Forlot - Books 10-12

Chapter Twenty-One

I bet that you readers can imagine how I was feeling. Heck, you were probably shocked as much as I was!

My goodness. There have been so many shocking events that have unraveled. I was unsure if I could take in any more.

Unfortunately for me, the biggest secret in this book was about to be revealed. Do not even try to guess what the secret is, readers. You will never suspect it.

My mouth trembled, trying to form words. I absolutely had no clue what to say. Lean never told me that she had a son, and of course, I wondered why.

I examined the ghost boy who still had a grip on the sleeve of my shirt. I would be lying if I did not admit that he looked so much like Lean.

Like her and the other ghosts, he had a tail instead of two legs. His skin was as blue as Lean's, and his short hair was a mix of purple and blue. Just like Lean's.

He had pupils in his eyes and wore a blue shirt. I noticed that he was holding something in his other hand and squinted to get a better look at it.

"Is that a toy truck?" I asked him in a soft voice. He seemed young, and I did not want to scare him.

The boy nodded and smiled. "Yes," he confirmed. "It is my favorite toy."

"It is the only toy that he owns," Edith piped in.

He held up his truck to me. "Would you like to play with it?"

I could not help but smile and giggle. He seemed sweet.

"Thanks, but not right now."

The ghost boy apparently did not like my response because his face saddened.

"Aw. No one wants to play with me..."

Margaret grabbed ahold of his ghostly arm and pulled him away from me. She gave him a glare that could kill, and I could see that he was terrified of her.

"Nobody has time to play with you, Len," Margaret said. "All of us are too busy fighting and defending ourselves. Do you really want you and the others to be helpless puppets again?"

A whimper escaped from Len's mouth, and he hugged his toy truck close to his chest.

She patted the top of his head. "I thought so."

I stormed up to her and slapped her arm. She immediately pulled back her hand from the ghost's head and glared at me. It was as if she were staring into my soul, wanting to break my heart into pieces.

"What was that for, Margie?" Margaret shot at me, rubbing the place where I had slapped her. "You had no right to do that."

"You had no right to scare that little boy," I shot back. "Even though that he is a ghost, he is still a kid."

She crossed her arms and shrugged her shoulders. "Who cares? Besides, it is the only way that I can get through to him."

"Why the heck would you even want to get through to him? What is it that requires him to be frightened?"

"That is none of your business."

"I am here now, so yeah. It is my business. Also, you have been lying to these creatures, Ethel, Edith, and Len, that you are the Monster Protector."

"I knew it!" Len shouted with joy. His ghostly body was moving up and down, like that he was jumping. "I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!"

Margaret and I locked eyes on him. I heard Margaret growling under her breath.

"Hold on," I said. "You knew that she was lying?"

He stopped with his moving and hugged his truck ever so tightly. "I did not know that she was lying," he admitted. "I just thought that she was unaware that there is a Monster Protector who replaced her."

Margaret lifted up her foot and stomped it down hard. "I was not replaced!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. "I am still the Monster Protector!"

"No, you are not," I protested. "I am the Monster Protector."

Len let out a small gasp and dropped his toy truck. I could see that his eyes were sparkling. Either that, or the lights from the room were reflecting off of them.

"You?" he said. "You are the Monster Protector?"

"I am most certainly am. Mr. Hawk appointed me."

"Do you have proof that he did?" Ethel asked. "Edith and I want to believe you."

"Sure. I will lead you guys to Mr. Hawk's mansion. He will tell you the whole story."

"No!" Margaret yelled. It echoed throughout the room. "We are not going back there."

"Why not?" Edith demanded. "We have not seen Mr. Hawk in a long time."

"It is not safe for you guys just yet. Dr. O'Connor and his goons could find out about you and try to take you all back."

"Yes. The keyword is 'try,'" Ethel pointed out. "He will not succeed because Mr. Hawk and others have our backs."

"Okay. So what if they kidnap one of the others?"

Ethel and Edith opened their mouths to speak, but then looked at each other and closed their mouths.

"Now you get it. You all must remain in hiding."

"And stay hidden with a liar?" I said. "I do not think so. They are coming with me."

Before Margaret had the chance to protest, we heard the sounds of footsteps. And it sounded like more than one person.

From the corner of my eye, I saw creatures standing behind Edith and Ethel. New creatures that I had never seen before.

There were different types. Two vampires. Four robots. And one other ghost.

One of the robots lowered his robotic head at me. Then he spoke.

"I overheard the entire conversation. I am not going back to that mansion. Not if Lean Share is gone."

Len grabbed my finger, getting my attention. "He is my daddy," he said.