Kim's War

By Frances Sparrow

Kim was only seven years old when he watched soldiers burn his home down.
He never saw his family again after he drifted into the jungle on his own.
Thankfully, he remembered their instructions on how to survive and did so for three years, until he found sanctuary.
He took revenge before settling down into a new good life. But he always remembered to listen carefully to his elders.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Jan 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9781398449268

Frances Sparrow

Frances was born in Kent at the beginning of World War II. She has one sister. She married and had two children and has lived in London, Essex, Yorkshire, Athens, Greece, and Berkshire. Was widowed at 47. She began writing at 75 after a stroke.

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Kim’s War

Frances Sparrow

Austin Macauley Publishers

Kim’s War

About the Author

Dedication

Copyright Information ©

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Frances was born in Kent, UK, and has had a very varied and interesting life. She has been married twice but both her husbands have died. Whilst being married to her first husband, she resided in numerous locations including London, Essex, Yorkshire, Greece, and Berkshire. After meeting her second husband, she became a farmer's wife living in Wales. She has had two children, one of whom sadly passed away due to cancer in 2013. She has three grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

Dedication

To Kathy Morris for her continued support.

Copyright Information ©

Frances Sparrow 2022

The right of Frances Sparrow to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9781398449251 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781398449268 (ePub e-book)

www.austinmacauley.com

First Published 2022

Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd®

1 Canada Square

Canary Wharf

London

E14 5AA

Acknowledgements

To all who have encouraged me and those about to tie the knot.

I must be careful; I am all alone now. The constant chatter of the guns that never seem to stop, and every now and then an explosion. Never quiet. The people from the village have drifted away. All alone now. I must remember what I was taught. Not from the school; that is of no use now. It will not help me to find food and stay safe. I must go way back to the old people and my parents and what they tried to teach me. Odd, disjointed phrases had been coming back to him, mainly in his sleep state. This morning, he had woken with the instruction to ‘watch your back!’ He had been thinking about it. Good advice, as my eyes are only at the front - I will remember that. Granddad had said when we were tracking for food, animals tend to have a toilet place. If you can find that and wait, they will eventually come back there. But he said if you are alone and hunted, never go in the same place twice, and stay away from it. Always sit with your back to a wall. Do not chatter. Listen and wait. Develop your instincts. Watch carefully; that can save your life.

I do miss him. He taught me to track, to hunt, to catch fish and to hide my tracks; so much more useful than schoolwork. I must remember what he taught me. My mother was very sensitive and seemed able to ‘read’ people. In the market with her, I was oblivious to the currents in the air. She called them vibrations.

Everyone has a vibration, she said. Learn to tune in to the different ones, they will tell you who you can trust, who is bad, greedy or jealous. What people look like doesn’t matter. I will show you. Taking my hand, we walked through the market and out the other side.

There were fires there and coloured blankets on the ground. Mostly men. I was fascinated there were trinkets, dice, a snake charmer with his basket, all calling out to us. Stay close to me, my mother said and began to walk towards the blankets. In front of each she stopped, but just stood quietly, ignoring the shouts. Bending to me she said I know this is different and exciting, but I want you to pay great attention to everything and everybody – be quiet and let the vibration come to you and tell you their story. I didn’t understand, but I tried. I watched her carefully. After a while she would walk on and I followed. She drew me to one side and whispered That last man, would you want to do business with him?

I have no business to do.

But what did you feel, would you trust him?

No.

Why?

I didn’t like his eyes.

Is that all? she asked.

Yes.

You must try harder.

I did not truly understand what she wanted of me. Finally, she spoke to one. He was older than the others, and