlett started descending the stairs, trying to recollect what had happened last night. Suddenly, Scarlett halted when she heard a voice.