Chapter 1

BANG!!!!  Like every morning, the sound of a rifle wakes me up.  My heart sinks at the very thought of an innocent deer dying from a human’s wrath in the woods near my house, my woods.  My family lives on a fair sized farm.  We make a good amount of our money off of all the crops.  Last year, there was a terrible drought, and my mom was laid off because business was so slow where she worked, Pet Care Adoption Center.  We were so desperate for money, my father finally gave in to selling some property.  We couldn’t afford to get rid of any farmland, so we sold our 100 acres of woodland to a big name firearms hunting company- Big Bucks Deer Hunting. The manager, Buck, said that we are permitted to use the woods when it is not deer season because nobody should be in there.  I know this because I was right there when father signed the papers selling our woods.

         After the sound of the gun, my 3-year-old border collie, Lacy comes up to me and starts whining.  She hates guns, too.

         “Let’s go girl,” I say as I start getting out of bed.  Lacy immediately jumps off my bed a sits by the door.  By then, I’m fully dressed in a green shirt, not a bright, pretty green, but a calm, forest green, and some khaki pants.

         Lacy bounds down the stairs and waits patiently by the front door-ready to go outside and play. She is a dog that is always full of energy, and has enough to stay outside all day.  Also, when you need a friend most, she is always there to give you some comfort.  I love her and she is the perfect dog for me.

         I retrieve some bread from the cupboard and put two slices in the toaster.  Within a minute, the warm bread pops up from the toaster and I quickly butter it while it is still warm.

         I grab my coat from the chair and am out the door before it is even fully on.  And of course, Lacy is ahead of me.

         There is a thin layer of snow on the ground, but I am not cold.  It is the first day of December here in northern Indiana, but I am not cold.  I am never cold.

         For a while, I just sit in our swing on the front porch eating my toast and enjoying the sounds of nature.  Lacy doesn’t like it.  She bites and pulls on my pant leg to get me up and moving.  She wants to play.  Finally, she gives up and runs around the house.  This gets me up and moving because who knows what she’ll get into.  I am fast, but Lacy is faster.  By the time I am halfway around the house, Lacy has found the perfect stick and drops it at my feet.  Out of pure habit, I pick it up and throw it as far as I can (which isn’t that far) into the front yard.  Just as Lacy drops the stick at my feet, a black pick-up truck pulls into driveway.  I throw the stick again and Lacy chases after it.

         The car is halfway up our long driveway.  I see the window being rolled down and am able to distinguish the driver as my dad.

         “Hey Kaylie!” yells Dad out the window.

         “Hey Dad!” I yell back.

         My Dad gets up early every Tuesday and Thursday and drives to the park and takes a 20-30 minute walk.  Usually he is only gone for about an hour, but today, he had to go to the ‘local’ supermarket.  So in all, he was gone for about two-and-a-half hours.

         This time, Lacy drops the stick at Dad’s feet, and he throws it almost twice as far as I can.

         “Are your Mom and brothers up yet?” Dad inquires.

         I have two older brothers.  Kile is 13 and the middle child. He can be a jerk at times, well most times.  Kristian is 15, and unlike Kile, is pure talent. Most of Kile’s time is spent in his room (he share’s it with Kristian) reading some sci-fi book or planning a prank. Kristian, on the other hand, wants to be an actor, and he is actually really good.  I am 12 and all I know about my future is that I want to work outside with Mother Nature and all of her gifts.  Everyone in my family is an early bird, but Dad, lacy and I would definitely get the worms.

         “I don’t think so, Dad,” I say answering his question.

         “Well then, I guess it’s just you and me pumpkin, Dad says.

         Together my Dad and I walk back to the house with Lacy at our heels. When we get inside, Dad asks me if I want some pancakes. He makes the best homemade pancakes in the world; he could successfully run a pancake business. How could I refuse!  Dad leaps into action and in 15 minutes I am sitting at our round table devouring some chocolate chip pancakes with whipped-cream on top, three pieces of bacon, and a glass of milk. Yum!

         Just as I am putting my dirty dishes in the dishwasher, Mom, Kile, and Kristian come down the steps.

         “Good morning,” I say cheerfully.

         “Good morning, Kaylie,” says Mom.

         As she passes by me, she gives me a kiss on the forehead.

         “Kaylie,” says Kristian slowly.

         “Yeah?”

         “Did Dad make pancakes?”

         Pause.

         “No,” I say suspiciously.

         “Yes he did! The batter is still in the bowl and there is whipped cream all over your mouth!” laughs Kristian.

         I grab the last piece of bacon and my coat and dash out the back door.  I close the door before Lacy can even get out, and I hear her barking and scratching at the door as I run away from Kristian.

         I am fast.  I am the fastest girl in middle school.  I won first place at the conference track meet. But being athletic and three years older than me, Kristian is faster than me.  In a matter of minutes Kristian and Lacy have caught up to me.  He playfully tackles me to the ground and we both get up laughing.

         “I still can’t believe Dad made you pancakes,” says Kristian.

         “It was supposed to be a secret,” I reply still laughing.

         “I know, that’s why I’m mad!” he yells, tackling me again.

         “So, what are you doing today?” he asks me.

         “I don’t really know,” I reply.

         “Well, I was going to go to the park and play some football.”

         One of Kristian’s best buddies is Tanner Knight. He has a younger sister named Julie, she is by BFF.  I get to see Julie a lot and Kristian gets to see Tanner a lot because we don’t have to argue about whose turn it is to have a friend over, we can just invite both of them.

         “Can I come?” I ask.

         “I don’t see why not,” replies Kristian.

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Later that day, Kristian and I conquer the 2 mile bike ride to the park. Tanner and Julie live in town, about six miles from the local park.  My brother and I are fast riders, so we get there in a little less than 10 minutes (our time would be faster if they were flat roads, not hilly).  We agreed to meet at 2:30, and it is 2:25.  In a couple of minutes, I see the Knight’s van pulling into the parking-lot.

    All the windows are rolled down so I yell, “Hi Julie! Hi Elizabeth!”

    Elizabeth is Julie’s mom.  Since we are so close, her mom gave me permission to call her by her first name.  Also, my mom allows Julie and Tanner to call her Kelly.

    “Hello Kaylie, Kristian,” Elizabeth smiles.

    As soon as their car is parked, Tanner and Julia open the doors and hop out.

    “Tanner,” Elizabeth calls out. “I’ll pick you up in about an hour.’

    “Okay, Mom,” replies Tanner.

    “Love you Mom!” yells Julie.

    “Love you, too!” says Elizabeth as the car starts pulling away.

    Now that their mom is gone, Tanner and Julie split up.  Tanner goes with Kristian over to six other of his football bros.  I recognize a brown-haired guy as Derek, another as Fred, and the muscular one is undoubtedly Austin.  Julie and I walk over to the monkey bars.  Even though we are in sixth grade at Weston Middle School, we still love to sit on top of them.

    “So,” Julie says curiously once we are situated on top of the blue bars. “Are you going to tell me?”

    “Tell you what?” I say completely dumbfounded.

    “You know, remember?”

    “No, surprisingly, I don’t.” I am not lying, either. I really have no idea what she wants me to tell her.

    “Last week, you said that when we meet at the park today…-”

    “We agreed to meet at the park?” I ask and Julie gives me the ‘Really?’ face

    “You would tell me…”

    Pause.

    Then she stops as if she wants me to finish the sentence.  Since I still have no idea what she is talking about, I just motion for her to continue.

    “Who…” Oh brother, this could take a while.

    “Just tell me already! I have absolutely positively no idea what you are talking about!” I exclaim loud enough that my cousins in Great Britain could hear me.

    “Who you like,” she finishes.  Now it is my turn to give her the ‘Really’ look.

    “That is what you made me wait for!” I say getting restless.

    Right. I think to myself.  Now I remember.  I had completely forgotten.  She must have thought I was trying to buy time.  We were in the cafeteria and we were playing truth or dare.  I picked truth, and Julie asked me who I like.  I said, “Can I get a rain check on this question?” and she replied, “Fine.  Tell me when we meet at the park Saturday.  Promise?” “Promise.”  Only I would be stupid enough to do that.  Even worse, today is Saturday and we are at the park. Great, I think.

    “You know,” I say softly.  Now I’m trying to buy time.  “I’m not really feeling well.  Maybe I should go home.” Cough, cough.

    “Uh no,” Julie retorts and moves to the middle of the monkey bars so I can’t get down.  “But nice try.”

    “Uh yes,” I say very discouraged.

    “You promised you would tell me!” she says blocking my path again.

    “Fine,” I say giving in.

    “Who is it?” she inquires.  She seriously sounds like a seven year old who is asking what present he got for Christmas.

    “I…like…um…um… Can’t you just try to guess?” I say desperate not to reveal my secret. I really don’t want anybody knowing, especially not Julie because I like her brother, Tanner.  And Julie cannot keep a secret, and to make it worse, the victim lives with her.

    Tanner is two years older than I am- 14.  He has dreamy eyes and brown hair.  He is athletic (football star) and plays the guitar.  Also, he is taller than me, making him perfect.

    “NO!” Julie shouts commandingly.  “Just tell me. Please, please, please, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!”

    “What would you do if I don’t tell you?”

    “Hmmm,” she says thinking.  “Probably tell some really cute guy that you want to go out with him.”

    “Fine,” I say exasperated.  “Can you keep a secret?”

    “YES!!!” she exclaims. Again, I give her the ‘Really’ face.  “I promise I won’t tell a soul.  Well, maybe my brother though.”

    That is exactly why I don’t want her knowing who I like.  Just like Kristian and I, Julie is really close with her brother.  They used to argue all the time until their dad was diagnosed with cancer about four years ago.

    “Well you can’t tell your brother this one,” I say quickly.  “Deal?”

    “Deal.”

    “I like… um…your… um… brother,” I say softly.

    “What?!?!” she whispers in disbelief.

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`Just as she said, Elizabeth picked up Tanner and Julie at 3:30.  After we say our goodbyes, Tanner and I ride our bikes home.  The first thing we do when we get there is scouring the fridge for food.  We finally settle on some purple grapes.

    Then we venture outside squirting each other with our snack.  Once I finish my grapes, I grab a basketball from the garage and shoot some free-throws to warm up.  Kile, who is already outside, plays catch with Kristian and his football.

    “Hey Kaylie!” shouts a female voice from the street.

    Rosanne Striker lives about a mile away.  She, her twin sister, Susan, and their little brother, Miles often come over.  Rosie and Suzie are about a year younger than I am.  Rosie and I have quite a few classes with each other.  I have all of my classes with Julie, and only a few with Suzie.  Miles is nine years old, but he is fun-and funny-to hang out with.

    “Hey Rosie, hi Suzie,” I welcome.

    “So,” I say once all three kickstands are on the ground.  “What’s up?”

    “Oh not much,” Rosie casually replies.

    “Ya know,” cuts in Suzie.  “The usual for a Saturday.

    Miles goes and plays catch with my brothers.  There is a six year age difference between Miles and Kristian, but they act like it’s nothing, and it isn’t. Suzie and Rosie both grab a basketball from the garage, but I stop them and say,

    “Do you wanna play?”

    “Yea.”

    “Sure.”

    “Who gets ball?” inquires Rosie.

    “I don’t care,” I reply. Yep. That’s me, Miss Problem-Solver.

    “How ‘bout me and Rosie versus you. You get ball Kaylie.”

    “Okay,” I agree.

    “Let’s get playing!” announces Rosie.

    Dribble.  Pass.  Steal.  Check.  Score.  Dribble.  Out of bounds.  Pass in.  Layup.  Foul.  Free-throw.  Point.  Free-throw.  Rebound.  Over-and-back.  Dribble.  Three-pointer.  Score.  Check.  Dribble.  Steel.  Pass. Score.  Check.  Dribble.  Travel.  Time out (aka drink break).

    The three of us play basketball for about 20 minutes before the ball gets jammed in between the rim and the backboard.  We don’t bother attempting to retrieve it, so I just take a Frisbee from the toy chest and open the backdoor.  Lacy is like a bullet when she soars out of the door, across the deck, down the wooden steps, picks up the Frisbee, and runs with it.  Suzie, Rosie, and I chase after her and Kristian just stands there and laughs.  Then Miles accidentally throws the football Kile’s head.  Our huge backyard is thrown into chaos.  Kristian and Miles are still standing-and lying down-laughing, Kile is half laughing half rubbing his head while Rosie and I try to corner Lacy.  We are smart, but Lacy is smarter.  She knows this trick.  While Rosie and I struggle to corner my dog, Suzie hides behind me incase Lacy tries to escape.  Lacy charges right at me and before I can move, she has plowed right through me and Suzie.

    “Ouch!” I wince landing on my butt.

    “Just let her go,” says Suzie hopelessly, wiping her pants.

    As soon as the words leave her mouth, lacy comes barreling towards us, but instead of pretending we are pillows, she halts to a stop and drops the Frisbee at my feet expecting to play.  This whole time Kristian, Kile, Miles, and even Rosie are on the grass laughing until their stomachs hurt.

    “You know, sometimes I really hate you.” All Lacy does is bark at me and wags her tail.

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After a long, relaxing shower, Mom calls me to set the table.  She tells me we are having lasagna, breadsticks, and a special treat which is ice cream (Mom always calls ice-cream a ‘special treat’).  I carefully set the dinner plates on the table, followed by silverware, and finished with cups.  I set to table for five people. My family makes an effort to have family meals.

    “Kaylie, dinner will be ready in about 15 minutes. Why don’t you go get the boys and tell them to take a shower before dinner,” commands Mom as she pulls the lasagna out of the oven.

    “Okay,” I say obediently.

    I walk over to the shoe room and slip on my tennis.  I open the door with a loud creak.  Lacy is not at my heels or bounding ahead of me because there is food in the kitchen, and whenever there is food, there are crumbs, and whenever there are crumbs, there is a stubborn, misbehaving dog that you stumble over.

    “Kile, Kristian!” I call.  As I round the corner, I see them playing one-on-one.  “What’s the score?”

    “Oh, the usual,” says Kristian cockily.

    “It’s not as big of a gap as usual,” counters Kile.  But here’s the thing, he says that as if it will give him more dignity; ha like that could happen.

    “So, what is the score?” I ask again.

    Kristian and Kile answer at the same time.  Kristian says that he has 18 and Kile has 7, but Kile says that he has 11 and Kristian has 18.  Kristian gives Kile the ‘Really’ look.  Man that facial expression has gotten popular.

    “Well, Mom told me to you that dinner is almost ready and that you are supposed to take a shower before you eat.”

    “Okay,” responds Kristian.

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“Well, that was a delicious meal,” compliments Dad.  He is right, too. Mom is a phenomenal cook.

    “Why thank you, sweetie,” says Mom.

    “Well, I have some news,” announces Dad.

    “Good or bad?” I ask.

    “Mostly good,” Dad replies.

    “Well, let’s hear it then,” encourages Mom.

    “Today was the last day of hunting season!” he exclaims excitedly.

    “Really?” I ask in disbelief.

    “Yep,” Dad responds.

    “Awesome!”
    “So, are we still allowed in the woods?” I ask  hopefully, fingers crossed.

    “Yes we are. Tomorrow you are free to enter the woods.”

Reviews

[Templarverted]

Love the ending, great story.