The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier Read Free Book Online

hurt most: the kidneys, just below the ribs, the back of theleg. It quickly became clear to him that, for all his posturing, Alistair knew next to nothing about proper fighting. The boy landed a few ineffectual blows upon Kip’s shoulder blades and elbows before resorting to a campaign of hair pulling and ear biting.
    While Penny screamed from her hole, the two boys rolled back and forth across the lawn, fighting with everything in them. Kip heard a satisfying
crack
as his forehead struck Alistair square in the nose. Blood clouded his vision, and his head throbbed horribly. But from the way Alistair was howling and clutching his face, Kip knew he had scored a direct hit. He grinned as the significance of this fact dawned on him: he was actually winning.
    The next moment, Kip felt someone grab his arm from behind. “Get off him!” Molly shouted as she pulled them apart. “What’re you thinkin’?” It took Kip a moment to realize that she was talking not to Alistair but to him.
    He saw her cast a panicked glance toward the open front door. Mistress Windsor was rushing out to meet them. She crouched down and helped Penny out of the hole. The little girl clung to her neck like a barnacle. “Just what is going on here?” the woman demanded.
    Alistair scrambled to his feet and ran to his mother’s side. “It was the cripple who started it! He came at me like a murderer!”
    Constance looked between the two boys. They both had grass stains and mud on their clothes. They were breathing heavily, and Alistair had blood on his face. “Is this true?” she said to Kip.
    Kip, still on the ground, stared up at her, unable to deny the charge.
    Molly stepped in front of him. “Forgive me, mum, but your son’s lying. I saw the whole thing. My brother was only defendin’ himself as any person would.”
    Kip stared up at Molly, confused; if she had really seen them, then she would have known that Kip had struck first.
    “Don’t listen to her, Mother!” Alistair said, clutching his nose. “She’s just trying to protect him! Ask Penny—she was there.”
    Unfortunately, Penny was too busy sobbing about the worms eating her toes to give any kind of testimony. Constance gave her son a weary look. “Tormenting little girls and crippled boys? Don’t think your father won’t hear of this.”
    Alistair sneered. He fished a crumpled bag of sweets from his pocket and opened his mouth. “And then what? He’ll
puh-puh-punish
me?” He said this with an exaggerated stutter.
    Constance snatched the bag from his hands. Her eyes were wide, dangerous. Every muscle in her body looked tense. “You will respect your father,” she said in a constricted tone. “Go to your room immediately.” For a moment, Kip thought she might strike the boy.
    Alistair turned from her, his face burning. He gave Kip a special threatening look before marching back into the house.
    The woman turned to face Kip. He thought for a moment she was going to apologize for her son, but she did not. “See that you fill that hole at once. Heaven forbid someone falls in and gets injured.” She looked at Molly. “Shouldn’t you be in the kitchen?” Then she turned and carried Penny into the house without another word.
    Molly picked up Kip’s discarded crutch and offered it to him. “You fight with the young master on our first week? That’s a sure way to promise there won’t be a second. What were you thinkin’?”
    What was
he
thinking? All Kip had done was the thing she had taught him. For as long as he could remember, Molly had defended him against other children. Not a week went by when she didn’t get into a fight on his behalf. Kip had just been doing the same for Penny—only now his sister was outraged.
    Kip did not accept the offered crutch. Instead, he rose on his one good leg, which was sore and threatening to buckle. “You shouldn’t ’a lied about seein’ the fight,” he said, his breathing raspy.
    “Better that than tellin’ the mistress