Dolls of silence

1

Salem was founded by English colonists in 1626. It was a rural area, but soon became known for its port. In 1692, a rumor broke out among young girls in this small community that some women had made a deal with the Devil and could perform witchcraft, leading to their cruel deaths. Right where they were once burned, the toy store of Draganas was built.

In the town where the fateful disappearances of children began, rumors spread among the children that the souls of the witches were roaming free and seeking revenge on the descendants of those who wronged them.

- What nonsense are you talking about, there are no ghosts.

Said a little boy to his peer, who was new in the town of Salem. The other boy looked at him and took two steps closer to him.

- Let's see if you'll say that when you disappear from their hands.

- That won't happen! Because there are no ghosts!

He angrily stomped his foot on the ground and the other children imitated him, mocking him. The clock in the square showed half past eight. The children started running and dispersing in all directions, each taking a different path. The new kid stayed in the middle of the square, watching the children who got lost in the alleys. He couldn't understand why they left so quickly, it was still daylight as the sun had just begun to set.

His head was turning and he was looking attentively in every alley, as if the earth had swallowed them. He decided to go back home when he heard a chilling sound, trying to leave frightened but his feet took him closer to the source of the noise. Deep down he was curious to learn what he had heard. The sound came from the amusement park, the shutters were down and the lights were off, he tried to take a sneak peek, but he couldn't see anything, only hear the sound of the wheel ringing loudly in his ears, he moved away from the window, his heart trembling as he stumbled upon something hard. Slowly he turned his head to see behind him.

A woman dressed in black, little Gilbert screamed with all his might when he saw her as he couldn't distinguish her face in the minimal lighting that existed.

- Gilbert.

- You know you know my name?

- Of course. Why wouldn't I know it?

- Who are you? Did you come to seek revenge because they burned you?

- What are you talking about...

- You are a ghost!

He started running while the woman ran after him until she caught up and stopped him, then Gilbert saw his mother. He fell into her arms and burst into tears.

- What did you tell me back there, my boy?

- I heard from the locals the story that the witches of Salem came to seek revenge. But mom, how did you find me?

- I went out to call you that dinner is ready and you were missing, I thought you would come to the square to socialize with the locals' children. Gilbert, you are almost fourteen, you can't still believe in ghosts. Get up, let's go home now, it's already late.

- Mom?

- Yes?

- Didn't you say that the toy store has been closed for years because the owner lost his family?

- You're right, it's an abandoned building.

- Then why did I hear the sound of the wheel working?

- That's impossible, you have a great imagination.

Days later, Gilbert started joining the group of children without revealing anything to them about that night. However, he was curious about that sound he heard the other day; did he hear it or was it his imagination. Tonight, he decided to stay and see what was really going on.

The clock struck half past eight. The other children panicked, but Gilbert stayed there waiting to hear again the sound he had heard that night. He approached the toy store to hear better. At the edge of the grave, silence, only the bats were heard in the black mantle of the night that had fallen.

Disappointed, he took the road back when he saw a man with gray hair, skin distorted over time; in his hands he held clothes from a porcelain doll, a Victorian dress being the main characteristic. The man looked sad and was wandering around as if looking for something. He approached little Gilbert, who took two steps back, his foot found the hard cement decoration of the square's fountain. He wanted to scream from the pain but remained calm even though his face had taken on the sensation of pain and it was apparent.

- I'm sorry if I scared you. Have you seen my , Callisto and Alcmini?

The boy swallowed his spit before responding to the unknown gentleman in front of him. He straightened his back, took a deep breath.

- No, I haven't seen them, I am new in town. Who are the those women ?

- My daughter and my wife.

- I haven't seen them, I'm sorry, I hope you find them.

- I hope so, sorry, but who are you and why are you lurking outside my store?

The behavior of the stranger started to become aggressive and hostile towards the young man. Gilbert then realized that the man in front of him was Maximus Draganas. The little boy rubbed his eyes and pinched himself to see if he was dreaming.

Maximus Draganas, who had disappeared many years ago after the death of his loved ones, was alive in front of the young Gilbert's eyes.

- I am Gilbert, I am new in town...

The words came out of his mouth intermittently and each syllable was repeated. He tried to complete his sentence but was afraid that Maximus would do something to him.

Then Maximus' face softened.

- Do you want to buy one of my toys?

Gilbert looked at him puzzled.

- It's late, I have to go.

This sentence sounded like an echo as he quickly took steps before starting to run towards the alley where his house was located.

He entered inside panting and sweaty.

His mother was already waiting for him at the door with her arms crossed at chest level. She looked at him sternly.

- Where were you again?

- O...O...outside.

- Do you have any idea what time it is now?

Her question was not a direct question, let alone rhetorical, wanting to show her son how angry she was with his behavior.

- I'm sorry, mom. I won't do it again. But I have to tell you something.

- I am very angry with you. I don't want to hear a word. Eat dinner and go straight to your room.

Gilbert and his mother moved to Salem, where his mother's origin was. When Gilbert's father died in a war in Afghanistan, his mother couldn't bear to be alone with a child in a foreign country and returned to her hometown after many years. When Kallisti and Alkmini died, she left for Europe where she started her life, met the love of her life, and had their first child when she was eighteen.