Forlot: Forgotten Forest - Book Eight {Completed}

Chapter Thirty

"Ah!"

I screamed bloody murder as I ran off. I kicked up the speed and zigzagged to avoid colliding with any of the trees. I was breathing hard, and my heart was
beating fast.

There was no way to tell how I was feeling. Mad. Sad. Afraid. Anything but happy.

I managed to run back to the campsite and skidded to a stop. I was catching my breath and looked over my shoulder to see if Kyle or his dad had followed me.

Nope. No one.

Then my eyes widened when I realized that I had left Collin.

"Collin!" I cupped my hands around my mouth and called to him. "Can you hear me, Collin? Collin! I am at the campsite!"

No response was given, and I lowered my hands and felt like an idiot.

How could I leave without him? How could I take off without my best friend? He was probably lost in Forgotten Forest. Lost and hungry.

Would he wander the forest like the missing boys who were found dead? Forever? The fear rose in me as I thought of these questions.

But...he was with two known people. Collin was with Kyle and his father, Sinosum. They would bring him back to camp safely. To me. Right?

I plopped to the ground and curled into a ball. I whimpered and thought about who had died. First was Valerie.
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I sighed and started walking up the path. I took a look at the lake that was on the left side of the path.

And I screamed.

I spotted Valerie's body as it floated to the bottom of the lake.

Her face filled with terror.
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Then Sheila.
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The whole time, I was shivering. Not because I was cold. But because of the gift. My gift.

I picked up the bow, tossed it aside...

...and covered my mouth and tried to keep myself from...you know.

My "gift" was Sheila.

She was lying on the porch of our cabin, her arms and legs spread out. Her eyes were open wide, but she was not alive.

And what the bow had covered...was a hole. A giant hole where her stomach had once been. Blood - her blood - was surrounding her body.

I knew right then and there that she was stabbed. Stabbed to death.
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Then Josh.
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"Josh is not here. He left the cabin minutes ago."

"Why? Where did he go?" A putrid smell filled my nose. "Ew!" I covered my nose. "What is that smell?"

"What smell?"

"It is coming from behind your cabin." I headed to the back, and Ethan followed.

And we found Josh.

Dead.
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Then Debra.
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"Ethan! Debbie!" I got in front of Kyle and held out my arms and hands. "This is not the killer. He is just a friend of mine."

Debbie and Ethan stopped in their tracks. Their chests were heaving up and down, and they did not look good.

"What is wrong with you two?" I asked.

"It...it is Debra," Ethan confessed. "She is dead."
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Then Debbie.
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Collin and I looked in the direction where it was coming from and were horrified.

Kyle was a couple of feet away from us and choking.

No. He was not choking. He was choking Debbie!

He had his hands and fingers wrapped around her throat and...oh my gosh.

"Kyle!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. "What are you doing?! Stop! Please!"
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And finally Ethan.
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He walked off and soon returned, dragging something behind him. He let go and showed us.

I felt like passing out.

It was a dead body. Ethan's dead body.
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These flashbacks may seem unnecessary and may act like fillers, but they are completely necessary, especially for this chapter. Read them over and over again until you see the connection.

You see it? No? Let me explain then.

Valerie and Sheila do not like me. Josh could have revealed the killer to me and the others. And Debra, Debbie, and Ethan were my closest friends.

My fear grew and grew like a weed.

The killer hates anyone who treats me terribly and is jealous of my friendships. He wants me. Badly.

And no, readers. I am not stupid. I know who the murderer is.

It is Collin.

Wait. Did I say that? Was I convinced that Collin was the suspect?

No, no, no. He would never kill.

But...he said that he loves me.
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I huffed and crossed my arms. "You are just jealous."

"So what if I am? You obviously prefer pretty boy over your true friend."

"That is not true!"

"Who cares if I have friends? Who cares if you are my friend? Who cares if I have feelings for you?!"
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So...is he obsessed with me?

My head started hurting, and I grunted. I have had headaches before, but they have never been this painful.

"Ah...oh my gosh..."

"Ari. Ari!"

I could hear somebody. A male. Calling to me.

"Ari. Ari, look up."

Rubbing the temples of my head, I did what I was told.

And cried out.

Collin was standing over me. With a knife in his hand.

"I tried to give you signs that I liked you, Ari. But you have no interest in me. For that, I will kill you."