The Silver Key

By Clem Maddox

Nine year old Jason was standing on the front porch of his grandparent's small farmhouse and wondered about the flashing light he saw off in a distance. He knew his father had seen the same flashing light when he was Jason's age but Jason's grandfather indicated that he and his father could not locate or determine the mystery of the flashing light. Little did Jason know or realize that he was about to uncover the mystery behind the source of the flashing light. Jason's journey will reveal an alternate world based on a one hundred year old Native American legend only known in the state of Ohio.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Clem Maddox
• Release date: Jun 29, 2015
• ISBN: 9780986409929

Clem Maddox

Clemon Maddox writes Novellas and Novels for teens and young adults and Drama/Mysteries/Dark Fantasy with an element of crime for adults. Clemon Maddox Jr. was born in Daytona Beach Florida, and grew up in a military family. His love for writing was spawn from his fathers' love of the poem, Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe, as a result of that exposure he has written over 500 poems, 36 jazz lyrics, and has written 10 novels pending publication. Nesselorette the Book is his first published work.

Book preview

THE SILVER KEY

Clemon Maddox

~~~

Smashwords Edition

EYE-RITE, LLC

Eye-Rite, LLC

P.O. Box 540265

Grand Prairie, Texas 75054

www.eye-rite.com

Phone: [phone]

Copyright © 2015 Clemon Maddox Jr. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by Eye-Rite, LLC 02/15/2015

ISBN: 978-0-9864099-2-9

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015901896

This book is a work of fiction and any names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used factiously and any resemblance to actual persons, living or deceased, businesses, companies, events or locale are not used to discredit or mis-represent.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provide by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have been changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Editor: Patricia (Miki) Fehlman

Book Cover Design and Illustrator: Terrence Sweatt

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We all have someone that passes through our life’s journey that leaves an indelible impression and pearls of wisdom. One such person was my grandmother Mary Elizabeth Maddox. She was a full figured woman that loved to cook and took an immense pride in her grandchildren. She was not a towering woman in height and stature but a giant of a woman in her authoritative command and demeanor. Ancestrally my grandmother was part Native American Cherokee and part African American and possessed an enormous vigor for life. I pay tribute to her by depicting the character in this book by the name of Mable Banner. I also would like to pay homage to all the Native American Nations that birthed the seed of such a great country as the United States. .Although the legend of the Silver Key is fiction in concept, a great people as the Native Americans enabled me to weave the legend. Thank you!

PREFACE

Jason was standing on the front porch of his grandparents’ small farmhouse and wondered about the flashing light he saw off in the distance. He knew his father had seen the flashing light when he was Jason’s age, but Jason’s grandfather explained that they could not locate or determine what had caused it. Little did Jason know that he would find the source of the light, and a silver key would unlock the door that would reveal an alternate world. One that was told of in a one hundred year old Native American legend known only in the state of Ohio.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement

Preface

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

CHAPTER I

It was a clear summer night in Defiance, Ohio, and the cloudless sky looked like diamonds sprawled across a jeweler’s black velvet display pad. The stars were shimmering and sparkling more radiant than ever before, thought Jason Banner. Nine-year-old Jason was standing on the front porch of his grandparents’ small farmhouse looking at a light flashing off in the distance. His brown eyes sparkled a bit as his slender frame stood gawking in the still of the night. His auburn hair bounced gently in the slight breeze as he contemplated what to do next. The freckles that covered his face gave an image of a zigzag puzzle and his grandfather would tease him by saying they were a map of a hidden treasure. Jason would stand in front of the mirror for hours at a time trying to determine if his freckles indeed detailed a map. He would smile to himself as he touched the mirror, trying to draw lines through the freckles across his face.

He stood very still watching and wondering about the flashing light out in the woods. Although the night was clear, the dusty dirt road leading from his grandparents’ farmhouse was pitch black, with the exception of a firefly that flickered on and off as it went about its nightly flight.

There it goes again, cried Jason, who was standing on the porch all alone. What is that flashing light? Jason asked himself, as he took one step down the stairs leading from the porch.

A cool summer breeze was dancing over the top of the large red buckeye tree that had been standing in his grandparents’ yard for more than one hundred years. The age of the tree was noted on a small metal plate that his great-grandfather had fastened to the tree, marking the date he bought the land. Over the many years, other family members had added their own inscriptions as well.

Jason took another step down the stairs and wondered if he was brave enough to walk alone in the dark. The drooping limbs of the other trees that lined the dirt road only added to the fright of being on the road at night, especially if alone, thought Jason. The flashing light stopped as Jason was about to challenge his bravery and walk the dusty dirt road. He looked up at a single cloud that blotted out the soft moonlight momentarily and for some reason, the moonlight had stopped allowing the light to flicker, as it had been doing, thought Jason. Jason stood on the last step of the porch as he waited for the cloud to pass by. Nothing happened, then, from out of nowhere, the wind began to pick up its pace, signaling a summer rain shower could start at any second. He turned around, walked back up the steps, and waited to see if the rain shower would come. Jason knew that after a rain, the dirt road would become sloppy and almost unbearable to walk on.

Jason lived with his parents in the large city of Columbus, Ohio, but really preferred the rural farm his grandparents lived in. Jason was very familiar with what happened on the farm during the summer because since he was five years old, he always spent the summer with his grandparents. The rain came down in a frenzy, and Jason slapped his leg and said, I knew I was right!

Jason, are you alright? shouted his grandmother from the kitchen. Mable was a full-figured woman with a gentle face that camouflaged her true age. When she was young, people would say that Mable had a round face like Marilyn Monroe. Her eyes were a grayish color and gave her a very exotic look. Her hair was long and black with silver streaks that affirmed she was older than her gentle face appeared. Her large hands were indeed made for farm life but unlike her husband’s hard, worn hands, Mable’s were soft and supple. Her freckles looked like tiny spots of an ink blast sprinkled solely on her nose. Jason liked to think that he got his freckles from her.

Yes, Grandma, I’m fine. I knew it was going to rain! he shouted back.

As he stood looking at the rain pounding the dirt road, and creating puddles of water, the screen door swung open and there stood his six feet eight inch, three hundred pound grandfather.

Yes, my boy, we definitely needed the rain! bellowed his grandfather, Henry Banner. The Banners had been farming the land for well over a hundred years, producing winter wheat and maple syrup. During the early 1700’s the Banners spent a great deal of time learning how to effectively farm and work the rich soil from the Chippewa and Iroquois Indians that lived all over Ohio.

Grandpa, how long do you think the rain will last? asked Jason.

Judging by how fast the clouds are moving, we may have another ten to fifteen minutes, said Henry. Why do you ask, son?

Well, I wasn’t going to tell you, or Grandma, what I saw. I wanted to investigate something before I told you and Grandma, said Jason.

Are you talking about a flashing light off in the distance? asked Henry.

Yes, did you see it too, Grandpa? asked Jason excitedly.

No, son, I have never seen the light. But your dad claimed he saw it, when he was your age, said Henry.

You mean that Dad saw it, and didn’t try to go find out what it was? queried Jason.

Yes he did. In fact, he and I spent several nights trying to find out where the flash came from, but we were never able to find out what was causing it, said his grandfather. After that one night your dad saw the flashing light, he never saw it again.

I saw it, and I was going to try and find out what it was, until the wind started blowing hard, said Jason. I could smell the rain coming.

Son, you are really getting good at this farming thing, said Henry as he smiled at the boy. Maybe one day, when you get older, you will come join me in running the farm, Henry suggested.

It was not long before the rain began to slow its fall towards the ground, and then there was no more; just single teardrops that splashed into the mud puddles. Jason stepped off the porch and stood on the bottom step looking at the mud as it oozed its way along with the slow-rolling water.

I can’t get muddy, thought Jason, and he turned and walked back up the few steps to the porch. His grandfather was sitting in the old rocker, and had fallen asleep, snoring like a roaring train engine. The moon was glowing again, as the rain clouds moved on, and Jason stood looking in the direction where he had seen the flash. After about twenty minutes of staring, he still hadn’t seen anything. What happened to the light? Jason asked himself, as he yawned and his eyes began to tear up and burn. Maybe I should just go to bed, and in the morning, try to figure out where the light was coming from, further reasoned Jason. He walked over to his grandfather, now settled in the large chair for a deep sleep, and said, Grandpa, let’s go to bed.

With a loud yawn and stretch, his grandfather said, My boy, I think you’re right, it’s time for us to get some sleep to be able to rise with the chickens.

The house was quiet as Jason got up from his knees after saying his prayers. He pulled back the quilted blanket that his grandmother had made, as he thought it was too warm to have a blanket. Before he got into bed, he walked over to raise the window, and thought he saw a flicker off in the dark night again. What… wondered Jason, as he continued to raise the window up to allow the cool, damp breeze to kiss his face. He stared out into the night from his upstairs room. He turned and looked at the clock on the wall and saw the time was 10:30 p.m. His grandfather would be waking him up at 6:30 a.m., and he needed to get some sleep, but the flash of light made his body come alive with excitement. He turned back around to look outside the window, and it glimmered again in an instant. Jason perked up and concentrated hard to get a line of sight, or some kind of