Chapter three

October 15th... Yes Cody was counting. October 15th they had their first good frost. Rabbit and squirrel had been in season for almost a week already but it wasn't good to shoot them before the first good frost.

Cody woke up cold. There was frost on the windows, frost on the grass, frost on the old swingset, even the trees were white with frost. He was excited and overjoyed. Then a terrible thought. He had to get ready for school. He fervently showered, dressed, and got ready for school. Once that was complete he loaded his rifle being careful to leave the percussion cap off so as to keep the rifle safe. He grabbed his shooting bag packed with several quickloaders containing 65 grn powder along with one patch and one ball each. It also held a spare ramrod, some rope, percussion caps, and a bag of trail mix (edit for further detail later). He then grabbed his book bag and everyday school stuff and headed out the door. It was a cold walk to school. He took the long way so he could ditch his rifle and shooting bag hidden inside the bows at the base of this evergreen tree bordering a field on the edge of town. The day was agonizing, watching every second tick by on the clock. Finally it was over and time to go hunting.