Back To Life

I have started on my new Novella, "Back To Life" and the first chapter is exciting so far.  I can't wait to get

into the later chapters and get things a rolling.  The last novella "The Red Light" was spooky and had ghosts

in it, this one is about the creation of zombies in world war 2, in real life Hitler wanted indestructable soldiers,

that couldn't be stopped or killed, and this story is a "What if" he did make them kind of story.  Back to

writing, everyone have a lovely day!

Robert D. Kiskaden

The Red Light

     After many many hours of editing The Red Light has been turned in, I should recieve the first test copy within the next 5-7 days, and if it looks acceptable it will be open for sales.  This book was tough to write at times but all the time spent was worth it I think, the story is good and creeped me out many nights while writing it.

I will be posting excerpts very soon from the book.  Thank you everyone for your support and kind words, it keeps me going.

The Bench By the Sea

This is a short story I wrote in March 2012.

THE BENCH BY THE SEA

By

Robert D. Kiskaden

     Meredith Franklin is a single mother of two children, Cassia who is eight, and Tyler six years old.  One beautiful Saturday afternoon Meredith was gardening outside of their two story house in Maine.  She would stop often to watch her children playing where the yard met a sandy beach.  After the passing of her husband, Meredith spent most of her time writing a novel and caring for her children.

 

     She was an interior decorator for many years, but decided to get away from the city to live in the house she grew up in.  Meredith wanted her children to experience what it was like to live near the sea and have lots of space to run and play.

            "Now don't you two wonder too far away, stay close to the house" Meredith said as she was sitting in the grass enjoying the cool breeze off of the water.

"Okay mom." The children continued playing in the sand.

  

     Meredith planted a few more rose bushes then decided to go on the porch and give her back a break for a few minutes.  She watched the children walking up a small embankment near the house that had an old bench at the top overlooking the ocean.  She thought back to when she was a child going to that bench and would sit to draw pictures of the waves rushing in.

 

     Cassia and Tyler were running around in the grass, getting closer to the old bench.  They looked up to see an old man sitting there, smiling.  He was wearing an old white hat, a jacket that looked like he had worn it his whole life.  The old man had a pipe in his left hand; he would slowly raise it to his mouth and take a couple puffs.  His face looked as though he had been in the sun all of his life, wrinkled and like leather, his hands big and strong looking, and tanned the same as his face.  Cassia and Tyler walked up to him cautiously.

"Hi." Cassia said to him nervously.  Tyler raised his hand and waved hello to him with a big smile.

"Hello kids, come up here and sit with me, I will tell you a story to pass the time."

     

     His voice was deep and scratchy, like he had smoked and drank for most of his life, and it had an authority to it.  The children slowly climbed up on the bench beside him and couldn't take their eyes off of him.  He seemed nice enough, and they knew that they should not be talking to strangers, but there was something about him that made them feel safe, and besides they could still see their mother.  Meredith waved at them and was pleased to see them sitting so quietly on the old bench that she had enjoyed so much.

"So tell us the story please." Tyler said still smiling and sitting with his arms crossed and swinging his feet excitedly.  The old man rubbed his chin with his right hand thinking.

"Hmm, what story should I tell you good children?" Then he had a look as though he had just solved a mystery.  "I know, now children I used to be a fisherman." Their eyes lit up and opened wide.  "There was this one time, it was late afternoon, the sun was close to setting and I had my pole baited and hanging over the back of my boat.  She was a good vessel the Maria Leona was her name.  I was sitting there and heard my reel begin to buzz!" He made a buzzing sound toward the children and it made them laugh.  "I grabbed my pole and pulled back and I could tell it was the biggest fish I have ever hooked, I fought this fish with all my might, it was then a storm came up and the rain started to beat down on me.  The wind howled and a few times I thought I was going to fall in the deep dark sea never to be seen again."

    

     The children were very much into his story, sitting on the edge of the bench taking in every single word he said.  "I fought this fish for four hours straight, when I got it up to the side of the boat it was a prize fish that any fisherman would be proud to have, a fish that only comes once in a lifetime."

"What did you do with it?" Cassia said softly with wonderment.

"I looked into that fishes eyes, that's when it dawned on me that this creature was meant to be free, free to swim all over the world through the blue beautiful waters and the deep dark depths, the things this fish has seen, I couldn't bring myself to take that away.  So I cut the line and let him go on his way, us both having a better understanding of one another." 

"I wish you kept it, I wanted to see it." Tyler said to the old man sadly.  The old man patted the boys head.

"Maybe you will one day son, and you too little lady." He said while pinching her cheek as she gave him a big smile.

"Now you two run down back to your mother, and be good, children, one day I will tell you another story."  The two children thanked him and ran back to the house.  On the way there they began to play, pretending they were on a boat on the sea, pulling on a huge fish trying to bring it up to the sunlight. 

"What are you two playing now?" Meredith said as she was walking back to her garden to begin planting flowers once again.

"That old man on the bench told us a story about catching a fish in the rain and he just let it go." Cassia said.

"Yeah he just let it go." Tyler Replied.  Meredith looked up at the bench and seen no one there, they described him to her and she felt chills go down her spine. 

     

     Her father was a fisherman and when he was home they would sit on that same bench while he told her stories about his adventures at sea.  He had been dead for ten years, and her children had just talked to him, tears fell from her cheeks as she gave a big smile.

"Are you okay mom?" Cassia asked.

"Yes sweetie, everything is okay." She hugged them both.   "Everything is okay."

The End

Time to Write

     I have been busy lately with cutting wood and taking care of things on the farm, and

keeping up with my

college homework, but even when I am not writing, I am thinking about writing, figuring out what will happen

next, and who my characters are and how they act.  This evening I finally got several thousand words

finished on "The Red Light", and I am very happy about that, I want to have it finished before Thanksgiving,

I have many books lined up to write, I have the outline finished for "Back To Life", a zombie Novella that will

be finished before christmas, and I hope to write some short stories for the holidays like, "A Zombie

Thanksgiving," and "A Zombie Christmas", those should be fun things to read inbetween books.

     Have a lovely day and feel free to comment anytime on the blog.