Page 149 of Everdoll

I would never admit it loud, but that was my true intention. My witch-self was having a lot of fun lately; most of her devilish and impure plans to win Raymond back were coming from her. I had accepted her long ago and felt no shame about it. Tonight, I would get Raymond.

I continued to examine myself, yet my best friend Prisne yawned again.

“Are we leaving now, or should we take the mirror with us?”

She looked genuinely tired. I had started staying at her place ever since I found out Raymond watching my house with all those cameras. Knowing this, I couldn’t sleep there.

“Sorry, let’s go.”

I took my crescent shaped bag, looked at myself one last time, a tiny smile on my lips.

“Loxton might not be there, by the way,” Prisne said when we stepped out onto the street. Well, I could hide it from everyone else, but nothing escaped Prisne’s detective eyes.

I smiled. “We’re going there for Silvia, please.”

The night I reunited with Raymond in the middle of that pool of blood, Silvia had also disappeared. And unlike me, she hadn’t come back. We hadn’t heard from her for a whole week, but this morning, the news we were waiting for came from an unexpected source.

From Yunna. The rebel of Mars. He wrote Silvia was in his possession, and suggested meeting tonight.

Neither Prisne nor I could make sense of it. As far as we knew, Silvia was just a wayward young girl living with her younger sister and mother. She led an ordinary life. What business did Mars’ cloaked rebel hero have with this poor girl? But we couldn’t just turn away. Silvia was our responsibility, and we had to protect her until we could return her identity chip and keep her safe.

Before getting into the car, Prisne checked the location of Silvia’s chip one last time. Today was also the day it’ll be expired. If we couldn’t inject it into her wrist, she wouldn’t be able to return to the capital. Was that Yunna’s intention? Was that why he had given notice on the last day?

“Poor thing, has she been in Yunna’s hands for a week? Why did he leave her alive?”

“I have no idea. Should I… ask Raymond? Haven’t they started getting along better?”

“Go ask him, honey. I think that should be the first thing you discuss with your ex.”

“It’d be a great start! Your friend kidnapped my friend. You know what his purpose is?” Prisne shook her head and laughed, but I was dead-serious.

“Should I really ask him directly? Whatever I ask, he’ll answer me, I’m sure of it.”

“Well, correct me if I’m wrong, but the last time you saw him, he kicked you out of his house and didn’t answer any of your questions. Just so you remember.”

“He was shocked to see me, that’s why! I don’t think he knew what he was doing. If I see him today, I’ll talk to him properly. After all, we’re both adults now, right? Why should he run away from me like a child?”

Prisne shrugged. “Oh, I know someone run away like a child…”

“I’m different. I felt guilty, that’s why…”

When the car stopped, my eyes widened in shock. “How did we get here so fast?”

“This is the latest model your man released. The Bureau arranged it.”

I frowned. Raymond makes cars too? It sounded funny, but Loxton heir had been focusing solely on mechanical work on the committee for the past two years. Completely abandoned space research and no longer worked with anyone except engineers, he led a quiet life away from the public eye.

This sudden career change had caused a stir among journalists, but at the time, I hadn’t paid much attention to it. However, after seeing my clones, I understood the reason a little better.

The focus of Mars’ most valuable scientist was entirely elsewhere.

“It’s crowded again today. Who’s surprised?”

Prisne rolled her eyes, and in the dark street, I felt a chill run through me. I had come back to Yunna’s place several times since that day, but I was nowhere to be seen. Now I caught sight of motor oil dripping from the chimneys, the scent of aphrodisiac incense, and green smoke drifting harmoniously through the air… It was as though I had stumbled upon the eerie entrance to a festival that would carry me into a phantasmagoria.

We walked through the cave-like entrance to Yunna’s place, a sense of excitement filled me. Following the candles decorating the walls of the dark passageway, I smiled wide. I tugged at my corset one last time, tossed my hair back, and took a deep breath.

Let’s begin.