Dolls Forsaken
Tom Raimbault
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2010 Tom Raimbault

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Author’s Note / Reaction to Reviews
It’s a celebration for this story as we’ve received a negative review with harsh criticism. And tonight I stand in a dimly-lit attic, before a suitcase of those poor dolls that have seen years of suffering. I’ll explain more about them in a moment.
Before making mention of anything else, special thanks is given to our reader, David Lovato who pointed out a serious error in the story. He mentioned that at one point, a character’s name had changed for no apparent reason. This error was immediately corrected, story carefully read followed by Spell Check – no errors reported. The revision is now uploaded to Smashwords.
So how in the world could this have happened? A couple years ago, a short story had appeared on my site titled, Doll Fetish. Much of their torture took place in a darkened attic, but their captor paid in the end. The same characters that appear in the story you are about to read appeared in the original Doll Fetish. But after some months, the short story had been removed from my site as the work was being expanded to a novel. Half of this novel has been written, but the main character, Sally, needed a change of name. As a result, I changed the name to Stacy. Well, half-way through writing the original version of Dolls Forsaken, I began referring to Sally as Stacy! Sorry for those who were inconvenienced by this carelessness on my part!
I roared with laughter while writing the short story that you are about to read. Don’t think for one second that the ending attempts to be a downer! To eliminate any expectations of a dark and depressing story, I’ve attached the flag of humor along with horror. I hope you enjoy it.

Dolls Forsaken
Uncle Walt had passed away at the age of 62. Nothing terribly wrong with the man; but it was suspected that in his life he had some sort of mental deformity. Working several jobs since high school that paid minimum wage, Uncle Walt remained in the same apartment his adult life and never married.
Shortly after death, close family was in the process of cleaning out Uncle Walt's apartment. It was then that a downright creepy discovery had been made in a suitcase, underneath a collection of boxes in the closet. Small, plastic dolls were found which had been altered in appearance so that pink paint had adorned the tips of their plastic breasts and tiny shavings of hair were glued near their crotches. Even more disturbing was the small cuts made near the glued shavings of hair which suggested that the captive dolls were nothing more than outlets for a deranged man's urges of perversion.
Some were dressed while others were unclothed and bound by strings. One doll was found zipped inside a small toiletry bag with countless pins stuck in its body. And if the life-like expressions of torment and distress from the dolls weren't saddening enough, family members of Uncle Walt had taken notice that a miniature, baby doll was among the dozen-or-so that had received perhaps years of torture and abuse. 
Such sadness and horror that family members shared in that moment with the dolls. But what to do with such a finding? The dolls were damaged in the most-disturbing manner. And who would ever bring them in a house to play with children? Surely the small, plastic humanoids were cursed by some evil vibe brought on by many years of torment. It was best to keep them sealed shut in the suit case and brought out to the trash.

***

"Sally, I think we're free now!" Among the other dozen-or-so dolls in that suitcase, Tina was the first to realize that a collection of heavy boxes no longer existed above. The dolls had attempted escape in the past, but the weight was too much for them to lift the lid off. Light entered the key holes at each side and Tina's eye could peer out to a world unrecognizable. No longer in a dark closet, surely there was a chance to escape.
Sally was considered the "leader" of the dolls as she was the first to be captured by the evil man. Tina followed; and throughout the years, a string of others. Maintaining a nurturing air, Sally now gently removed the countless pins from the traumatized doll that had been locked in the bag. "Free? What are you talking about?"
"Sally, we are no longer in the closet! You heard them! We have been brought out to the trash."
Although considered the leader; Sally often handed the crown to Tina, who had the insight and intelligence required for serious situations. She now asked the observant doll, "How do we open it? We tried before."
All dolls were now aware of the new situation and stood up with palms touching the lid. No further explanation was needed as all dolls -- with the exception of little Betty -- pushed with all their might. Unfortunately, efforts were in vain.
"It's locked! Why did they have to lock it?" Tina examined the mechanisms on both sides and could determine that something engaged held the lid in place.
"Locked?" Asked Sally
"Are we going to Disney now?" Little Betty, the miniature baby doll, had perked her interest. For years, the dolls took pity on the small child and told her stories of far-away places where wonderful magic occurred. In a sudden hope of freedom, she interpreted it all to mean a trip to Disney.
"Honey, as soon as I figure out how to unlock this, we'll be out of here. Sally, hand me one of those pins." Tina took hold of the sharp, metal pin which was about a forearm’s length (for her). Since all the dolls considered Tina to be the one with "beauty AND brains", she wiggled the enormous pin through the locking mechanism and searched for a way to disengage. For several minutes, the frustration escalated as there just seemed to be no way to unlock the damn suit case! Several dolls had joined her in an organized effort to simultaneously push pins in opposite directions. Still, no luck!
They all sat down, Tina with her hands to forehead. And then she spoke to maintain everyone’s sense of hope. "Alright, look; he's finally dead; we are out of that apartment and just one click away from freedom. We can't give up now. I know I can crack those locks."
As usual, April added her note of negativity. "Well you better get on it! This is garbage night and the truck will be here in the morning!"
"I KNOW THAT, APRIL! Don't you think I'm worried too?"
"I want to go to Disney world!"
"Yes honey; we'll get there. It's just going to take a little more work to open those locks; okay?" Tina took hold of a pin and continued to pick, poke and wiggle. Nearly an hour was spent grunting with many exclamations of, "Come on!" As time went by, the small shafts of light which illuminated the suitcase had grown dim. Night had fallen which also meant that time was closing in on Tina.
She huffed and puffed in exhaustion. "It's not working! I think what we need to do is rip through the suit case with these needles. all of us." And all of the dolls grabbed a needle, including little Betty, and pierced away at the old, suit case. But it was so old -- old enough to be given the status of, "they-don't-make-suit-cases-like-this-anymore"! The material was tough and hardened. Although the inner-lining was easily torn, the actual case only suffered scratches from the needles. 
Little Betty grew tired and started to cry in frustration while, at the same time, sensing the anxiety from the other dolls. It was Sally's cue to take hold of the child and sit down to offer comfort. "Shhhh. it's okay. let the grown-ups handle that job. I'll tell you a story about Disney World and then you fall asleep. Tomorrow when you wake up, the suit case will be open and we can leave." Poor little Betty: In all the years of unspeakable torture, anything outside of the confines of that suit case would be, in her eyes, Disney World. Freedom was such a simple thing to offer. But could they deliver a promise to the small child?
Throughout the night the dolls worked feverishly until one-by-one they collapsed in exhaustion. By dawn, it was only Tina who continued to pick in desperate obsession. Somehow there was a way! Somehow Tina had to save her friends!
It was a loud, monstrous roar that startled the sleeping dolls awake. Tina now sat in the corner, weeping. Little Betty screamed and cried in terror as she never hear such a disturbing roar before. One-by-one the awoken dolls realized that the escape had not happened.
"I want to go to Disney World!" Little Betty yelled out to the confined world in between the sobs of terror.
Sally took hold of the frightened child and did her best to calm her. "Honey, I'm so sorry. The suit case is too strong and we weren't able to escape last night. Tears rolled down the nurturing leader's eyes as she realized a promise made to the child had been broken.
The roaring became so loud that none of the dolls' voices could be heard. Soon the confined space was tilted and smashed around; sides began to fold near as space became increasingly limited. In the end, the dolls could not move; some of their limbs had been squashed and broken. Only muffled cries could be heard along with the voice of April, "Thanks a lot Tina! We all counted on you!"
It seemed like eternity that the dolls remained squashed and confined to lack of mobility. All the while, little Betty continued to squeak about Disney World. 
Then a great light and heat engulfed the area followed by an increase of final sobs as the dolls realized their destiny.
“Disney World? Are we going?” Only little Beth remained hopeful.
But with a mind finally snapped and outraged that she had let her friends down; Tina could only call out, “BETTY! THIS IS DISNEY WORLD! I HOPE YOU LIKE IT!
The dolls’ hair smoked and burst into flames; fingers & toes wilted, paint on the tips of nipples burst into flames. Their plastic bodies began to melt while final screams of horror answered the destructive rage of the garbage incinerator.
COMING AUTUMN 2010: The Tree Goddess
Copyright 2010 Tom Raimbault – All Rights Reserved!
Originally titled The Macabre Happenings of Fictional Mapleview, the autumn 2010 release of author Tom Raimbault will be named, The Tree Goddess. Blanketed by a sentience of ghostly creatures, deathly visits, and all other cries from the grave; the fictional town of Mapleview provides the perfect meaning to the word, macabre (pronounced muh-kah-bruh). The dead cry out in morbid sorrow for justice when suffering at the hands of those who pursue the dark side of humanity. Although buried and hidden from obvious eyes, the shrouded terror speaks through nightmares, terrifying visions, and bizarre apparitions. And if the cries aren't heard, the terror will appear in the physical world. Just ask one resident of Mapleview who awoke in bed, cuddling with the mummified corpse of a woman that had been dead for nearly 30 years! Not even the veteran detective of the Mapleview police force can provide answers for the bizarre phenomenon and mysterious disappearances that has seized the town.
Written by author Tom Raimbault -- a man who strives to exist in the realm of classic horror -- he views macabre as a trip: a journey beyond the very edge of life itself, where one discovers gratitude for a heart embedded with morals along with the reality of life-after-death. People who have journeyed beyond this vortex can find humor in macabre and say, "Thank God I'm not like the characters in that story!"
The novel should be released in autumn, hopefully before the Halloween season.