Kipp The Kid Read online

  “So now I’m stupid.” He raised the gun up and straightened, placing one foot back behind the other to steady himself.

  “Did I say that?” The lantern flickered a few more times and then went out, right on cue. Kipp was now so close his nose was almost touching the barrel of the gun. He still held the torch in his hand, which he was pointing right into Trent’s eyes, making him squint and blink uncontrollably. “Do you know what else my grandfather taught me?”

  “No. But I suppose you’re going to tell me.”

  “If you have only one bullet left, aim straight.” As soon as he said this he turned off the torch. The room became suddenly dark. Trent fired the gun and the flash of light from the gun revealed Kipp diving at Trent’s legs. There was a struggle. Jane let out a cry. Jane’s Uncle had managed to free himself. Then there was a moment of brief silence, followed by chaos. But when the torch light came back on, it was Kipp who held the gun and Trent up against a wall, his hands raised in defeat. Jane’s Uncle had one of the other lads around the neck and, much to Kipp’s surprise, his grandfather had the other one.

  Then Kipp heard a sound so strange, so worrying, so utterly frightening, that it makes all time stop dead and all life leave your soul, if only for the briefest of moments.

  “Kipp? Kiiiiiip.” Then he realized with horror, that his beloved Jane had been shot.

  chapter 10: of dreams and angels

  “Have I been here before?”

  “No.”

  “Is my mother here?”

  “Yes, she is. Would you like to see her?”

  Jane was led across a pasture so green as to make all other pastures pale by comparison. It was studded with flowers of every variety, all perfectly glorious, their perfume so sweet and powerful that it overwhelmed her senses. She was then taken across a lake so still and clear, it was as if it were made of clouds. She felt no weight at all in her body. Her senses were perfectly attuned to her surroundings. She could hear the most extraordinary music in the distance. When she looked up a huge city of glass filled the top of a great hill.

  A pathway paved with gold wound its way around the hill, all the way to an immense gateway. Great birds flew around the steeple overlooking the gateway and a seemingly endless stream of people were leaving and entering it. Their white gowns glowed in the glint of the powerful suns which overshadowed the blue of the brilliant sky with their glorious light.

  Jane did not fear, nor did she thirst. She felt nothing but the joy of expectation and the thrill of anticipation as she was led all the way up the path, around the hill, passing streams that cascaded over marble rocks into pools surrounded by gemstones of every color and variety.

  The Angel who guided her wore a gold embroidered sash that fell over the back, draping almost onto the pathway. It was encrusted with diamonds, but it flowed in the gentle breeze as if it was as light as a feather.

  Nearing the gate, Jane noticed for the first time the beautifully ornate reliefs and carvings in the archway that held the huge iron gate, which itself was shaped with the most stunning depictions of trees and vines.

  As they approached the gate, people walking by called her by her name, greeting her warmly, all smiling and nodding politely. A group of children ran up to her. They surrounded her, touching her like they were at a petting zoo and had never seen something so rare. They held her hands as they helped the Angel lead her.

  Jane had to crane her neck to look all the way up to the top of the magnificent steeple, whose point reached high into the silvery/white clouds. Her eyes were drawn back down to the great arched doorway, made of pure new oak, studded with bolts made of silver and embroidered with animals and figures made from jasper and jade.

  The door opened and they were greeted by people larger than those she saw entering and exiting the gateway. These beings were like super humans. But despite their size, they walked with an even, well balanced gait. They too nodded as they greeted Jane. Through the arched doorway, they came into a massive entrance hall, bordered on each wall by statues made from pure marble, so pure and polished that they gleamed and glistened, reacting to the light coming through the immense open door.

  The floor was covered with gold tiles so shiny that they reflected perfectly everything else in the hall. So perfect was the mirror image, that it was like walking on the ceiling itself and Jane wasn’t sure if she was even on a floor. The children left them, bowing to someone in the distance before taking their leave. At the end of the great hall, a giant white figure rose from a huge marble chair.

  It stepped down from the giant steps beneath it and met the Angel at the seat of the throne. Jane realized who the being was instinctively and was overawed. The being spoke in a language which seemed to be a composite of every known language ever spoken. It spoke with such authority and power that the very sound of its voice made the whole space vibrate. I should feel scared, thought Jane, but she was not at all.

  The Angel led Jane to where the great being had pointed and she was taken through a lesser door, still huge, but not as grand. She was then escorted down a very long corridor, with doorways along both sides, each with distinctly unique symbols and shields. She recognized some of the shields, though she didn’t know where from.

  Near the end of the corridor, they were greeted by an elderly chap, who though he had a cane, clearly did not need it. He purposely and politely bowed and greeted Jane by her full name.

  “Janine, Andrea Prescott, Come in, come in, we’ve been expecting you. She’s here, waiting for you.”

  Jane began to wonder what her mother looked like now. How long had it been? For Jane it had seemed like a lifetime. But here, time seemed somehow irrelevant. In her head, as the anticipation started to build, something was happening. She could feel it. Am I meant to feel pain here? She thought. The Angel swung around suddenly, as if it could read her thoughts.

  “Oh no. Too soon. It’s simply too soon. A mistake. You’re not ready. Quick, quick.”

  There was something like panic in the Angel’s voice. What were deliberate, slow movements now seemed rushed. What’s happening, Jane thought.

  “We’re losing you, a voice next to her said.”

  “Losing me? But how, why?”

  “Come, come, got to move quickly. She’s waiting. You don’t want to be disappointed. You don’t want to disappoint your mother.”

  Through another door, a beautiful woman stood looking out of a large window out across at a vast and wondrous vista. Giant birds flew majestically past the window and Jane could see, not two, but three suns in the sky, all setting over the horizon at once.

  “They’re calling her back,” the Angel said to someone who looked important. “We haven’t got much time.”

  The woman at the window turned to face Jane. For the first time she recognized her.

  “Mother?” Jane wanted to run to her, but running did not seem to be something people did a lot of here. Walking quickly yes, but not running.

  “My darling Jane. How I’ve missed you terribly.”

  Her mother knelt down elegantly and caressed Jane. Jane felt so warm and safe and she could hear the steady rhythm of her mother’s heart beating so strong it seemed as if it were that of a horse. Strange how I hear a heartbeat in Heaven, thought Jane and then the pain in the back of her head returned.

  “There isn’t much time dear,” her mother said and then a tear formed in her otherwise flawless eyes. Jane was suddenly filled with sadness, replacing the sense of almost overwhelming joy she had felt up till then. “They’re calling you dear. They’re calling your name. Go to them my love. Go to him my darling. He is your champion. He will protect you. He was made for you and you for him. I will wait as I have done so long. We will see each other again.”

  As she said this she turned to face the window again, as if she had never left it. But this time, she was joined by a man Jane recognized and another woman she did not. Then the Angel turned to Jane and knelt down.

  “I’m sorry, but you have t
o go. You cannot stay here any longer. Now close your eyes. No time to go back the way you came. Close your eyes and feel your heart. Listen to the sounds in your head, calling your name. Jane, Jane…Jane.”

  “Jane? Jane? Can you hear me?”

  Through a hazy whiteness, Jane started to see again the familiar world she so desperately wanted to leave, but couldn’t. Faces, some familiar, some not. All saying her name. Some crying. When her eyes returned to her she looked up into the beaming face of Kipp.

  “Jane? It’s me Kipp. You’re alright. You’re ok. You’re safe.”

  “Kipp? I saw her, Kipp, I saw them. They were all there.”

  “Who Jane. Who did you see?”

  Darkness, interspersed with light. Somewhere in the in-between worlds, Jane heard the last echo of her name being called from the Heavens. Then the dream faded, replaced instead by the less vague and more real world she had almost left. When she regained all consciousness and her normal thoughts returned completely, she realized how close she had come and was grateful at last that she was still with the living.

  Kipp had kept a vigil beside her bed for the days she was unconscious. Now that she was able to speak coherently, he asked her what she meant by “them”. But like a fading dream soon after being awoken, the memory of it all was too foreign. But just when Kipp was becoming disappointed, her memory came back to her.

  “I think I saw your mother, Kipp.”

  Epilogue

  The First Adventure

  “Kipp is you…isn’t he?” the girl asked.

  The old man was staring into nothing, completely lost in his thoughts. The passing of his many years had not taken from him the very fond memories, nor had they stolen the stories in his heart.

  “Who love?”

  “Kipp, the boy in the story. It’s you. You’re Kipp and Jane was your wife. Remember?”

  “Oh yes. Yes Janine. Your great grandmother. Yes, she was my wife and over the years, especially the early years, we had many fine adventures, she and I.”

  “Wow!” Our grandmother almost died?

  “Yes, almost, but not for a long while afterwards. Not for a very long while.”

  The boy had disappeared inside and had returned sporting a cowboy hat and carrying a torch. He had put on a red wig he’d flogged from the wardrobe and stood proudly on the porch.

  “Do you know who I am Great granddad?”

  “Oh I wouldn’t like to guess, but, umm, let me see. You have red hair, you have a torch and a hat. Do you have a dog called Nip?”

  The lad disappeared again and returned in a moment with a small toy dog. He sat the toy on the deck and stood proudly again.

  “Now I do. Come on Nip. We’ve got exploring to do.”

  At this point the girl joined her brother and very proudly declared, “And I am Jane. But you needn’t think I’m going to kiss you on the lips.” Their great granddad laughed and applauded them both.

  “Well done children, oh well done.”

  Then the boy, remembering the words of Kipp at the very beginning of the story, recounted as accurately as he could the poem Kipp said, adding his own ending.

  “Wherever I go, whenever I go,

  It’s me and Jane and Nip.

  No stragglers and nobody else,

  Forever we three, joined at the hip.”

  Jane’s song

  In gardens wet with due of night,

  Where Moon tempts smallest moth to flight.

  When in the early summer morn,

  Do I sit waiting for the dawn.

  Where Spring’s romance has called my name,

  As butterflies dance in the rain.

  Where bees so happy do entreat,

  The honey flower with nectar sweet.

  On beaches where you once had walked,

  Your soul imprinted on the sand.

  I search the vast white ocean skirt,

  As I write your name with careful hand.

  So sweetly do the Angels sing,

  Your name in Heaven’s choir.

  So softly is the sound I hear,

  As Angels play upon their Lyre.

  Oh that mercy granted me this hour,

  To hear your voice again.

  As I look across the ocean vast,

  And see once more you sailing then.

  And not a moment sooner too,

  Your vessel of my once small hope.

  As it breaches far horizon,

  Before Summer with his Spring elopes.

  On bare feet I, the pebbles feel,

  So round and smooth beneath my feet.

  As I lift my eyes to see your face,

  Your smile my heart’s beseech.

  So softly do the Angels play,

  The strings upon their Lyre.

  So sweetly do I hear the sound,

  As Angels sing in Heaven’s choir.

  glossary of australian terms

  Pasty: A pastry folded over meat and vegetables. Cornish pasties are the most famous variety.

  Perving: Looking at someone in a desiring manner.

  Aussie: Shortened version of Australian.

  Reckon: To guess.

  Sheila: A girl or woman.

  Damper: A kind of dough cooked over an open fire that forms a crusty partly burnt bread that you can fill with anything.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Paul G Day is an experienced writer and Author of dozens of books and thousands of poems. He has been writing for many years, specializing in poetry and stories for young readers. He is a qualified school teacher with two degrees. Paul was born one of 9 children and has two grown children of his own and has been happily married to his lovely wife Jennifer for 25 years. Paul loves to write stories which engages his readers with wonderful characters they can easily identify with. He loves to write stories about personal growth in the context of a broader, complex and sometimes unforgiving world. When writing about his characters, Paul draws on real life experiences, capturing the spirit of adventure, loyalty and courage in every unique story.

  OTHER BOOKS BY THIS AUTOR

  Paul G Day has written a number of Young Adult Novels as well as Children’s Books. Here is his collection so far.

  YA Novels

  Kipp The Kid

  (International Edition)

  Kipp The Copper Crest Kid

  (Australian Edition)

  The Black Fairy and the Dragonfly

  Escape From The Dark Queen

  (Book 2 of The Black Fairy & The Dragonfly)

  Star Child: The Cosmic Birth

  Children’s Book Series

  The Misadventures of Red Bear

  The Indian Chief

  The Wild Cats

  The Red Bearon

  Red Bearonaut

  Other Children’s Books

  The Fairies of Muddy Glen

  Lucky & Scratch

  Monkey’s ABC Animals

  Magic Fairy Kingdom ABC123

  The Last Boy Fairy

  Connect with Paul G Day

  Social Media

  https://www.facebook.com/AuthorPaulGDay

  Red Bear Productions

  (YouTube Channel)

  http://www.youtube.com/user/AuthorPaulGDay

  Email Addresses

  [email protected]

  [email protected]