Forlot: Forgotten Forest - Book Eight {Completed}

Chapter Forty-Two

The girl was sitting on the floor and looked to be in her teenage years. She had long, blonde hair and was wearing a blue, sleeveless dress that reached to her knees. She also had on low heels that shimmered in the light. Her hair had fallen over her face, and her hands were tied behind her. She could not speak because she was gagged.

"Mmm!" the girl muffled out.

"Who is she?" I asked.

"You have no clue who this is?" Sinosum questioned. "Why, she is important here in Forlot. Without her, we would not exist."

Kale-9 whispered in my ear. "That is her. The one whom I was telling you about."

I blinked a few times. "You mean...Shelly?"

Sinosum patted the top of the girl's head. "Her full name is Shelly Madison. She has no middle name. But that is alright. I will give her one once we are married."

Shelly shut her eyes and kicked with her legs. "Mmm!"

I looked at Kale-9, and then back at the wizard. "Uh, she seems to not like the idea of marriage."

Sinosum tsk-tsked. "She does not desire to get married to me. Want to know why?"

I narrowed my eyebrows. "She does not take a liking to any evil people. Like you."

"That is one of two reasons. The other reason is because she does not care about marriage. That is why marriage is outlawed in Forlot."

I stared past him, thinking back to my parents. "My parents never wore wedding rings on their fingers, and they kept telling me that they do not remember their wedding day. I believed them and assumed that they were suffering from memory loss."

"Your parents are smart. They knew to not anger the Lubriem..." He stroked Shelly's cheek with two of his fingers. "...which I have right here."

"Mmm!"

The wizard chuckled. "Let us see what she has to say. I want to hear her beautiful voice." He untied the cloth around her mouth, and I had to cover my ears.

You will find out why.

Shelly let out a shrill scream. After that, she went on a rant.

"You son of a dang it! How dare you kidnap me! When I get free, my friends will—"

Sinosum slapped her face and ordered her to shut up.

I uncovered my ears and felt bad for her. She had every right to go on a rant. She was being held against her will. Who would want that?

I know. Just evil people.

"You will help Ari over there..." The wizard motioned to me. "...get ready for her wedding."

Shelly growled. "So you are marrying both of us?! You are sick!"

"You are sick. Not me. I am only marrying you. I have no interest in that pathetic girl. However, my son does, and I will do anything to make him happy."

"He is not your son! His real name is Cameron! He belongs with his brother, Collin!"

Whoa. How did she know that? And did it have to do anything with her being the Lubriem?

He slapped her again, leaving a red mark on her cheek. "Here is what I want you to do, Shelly. If you assist Ari in getting her dress and makeup on..."

Wait a minute. A dress? I have to wear a dress?! And there was no way that I would wear makeup!

"...then I will allow you to wear that fancy, purple dress that you always loved during our own wedding."

"Never! Besides, I can tell by the look on Ari's face that she is definitely not looking forward to a stinkin' wedding."

He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. "She loves Kyle."

I wanted to shout out that I had no interest in Cameron and that Collin was my true love, but like Kale-9 said, messing with Sinosum was not an option.

"I doubt that," Shelly said. Then she spit in his face.

"Ah!" He staggered back and wiped off the spit. I had the sinking feeling that his temper was rising. "Creatures!"

Kale-9 raised a scaly hand.

He sighed. "What is it, idiot?"

"We are not just any creatures. We are—"

"I know, I know. And frankly, I do not care. And you want to know why?"

"That is because we are your slaves..."

"Not anymore."

All of the creatures' mouths dropped open.

"They are no longer your slaves?" I stated.

"Well, not yet. However, if they do this one favor - possibly their last - I promise that I will set them free."

The creatures cheered and started jumping and down.

"We are going to be free from this horrible place!"

"No more chains! No more hooks!"

Sinosum whistled, and the creatures stopped jumping and cheering and glared at him.

"What do my people and I need to do in order to get our freedom back?" Kale-9 asked.

"Easy. Just take Shelly and Ari to the other room."

"You mean the room where we put girls?"

He nodded. "Get them dressed up for their weddings. Put their dresses and makeup on them." He snorted at Shelly. "She apparently will not do it."

"And after that, we will gain our freedom?"

"After the two weddings are over, you can leave me."

The creatures went back to jumping up and down in excitement, and then grabbed ahold of me and Shelly.

"Hold on for a second!" I cried as the creatures forced us out of the room. "I thought that you wanted to help me!"

Kale-9 looked at me, and then quickly looked away. He seemed ashamed.

"I am so sorry," Kale-9 apologized. "The deal is off."

"Why?! I could have helped you!"

"Sinosum is giving us our freedom."

"But then I get messed over! There has to be another way. A better way!"

"I am sorry, Ari. I really am. Though, look on the bright side, you get to have a chat with the Lubriem."