Look Here, Hercules (a short story) Read online

  Chapter 1

  My brother Jack wished he was old enough to go into the hills to dig for gold, but I didn’t. I was happy just to walk down to the Sacramento River, scoop up a handful of sand, and let it run through my fingers so I could see the grains of gold glittering in the bright California sunlight.

  One hot summer day, I was sitting on a boulder by the river dangling my feet in the water to cool myself off, when Jack came scrambling down the steep riverbank.

  “Rebecca!” he shouted. “Where are you?”

  I jumped up and knocked one of my shoes into the river. “Darn!” I grabbed a stick and fished my shoe out before it could float away.

  “Rebecca!” he cried again. “Come quick!”

  “What?” I shouted, shaking the river water out of my shoe.

  “The sheriff just hauled Melody off to jail!”

  I turned, stunned, holding my soggy shoe. “The sheriff did what?”

  “Hauled Melody off to jail!”

  “What for?”

  “Sheriff says. . .” Jack stopped right in front of me and paused to catch his breath. “Sheriff says Melody’s the one who stole that suitcase.”

  “What suitcase?” I asked.

  “The suitcase that was stolen last Sunday from the hotel!”

  “That’s just malarkey,” I said. “Melody wouldn’t steal anything.”

  “Sheriff says he’s got proof.”

  “What proof?” I demanded.

  “I don’t know,” he said.

  “I’m going to find out.” I shook the remaining water from my shoe. To get to the trail leading to town, I had to climb up the river bluff. I knew from the crunching of twigs and dried grass behind me that Jack was scrambling to keep up with me.

  My wet shoe squeaked as I marched down Front Street to our store. The road was dusty, and I could still smell river water. The hand-painted sign mounted high on the building said “Flannery General Store.”

  When I opened the door, the bell jingled. Papa was in the back room, sitting at the table, leaning on his elbows. He looked up when I entered. He was frowning. He was a serious sort of man. I knew from his expression that he was angry.

  I stamped my foot. “Melody wouldn’t steal!”

  He lifted his head slowly and looked at me. “Sounds like she did, Rebecca, from what I heard.”

  “What did you hear?” I asked.

  “That suitcase stolen last Sunday from the hotel—?”

  “Yeah?” I stood with my hands on my hips. “What about it?”

  “Inside that suitcase was a pair of silver chalices valued at more than five hundred dollars.”

  “A pair of silver what?” I asked.

  “Chalices,” he said. “Fancy cups. They were worth a lot of money.”

  “So what?” I demanded. “What does that have to do with Melody?”

  “This morning, after Melody got back from San Francisco, she deposited five hundred dollars into the Hastings Bank and paid off her debt.”

  “Sure does sound like she sold those fancy cups in San Francisco,” said Jack, who stood in the doorway listening, his arms folded across his chest, his palms clamped in his armpits. Jack insisted on cutting his own hair, so it was slightly longer on one side than the other, giving him a lopsided, comical look. “How else would she get that much money?” he asked.

  “That’s what the sheriff figures, too,” said Papa.

  “It can’t be true!” I cried. “Melody wouldn’t steal anything! Why should she have to pay that debt, anyway?”

  “Melody knew that debt bothered me,” Papa said.

  Melody’s first husband was hung after shooting a man in a bar. The bank said Melody was responsible for his debts. She was proud to have gotten it all the way down to five hundred dollars from money earned in her seamstress shop.

  “Papa,” Jack asked, “they’re not going to hang Melody, are they?”

  “Naw,” he said. “They won’t hang a woman for stealing. They’ll probably keep her in jail a while, then tell her to leave town.”

  “Make her leave town?” I cried. “They can’t!”

  “I should have known,” Papa said. “A woman with a past like hers, having been married to an outlaw, well, I should have known better than to get engaged to her.”

  “Papa!” I cried. “Melody didn’t steal that suitcase. She wouldn’t!”

  Papa put his hand on my shoulder, and gave my braid an affectionate tweak. “I know how much you like her, Rebecca. But I think a woman who used to be married to an outlaw might steal a suitcase.”

  “If that’s how you feel, Papa,” asked Jack, “why’d you get engaged to her?”

  I looked at Jack, thinking he’d just asked the world’s dumbest question. Anyone with eyes could see why Papa wanted to marry Melody. First, Melody was beautiful, with shiny hair that fell all the way down her back when she unpinned it. Second, Melody was wonderful, always laughing, always seeing the good in everything and everyone.

  “I guess I thought she’d changed,” Papa said sadly.

  The full novel, A Pocket Full of Gold, is available as a paperback or ebook wherever books are sold.

  Michael’s Mighty Kick (sample chapter)

  Joshua enjoys being the star of his team, until a new kid joins who is just as good as Joshua —or better! Will their rivalry cause them to lose their most important game?

  Chapter 1

  A New Kid Arrives

  “Did you hear the news?” Andrew asked Joshua. “We’re getting a new kid on the team!”

  Joshua and Andrew were the first to arrive at the soccer field. Joshua was captain of the River Dogs. Joshua was also the team’s best player, by far.

  “I hope he’s good,” Joshua said. “We really need to win today.”

  Today they were playing the Alley Cats. If they beat the Alley Cats, they’d have a good chance at the league championship.

  “I heard he’s really good,” Andrew said. “Tyler said he has a lot of trophies.”

  “Great,” Joshua said. He pretended to be happy about the new guy’s trophies, but really he was worried. Trophies didn’t mean the guy was good. Lots of leagues gave trophies to everyone who played.

  Joshua had been playing soccer since he was three. His father, who had played college soccer, practiced with Joshua every weekend. Joshua’s oldest brother was the star of his high school soccer team.

  Joshua had very high standards.

  “Besides,” Joshua said, “I don’t think it’s a good idea for a new kid to join just before an important game. He won’t know our routines and positions. He should have to practice with the team first.”

  “You know what the coach says,” Andrew said. “He says the important thing is that everyone gets to play.”

  “Yeah, but he’s wrong,” Joshua said. “The important thing is to win.”

  Andrew looked up at the storm clouds gathering overhead. “It might rain,” he said.

  “So what?” Joshua asked. “We practiced enough times in the rain. Rain might help us if the Alley Cats aren’t used to it.”

  This time Joshua didn’t have to fake a positive attitude. He knew he could play well in a downpour.

  “Let’s get started,” Joshua dropped a ball at his feet and took off dribbling. He shouted back to Andrew, “I don’t care if it rains! I don’t care if it hails! I don’t care if we get a blizzard! I don’t care if we have a mudslide! As long as we win! Come on, Andrew! Catch up!”

  Joshua kicked the ball in the air, let it bounce off his chest, then jumped back so it landed right at his feet. Without missing a beat, he kicked the ball and started dribbling. Running fast and dribbling raised Joshua’s spirits. Practicing his fancy fakes and footwork helped him forget that a new kid was joining the team right before an important game.

  Joshua kicked the ball in the air. This time it bounced twice off his chest.

  “Wow!” Andrew shouted.

  Joshua smiled. That was one of his fanciest moves an
d always faked out his opponents. I’ll bet the new kid can’t do that, he thought.

  Joshua and Andrew raced down the field, with Andrew trying to take the ball away from Joshua. Andrew couldn’t do it.

  Joshua kicked the ball into the goal and punched his fists toward the sky. “Yes!” he shouted. Joshua loved soccer. The truth was he also loved being the star player on the team. Every time he kicked the ball into the goal and everyone cheered, he felt a thrill of excitement.

  “Hey look!” Andrew said. “Other kids are coming. And there’s the coach! I think that’s the new kid with him.”

  Joshua spun around to look. The new boy was tall. Joshua guessed he was at least five inches taller than him. He had a solid, athletic build.

  Joshua felt a knot tighten in his stomach. He kicked at a clump of dirt. I will not worry about this, he told himself. Everything will be just the same as always.

  The full novel, Michael’s Mighty Kick, is available as a paperback or ebook wherever books are sold.

  To learn more about Teri and her books please visit her website: www.terikanefield.com.

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