The Adventures of Horace Tidwiddler, jlee smith [fastest ebook reader .txt] 📗

the time. He was amazed when he was told how far they had traveled. Bob said he had never felt the need to travel when he had everything he required right here. He said he had seen the gypsy wagons pass by his whole life and never wondered where they were going or where they had been. He said it must be tiring to never be content with where you were or what you have. Later that night Bob thanked them for their hospitality, walked back across his makeshift bridge and went home. Horace said, “strange little fellow.” Aunt Matt said “he sounds awful smart to me.” Horace, Dylan and Aunt Matt all curled up in one ball and went to sleep for the night. As Horace was drifting off he thought, strange little fellow.
The next morning came early and there was a fine mist falling. The wind was coming from the north and a chill was in the air. everyone agreed it was unseasonable cold. Horace sat closer to the fire and told Abbasonn he had never seen it this cold at this time of year. Abbasonn said as they were a lot further north and west of where they normally were and the weather may be different than what they were accustomed to. He said they would have to pay attention to this because it may affect their journey. Blanco and Bruno came over to their fire, got coffee and sat on a log that had been placed by the fire. Bruno said he liked this weather better than when it was so awful hot, Blanco said, “You would,” as he shivered and wrapped the robe around his legs for warmth. Dylan sat between Horace’s legs and watched bugs circling the smoke coming from the fire. Durant and Bentaub sat across from them and were talking in low voices. After a while they both addressed the group and said they were concerned about the weather and , if it got any worse, we might have a problem., Abbasonn assured them that we would cross that bridge when we came to it. Horace did not say anything but he did think, the little Opossum may not be so strange after all.
The caravan formed and moved slowly through the forest. The mist turned to fog and a light rain started to fall. Horace noticed that the sound of the wagons moving along the trail was different than it had been before. Aunt Matt told Horace that this was because of the fog. The sound of the wagon wheels on the gravel and the cadence of the oxen’s slow plodding hoofs just about put a person to sleep. As the rain began to really fall, the travelers, even Bruno, were given shelter in various wagons. The wagons finally came to a stop when it became impossible to see the trail. There was no movement for the rest of the day. The travelers and their gypsy friends would just had to wait until things dried out.
It was the first time Horace had been in one of the wagons and he was surprised at the amount of space they provided. Horace, Aunt Matt and Abbasonn were in the back of one of the wagons. The gypsy man, his wife and two children were in the front. It was cozy, but there was plenty of room. Horace said that one day he would like to have one just like it. Aunt Matt looked at Horace and said, “You know that once the wanderlust bug has bitten, there is almost no turning back. If a man is never content to be in one place for long, he will always be in search of that next place for the rest of his life.” Horace said “so, that’s not so bad is it?” Aunt Matt shrugged her shoulders and said, “depends on the man.”
The gypsy woman looked at Horace and asked if he would like to have his fortune told? he said, “sure”. They rearranged the seating and sat facing each other in the back of the wagon. She held a deck of rather large Tarot cards in her hand. She shuffled them several times, had Horace cut the deck, then dealt one card face up. She looked at Horace and said, “You will have a long life and travel very far on many journeys. There will be a great sadness in your life but there will also be great joy. You will have many friends and I also see you surrounded by a large diverse family.” She dealt the second card, studied it for several seconds then said, “This is strange, it shows you will be a teacher and reside in one place for most of your life.” She looked at Horace an said, “these two cards should never follow one another, this is most confusing.” She dealt the third card and said. “You will be renowned for your music and musical accomplishments.” She dealt the fourth and final card and said, “Your wealth will be in friendships rather than gold.” She picked up the cards and went back to the front of the wagon. Horace looked at Aunt Matt with a funny look on his face. She said under her breath, “bunch of horse feathers.” “Hope you didn’t pay for that.” Horace said, “I can’t even carry a tune and beat a drum at the same time. How could I ever have musical accomplishments?” Aunt Matt said, “I told you, it’s a bunch of horse feathers, so just forget what she said.” Horace said, “Okay” but it was still in the back of his mind and it worried him a little.
The next morning the sun came out and, after cakes and coffee, the journey to Mottlee resumed.


CHAPTER FIFTEEN - SLAVERS
Horace was sitting in the rear of the wagon with his legs dangling out the back. Aunt Matt was curled into a ball sleeping when the gypsy man pulled up the oxen suddenly. He shouted at the following wagons and they all pulled their teams to a stop. He climbed down and walked back to the following wagons. After a short conversation, he and another driver returned to the front of the lead team. The other driver was carrying a long barreled blunderbuss in the crook of his arm. They both walked a short distance down the trail. About this time, Abbasonn, Durant and Bentaub walked up to where Horace was sitting. Abbasonn raised one finger to his lips and said, “Shusss”. The three men walked to the front of the wagon, stopped for a moment, then joined the other two men standing in the trail. After a brief conversation, they all returned to the wagons and the caravan again started moving slowly down the trail. Abbasonn had climbed in the back of the lead wagon with Horace and Aunt Matt. He told Horace that something was following the wagons and keeping out of sight. He told Horace that the lead driver had been aware they were being shadowed for the last hour or so. He had thought at first it was some type of wild animal but had caught sight of something moving from one tree to the next keeping pace with the caravan. It was decided to just wait and see what it would do. The mood of the travelers changed greatly. The rest of the morning there was very little conversation in the wagon. Horace had never felt this feeling of uncertainty before. It was like he was frightened of something but he just didn’t know what it was. He told Abbasonn how he felt and that he was ashamed of how he felt. Abbasonn looked at Horace and smiled. He told Horace that he should not be ashamed for what he felt, it was this caution that had kept men alive down through the ages. The shame would be in not facing the unknown, not standing up to this feeling of the unknown, the uncertainty, this was the shame. Horace nodded his head in agreement, but said he still wished he knew what was hiding in the bushes. Aunt Matt had been asleep through all the excitement and when she woke, she stretched, rubbed her eyes, and said, “What’s for lunch?”
It was late in the afternoon when a clearing was found in the woods that would accommodate the wagons. A larger than usual fire was built and all the wagons gathered in a circle around it. Logs were pulled near the fire to sit on. Conversations were kept to a minimum as coffee was prepared and the evening meal started. Children were kept near the wagons as darkness fell. Horace told Aunt Matt what had happened while she was asleep. She told Horace that she could not imagine what type of dangerous creature could be in this forest that would be following them. Meat had been placed on a spit for roasting and flatbread was being cooked when a small voice came from the darkness, “Please Sir. We are very hungry, could you spare some bread?”
The men all jumped to their feet at the same time. A small boy stepped into the campfire light. He was very frail and his clothing was worn and very dirty. He was very frightened and stood completely still. He said, “We mean no harm but we are very hungry. Will you help us?” A gypsy woman was the first person to move. She said, “My God son, when was the last time you had something to eat?” He replied, “I don’t remember Mam, days I guess.” Horace stood almost in a daze. He had never seen anyone in this state in his entire life, The little boy was just skin and bones. Abbasonn walked toward the little boy and in a voice softer than Horace had ever heard said, “Son, do not be frightened, we would never harm you, are there others?” “Yes”, he replied. “there are others.” It was then that Horace saw a dozen small figures standing in the shadows. They were all children, very small children. They were all in the same condition as the little boy. The gypsy woman said, “where are your parents?” “We have no parents, they were all taken” was his reply. “Taken? Taken by whom?”, said Abbasonn. “Slavers Sir, I think they were slavers.” Horace looked at Aunt Matt with the question in his eyes. She said, “You don’t want to know Horace, you don’t want to know.”
The little boy told them his name was Uno and that he was the oldest of the children. He said they had been hiding in the woods for several days when they saw the wagons. He said they had tried to get help at a large stone fort but had been chased away by the people inside. Durant said, “We know the place, they are most disagreeable people.” A place was made by the fire for all the children to sit and bowls of food given to each. Warm blankets were found and they were given space in the wagons for the night. The men sat up late into the night discussing the situation. Abbasonn sat