The Puppeteer

Operation Danger Dolls

Jack felt uncomfortable with the options he found, all of them seeming more like cult offerings than ways to get rid of voodoo dolls.

Except one.

"Place the doll into a white cloth or bag made of linen or cotton. Sprinkle the doll with sea salt. Place it in a drawer or at the back of your wardrobe until a suitable time for disposal." Jack slowly read the first step out loud.

Seems easy enough, Jack thought as he took a spare set of linen sheets and tore them into pieces he could use as small bags for each doll, only to realize that he didn't have sea salt.

"I'll be right back, I have to grab sea salt!" Jack yelled to Signe and Mark before he left to go to the store.

"Okay!" Signe yelled back before Jack slammed the door shut, Mark remaining silent as he cradled his recently fixed arm.

"Are you okay?" Signe knelt down by Mark, whom was still sitting in the pile of bloodstained blankets with Chica lying asleep at his feet.

"I nearly died and lost my arm by an invisible force, then I have my arm stitched on as if I'm a freaking monster, what do you think?!?" Mark snapped angrily, glaring at her for a moment before his furious expression crumbled to reveal his fear.

"Sorry, I just...I'm so scared." Mark admitted quietly as he shook his head with a low sigh, running a hand through his raven black in exasperation.

They both looked up when they heard a knock on the door, startling the two. They exchanged glances before Signe got up and cracked the door open to see who was there.

Robin.

"Hey Signe! Is Sean here?" Robin questioned.

"He just went to the store, just a second." Signe closed the door in his face.

Mark darted into Jack and Signe's bedroom to changed out of his torn and bloodied clothes into something nicer while Signe hid the stained blankets in the recording room since Mark was in the bedroom.

Once Mark cane back out, Signe opened the door again and ushered Robin inside.

"What are you here for?" Signe tried but failed to act casual.

"You said you needed help moving, remember?" Robin reminded her. She had forgotten she had invited Robin over to hang out while they moved stuff into the moving truck.

"Right, I guess I've just been so busy I forgot." Signe giggled nervously.

"Is Mark here to help too?" Robin gestured to Mark.

"Yes!"
"No!"

Signe and Mark spoke in unison, earning a confused expression from Robin.

"Uh-I mean that I wanted to help, but Signe doesn't want me to since I'm her guest." Mark managed to recover quickly, making him the most thankful he's ever been for his improv classes.

"Ah, got it." Robin chuckled.

"I got the sea salt-"

Jack broke off when he noticed Robin watching him with an amused expression as Sean triumphantly held the bag up.

"What that for?" Robin took the bag from him, examining it with curiosity.

"Uh-Signe wanted it for something!" Sean blurted, pointing at Signe.

Signe mentally reminded herself to punch Sean later as her brain scrambled to come up with a decent excuse.

"Had an idea for a project I wanted to do." Signe lied, inwardly cursing herself for how stupid and fake her alibi sounded.

"Cool!" Robin nodded, seeming satisfied with the answer.

"So, what can I do to help?" Mark changed the subject, awkwardly clapping his hands together.

"We need to pick up the moving truck." Jack stated.

"Got it." Mark told Jack as he walked outside.

"What's in this box?" Robin stood on the tips of his toes to peer inside the box on top of the fridge.

"Fragile stuff." Signe told him, which was technically true.

"I'll be in the recording room if anyone needs me." Jack stated as he took the sea salt with him, locking the door behind him so no one would bother him while he read through the rest of the steps.

"The prevailing opinion judges Saturday to be the best day for disposal." Jack frowned as he he checked what day it was. It was Saturday. Jack let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding in before he read the next step.

"It is generally agreed that you should take the doll to a place very far from your home. I find the Scottish Highlands keep a lot of secrets. But if you live in the Highlands, Cornwall will do." Jack shook his head, deciding that since he would be moving continents, that would be enough.

"The best areas for disposal are woods near running water. Waterfalls are definitely encouraged. And they're so pretty." Jack instantly thought of his old cabin.

"I guess I could visit my parents before I move and drop the dolls off." Jack muttered to himself as he read on.

"Place the doll under a pile of rocks beneath the running water, along with an offering of fruit and some coins. Be careful to weight the doll and keep it hidden from sight...offerings?" Jack repeated incredulously.

So much for this not being a cult sacrifice.

"Ask the spirits of the trees and the water to transform the bad energy through the powers of the earth." Jack rolled his eyes, choosing to skip that part.

"Walk away without looking back." Jack felt shivers race down his spine when he read it for some reason.

"This whole thing is creepy like a horror game, only real." Jack sighed.

"Do not upload any photos or video footage of this to Facebook etc. Aw, but how would I get all of the subscribers and three trillion likes?" Jack scoffed sarcastically.

"Some experts say you should bathe in holy water afterwards, some say you should light a protection candle for seven days." Jack internally groaned when he thought of doing so.

"It's to save my friends." Jack reminded himself, shuddering when  he thought of Mark's bleeding body.

Jack jumped when he heard a knock on his door.

"Hey, you want lunch?" Signe spoke, her voice muffled by the wooden door between them.

"Sounds good!" Jack shouted, trying to calm his rapidly beating heart as he heard her footsteps down the hall.

"Operation Danger Dolls is a go." Jack smirked at the name as he opened the door to his recording room, already planning on how to follow the steps without getting anyone else involved.

Mark almost died, he wasn't going to let anyone else get hurt by the creepy dolls.