Kidnapped!: Another Stick Family Story

KVP

CHAPTER ONE

William was very nervous. He was sitting scrunched in the back of the Sticks’ station wagon with Chop, full name Chopetti, and Smudge, the Sticks’ family dog. There was no proper seat, so William leaned against the side of the car while Chop sat opposite him with his flat misshapen feet sticking straight out, touching William’s knees. The dog slunk from one side to the other, stepping over William now and then to look worriedly out of the window. Although William had known Chop for a while and knew the man couldn’t help the way he was because he had a bone disease, William was still a bit scared of him. He was just so weird looking, like a brussels sprout — a vegetable William hated and was forced to eat by his dad because it was good for him — with arms and legs. Chop’s back was humped over, and he had a basketball tummy, a squashed neck and a round, hairless head. He kept staring at William too. At least William thought he was staring at him. Chop had one good eye and the other seemed to roam around a bit, so he wasn’t always sure just where Chop was looking. He smiled nervously at Chop and was totally surprised when Chop suddenly gave him a lopsided grin.

Smudge clambered onto William’s legs, whining and sniffling to be let out of the car. William hoped the dog wasn’t going to throw up because it would make him throw up too. He tried to lift the dog off his lap, but there wasn’t a whole lot of dog to hang onto. The first time he’d seen Smudge, he thought the dog was an oversize rat. Turned out Smudge was a greyhound, the skinniest dog on the planet. He was perfect for the Stick family, though, because they were the tallest, skinniest people William had ever seen.

Suddenly, Chop started groaning and clutching his head.

You surviving back there? asked Wrickety Stick, William’s best friend.

I think so, said William, looking over at Wrickety, who sat in the backseat with his sister, Cinnamon, and young cousin, Licorice. Is he okay? he whispered, nodding his head in Chop’s direction.

What say? teased Wrickety, laughing. Didn’t hear right.

Of course you didn’t ’cos I’ve got a mouthful of dog, retorted William as he shoved Smudge’s head away from his face. Yuck! Dog fur. Just what I wanted. He made gagging noises. I’ll probably cough up a fur ball. Anyway, I just wondered if Chop was okay because he’s holding his head and making weird noises.

It’s just one of his headaches, explained Cinnamon, turning round in her seat so she could look at William. And poor Smudge, he always gets a bit frantic when he’s in the car. Give him a hug, it’ll calm him down.

I can’t, he won’t stay still. William was getting all hot and sweaty from wrestling with Smudge, who refused to settle down and was now balancing on William’s legs. Hey! he yelled as Chop’s claw-like fingers gripped his wrist and pulled.

Grmfl fplub, muttered Chop, squeezing William’s wrist tighter.

Grmfl fplub? repeated William, rapidly trying to decipher what Chop said. What’d he say? he hissed.

Cinnamon rolled her eyes and shook her head at William. Pathetic. He said to give Smudge his bone. Good idea, eh? Too bad you didn’t think of it. She grinned.

William stuck his tongue out at her. She always made him feel stupid and very, very glad he didn’t have a sister.

Oh like that’s so mature. She smirked. It was so easy to annoy him and she knew it. One day he would get her back, he just didn’t know how yet.

Wrickety took pity on his friend. Here, give this to him, he said, opening a paper bag and handing William a greasy, already chewed bone.

William took the wet and slimy bone and set it in front of Smudge, who sniffed it. Hey! It worked, said William as Smudge crunched down on the bone and settled beside William with the bone between his paws.

Cinnamon shrugged. Duh!

William ignored her, wishing instead there was a bone he could toss in Chop’s direction to stop the man from staring at him. He felt around in the pocket of his jacket but all he had was his strawberry-flavoured bubblegum, which he carried at all times and loved too much to share with Chop. Oh well. He tried.

So, when do you think we’ll get to the farm?

Madelaine, Wrickety’s mother, turned around from the front seat and smiled at William. Are you excited to see the farm, William?

William blushed. He worshipped her. She was so beautiful (although not as beautiful as his own mother had been). He gave her a shy smile. Well, I’ve never stayed at a farm before, and Wrick’s talked a lot about his aunts. He said they’re a lot of fun.

They’re definitely fun, that’s for sure. They love having the children to stay, and they’re looking forward to meeting you. They say that a brimful of children in the house keeps them on their tips.

Tips being their toes, thought William. It did seem a strange thing to say.

That’s so exactly what they say, agreed Wrickety. They’re always saying bizarre things. They have a saying for everything.

They are funny, but sweet, too, said Madelaine. She frowned as she looked at William. You don’t have many relatives, do you?

William shook his head. Nah. Just me, my dad and my uncle. My aunt died just before my mom did. Embarrassed, he blinked a couple of times as his eyes filled with tears; he still missed his mom a lot. Sometimes he felt so alone, even when there were a gazillion people around. He knew it was because the only person who mattered wasn’t there and never would be again. It didn’t hurt quite as much since he met the Stick family. There was always something going on with them so he didn’t have as much time to feel alone. They were the best.

Chop grunted something unintelligible and nestled his head against William’s arm. William didn’t dare move in case it upset Chop. He could feel how boney Chop’s head was, and the smell coming from Chop’s body made William hold his breath. He scrunched up his nose trying to think what the smell reminded him of. Musty carpet; that was it. Like the one that had been in their basement when they first moved to the house. He and his dad had ripped it up and taken it to the local dump. The outdoor carpeting they had replaced it with smelled so much nicer.

Cinnamon half-turned in her seat and studied William and Chop for a moment and then laughed.

Aw, don’t you two look cozy?

Quit it, Cinn. William’s cool to look after Chop. You okay? asked Wrickety.

William nodded. He could feel his cheeks reddening. He’d rather not be sitting so close to Chop, but there was no way out.

Want to change places? offered Wrickety.

William shook his head, afraid to say yes in case Chop took offence. He looked out of the car window at the countryside as Brackenhill disappeared behind them.

Wrickety’s dad glanced in the rearview mirror at William. Not long now. About an hour to go. You’ll like it, William. Lots of places to explore, and my sisters will make sure you have a good time. Their names are Sapphire, Ruby and Emerald, which should tell you that my mother — Wrickety and Cinnamon’s grandmother — loved gemstones.

That’s not the best bit, piped up Licorice, who had been playing quietly with her doll. They always dress in the same colours as their names. Licorice was Wrickety and Cinnamon’s cousin. She was five years old. When Wrickety had introduced William to his family, he had confided that a terrible thing had happened to Licorice when she was younger, which was why she was very shy and cautious. William liked her and hoped she wouldn’t turn out to be annoying like Cinnamon when she grew older.

Aw, don’t give it away, Licorice. It’s more fun for William to see for himself, said Wrickety, grinning. Much more of a surprise that way. This last comment made William instantly suspicious, as he never knew what was going to happen when he was with the Sticks.

Once Chop and Smudge settled down and William was able to watch the passing scenery, the journey seemed to go by quicker. Soon they were turning off the highway onto a gravel road that led up to the farmhouse. It was a large two-storey house with a pointed roof and a turret on the one side. William could see there were two other buildings on the property, and the whole area was surrounded by a white wooden fence. William was a little bit disappointed (he had expected the house to look as crazy as the Sticks’ house, which was purple with a striped front door and a bull’s-eye in the middle), but then the sun moved out from behind a cloud and shone down on the house. William couldn’t believe it! All of a sudden, the house looked like a giant prism, sparkling on every surface as if the sky had opened a giant bag of glitter and spilled it all over.

Feed the cat and make it fat! William exclaimed, making everyone in the car burst out laughing. It looks like one of those huge crystal balls.

Feed the cat and make it fat? Where did that come from? asked Cinnamon.

I think it’s funny, said Licorice.

William grinned. Just trying out different sayings is all. I want one that’s all my own and to get known for using it, you know, like famous people do.

Cinnamon stared at William like he had a wart on the end of his nose and was about to say something rude when William quickly said, The house is amazing. How did they get it to be all sparkly like that?

My dear, sweet sisters decided to put a bucketful of glitter into paint and got a guy to spray the house, answered Mr. Stick, driving the car up to the front of the house. Quite spectacular, I think. He turned off the car. Right, everyone out. Grab a suitcase each.

Ignoring the suitcases, the children scrambled out and raced each other up the wide stairs of the veranda to the front door. By the time William had pushed Chop and Smudge out of the way and climbed out of the back of the car, he lagged behind the others. He stood shyly on the