The Toymaker: Excerpts

“Did you just say no?”

Ashima took a nervous step back. “Yes. I mean… yes, I said no. I’m… I’m not leaving until you tell me… tell me why my doll can move.” She nodded once, satisfied with her words, and then lifted her chin in defiance. The effect was somewhat ruined by the way it quivered.

“Oh,” the man said, looking, for a moment, almost contrite. “I didn’t think it belonged to anyone, sorry. But no worries, she won’t hurt you or anything. She is your doll and everything.” He then adjusted the goggles back around his face and turned to the conveyor belt.

“That’s not an answer!” Ashima said. The man whirled on her and she flinched. Swallowing, she ventured on. “What did you do? I’m not leaving until you tell me.”

“Is it really important?” the man said with an almost-whine to his voice, like it would make his day if he didn’t have to explain anything.

“Yes,” Ashima said. “Yes it is. I want to know what you did.”

“Nothing harmful, I swear. If you want I could undo it but, really, I’d rather not, it always makes me feel terrible about it afterwards. But I suppose there’s no choice in it if you want your doll back.” But when the man took a step forward, Asha retreated, hiding behind Ashima’s gown and shaking her yarn head emphatically. The man’s shoulders sagged and he sighed, defeated.

“You see? She can’t even do expressions and I still feel terrible about it. I knew I shouldn’t have done it but she was the first doll to come down here not ripped to pieces and… I have no bleeding willpower, I really don’t. Look, if you must know, it’s a spell, something my grandfather taught me. That’s all. I’m the only one working down here ’cause no one else will and I need the help, so I make things and bring them to life, all right? Satisfied? Good, now bugger off.”

Ashima wasn’t satisfied, because what kind of an answer was that? A spell?

Moisture filled Ashima’s eyes until she could barely see, then fell dripping from her face. She had no idea why she was crying, but neither could she stop, like a cracking dam finally bursting in a never ending rain of sorrow, frustration and confusion.

“Boss, the stranger’s crying,” said Stevie unhelpfully.

When the man turned back, he seemed to collapse in on himself as if Ashima weren’t the only one that had been buried by the weight of this place.

“Oh, no, don’t do that, please?” he said, removing the coat, breeches and goggles. “I’ll undo the spell if you’d really like, it’s no big deal.”

“No!” Ashima yelped, grabbing Asha and holding her tight. This made the man flinch and pat the air with his hands.

“Alright, alright, I’ll leave her.” When it was apparent that this assurance wouldn’t be enough to stop the flood of tears, the man gripped the back of his neck with both hands and huffed a short breath. “Would you… I don’t know, like some tea or something? What am I saying, you can’t be here, I’m sorry, but you really need to go. It’ll be both our heads if you don’t.”

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More excerpts to come.

The Toymaker is available at Amazon.com and for Kindle.