THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WELL

Chapter 10 – page 4

Only a little light entered because of the canopy of trees overhead. As they rode through the eerie, dim-lit place, they hummed and sang songs for company, while small branches snapped and cracked under the horses feet. "Well, we still got the butterflies," said Hoo. After passing a particular log lying on the ground to the left, G happened to glance back at it. It looked just like a black tree log; it laid there not moving. Yep, just like a black tree log; but it had little beady green eyes and a small pointy forked black tongue that flicked in and out. Upon closer inspection, taking about a millisecond, it also had sort of an upturned snout. G had an urge to get the Mober into a gallop. Mober seemed to have the same idea. "Hold on Hoo!"

And off they went for about a half a mile, until they came to a place where the canopy of trees opened up and the sun shone clear down to the mossy green path. The butterflies and Chips stuck like glue to them; only the wind ruffled the Chips fur or pinned the butterflies wings back. When they stopped and looked back, nothing was following them, thank goodness. And then the butterflies disappeared, flew away, rather, just as suddenly as they had come, spiraling up like a tornado. The whole herd of them could be seen like a great glowing light ascending straight up into the sun through the canopy opening overhead.

"Well now, that was strange," said J. "Yeah, real strange. Maybe they were riding on us just to protect us from whatever it was back there," said G. "We’ve been ‘bendecido’ for sure."

After another mile or so they came out of the trees back onto the red dirt road, breathing a sigh of relief. They were obviously winding around and now had lost site of the Peppermints altogether. They plodded along for another couple miles looking for a good place to camp for the night. It was getting on about 7 o’clock, G thought, when they came across a spacious green, soft looking place on the right, with grass for the horses and just a sprinkling of young trees to tie the hammock in. "This will be a good place to stop for the night, don’t ya’ think?" asked G. "Looks good to me," said J.

Granma and Julio soon had baskets, blankets and bridles off. Chips hurried down off the manes and tales of the horses, some leaping to the ground, dive-bomber style, and ran off into the woods and nearby tall grass. Maybe they had to go to the bathroom. HA! When they opened the lids of the baskets, the other Chips seemed a little stir-crazy, scrambling right out and rushing off into the woods after the others. Julio remembered the Chip in his pocket and gently got her out and laid her on the grass. She was still snoozing. He piled up bananas around her to make a fence so they wouldn’t accidentally step on her and squish her ~ AGAIN.