CHAPTER TEN 
CHAPTER TEN 
BENJAMIN MADE IT to his mailbox safely. He looked over at the shadow that was the fox den. It was too late to go inside. He didn’t want to wake the animals to tell them about his visit. Lightning flashed in the eastern sky. He rode his bike up the driveway and laid it beside his house, glad to be getting inside before the rain came. Exhausted and happy, he fell into bed, only able to give his meeting with Mac a few seconds of thought before he was in a deep, deep sleep.
JONAH WAS EXHAUSTED. He’d wandered off the road, walking aimlessly for hours through dark pasture. He ran into evergreen tree branches when the tall, thick, bluestem grass wasn’t smacking him in the face. He didn’t care—anything was better than his dead owner’s house. Why did snakes come and kill her… and the cat? Jonah felt a little sorry for them, but thinking back on how they’d always treated him, he figured they got what they deserved. It didn’t matter to him now. He was going to find this hidden kingdom that he’d been king of…for a very short time. After all, he’d worn the crown, until some boy came along and took it from him! He gritted his teeth in anger. If only that stupid boy had told me where this kingdom is! At least the grass, which was a lot taller than he was, scratched his itch as it rubbed and cut against his short, grime-ridden body.
BOOM! Thunder rumbled in the distance. Jonah looked up at the moonless night sky and sniffed the cool, humid air, smelling something he hadn’t smelled in a long time. Rain. He walked on, in which direction he couldn’t tell. He just walked, hoping he’d somehow stumble on this kingdom and announce the news they wanted to hear: “Your king has arrived!”
The rattlesnakes gathered in the old barn as lightning flashed in the sky around them. Many more snakes were slithering in than ever before. Whispers throughout the main room were interrupted by their new leader.
“A ssstorm isss coming, my friendsss.” The rest of the snakes hissed. “A ssstorm isss coming to the kingdom, with rattlesss and fangsss.” The barn vibrated with thunder and loud rattling.
“Massster…” A snake said, and Siloam hissed with pleasure. “Massster, did you kill the heir to the kingdom?”
Siloam hissed angrily. “No!” Angry hisses surrounded him. “He had already essscaped. I did manage to create a little havoc while I looked for him, though.” His evil laugh was joined by others. “I wasss told that thisss heir hasssn’t shown up at the kingdom, yet. However…” BOOM! “…I have more interesssting newsss.”
“Tell usss, Massster!”
“Hissssssssss. Their kingdom isss about to grow in numbersss we cannot allow. Over a thousssand othersss are hiding in the heart of Persssly’sss Woodsss. If they reach thisss many, it will be even harder to take them over.”
“How are they going to gain ssso many more?”
“They are waiting for a group from the kingdom to come and guide them back.”
“Can we ssstop them, Massster?”
“Yesss.”
“How, My Lord?”
“I know of a way.” Siloam shook his rattle commandingly. “All of you will go and find thisss heir. He mussst be sssomewhere to the wessst looking for the kingdom.”
Every snake sounded a shaking rattle. BOOM! Lightning illuminated countless rattlesnakes, covering the floor of the barn.
“And if we find thisss heir?” one asked.
“Kill him!” Siloam slithered around the carcass of Farangis. “Kill him and any other creature that you crosss!” The leader of the rattlesnakes slithered out of the barn’s entrance. Three others followed.
“Where are they going?” others asked.
“To kill! Hisssssss. We have our ordersss. Let’sss move out!”
JONAH HAD NOT STOPPED since taking off after the boy late that afternoon. Miles and miles he’d covered, not knowing where the kingdom was, only that the boy headed south. The little dog had decided not to stay on the road very long. Surely a kingdom of animals wouldn’t be close to the road. Maybe I should have gone west instead of east.
The thunder got nearer as a cool breeze picked up. It was almost a relief. He was panting, thirsty and hungry after traveling so many hours.
“Owwwwwwwww…ow, owww, owwwwwwwwww!”
Jonah’s ears shot up at the sound he’d often heard in pastures outside the old lady’s house. “Oh no! Coyotes!” They sounded far away, perhaps miles. But where am I? He couldn’t see a thing as the sky grew darker, if that was even possible. When the lightning flashed, all he saw was bluestem grass in front of his face and an occasional tree above it.
Jonah sighed, then all of a sudden, Tap.… Tap, tap, tap. His nose felt the first light drops of the cool sprinkle of rain. Soon his body was covered in wet drops of water and the dirty, ugly dog smiled in relief. “Ohhhhhh…that feels so good!” Jonah didn’t care if anyone was around to hear. The rain soothed his itching body. He rolled around in pure bliss as the wet, thick grass cleaned off the dirt, grease, and who knows what else stuck to him.
He opened his mouth and drank the heavy drops. He gyrated as if in a trance as he lay on his back and let the rain roll across his belly. This was his first bath…ever! The old lady never bathed him, and Jonah hid under the porch from her when it rained. He figured it was better to be under that rotten porch than to be with her.
The ground was getting soaked, but Jonah didn’t care. He lay there in contentment, falling asleep in the pasture as the rain drenched and transformed him from the ugly, malnourished dog he’d been into the tan-colored pug he really was—complete with a black smashed-in face, little black ears…and one little black foot!