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NANCY
AN ORIGINAL ADDITION TO THE CHILDREN-OF-THE-WORLD COLLECTION CREATED BY THE WORLD-RENOWNED ROBOTIC DOLLMAKER HANS HESSMAN.
"Sugar and spice and everything nice."
Little Nancy is all that and more. Blue eyed with golden hair and a bright little girl smile. Standing three feet tall she's cute as a button dressed in her pink organdy dress. Her expressive face, detailed costume, authentic vocalizations, and realistic movements clearly establish her as a one of a kind doll.
Collectors will note her lifelike eyes and tender, baby soft skin that have become the trademark of Mr. Hessman, who has once again demonstrated his consummate artistic engineering skills in the creation of little Nancy Garrett.
You can actually feel her warmth.
Ginny put down the placard and ran her slender fingers through Nancy's hair, resting them briefly on the doll's bare shoulder before pulling her hand away.
It did feel warm.
She shifted her handbag to her other shoulder, then read on.
Hans Hessman's work as a doll maker is known to top tier animatronic doll collectors throughout the world. He has won more than sixty prizes for his creations in major, juried exhibitions. Coming from a long line of engineers, which go all the way back to the impeccable craftsmanship of early German watch makers, Mr. Hessman emigrated to the United States from Germany as a child in the mid-twentieth century and has worked at perfecting the skills passed on to him through generations ever since. His unique creations have been critically acclaimed for their realism and sculptural excellence.
Like the rest of Mr. Hessman's creations, Nancy is unique, making her a collector's item. She comes complete with a birth certificate endorsed by Mr. Hessman.
Ginny put the placard down and studied the doll, her own hazel eyes transfixed by the blue gaze of the doll.
"I only put her out this morning," a deep female voice said.
Ginny looked up, and saw a plump, gray-haired older woman waddling through the Fifth Avenue gallery toward her.
"She looks so real,” Ginny said. “and so cute." She stood back admiring the doll.
"Almost too real." The woman tilted her head to the side and studied Little Nancy for a moment, then she reached behind its head and gently squeezed its neck. Little Nancy blinked as if waking from a trance. Her mouth turned up in an adorable smile.
“Hi, are you my Mommy?” She said in a sweet diminutive voice. Her little eyelids fluttered.
Ginny gasped, then sighed. "She's adorable."
The woman nodded. "It's a Hessman original. He's getting old. I don't think he'll be producing many more."
Ginny rubbed the doll's arm. "It feels so real. And the detail. Right down to the tiny hairs on its arms. She's absolutely beautiful."
"She won't be here long," the old woman said. "Hessman's work always goes quickly."
Ginny looked back at the doll, once more marveling at its loving expression. “How much?"
"Sixty thousand."
Ginny pulled her credit card from her wallet in her purse.
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Before going to bed that night, Ginny stood Nancy in the corner of her bedroom below a picture of her husband and daughter. She gazed at the picture a moment, then kissed her finger and pressed it to the glass.
"Nobody wants to talk about them anymore," she said half to herself and half to the doll. "They think I should put them behind me, but I can't. I'm so lonely without them."
She turned her attention to the doll.
"There, Honey." She rested her hand on Nancy's cheek, then slid it around to the back of the doll’s head and gently squeezed her neck. "I used to have a little girl like you. She's gone, but now I have you."
Little Nancy blinked and in her soft childlike voice said, “Don’t be sad, Mommy. I’m your little girl now. I’ll love you forever, no matter what!”
Ginny felt tears welling in her eyes. "Neither of us will have to be alone anymore," she said through shaky breath.
The smoothness of Little Nancy's skin, combined with its velvety warmth sent a rush of emotion through Ginny. She pulled the doll to her breast and hugged it. Its whole body had the same subtle warmth. She held it at arm's length for a moment before kissing it on the forehead and setting it down in the corner, then she pulled out the birth certificate and crawled into bed. Sitting cross-legged with pillows propped up behind her, she read.
Name: NANCY GARRETT
Date of birth: JUNE 21, 2014
Delivering physician: HANS HESSMAN
A picture of a frail, white-haired old man sitting with the doll on his lap was in the upper right corner of the certificate. Hans Hessman's signature appeared on the bottom line next to the title of delivering physician.
Ginny put the certificate on her night stand, winked at Nancy, then turned out the light and went to sleep.
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Something woke Ginny.
She rolled over in bed, her eyes locking with Nancy's. A pale yellow streetlight shone through the window, framing the doll's eyes in a tiny rectangle of orange light, causing them to sparkle.
It looks like she's crying, Ginny thought.
Little Nancy’s hands extended out as though reaching to be picked up. Ginny turned her back to the doll and pulled the covers up over her shoulder, staying awake for a long time, telling herself that she didn’t feel the tingle crawling down the nape of her neck. Eventually she drifted, sliding somewhere between sleep and waking.
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“Help! Mommy, mommy, don't let them take me.”
The voice sounded distant at first. Then louder. “Mommy, they're taking me!”
Ginny sat up straight, rubbing her eyes. The light from the window no longer framed Nancy's eyes. In the corner, the doll's hands spread wide, its face looked contorted in terror, its mouth open as if screaming. Ginny rubbed her eyes again and fumbled for the light switch.
In the sudden glare, she saw Nancy standing just as she'd left her. Taking deep breaths, she calmed herself, letting sleep come once again.
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"Help! Mommy, mommy, they're taking me!"
Ginny watched in horror as two burly men threw a blanket over the little blonde girl and tossed her into a van. A muffled scream came from its confines before the side door slid shut, cutting off the sound.
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"Somebody stop them!"
Her own scream woke her. She sat up, wiping tears from her eyes. Little Nancy lay on her side, hands drawn up toward her face.
"Oh baby, Honey." Ginny stretched out on the floor beside the doll. "What happened to you?" She stroked Nancy’s baby soft blonde hair and peered into her glistening eyes. She wanted to touch them to see if they were really wet, but couldn't bear the thought of finding out. Instead, she draped her arm over Nancy and softly cried herself to sleep.
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She awoke the following morning in bed. Bright sunlight streamed in through the window. The doll stood by itself in the corner, looking exactly as it had when she brought it home.
What's happening? She thought.
She got up, went to Nancy and ran her fingers over the plush carpet where she remembered laying her head.
It felt damp.
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"I'm telling you, there's something strange about this doll." Ginny moved the phone to her other shoulder as she poured her tea.
"What do you mean?" The woman from the gallery said.
"I don’t know. It’s just that, well – it’s – it’s too lifelike."
"Are you feeling all right? If it’s that upsetting, you can always return it. We don’t want any unsatisfied customers."
Ginny felt her face flush. "I'm fine." She ended the call, put her cell phone down, and walked over to the refrigerator where she took out a carton of milk. After pouring a splash into her cup, she stared at the back of the carton. Her cup slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor, shattering. "My God!" She cried, seeing little Nancy's picture on the back of it.
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MISSING SINCE JUNE 21, 2013
NANCY JONES
HAIR: BLONDE EYES: BLUE
DATE OF BIRTH: 11 - 12 - 2009
LAST SEEN WEARING A PINK ORGANDY DRESS.
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Ginny ran from the kitchen, stumbled upstairs, and into her bedroom.
Nancy was gone.
Ginny stumbled back down stairs in confusion and found a bottle of scotch. Unable to think, act, or make any decisions, she quickly downed a couple of shots and continued to drink herself into a stupor, numbing her paralysis until she drifted into deep alcoholic unconsciousness.
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Still intoxicated late the following evening, Ginny stared at her cell phone on the kitchen table while clutching the milk carton. A newspaper lay on the table before her. Should she call? No! If Nancy came back, they'd take her away. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her baby again. She sobbed, pulled a handkerchief from her purse, and looked down at the tear-stained newspaper, her gaze coming to rest on a small article at the top of the page.
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ROBOTIC ENGINEER BUTCHERED IN BIZARRE STABBING INCIDENT
The mutilated body of renowned animatronic doll maker Hans Hessman was found this morning by his maid, stabbed repeatedly from head to toe. Police have no leads. Highly respected for both his engineering and artistic skills, Hessman, known for his reclusiveness and dedication to his craft has been lauded worldwide for the impeccable craftsmanship that goes into his lifelike creations.
With no known enemies, police are questioning his associates for any information or possible motives for his grizzly death.
See HESSMAN, page 3
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A sound from upstairs startled her. She jumped from her chair and ran up the stairs, stopping in the doorway of her darkened bedroom.
Nancy stood in the corner.
Ginny put her fist to her mouth and bit down hard as she stepped into the room. She took a deep breath and flicked on the light. Nancy's blue eyes sparkled and her perpetual little girl's smile spread wide on her face.
Ginny froze when she saw reddish-brown droplets of blood spattered across the front of Nancy’s pink organdy dress.
