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The First Adventure

"We know what that man was saying and we are not going back, we overheard him at the window when we were coming to tell you about the cow, we want to stay here and if we can't then we will leave", Ben nodded his head in agreement. Mary runs over to Mrs Tucker and cuddles her and they cry together, Ben sighs and looks at Mr Tucker who looks helpless and confused.

Ben says "Can they make us go back".

"Yes Ben they can, we never officially adopted you, but by darn I sure wish we had now", "Maybe nothing will happen and this will blow over". But it didn't.

A few days later the local Sheriff visits and he informs the Tuckers that he will be there the next day to collect the children, the Tuckers decide to tell the children and the twins decide to leave that night without Mr and Mrs Tucker permission.

"I don't know what our real family is like" said Ben "But I don't like the way Mr Tucker and that old man were talking about them". "I vote we leave now". "We cannot let Mr and Mrs Tucker sell the farm, it is all that they own, its just not right".

"I agree we have to leave and look after ourselves, at least we have to try", said a sad Mary.

They both get a sturdy backpack each and filled them with clothes, food and a few tools. Both of them take their army pocket knives that each was given from Mr Tucker, Ben liked to put his knife in his sock for safe keeping. Old man Tucker had taught them both to fish, hike, track animals and do many other things. Neither child had ever been to school but both could read, write and do arithmetic because Mrs Tucker taught them at home when she had the spare time.

The twins left a letter to the Tuckers saying that they were both sorry but they had to go, both letters were stained with tears and the love of saddened hearts.

At twelve o'clock midnight exactly, Ben went out his bedroom window and then slid down the big old two story drain pipe as they had done for fun many times before with Mary following close behind.

Then they headed out across the family farm together hand in hand. They made camp after two hours of walking. The stars were shining and it was summer so the night air was warm, then they fell to a sad sleep.

The next morning they set off and followed an old road leading away from the Tuckers farm.

After two days of walking and camping out they came across and old house that was in the middle of nowhere. They sat on a hill watching the house for over two hours while nibbling some food. They saw an old lady go outside a couple of times to gather wood and fetch water from a water well.

Ben said to Mary "It seems that only that old lady lives here, it seems safe enough"

Mary replied "Sure does, shall we drop in on her and see if she can give us some food"?

Ben seems satisfied that the old woman cannot harm them and says "Yes, but we had better be careful, someone else may be in the house".

They gather up their things and start down the hill, both children are excited because they haven't seen anyone for two whole days and they didn't have much food left in their backpacks.

They walk up to the door and Ben knocks on it.

Knock, knock, knock.

They hear feet slowly moving towards the door and they watch as the old door handle moves and the door is slowly pulled open. An old woman peers at them both, the look of surprise is obvious on her face. But still she smiles and two rows of large teeth, some teeth are missing and this gave the old lady a sinister look when she smiled.

"Hello", the twins say.

"er Hello young children, what can I do for you both?"

"Can we have some food for our journey, we are both mighty hungry and we haven't eaten much for the past two days"?

"Sure you can, come inside and sit down at the table while I fix you both something to eat", said the old lady. "We don't get many people here in these parts so your company is welcome, my name is Mrs Ogden".

The door was opened wider and both the children stepped into the house.

It was a large one room affair and an old bed was in the corner on the right, an old cooking oven was to the left, this was obviously the cooking area. An open fire was in the middle of the room at the back, it was full of ashes from many fires of the past and some wood was still smouldering with small wisps of smoke raising up into the air and slowly heading up the large chimney in such a way that it looked like wispy ghosts raising from the earth and heading for the heavens.

The room smelled musty and old.

The old lady stood aside while both children walked past her and she grinned that crooked smile once again, she said "Sit down and I will make you both a snack to eat".

Ben and Mary walked over to the small dinner table that was by the large cooking oven and they sat down in a chair each. Ben smiled at Mary to give her confidence.

The old lady stoked the old fire and then took out an old huge frying pan and started to mix what looked like pan cakes.

She said, "What are you both doing here, you are the first people I have seen in two years"?

Ben and Mary said together "We are on our own and we are travelling the countryside looking for a place to stay".

While the old lady was looking away and leaning over the old oven top she smiled a smile that both the children wouldn't have liked at all. She was thinking up a devious plan that would suit her desires.

They all sat quietly until the old lady served up the food and then she sat down with Ben and Mary and continued to talk to them both while they ate.

"You could stay here for a while", she smiled sweetly.

"No, we have other places to go and we want to visit our family in the city".

"Oh, so you have family", said the old lady trying not to look disappointed.

"Er, yes", said Ben trying not to give away to much information.

The old lady then stood up and walked over to the door, she then took out a very old key and locked the door, it made a scary clanking sound. She then turned fast and grinned at the twins.

Both Ben and Mary dropped their forks into their plates and stared at each other in shock, it appeared that their new found freedom was going to be short lived.

"You will both stay here with me", they were told!

The twins stared wide eyed at her, not knowing what to say next, it was obvious that the old lady didn't intend on being nice anymore.

"You will stay with me and work for me, you girl can cook and you boy will do all my outside work", "I will chain you both together so you won't get away", and with that she laughed a laugh that only an old crooked lady could laugh when she was thinking of doing bad things and enjoying the moment. To the twins it seemed obvious why the old lady lived alone.

The twins said nothing but it was evident to anyone who new the twins that they were thinking the situation over and were about to come up with a solution together.

Mary said, "I cannot cook" knowing full well that she and Ben were both very good cooks for their ages. "And I need to go to the bathroom".

The old lady laughed "Young sweet lass you will learn to cook and you will do as you are told" and with that she picked up and old broom handle that was by the door and she waved it threatenly at them both.

Ben stood up keeping his eyes on the old lady then sidled over to the old oven and picked up the iron poker that was resting there, he moved it in his hand to “feel its weight” and then he slowly walked toward the old lady.

Mary walked over to the big open fire and picked up another old poker there, she tested its weight as well and smiled at the feel of it and she too walked toward the old lady.

The old lady stared with a look of surprise, she fully expected both children to give up and that was that, instead both of them were walking toward her with firm and determined looks on their faces and they both looked like they meant business.

Ben and Mary raised their poker's as if they were swords, when both twins were only a few feet from the old lady, Ben said, "Drop it old lady or I am afraid that you will regret the day that you took on the Tucker Twins".

The old lady swung her broomstick towards Mary because she figured that Mary was the weakest of the twins, in two swift swings of the poker Mary first knocked the broomstick away to the left she then broke the old broomstick  clean in half with a firm but hard downward strike.

To the old lady this was a devastating blow to her pride and to her evil plan. She knew that she had now lost the plot and was now at the mercy of those she thought that she had captured. With her weapon gone she was now helpless.

"Move over to the bed old lady", Ben told the old lady.

She hesitated and then saw the stern look on Ben and Mary's faces and she stepped backwards to the bed, she sat down on the bed disappointed that her plan had not worked.

"Mary gather up some food and put it in your back pack and put some more in mine".

To the old lady Ben said "Thank you for the food you gave us but now we must be on our way, goodbye" and with that he moved toward to door.  Mary removed a few coins from her pocket and threw them on the dinner table to pay for the food they were taking.

Then Ben remembered the key. "Old lady give me the key for the door"!

The old lady gave Ben an evil mean look and she reached into the pocket of her old dress and threw it to Ben, Ben caught the key in full flight and then he opened the door.

Mary and Ben stepped outside.

Ben closed the door and then locked it and walked over to a window that was partially open and pushed the old key inside, Mary then reached into her bag and produced a large crooked six inch nail that she had picked up from somewhere and took out a small hammer and banged it into the door frame so that the remaining nail blocked the door from opening easily. It was only meant to be a temporary measure to stop the old lady from opening the door immediately.

Ben looked at Mary and her backpack and wondered what other things she had stored in there, he said "That ought to hold her for a while Mary".

Mary smiled at Ben and they hugged, then up the hillside they ran, together again and free!

At the top of the hill they both stopped and turned around to look at the old farmhouse for the last time and they could see the door moving because the nail was bending as the old lady thumped the door to free herself from the trap that was once her home and now for a short time her prison.

The door swung open and out stepped the old woman, she raised the broken broomstick into the air and yelled a curse to the children then she turned around and stormed back into the old house slamming the door as she went.

To be continued…