I THE KINGDOM AT THE END OF THE DRIVEWAY D
B O O K
T W O
The Rightful Heir
BY JEFFERSON KNAPP
I INTRODUCTION D
T
he crescent moon climbed higher in the black, lateAugust sky, casting its pale light eerily across pastures of bluestem grass. A light, cool breeze rocked the tall heads back and forth. Out of the stalks a dark object jumped, then fell back to earth. A few moments later it jumped again, returned, then froze. It smelled something close by. Sniff, sniff. The pug looked to one side but saw no movement in the thick vegetation. On the other side, downwind and unseen, a line lengthened in the grass, quickly approaching. “Son?” King Pugsly called out urgently, a silver-blue tag on his collar sparkling in the moonlight. “Is that you?” A field mouse, on his way to a small puddle, faintly heard his king’s voice. His heart beat rapidly in his chest. He stopped to catch his breath beside the water. Without warning he was knocked onto his back and loud rattling thundered in his ears. “Well, Edward. Hisssssss. Where issss he?” a rattlesnake whispered as another poked his head above the grass like a periscope, searching all directions. “H-h-he’s back there a ways,” the small creature pointed behind him. “I moved downwind. I don’t think he n-n-noticed me.” The snake’s laugh sizzled. “Gooood, little moussse. We’ll be ssseeing you sssoon. Come back here tomorrow night. The buzzard will be waiting.” The two snakes slithered off behind the mouse, their long, scaly bodies rustling the grass. “Wait! W-what about my family?” Edward’s frantic whisper vanished in the field. He curled up into a ball and sobbed from
the overwhelming weight on his heart. King Pugsly walked toward the sound of movement. He inhaled deeply but his small black nose couldn’t pick up any familiar scents. “Son?” In the split second he recognized the sounds of snakes in the grass, they lifted their diamond heads right in front of him and he jumped to avoid the attack. But he landed on one of their dark, muscled backs. Instinctively he bit and scratched, the snake shrieking as he savagely tore its scaly skin. The bite that penetrated the dog’s chest came quickly, causing him to fall off the injured snake while the other hissed in excitement, “There, that’sss it. Let the poissson sssoar through the veinsss of your weakened body. One little bite and your entire kingdom is finished!” The dog lay still, looking up at them. “My—my kingdom?” he asked, feeling the effects of the poison as it pulsed through his aching body. “I’m only one member….There are…hundreds more.” He coughed, then breathed deeply. “They’ll all be eaten by our massster,” the mauled rattlesnake hissed. “Ben…Benjamin…” King Pugsly could no longer speak and stared straight ahead. The snakes hissed happily, their long trails moving through the grass away from the dying pug. Soon a small grass trail, that of the pitiful mouse, approached the site of the attack. An owl awoke in his nest as the sun fell behind the faded gold treetops. Hoo! Hoo! He launched himself and flew into Persly’s Woods. That dream—the murder he’d witnessed a month ago, while flying over the pastures—continued to haunt his sleep.
Trapped in darkness, too tired to fight, keep calm, keep breathing, and speak to the light.
I CHAPTER ONE D
Another Ho-Hum Day
O
utside the classroom window the leaves took on their autumn colors, signaling the end of September in the town of Leon. It had scarcely been three weeks and Benjamin Biggs was already very bored with seventh grade. Benjamin certainly wasn’t one of the most popular kids in school. That place was reserved for students who went out for sports. He did manage to have a few friends—Trevor and a new kid named Chad—but he was usually too busy to spend any time with them outside of class. The bell signaled his last class, social studies. Like every other day Benjamin sat at his desk daydreaming…about animals that talked, lived in a cave, and looked to him as their king. Daydreaming always seemed to make time pass more quickly. It was true again today for Mrs. Dyer’s lesson on Greek mythology. The ending bell rang. Students sprang from their seats to race for the brown metal door that trapped them in the cold classroom an hour each day. Benjamin threw his books in his dented locker (minus one book for homework) and slammed it shut. Then he speed-walked to the front doors of Leon Middle School where his bus, or chariot, as Mrs. Dyer liked to call it, awaited him in the parking lot. “Stay out of trouble, Benjamin!” The boy turned around. The new principal, Mrs. Webster, gave him a quick wink and a grin. She had been his first grade teacher and had just been promoted. Benjamin noticed the few ◆7◆
strands of gray popping out of her black head of hair and felt slightly responsible for them. Although he remembered with crystal clarity, she’d somehow forgotten that on his first day she sent him to the principal’s office after he threw up on her new blouse. Nonetheless, she had been his favorite teacher and was now principal. The two took turns teasing each other whenever they could. The early autumn breeze felt good on Benjamin’s face as he walked out of the stuffy school. The old, squeaky bus door folded open and he hopped up the steps. Riding home was his third favorite part of the day. Second was riding to school. His favorite, of course, was visiting the kingdom across the road. He had to admit that watching Jessica Howell board and leave the bus was always a thrill. But he spent as much time thinking about her pug, and that black paw, as he did about her. How was he supposed to meet the dog? Benjamin never wore King Pugsly’s collar to school. The kids were sure to make fun of him if he did. And he couldn’t yell out the window at it. Imagine what the kids (not to mention the bus driver) would say about that! He definitely couldn’t explain the situation to Jessica Howell—the Summer Jubilee’s Watermelon Queen! What would he say? “Hi. My name is Benjamin Biggs and I believe your dog is the heir to a kingdom of talking animals across from my mailbox.” No, he had to come up with a good plan. The animals were growing quite anxious to meet King Pugsly’s possible son ever since Benjamin had brought it up weeks ago that he may have found him. Benjamin stared at the back of Jessica’s head all the way home. Her wavy, light-brown hair bounced up and down over every pothole, shooting out a burst of shampoo scent toward his nose and overtaking the looming smell of dust the bus always seemed to have. Think, Ben, think! He tried to focus on a plan. Okay, ◆8◆
tonight I’m going to ride my bike to her house and wait outside the fence for that pug to— BUMP! The bus hit another pothole, tossing him in his seat. Shoot! What was I going to do? The bus slowed down at Jessica’s driveway. Benjamin did his routine of leaning out to the middle of the aisle to watch the Watermelon Queen walk to the front and disappear down the steps. “Maybe it’d help if you talked to her,” Al, the bus driver, yelled out. Al’s smirking face under his greasy, black comb over reflected in the dusty rear view mirror. Ignoring two snickering kids in front, Benjamin brushed off the snide remark and scooted over to the window in time to see Jessica pick up her little tan pug, laughing as it licked her face. Benjamin smiled as the bus pulled away, watching her fade from view through the smudged glass. She was his first real crush, and although talking to her was nearly impossible, it wasn’t going to be any easier talking to her dog. The bus drove a mile farther down the road before it stopped at Benjamin’s driveway. He made his way down the aisle. As he passed Al, the man produced a goofy laugh like he was sucking in air and said, “Let me know when the wedding is.” “Bye, Al,” Benjamin replied with sarcasm. His feet touched the gravelly road, the bus door squeaked shut behind him, and the engine groaned. He looked at the fox den. It was unusually quiet, with no animals in sight. Typically a squirrel or a mouse would be waiting for him, but not today. Benjamin felt anxious. He wanted to tell them his plan to finally talk to the pug he believed was heir to the throne. Now what’s that plan again? Walking toward his house Benjamin couldn’t help thinking he no longer saw his pug’s face staring at him through the front window. Pugsly had always stood on his hind legs, balancing against the ledge, to watch his best friend come up the driveway. ◆9◆
I miss you so much, boy. He looked at the empty window and sighed, feeling a loss in his heart he so badly wanted to fill. Inside he heard the sound of chairs being moved across the kitchen floor. He found his mom, Carol, mopping the shiny linoleum. “Hi—” “Oh, hey, don’t walk on the floor. It’s still wet.” Carol pushed the wooden chairs back under the round dining table. “Do you need a drink or something, sweetie?” “No, I’m just gonna go play outside for a little bit.” Benjamin started downstairs but turned when he heard his mom come to the top of the staircase. She looked guilty. “Honey,” she said. “Look, I hope you don’t mind but—where are you going?” “Oh, I was just gonna grab my collar…um, bracelet.” He felt embarrassed. She sighed. “Benjamin…” The boy knew his mom was serious anytime she called him Benjamin. “Sweetie, I gave it away.” It took him a split second to realize what she’d said. “What?!” He was stunned, angry, and confused. “Now, Ben, listen to me,” she said sharply, her arms folded, looking down at her son. “You need to let it go. It’s not healthy for you to be wearing that thing.” “Mom!” “Son, I don’t know if you think wearing that collar will bring him back—” “Where is it?!” the boy yelled up angrily. He didn’t like hearing that Pugsly was never coming back, even if he knew it was true. “I gave it to an old lady from church. We met in line at the grocery store today and she told me about her little dog.” She spoke softly, trying to be patient with him. “So what does that have to do with anything?” He was still angry. ◆ 10 ◆
“Ben, I don’t like that tone you’re using. Why don’t you go to your room and not come out until you’re ready to talk to me with respect.” Her eyebrows rose. “Or we can wait until your father comes home from work.” She watched him disappear around the corner of the staircase and head to his room. Benjamin lay on his bed staring at the ceiling. He was angry, yet he knew how silly it must look when he wore his dead dog’s collar around his wrist every waking minute he was out of school. He wished people thought he was normal, but nobody could ever understand his hidden secret. Nobody except…. “Grandpa!” Benjamin shot up in his bed, wishing he could somehow blink his eyes and be right in front of Grandpa Gus. Why didn’t I think of this sooner? Surely he knew that collar was magic, didn’t he? He so badly wanted to see him, to find out the story behind that amazing, mysterious collar. He frowned when he remembered his grandpa left last Tuesday to go on vacation. Shoot! How was he going to get that collar back? Not only did he need it to rule the kingdom, but he couldn’t wait any longer to talk to Jessica Howell’s pug. He lay in the quiet of his bedroom all afternoon, racking his brain for a good idea.
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I CHAPTER TWO D
The Changing of the Guard
T
he retreating rays of the sun shone equally on the surrounding red and orange trees and the dark-green ivy covering the old, eerie barn. It was quiet inside. A light breeze swept through the entrance, blowing a few straws of hay onto the half-decayed carcass of a twenty-five-foot python. The headless, once gray, shriveling body was now blue. The smell of rotting flesh and muscle turned the buzzards outside wildly hungry. They wanted to eat their former master’s nearly skeletal carcass, yet the fear he’d instilled in them made them stay away. Nearly a month had passed since Farangis was destroyed and the kingdom was saved, a month of quiet in the ivy-covered barn. The quiet was shattered as rattles from all around made their way into the dark room. “Sssoooo, Sssiloam. What isss the reassson for thisss meeting?” Siloam rattled softly. “Friendsss, time hasss passsed since we disgracccefully fled from our massster.” Several snakes hissed angrily at the accusation. “Remember, Sssiloam. You fled, too!” one said. “Ssso I did! And now we are all here to fulfill our ssservice to our dead massster.” “What do you mean?” “The kingdom our lord wasss going to overtake ssstill exissstsss. Rumorsss sssay an heir to the throne hasss been found.” Hissing grew over the idea of revenge. “I believe the massster ◆ 12 ◆
knew they would ssseek King Pugsssly’sss heir. Then came the massster’sss unfortunate death!” The evil laughter of a few snakes caused the others to wonder. “Isss thisss new heir already their king?” “No. The pathetic human hasss sssaid he will bring him back.” “How do you know thisss, Sssiloam?” The rattlesnake raised his neck and glared arrogantly at the rotting corpse. “I have ssspiesss that Farangisss did not care to asssoccciate with… hisss ego wasss hisss demissse.” He hissed loudly and the other snakes, without being commanded, lined up in front of him. “Now I have ssspoken with Sssebassstian.” “He wasss blinded by the human boy’sss fire, wasssn’t he?” a voice asked. “Hisss sssight isssn’t what it wasss. He isss ssstill the only one who knowsss the entrance to the kingdom, however.” Siloam’s rattle sounded loudly. “I have given him a new order. He hasss sssent the buzzardsss to sssearch the western landsss and quessstion all creaturesss about the heir. My ssspy sssaysss he will be coming from the wessst.” “And if they find him?” “Then I will go and kill him!” Siloam boasted, slithering on top of the gargantuan rotting body of his former master. He hissed loudly and the others rattled in satisfaction. “Friendsss, we will sssoon have our revenge!”
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I CHAPTER THREE D
A Surprise From Above
I
t was a rather quiet, late-September afternoon in the cave across from the Biggs’s mailbox. Most of the animals were outside, either playing in the pasture or gathering food for the upcoming winter. Roscoe, Clementine, and a few others were inside, lounging by the small pool. A falling leaf now and then would find its way through the ceiling hole and into the water. “Hey, Roscoe, tell me again the story of how you beat that giant goat in a jousting contest!” Squeak, the field mouse, stood on his hind legs and looked into an eye of the fainting goat, who lay on his side. “Alright, little mouse. I think you’ve fed the Matador’s ego enough.” The pot-bellied pig waddled over to Roscoe, sitting his big rump next to his face. “You know, Clementine, one of these days you’re going to seriously hurt someone with that thing!” the annoyed goat winced at his fat friend. Clementine continued. “Okay, Squeak, how ‘bout I tell you the story of when I slayed the evil, monstrous, hungry boar who was about to eat us all—including King Benjamin!” “Pig, how many times do we have to go through this? It wasn’t you but me who mentioned you had a girl’s name.” Squeak’s head moved from goat to pig. “Y-you have a girl’s name, Clementine?” “Umm…” Clementine nervously tried to change the subject. “Hey, Squeak! How ‘bout you go find those chicks and I’ll tell you ◆ 14 ◆
the story of how I got this scar on my back when Farangis bit me? That was something, let me tell ya! You see—” SPLASH!!! All three jumped up in surprise and whirled around to the pool. A few animals ran into the tunnel, yelping in fear. Everyone stared at the water, seeing nothing but ripples, when suddenly the face of an exhausted fox popped up, gasping for air. Squeak ran behind Clementine’s fatty backside. Clementine and Roscoe’s mouths hung open. They glanced at each other. The fox propped his skinny orange body onto the ledge of the pool and inhaled another huge breath. He examined the large cavern, noticing the sparkling blue reflections from the pool on the walls. He looked in awe at the throne of white limestone, shining in the crystal blue spring water. “So it is true!” The fox addressed the spectators in front of him, his wet fur dripping all over the floor. “Is this…is this the kingdom of King Pugsly?” ◆ 15 ◆
The pig frowned. “Yes, but King Pugsly is dead.” “Dead? H-how? It didn’t kill him, did it?” Roscoe sighed. “Oh no, not this again. Okay, look, fox,” he began reciting. “Farangis killed our king, but we took care of him weeks ago. We now live in peace again. And we have a new king—a human boy named King Benjamin.” A small bird flew high above, near the hole in the ceiling. Its chirps echoed throughout the cavern, then it flew out. Squeak came out from behind Clementine. “What is this it you’re talking about?” The fox stared at the field mouse, licking his lips in hunger. As he moved to attack, Clementine pounced on his paws. Yelping, the fox looked up in pain at the snorting pig while Squeak again retreated behind his savior. “One thing you must know about our kingdom, fox, is that we don’t eat each other.” “I-I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I’ve been traveling for days without food looking for this place.” “We have vegetables stored away if you’re hungry,” Roscoe said, while the fox hid his disgust. “You’ve searched for days?” Clementine asked. “How did you find us? The full moon will soon be here. Why didn’t you just wait for the beacon?” “Because we can’t wait that long.” The fox took another deep breath, then looked up at the hole in the ceiling. “I was running in the pastures, thirsty and tired, when I came across this hole. I looked down and saw the sun reflecting off your pool. I was so thirsty. I didn’t care if I could get back out. I needed a drink!” Roscoe was confused. “You said ‘we couldn’t wait that long.’ Who’s ‘we’?” Squeak came forward and the fox smiled. “My apologies, little mouse. I didn’t mean to eat—uh, scare you.” “Fox!” Roscoe demanded. “Who…is…we?” ◆ 16 ◆
The fox looked down and sighed. “About a thousand of us.” You could’ve heard one of Miss Nightingale’s peacock feathers drop, if she hadn’t been in the pasture. Roscoe tried to move his lips. “Th-th-th—” Clementine completed his thought. “Thousand?” The fox smiled wanly at their astonishment. “Yes, my friends. Give or take.” Roscoe was in shock. “Um…where are we going to put a th-th—” “Thousand,” Clementine finished. “Yeah, what he said. Where will they fit?!” The goat stared in disbelief. “Oh, come on, Roscoe,” Squeak piped in. “We can fit more in the cavern. This thing goes way back—” “Squeak!” Roscoe snapped. “Don’t you like have some, I don’t know, cats or hawks you can be playing with?” “They’re all out gathering food. And you’re the one who taught me not to work!” the mouse shrugged his shoulders in defense. “Okay, fine. Well, why don’t you go keep a lookout for King Benjamin then?” The fading light shone through the ceiling. “He’s a little later than usual. I hope he shows up soon.” Roscoe looked back at the fox as it scratched its ear with a hind paw. “…Real soon!” Clementine winked at the mouse, who scampered through the tunnel, and Roscoe continued with a sigh. “Alright. Before we go any further, I’m Roscoe and this is Clementine.” “Ma’am.” The fox bowed its head. “Okay, let’s just get this over with now! I’m a boy who just happens to have a girl’s name,” the pig squealed. “Oh. Nice to meet you. My name’s Felix.” “Ma’am.” Clementine tried to sound serious. “Felix is a boy’s name,” the fox snapped. ◆ 17 ◆
“Well, Felix, I suggest we wait on our king to arrive before we discuss anything more about your…friends.” “Yes, absolutely.” Felix cleared his throat and checked a paw. They stood in awkward silence, looking around the cave. “So… you two aren’t out gathering food like the rest—” “Um, yeah, we’re heroes,” Roscoe blurted out. “So ya know, we don’t…really…uh, do that stuff.” “Oh.” The fox was amused. “Yeah, and I’m still waiting for them to carry me around everywhere!” Clementine snorted ridiculously loud. Roscoe rolled his eyes at the pig’s stupid comment.
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