Kipp The Kid Read Online Free PDF Page A

him to walk, something Nip did not like to do. Nip shot
a glance up at Jane and she thought she read an expression on his
face that made her feel unwelcome. Kipp didn’t notice.
     
    “Why did you name him Nip?” she asked, trying to make
the dog feel more at ease.
     
    “When he was little he had a habit of biting
everything. The cat, the sheep, the pigs, even the horses. It
didn’t matter the size or how dangerous another animal, he always
had a go at it. Once,” he explained, “there was a brown snake in
the yard and Nip went right up to it and grabbed it around the
neck. I had to hit the snake hard with a pole to kill it before it
bit him. After that, Nip sat proudly panting next to the dead
snake, as if he had killed it all by himself. So we called him Nip
from then on.”
     
    At the camp site, everything was as it was the last
time they were there. Kipp checked the site, almost expecting
things to have been moved. He was glad they weren’t. “Have you
eaten yet?”
     
    “No. No time.”
     
    He cracked open a can of baked beans and tinned fruit
and served it up on tin plates. He opened a can of spam for Nip. He
didn’t know whether Jane ate beans and he didn’t think to ask. When
she ate it all without complaining, he was pleased.
     
    When they had finished breakfast, Kipp got out his
contract.
     
    “What’s that?” Jane asked.
     
    “It’s a contract.”
     
    “What for?”
     
    “For you of course.”
     
    Jane was about to ask another question when Kipp
interrupted, reading from the contract.
     
    Camping Contract between Kipp and Jane
     
    When at camp, obey all of Kipp’s rules. Don’t ask
stupid questions or complain.
    When at camp, eat what Kipp eats. Don’t complain or
you will miss out on eating at all.
    When hiking, wear sensible shoes.
     
    He stopped to check to see what shoes Jane had
brought. She held up a pair of boots and grinned.
     
    “They’ll have to do,” he said, rolling his eyes.
     
    When exploring, always wait for Kipp first. It’s
dangerous in the mines and usually not a place for girls or anyone
inexperienced at exploring.
     
    “You really like your lists, don’t you,” she
interrupted. Kipp ignored her.
     
    Never interrupt Kipp when he is reading from one of
his lists.
     
    “It doesn’t say that. You made that up.”
     
    Kipp got out a pen and wrote it down on the bottom of
the page. Now it does.
     
    “So now you’re making up rules as you go along?”
     
    “My camp, my space, my spot, my rules, got it?” he
said, frowning. This is going to be more difficult than I imagined,
he thought.
     
    When at camp you have to do your fair share of
collecting sticks and wood, cleaning up and cooking.
     
    “What about washing and ironing and shopping, are
they there too?” she added, teasing him. Kipp was going to tell her
off but realized it was actually quite funny.
     
    “Funny!” he said and then checked his list.
     
    Kipp decided not to read the rest. He gave his pen to
Jane and stared at her blankly. She took the pen.
     
    “You’re kidding right?”
     
    At the bottom of the page, there was a dotted line,
right below her name, Jane.
     
    “It’s Janine Prescott. Janine, Andrea Prescott. The
only people who call me Jane are my dad and relatives,” she
explained in a much more serious tone than she had intended. Kipp
chuckled. “Why are you laughing?”
     
    “Well, it’s funny. I mean, I’ve only ever heard you
be called Jane. I didn’t even know your middle name. I knew you
were a Prescott, everyone does.”
     
    She didn’t let him finish. She took the pen and wrote
her full name next to Jane and then signed it in beautiful
handwriting.
     
    “Wow!” said Kipp. “I’ve only ever seen writing like
that in a book.” He was smiling when he said this but stopped
smiling when he saw a tear in her eye.
     
    “Andrea was my mother’s name.”
     
    Kipp carefully folded the contract and put it away.
Then he started packing up the empty