Part 2 - The Dollmaker
The Beneviento manor lies shrouded in fog, hidden from the world much like the last living owner. Donna hides herself behind a black mourning veil, while Angie, as much an extension of herself, parades around the building. Dolls litter every surface, invading the living room, hall, lounge, their lifeless eyes watching his every move.
The Duke does not make this trip often. He can count on one hand the amount of times he has. Much to his relief, Bela Dimitrescu took a shine to the dollmaker and invites her over to the castle any chance she gets.
Donna often requests tools, harder to find items and occasionally toys. These she dismembers to create another doll, another inhabitant to the manor. He can't help but feel unease when guiding Baron through the gardens, through the fog and decaying plants that cling to the trellises. His horse snorts, throwing its head from side to side. The Duke took the precaution of putting blinkers on Baron, he's loathe to think how much the horse would hate the garden and grounds without them.
The yellow flowers that spring from the dirt in the flowerbeds are a stark comparison to the rest of the grounds. They are impeccably kept, the pollen from them drifting through the air and catching in his nose. He's heard the rumours, of course. That these flowers cause hallucinations, that they are as real as Baron in front of him and inescapable.
He reaches the door, climbing down from the rider's seat on his carriage. He goes to the back, fishing out an apple and feeds it to Baron. With a pet to the horse's nose, the Duke goes to the back of the carriage again. Unlike Castle Dimitrescu, it does not take an entire household of servants and waiting staff to ferry the items out. These can be carried and brought into the house on his own. He picks them out, plucking them from the tops of drawers, inside trunks and hiding in toolboxes. He gathers them together, then makes his way to the door. He knocks and waits.
"Come iiiiiinnn!" comes the answer.
Angie.
"The door's open!"
The Duke does as he's told. He brings the items into the lounge, spreading them out on the table in front of the tv. The dolls stare at him from on top of it, the edge of the room and he could swear, peeking round the doorway. Perhaps he's not as immune to the pollen as he thinks.
There are creaks from above, footsteps far heavier than any doll. Something skitters between rooms. The Duke tries to pay it no heed, they are not there, they do not exist.
"Miss Beneviento? Are you well?" he calls, now standing at the door facing out into the hall.
"She's coming, she's coming! Hold your horses!" Angie replies with a cackling laugh.
The Duke is about to return to his seat, when more footsteps resound behind him. He turns, seeing the shadow of a figure walk down one of the hallways. His stomach drops. As much as he tries to tell himself there is nothing there, the back of his mind is not so sure, and it pounces on this chance sow the seeds of unease.
Every corner holds a shadow, every shadow threatens to move by its own volition, every doll poised to change position. More skittering from upstairs, more footsteps, more shadows. He hears footsteps from above and he halts, waiting. The lady of the manor appears at the top of the stairs, and she walks down them slowly, eyes fixed to the floor while she carefully holds Angie in place.
"Could...Could you bring them through here, please?" Donna asks, sitting down in the rocking chair. She puts Angie on the floor, the doll immediately going to the lounge to inspect what he's brought.
"Of course, Miss Beneviento," the Duke replies.
"I wanna see, I wanna see!" Angie calls.
"Miss Angie, if you'll give me but a moment."
He moves to the lounge, finding Angie picking things up to study them, then moving onto the next. The Duke gathers his wares together and returns to the hall. He sets them out for Donna to examine each tool, each part, each toy. She stands up, going into another room and comes back with a large pouch. She counts out the coins, counts them again, and again. The Duke waits patiently, neither hurrying her nor saying anything, he understands this is her way, just as her funeral gown remains her choice of attire.
"I think this should suffice," she says, pushing the pouch toward him.
"Indeed it does, Miss Beneviento," he answers, taking the pouch without counting it. He knows she'll have counted it several more times without his presence in the room. "I bid you good day." He looks over to the doll. "And to you, Angie."
"Get going ya big lug," Angie answers. She scampers to Donna and she picks up the doll.
The Duke leaves, trying to mask his relief at being out of the manor. Another visit done.
His next visit to Donna Beneviento is at Castle Dimitrescu. The dollmaker writes him a letter, her handwriting flowing and ornate, asking him to bring her requests to the castle. He is more than happy to grant this.
He heads through the village, nodding to the odd villager who passes him. One or two stop him to ask of the progress on an item he was acquiring, and he updates them accordingly. He continues on toward his destination.
He gathers everything together, knocks on the door and it's opened by one of the Dimitrescu staff. They lead him through into the large foyer where he can hear talking, laughing. The Dimitrescu daughters are entertaining someone, and it isn't long until Donna Beneviento, followed by Bela Dimitrescu, her hands on Donna's shoulders. Much to his surprise, Donna is without her veil and wearing bright, red lipstick. The scar on her face has been powdered and blush applied to take the attention away from it.
"Duke, what do you think?" Bela asks him, "I borrowed Mother's lipstick."
"Very fetching," the Duke says.
Donna blushes almost as red as the lipstick and dips her head, with a murmured, "Thank you."
Bela guides her to one of the armchairs, then sits on the arm of it. Angie flies down the stairs, stopping at Donna's feet and looks up to her. She reaches up, and Donna picks her up, setting her on her knee. Angie touches Donna's face then nods.
"Miss Beneviento, my wares are here to browse at your leisure," he tells her.
Donna, having been so preoccupied with Angie's reaction, jumps. "O-of course." She stands up from the armchair, setting Angie down, then approaches the cloth where the items lie. Bela hovers in the background, looking over Donna's shoulder, picking up each item when she has finished looking at it.
The Duke waits, letting her browse and pick out the exact tool she needs. She finds them, along with another doll with a half broken face that Angie seems particularly keen on.
"Duke, would you be able to source other parts for her?" Donna asks.
"I daresay I would," he says, "Dolls and other children's toys do turn up rather often."
Donna nods. She takes her pouch of lei, counting it once, twice, three times before she hands it over. He wonders how many more times she has counted the coins while not in his or Bela's presence. He gathers everything up ready to leave.
"You're not staying?" Bela says.
"I am afraid not, Miss Dimitrescu. I have a few other stops to visit before my day is complete."
Despite her mother telling her not, Bela pouts. "Do hurry back then."
"I shall return as swiftly as I am able."
This appears to cheer her up, and her attention is returned to Donna, who is once more dragged from the hall back upstairs.
When Donna Beneviento calls on him again, it is at her manor once more. Castle Dimitrescu is far preferable to the creaky old house Donna inhabits.
Baron walks slowly through the gardens, blinkers fixed tightly on his head. He snorts, shakes his head back and forth, however overall, maintains a steady pace. The Duke is the one who looks around at the fog shrouded grounds, the broken headstone in the middle bearing the name of Donna's mother.
The door is left open for him, and once everything is gathered together, he goes into the house. The shadows creep around every corner and down every hall. His wares are laid out, and he finds himself tapping his foot against the floor. The portrait of Donna and Angie gazes down at him from the staircase, though he can hear Donna's voice coming from one of the rooms.
The sound of boxes toppling over resounds from a corridor, a door creaking open. Curiosity infects us all, his mind adds, ever so unhelpfully. He goes to where the sound came from, a hallway off to the right of the main foyer. It is short and slender, dust clinging to the surface of the drawers placed at the end of it. It floats through the air, begging for a breeze to carry forward in an exploration of the entire house it is captive in. The Duke does not dare. The door at the end of the hall creaks open another crack. The Duke pokes his head around the door.
"Miss Angie? Are you in here?" he calls.
No answer.
There are boxes piled from floor to ceiling, nary a space in between. One box near the top of the pile collapses, taking another with it. The effect is immediate, the cardboard dominoes falling into a heap.
He hears a giggle from the corner.
He does an about turn, making a swift getaway.
Donna, much to his relief, makes her appearance shortly after.
She sets Angie on the floor and she runs to the Duke. She has something behind her back. "I have something for yooouuu," she tells him in a sing-song voice.
"Really? And what would that be, Miss Angie?" he asks.
"You'll have to guess!"
"I'm afraid I'm not terribly good at guessing games."
"Awww! You're no fun!"
"Indeed I am not, Miss Angie. I am in fact a terrible bore."
Angie giggles, then thrusts a doll at him from behind her back. "Well, you can be boring together!"
"Is this the repaired one from before?"
Donna nods. "I found some of the materials I needed here." There's a pause. "Do you like her?"
"She will take pride of place in my carriage."
Angie claps her hands together, scampering to the Duke's items.
While Angie and Donna browse, the Duke tries to ignore the footsteps from above his head.
Unbeknownst to the Duke, that would be his last visit to the Beneviento manor. As with Castle Dimitrescu, when Mother Miranda announced her ritual, Donna became preoccupied with the task she was assigned.
The last time he sees her is at Castle Dimitrescu. Bela Dimitrescu is once more in the foyer, a doll tucked under her arm while Donna and Angie sit in the armchair. Donna sits with her hands clasped together, as always, to the Duke, looking completely uncomfortable in her surroundings. Indeed he doubts he has ever seen her entirely relaxed, even when he visits her home. Such is the toll her anxiety takes on her from the many years of isolation with simply Angie for company.
"Ah, Duke, so nice to see you," Bela greets him, a smile on her face. "Do you like my friend? Donna made her for me." She holds up the doll.
"She is most delightful, Miss Dimitrescu," he answers with a smile of his own.
"I'm trying to convince her to continue my makeover of her. I thought she suited Mother's lipstick."
Donna dips her head, though she says nothing.
Bela continues her train of thought, lamenting that Donna will not let her try out different colours of makeup. Donna does not answer, letting Angie discuss this with Bela. She scuffs her foot against the floor, eyes fixed on her hands.
The rumours fly about missing villagers again, not simply to Castle Dimitrescu, but also the Beneviento Manor. People go to both of these destinations and never return. When Ethan Winters arrives, flask in hand with the first part of his daughter, the Duke knows Donna's time has come.
After being directed to the foggy estate, Ethan returns some time later, carrying Angie. The Duke has found the doll Donna and Angie gave to him, his mind wandering to what happened to the one she made for Bela Dimitrescu.
Ethan hands the Duke Angie and he puts the smaller doll down at his side.
Two more lords to go.
