Lucy

Not all imaginary friends are fake...

“I killed the goat, I killed my sister, I killed the dog, I killed the neighbor.” Little Annie sat in the corner brushing her dolls hair singing the same mantra she always did. Humming she was oblivious to her parents and a doctor watching her.

“How long has Annie been singing this rhyme?” The doctor watched perturbed by how young the girl was.

“She started singing it in kindergarten. I asked her if a student taught it to her but she always said no. Annie has been singing it for the past three years and she won’t stop. Please Dr. Campbell, can you help us?” Annie’s mother wrapped her arms around her chest.

“I will talk to Annie and see what we can do. Mr. Foster you and your wife can go relax in the cafeteria.” Annie’s father nodded and led the way.

“I killed the goat, I killed my sister, I killed the dog, I killed the neighbor.” Annie looked up with a dark presence in her eyes as Dr. Campbell sat across from her at the table.

“Hi Annie, I’m Dr. Campbell but you can call me Frank if you like.”

The blonde pig tailed girl went back to tending to her doll, “That’s my grandpa’s name.”

“What’s her name?” Frank pointed to the porcelain girl with red curls and a white dress.

“Lucy but you can’t touch her, only I can.” Annie held the china baby against her chest.

“What was that song you were singing before I came in?” Dr. Campbell opened his notebook and clicked his pen.

“Nothing,” Annie dropped her gaze and gripped Lucy tightly.

“Your mom says you sing it often.” Annie sat motionless. “Where did you learn it?” Still the seven year-old remained quiet. “Did you hear it on TV?”

“No,” her tone was slightly musical and amused as she returned to fluffing Lucy’s hair.

“Did someone at school teach it to you?” Dr. Campbell made notes as he watched her body language.

“No,” the same response was delivered.

“You can tell me; I’m really good at keeping secrets.” Frank closed the book hoping it would help earn the young girl’s trust.

Annie sat uncertain as she stared at the doll trying to decide. “It was Lucy.” She picked up the girl and pranced her around as if the doll was walking on the table.

“The doll taught you the song?” Dr. Campbell tried not to laugh.

Annie’s pig tails bounced as she looked the doctor straight in the eye, “Lucy isn’t a doll! Why does everyone keep saying that?”

Frank looked at the young girl confused, “Sweetie, when you look at Lucy what do you see?”

“My best friend. It’s sad because she can’t walk or feed herself so I have to help her but we talk all the time.” A smile spread across her face and she hugged the doll.

Dr. Campbell swallowed, “And where did Lucy learn the song?”

“When she was a little girl like me she was teased because her face was ugly so she hurt the people that hurt her.” A sympathetic look crossed Annie’s eyes as she looked at the doll.

“Her goat, sister, dog and neighbor hurt her?” Frank was unsure how a little girl could come up with such an elaborate story.

“The dog bit her on the face when she was a baby. After that her goat and sister would run away from her. And her neighbor would call her ugly so she burnt his house down.” None of what Annie said even fazed her as she walked Lucy around the table.

“And what happened to poor Lucy?” Dr. Campbell tried to sound sincerely interested.

“Her daddy beat her after finding out about the neighbor.”

“That’s very sad.” He scooted closer to Annie. “And how did she come to you?”

“We moved into her old house and we’ve been best friends since,” she squeezed the doll against her small chest.

“I’m just going to talk to your mommy and daddy quickly, you keep playing.” He smiled and she nodded.

Frank ran down to the cafeteria to find the Foster’s leaning closely and whispering. Annie’s father saw the doctor first, “Dr. Campbell, what’s wrong?” His face was pale.

“So the doll is possessed?” Mrs. Foster turned white after his recollection.

“I don’t know. Frankly, I’ve never heard such a story in my 31 years of being a child psychologist. I can’t tell if she has an over active imagination or if Annie heard the story somewhere.” They all remained silent for a moment. “Have either of you ever put any merit into her having an imaginary friend?”

Her parents exchanged a look, “When Annie found Lucy she told us that the doll talked to her and we played along.” Mrs. Foster began to cry, “Oh god, what have we done?”

“Mr. and Mrs. Foster I don’t think you need a doctor, I think you need a priest.” Frank moved closer and dropped his voice to a whisper, “I’m not supposed to believe in this stuff but I’ve referred a few couples before to Father Martin; I think he can help you.” He slid a card across the table.

Mr. Foster picked it up and examined it, “But you said you’ve never seen anything like this before.”

Dr. Campbell shook his head, “I haven’t. I’ve recommended him before to prove to parents that their child isn’t possessed or a demon. But I think you have a haunted doll and you need to get it exorcised or your daughter’s life may be in jeopardy. By acknowledging it, you have let the demon in and it is feeding off of your daughter.”

Mrs. Foster let out a whimper and quickly covered her mouth, “Brian we need to do this; for Annie’s sake.”

The lights began to flicker and a cold breeze encompassed them. A deep cackle filled the room and they all ran to the play room Annie was in. The lights were off and nothing could be seen from the other side of the glass.

“Dear God, what’s happening?” Brian clung to his wife.

“What’s wrong daddy?” Whipping around Annie stood looking up at her parents. Her blue eyes had been replaced by pure black and her features were distorted. “Am I not your pretty little girl anymore?” Her voice became deep and menacing as she lunged at his face.

The hall was drenched in blackness as screams filled the air. “Lucy, stop!” Dr. Campbell wanted to reason with the demon. “You don’t want to hurt this little girl; she is innocent just like you were once.”

A deep loud cackle sounded as goose bumps covered the doctor’s entire body. “They all deserved what they got. And this vessel is mine now. I will destroy everything that has ever gotten in my way.” The lights flickered at the end of the hall where Lucy stood. Her voice softened to sound like Annie’s, “And who would ever think to hurt such a cute little girl.”

Frank put his hands up defensively, “Lucy, we don’t want to hurt you; we want to help.”

“You want to stop me and I won’t let that happen again.” Razor sharp teeth protruded from the girl’s mouth just as the hospital was clouded in darkness and screams filled the halls.

Blood splattered the walls and bodies lay strewn everywhere. A young girl bounced down the hallways, “I killed the goat, I killed my sister, I killed the dog, I killed the neighbor and now I’m coming for daddy.”

Reviews

[LexiaNight]

This story was really cool. I actually have a fear of demon children, so this really got me tense. Good job! The only thing I have to say is that maybe it would have been nice to know what the doll said, and more about the doll in general. Or Annie's "friend". My bad. ;)

[wordman]

this is a great story,kept me on edge