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eBook Category: Young Adult/Mystery/Crime
eBook Description: 17 year-old Vanessa collects beautiful dolls as a hobby. But when a handsome and mysterious doll maker creates a doll in her exact image to add to his collection, Vanessa finds that she and her "living doll" have become one entity!

eBook Publisher: Fictionwise.com, Published: First published by Cora Verlag GMBH Berlin for their "Denise" Mystery Series, 1992
Fictionwise Release Date: January 2003

This eBook is part of the following series:

• Jim Razzi's Evil Series

4 Reader Ratings: Great Good OK Poor

Available eBook Formats [MultiFormat - What's this?]: Adobe Acrobat (PDF) [389 KB], eReader (PDB) [120 KB], Palm Doc (PDB) [113 KB], Rocket/REB1100 (RB) [101 KB], Microsoft Reader (LIT) [124 KB] - PocketPC 1.0+ Compatible, Franklin eBookMan (FUB) [159 KB], hiebook (KML) [291 KB], Sony Reader (LRF) [136 KB], iSilo (PDB) [93 KB], Mobipocket (PRC) [116 KB], Kindle Compatible (MOBI) [144 KB], OEBFF Format (IMP) [157 KB]
Words: 37080
Reading time: 105-148 min.
Microsoft Reader (LIT) Format: Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud ENABLED
Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Format:  Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud DISABLED
All Other formats: Printing DISABLED, Read-aloud DISABLED

Kelly is dead. Kelly is my best friend...

Over and over, these words echoed through Vanessa Henderson's mind as she sat there on the beach hugging herself and looking blankly out to sea. The warm Floridian sun beat down on her, warming her body but doing nothing for the coldness she felt inside. Kelly had only been seventeen, the same age as she was. And now she was dead.

As Vanessa sat with her back against an outcropping sand dune, a gray-white gull suddenly appeared overhead. Vanessa listlessly watched the large bird as it spread its wings before the wind and glided out toward the dark blue ocean ahead. The gull opened its long, sharp beak and mewed softly once as the wind momentarily held it in check, seemingly suspended on an invisible thread. Then the wind changed direction and the gull suddenly swooped upward in a long sweeping curve.

Go with the flow. The thought suddenly popped into Vanessa's head. It was one of Kelly's favorite expressions. She continued watching the gull as it now effortlessly made its way to the sea. But she really couldn't focus her mind or her eyes on the bird. Her sight was blurred by the tears that were welling up in her eyes, and her mind was numbed by the sadness that was welling up in her heart.

"Go with the flow," she murmured aloud to herself.

Her mind went back to just an hour ago when all had been well in her world and she marveled at how fast a life could be changed.

She had been standing by the opened veranda doors of her grandparents' cottage and enjoying the view of the ocean beyond. A warm breeze played over her face bringing with it the tangy scent of the sea.

She had been telling herself how lucky she was to be in Florida at that time of the year. She imagined how cold it must be in New York at the moment. The TV news channel had reported that New York City was shoveling its way out of the first snowstorm of the season.

It's funny, she thought, how you can only really appreciate things when you knew it could be different--like how nice it was to be in warm weather when you knew it was cold somewhere else.

So she had reveled in the mild weather and took advantage of the chance to get a nice tan over the holidays.

The holidays. She really would have liked to be in New York at this time. But the doctor had prescribed some rest. Nerves? She never really thought of herself as high-strung but a month and a half ago she had had a panic attack in school and had bolted out of class.

Nervous exhaustion, the doctor had said. Vanessa wondered if that was just another way of saying nervous breakdown.

In any case, her parents had sent her to Florida to be with her maternal grandparents for a while. Vanessa was a good student so there was no problem in taking some time off. On top of that, her teacher had given her the curriculum for that month before the holiday season and Vanessa had promised to faithfully do her schoolwork.

It was therefore actually a month before Christmas vacation started that she had arrived in Florida. Christmas had been two days ago, however and now that she felt much better, she was looking forward to going back after the New Year.

Her grandparents had a charming, house right on the beach and it overlooked a beautiful view of the ocean. She had been glad to be there. Her grandparents were super people who looked and acted much younger than they were.

But she had missed Kelly.

Thinking about her best friend, she could almost visualize her going Christmas shopping in New York; her blond hair tucked into a warm woolen cap and her slender legs encased in heavy tights.

Vanessa had smiled at the thought. Kelly was always cold, even in moderate weather.

"It's my circulation," she would say. "I have too much energy for my blood to keep up with."

She smiled. Kelly did have a lot of energy. And she was always so full of life that it sometimes made Vanessa feel like she was sleepwalking.

"Vanessa?"

Her grandfather's voice had cut into her thoughts. She turned to see him standing there, a strange look on his deeply tanned face.

"I've just had a phone call from New York." He said in a husky voice.

"Oh?" Vanessa said.

Who would be calling me from New York? She wondered. She had just spoken both to her parents and Kelly on Christmas Eve. It was true that Kelly sounded troubled. But when pressed, had said it was nothing to worry about. Not really. Then she added in a strange voice, "I guess you haven't received my package yet."

Vanessa answered that she hadn't. After a few more words, Kelly had said that the letter in the package would explain everything.

Vanessa knew that Kelly never liked to talk over the phone, especially about personal things. So she had accepted that and waited for the package. But it was now two days after Christmas and there was still no sign of the package.

And now, watching her grandfather's furrowed brow, she felt a moment of uneasiness. There was something in his expression--a hesitation.

"What--what's up, Gramps?" she had stammered.

"It was from Kelly's parents," he started," they told me--"

He trailed off.

"Let's go inside and sit down."

Vanessa felt a sinking feeling start to overwhelm her whole body. Why would she be getting a call from Kelly's parents?

She had turned from the veranda windows and strode into the living room with her grandfather in tow. She hardly noticed the white painted walls and the cheerful cane furniture. The sinking feeling wouldn't go away as she sat down on the large flowered couch that dominated the room.

Her grandfather had sat down beside her and brushed a shock of silver hair away from his forehead. He looked for all the world like a kindly doctor about to tell a patient's relative that there was no hope.

I just had a call from Kelly's parents in New York," he said.

Vanessa had smiled. You already told me that, Gramps,

"Yes, I guess I did."

Now the sinking feeling turned into a full-blown tremor of fear. She felt the blood drain from her face.

"What's wrong, Gramps?"

And her grandfather had told her the whole story in halting, sympathetic words. Kelly was dead. Kelly had taken an overdose of sleeping pills the day after Christmas. Although there was no note, the official verdict was suicide.

Vanessa had moaned then and half-fainted on the couch.

"Uh, look," her grandfather said. "I've called your grandmother at her club meeting. She should be home any minute now."

Vanessa hadn't answered. She couldn't trust herself to talk, a huge lump had welled up in her throat and she could feel herself shaking all over as if she were freezing.

When she finally trusted herself enough to speak, she had told her grandfather that, if he didn't mind, she would rather walk along the beach for a while.

And now here she was, sitting on the beach, alone and forlorn.