Don't Keep the Lights On

Chapter 3

Andrea woke with a start. "What now?" She asked grumpily. "You turned off the lights!" Hannah said shrilly. "Yeah, I did. So what? It's stupid!" Andrea protested. "You released the spirit." Hannah choked. "Oh, the spirit. I know your stupid lies aren't true, Hannah!" Andrea laughed, a sound that sounded quite mad. "Andrea, it's real!" I shouted. "Look!!" I pulled her towards the empty space....just as the door opened behind us. "Hello, Hannah. Miss me?" The bear growled.

Hannah screamed. "No! Please! I'll...I'll do anything!" Andrea's face drained of all colour. "What the-" I looked at the bear. It was splattered with blood, and it's mouth was opened in a sadistic grin. "Oh my god." I whispered. The gigantic butcher's knife in it's padded paw added to our growing terror. We were cornered to the wall. "Hannah, what the heck?" Andrea yelled. "I'm sorry! I just...listen. Two years ago, I bought this book. It was supposed to give me powers of sorts. I was greedy, and the book changed me. Well, after that happened, something went wrong, and the spirit that was supposed to help me possessed the bear instead."  Hannah shook with tears.

The bear laughed. "That's right. And there's no escape. You have to pay the price, Hannah." Hannah gave a small, shuddering breath. "What...what is the price?" The bear smiled, something that I couldn't forget. "You...and your friends." "No!" The voice came from someone else, behind the bear. It turned, and so did we. A girl, the same age as us, stood there. She had long black hair and green eyes.

"You! Who are you?" The bear asked. "My name is Dolly. You murdered me, years ago." The girl said bravely. She walked towards us. I realised she was wearing a white dress that was down to her knees. "Puppeteer. Your soul and spirit lives on. You have claimed the lives of many innocents. Stop attacking these people and leave them alone!" The bear stopped. And it fell to the floor. I poked it anxiously. Nothing. Just plush.

I sighed. "He's gone." I murmured. "No, he's not." Dolly said. All three of us turned to her. "Dolly? Are you... a ghost?" Andrea asked. Dolly nodded. "Me, my brother and my friend James were murdered by the puppeteer, who first tortured us by putting on "shows" and then killing us. It was brutal." Dolly shivered, remembering the horrible suffering she forgone.

"What's this about your souls unable to rest?" Andrea asked. "Well, the puppeteer knows dark magic. You know the book Hannah has? It used to be the puppeteer's. His soul is trapped in the mortal world, thanks to the book. Destroy the book, he leaves. But us...he bound us to the book as well. That's why we can't leave. He has to die." Dolly explained. I took a deep breath. "So, in order to kill the puppeteer, I need to kill the book?" I asked. Dolly nodded. "Great. Just great. I'm sorry, guys." Hannah muttered. Andrea sighed. "It's fine. I owe you an apology too, you know. It's my fault he was unleashed in the first place."

"No, it's not." Dolly shook her head. "This was supposed to happen, the puppeteer orchestrated it all. He wanted you and Hannah to turn against each other. But it didn't work." "So where is he now?" I asked. "When he was a living man, he said he wanted to be a doll like man. There's a doll shop at Crescent Town Shopping Mall. In the last shelf, there'll be a life size human man doll. The puppeteer will use that puppet. Follow me, we need to kill him now!" Dolly mused thoughtfully. Hannah grabbed the book from under her bed and followed Dolly out the door. I noticed Dolly again, this time closer.

Her features were surgically altered to look like a porcelain doll's. Cherry red spots of blush, big, enlarged eyes and a heart shaped mouth she was pale, too, and that made her look completely artificial. Dolly caught me staring at her. "I know I look weird." She said quietly. "Oh, Dolly, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have stared at you so. Don't worry, it's kind of pretty." I added quickly. Dolly sighed. "I wish I could look how I used to. But it's too late now, I guess."

When we arrived at the doll shop, the doors were sealed. Dolls, every single kind, were displayed by the stained glass windows. Dolly forced the door open, shattering the glass. Luckily, it was the dead of night, and it wouldn't cause anybody to call the cops. I walked inside, clutching both my friends to stop my legs from giving way. Andrea almost fainted from what we saw upon entering. It was the shop keeper, sprawled on the floor, stabbed. "Jesus!" Hannah screamed. "Shhhh." Dolly warned. I examined the carcass. "Wait, guys. He's still breathing." I said.

The shop keeper lifted his head. "Find...him....bring...my...son...back..." "Son?" Dolly asked sharply. "My..doll." The shop keeper wheezed. "We will." I promised. The shop keeper laid his head on the floor. "I...can...rest." He sighed. Tears filled Andrea and Hannah's eyes. I put my arms around them both. Dolly had already turned to the door. "Let's go." She said. We followed her out the door. Judging by the path of destruction, we could easily track where the puppeteer went. We stopped by the book store, to take a break. But we were too late.

Because the Puppeteer was already there.