Kentucky Tails

By Betsy Byrne and Kevin Byrne

Is it even possible to recreate a loving and caring family in a totally separate State where one has never been before? In Kentucky Tails a book that is for the young at heart, Penny journeys to a faraway land where she will never see her family again.

Penny enjoys the view of The Grand Canyon where she hailed from with a very handsome and generous man. She finds herself zipped closed in his back pack and is driven to Bowling Green, Kentucky where the man lives. Far from home she learns a new culture. She meets a lot of whimsical characters with whom she learns to love and call her new family. A lesson in how and why to pay it forward is learned by all the members of this special clan.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBookIt.com
• Release date: Apr 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781456625023

Book preview

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PART I

CHAPTER ONE

THE JOURNEY

Everything was so stunningly bright, it was hard to see more than the forms of the mountains and her eyes watered from trying to forcedly see the breathtaking view. Tired from the trek to the cliff she sat on a rock nearby and the quiet was interrupted, not the usual tourist ooh’s and ahh’s but a quiet sigh that clearly sounded as if the person who obviously was sharing the view with Penny was also trying to catch his breath. It was more than worth the rush as the sunrise was magnificent.

The man was very quiet, seemingly peaceful and since she knew that he already saw her and surprisingly wasn’t interested in bothering her, she didn’t feel she needed to rush off. The Grand Canyon looked particularly beautiful this morning and when she turned her back to scamper away she caught a glimpse of the handsome man creature that shared all the beauty with her and was once again taken back but this time it was by him and not the canyon.

He had a furry chiseled jawline and a very kind face. His eyes sparkled and were dark brown like the clean acorns right after a soft rain. He already had his camera out pretending to take more photos of the canyon but aiming the camera directly at her. Penny blushed and turned her back once again to the stranger. Maybe if he couldn’t see her face he’d put down the camera.

As she glimpsed back she saw that he did. He sat back on a rock and they just both went back to enjoying the view. After a bit of time the man reached into his backpack and pulled out a sandwich. Penny watched him eat it with so much intensity that she never gave the canyon another view. She was starving and he kept reaching into his backpack and pulling out food.

She knew it was an awful thought but she wanted so badly to get to that backpack. She was hoping to find even a crumb of food. Even if she was hurt or killed what did she have to lose? No one wanted her around anyway. She was shunned from her family since she refused to marry the ‘chosen one’ picked by her parents. She always was very rebellious and supposed that was the last straw for her family.

She had strong instincts yet chose to toss caution to the wind and attempt to climb into the bag. While he was studying his photos and reading a book, she quickly and quietly made her way to his back pack just as the man reached down to pick it up again. He saw the movement, grabbed his backpack and vigorously shook it, to drop out whatever just crept in. Penny felt an earthquake stronger than anything she ever had heard about but hung on to the pocket for dear life. She decided that it would be better to try to stick with the kind looking man till she had a full belly from his lunch! A pebble dropped out and plopped onto the dirt. He heard the sound and felt satisfied that whatever it was he saw fell out and promptly zipped his bag closed.

Her heart beat so rapidly, she felt queasy but with a huge gulp she crawled inside one of the several small pockets so she wouldn’t be so tossed around.

Oohh, there were crumbs in this one that she chose. Everything was looking up! Even though there was so much movement she lay back against the soft material and chewed on the crumbs until she got full, and fell fast asleep. She must have slept for quite a while. She had been on her own for so long now and was always frightened. She was afraid to close her eyes, as she could get picked off by one of the known enemies of the canyon.

The sounds were different; Penny never heard anything other than the sounds of that area. Whistling winds and trees with their leaves rustling, sounding like the waterfall her family went to last summer. Although she loved to travel, how far was she going? She started to worry that she’d never be able to see her family again, even if it was just from a distance. She heard some loud sounds, it sounded like the strangers who came to visit the canyon daily at the huge place that they left their big carriers, when they slammed them shut.

She felt movement. Her heart felt as if it would leap out of her throat once again. What was happening? Did she leave the whole canyon area? She thought about how she never knew anything outside of those surroundings and sweat, very cold sweat lingered on her brow. The bag started swaying again. All of a sudden, there was quiet. It was so dark, and the zipper wasn’t being opened.

The man must have left again, only this time, she didn’t quite have the choice of where to maneuver to.

The more she thought, the more upset she made herself as she had such a vivid imagination. She became frantic and crept to the bottom of the backpack and in to a corner. She began chewing, using those razor sharp teeth and very strong claws to try to dig her way out. Her breath became rapid as well as her body shaking violently.

She finally started seeing a bit of light. She had to see where she was and try to keep herself safe. It took all her might to get out of that canvas bag that was so easy to climb into. She didn’t know what turmoil she may be stepping into. The room was darkly lit, but she could hear singing in the little room that was located right next to the large desk by the window. Water was running as she knew that sound.

She crept down the luxurious quilt on the bed, and made her way on to a very slippery and cold wooden floor. This must be where he sleeps at night. What a very cozy room and the colors were all so earthy. The best place to hide would probably be near the window so if it opened she could hop out. This was the only time she wished that she was as small as a mouse!

Now was the time to find something that she could hide behind so as not to be seen until she made her getaway. There was a desk that faced the window and she knew that if she could climb up the chair, she could try to hide behind the curtains that spilled onto it. The chair had roller balls on its legs and was very close in proximity to the window. It only took one huge leap for her to get her claws into the material that covered the seated part and swing her body up onto the desk. Wow, she thought, I guess it was a good thing that she was a TREE squirrel she was already so nimble.

The pretty red shade of her fur, (the reason she was named ‘Penny’) blended well with the reddish brown rich color of the curtains. It was perfect right near the window. Hopefully someone, anyone, will want to open it to freshen the air in the room. While the water was still on she heard a sound from the opposite side of the room.

She already felt disoriented but she crouched down right where she was at and luckily was able to hide behind a huge picture that stood tall near her. The entrance door swung open and a lady stepped inside, humming as she brought some freshly folded clothes inside and set them on the bed. She walked directly over and opened the window.

Penny started to feel sick again for she knew what she had to do. The lady had walked over to the area where the man was running water and started talking and laughing with her face turned as if she was looking at someone. Penny bolted from behind the curtains, snagging her toe nail on the curtain material. She let out a little whimper but still made it outside.

It was a room that was on the ground floor so it was even easier for her to shimmy down the drain pipe and on to the grassy wooded land. Where was she now? She didn’t know what or who to expect and it would soon be dark. Her toe was throbbing but not as much as her heart was at that moment. She felt the best plan would be to find a place to stay for the night now. She wasn’t sure if she’d like this place at all. She felt the cold ground underneath her little toes. She immediately started looking out for known enemies.

She was cautious because she knew that there was much that she didn’t know about enemies anymore. This was way out of her territory and she was frightened not knowing what to expect at all. Out of the corners of her eyes she kept seeing movement in the bushes and vigorous shaking of the branches in the many tall trees. She could only hope that she didn’t intrude into someone else’s territory.

CHAPTER TWO

A WHOLE NEW WORLD

Penny remembered her Mom told her that the best place to be safe is way up high in the trees. She eyed the tree that she wanted to rest in, and hesitantly crept towards it. She stopped and began collecting some acorns that had fallen. As she collected them and crammed them as fast as she could into her cheek pouches she felt something excruciating, tear at her back. The acorns flew forcefully out of her mouth.

Although she lost her breath, she spun around quickly to see what had happened. It was a HUGE squirrel bigger than she’d ever seen. He was viciously ripping through her fur and he started bearing his teeth. ‘This is my tree and my acorns’ as he started hugging her hard so he could use his feet to claw at her belly. She was caught so off guard.

She had to try to defend herself as best as possible, against this vicious creature. ‘Everyone knows that ’I’ am the leader here and to dare to steal from me is unheard of.’ She’d never seen such an angry squirrel. The spit flew out of his mouth as he snarled at her. They rolled down the grassy hill, him hanging on to her and kicking with all his might.

Her toe was still quite painful and he could see that she favored that leg. He sunk his sharp teeth into her thigh and she heard a popping sound. Penny blacked out.

Once she had awakened she found that she was in an underground den. It was very cozy and warm. There were young squirrels playing tag nearby. ‘You boys stop it’ shouted a voice coming from around the corner.

It was a very gentle looking female squirrel with a gathering of large leaves teetering on her arms. ‘We’re trying to help keep you comfortable. Well, at least I am. You’re new here and we have much to discuss once you’re feeling better. My husband Peter is on a trip, trying to recruit other critters for our mission here on the hill. You’ll meet him soon; he’s such a good squirrel and wouldn’t let mean ole Dexter able to get away with something like this that’s for sure.’ She looked so proud when she spoke of her companion. She used the leaves to cover Penny to keep her warm and brushed the fur from Penny’s eyes. ‘How do you feel now dear?’ Penny sat up quickly and her head started to swim.

‘Not good, I see,’ Netta said. ‘Where am I and what happened?’ Penny was so confused. ‘My name is Netta and these are my two rambunctious boys’ she giggled softly. ‘I’ll get you some warm cider. I make the best here on the hill if I don’t say so myself.’ One of her boys drew a little closer to Penny ‘and she does say so, all . . . the . . . time . . .’ ‘Hush now you little scoundrel’. She turned to her other son and said ‘this is Chet; we should have named him CHAT. Now, you just rest and save your strength my dear, we have a lot of time to catch up on visiting later. I’ll be back with your cider.’

As she rounded the corner Chet watched from the corners of his eyes till she vanished from the room. The coast looked to be clear for him to mosey on over. He was a cute, chubby little squirrel with a turned up nose and the cutest squeaky voice Penny had ever heard. He made his way over, shuffling and watching the corner that his Mother walked around. ‘My Mama said that you got into a fight with Dexter. Not a good thing to do as Dexter’s very mean.’ Penny straightened the leaves, thinning them out as she was starting to get too warm. ‘I see that. Is Dexter your leader?’ ‘Yes, and that’s what the mission Mama was talking about. No one likes Dexter. He’s a mean squirrel and he’s just been getting meaner by the minute.’

Chet glanced over at the corner that his Mom would be coming around soon and went on with his story. ‘He takes anything that anyone has that his family might like and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. What’s your name?’ ‘Penny’ she really had nothing more to say, she was hurting so much and her thigh kept echoing the pain like she was shouting in the Grand Canyon itself. As Netta rounded the corner once again Chet moved back to where he and his brother were playing.

Netta had a big smile on her face, as she rolled her eyes in a much exaggerated way. ‘Chet, I told you boys to let her rest.’ ‘Sorry, Mama’ said Chet, ‘I just wanted to introduce myself. Oh I forgot, this is my big brother Zach.’ ‘How’d ya do Ma’am’ said Zach, in a very quiet voice.

He had such long eyelashes and appeared to be the quieter, more ‘studious’ of the two. Penny just smiled at Zach and closed her eyes. Netta set the cider on the table beside where Penny was resting. ‘It’s too hot now but in a little while it’ll be cool enough for you to drink. Now you boys shoo, get away from this room now.’

Penny smelled the spicy cider and watched the steam lift from the mug. ‘It smells divine, thank-you Netta. Penny must have slept the whole night. It was dark. Was it morning, or night? ‘I hate it when this happens; it seems that when I sleep too late, I get so jumbled of the time.’

She looked over and saw that the cider that Netta had brought to her was still on the table and now cold. Her body told her that she slept all night, as she had some ‘business’ to attend to. She got up as quietly as possible so she wouldn’t wake up the babies and headed for the tunnel that led to the upper ground.

Once she got there, her jaw dropped. It was like a real wonderland. There were chipmunks chasing each other around trees and deer feeding on the day lilies that seemed to grow wild in the area. Everything looked so surreal and whimsical. A cardinal landed on a rock near her. The brightest red Penny had ever seen before. ‘Hi, I’m Studley.’ ‘I haven’t seen you here before,’ (as he puffed out his chest and gazed at his own reflection in some water that had been pooled up on a