Secret Horse (14 page)

“I’m sure some of the other girls are at least … nice, right?” said Lisa.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” said Carole. “Look, I’m sure a few are, but I haven’t met any—except Kate, of course. In fact, I once had a girl cut in front of me in the line for the toilet, even though she knew I was on deck to ride!”

Lisa put a hand to her mouth in horror. “You’re kidding!”

“Nope.”

“What did you do?” Stevie asked.

Carole laughed, remembering. “What could I do? I rode the course … in
pain
!”

“Speaking of pains,” Stevie said, “I think a certain someone finally showed up—for
yesterday’s
lesson.”

“Max must have been furious!” Carole said.

“He was. But she begged him to squeeze her in, so they’re out there now. Say,” Stevie suggested, “wanna go check out the competition?”

“And how!” Carole said.

“Lisa?”

“Sure,” Lisa said, though a part of her would rather have stayed behind.

Using the excuse of bringing in horses from the pasture, The Saddle Club trooped outside. They each clipped a lead shank on a horse and, as casually as possible, edged toward the outside ring. The grass there was much thicker than in the pasture, where it had been grazed over for weeks. The horses were happy to put their heads down to eat while Stevie, Lisa, and Carole watched the goings-on in the ring.

What they saw was less than uplifting. In fact, it was pretty darn depressing. Whether it was her trainers, her determination, or, Stevie thought, her carrot-stick-and-diet-orange diet, Veronica looked really, really good. She barely seemed to move in the saddle as Danny cleared a huge course of six jumps.

“He might just live up to his name after all,” Carole remarked.

The truth was, Danny was a great horse. And Veronica was a good rider. When she made the effort, she could ride very well. Evidently the Macrae was a big enough show for her to make the effort.

“Let’s not watch anymore. I’m feeling sick,” Stevie announced.

Carole laughed. “Too sick for a lunch break?”

“No way!” Stevie said.

Absently Lisa was aware of her friends calling to her
to come inside with them. But she stood, looking not at Veronica but at an object in the ring. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the brush jump. It was gigantic. It was a towering, frightening obstacle. Had she and Samson really jumped it? Twice? It seemed impossible. Lisa couldn’t pinpoint when it had happened, but a terrible feeling of doubt had seized her. Now it wouldn’t seem to let her go.

The calling grew louder. Stevie and Carole weren’t just calling her name. They were calling another name as well. Lisa closed her eyes, turned away from the brush jump, and reopened them.

“Red!” she heard. “Red’s back! Lisa, come say hi!” Lisa clucked to the horse she was leading. “Come on, girl, we’ve got to go say hi to Red!”

“L
ISA
,
HI
! Carole told me the great news!” Red exclaimed as Lisa joined the group assembled by Red’s pickup truck.

“Thanks, Red,” said Lisa. “How was your time at Toby MacIntosh’s?”

“Great!” he said enthusiastically.

Immediately Carole began to batter him with questions about the horses he’d ridden, the lessons he’d taken, what he’d learned—

“Let the man breathe!” Stevie interrupted.

Red grinned. “It’s okay. I’m happy to answer as many questions as you want about Old Stone Farm—”

“Including what Toby eats for breakfast?” Stevie joked.

“Health food cereal!” Red shot back. “And black coffee.”

“Eeeuuw!”

“I’m happy to answer any questions,” Red continued, “but first I’ve gotta get something to eat! I’ve been driving for two days and the motel I slept in had lousy food. You girls want to come with me?”

The Saddle Club cheered their response. “We’ll be right back!” Stevie promised. The three of them turned and led their horses into the barn. After depositing them in the right stalls, they met up in the aisle.

“It’s great that Red’s back, isn’t it?” Carole said. “It’s like the whole barn breathes a sigh of relief.”

“It’s like
I
breathe a sigh of relief!” Stevie said.

“And how!” Lisa agreed. When Stevie and Carole ran for the pickup, Lisa dashed after them happily.

No sooner had they squeezed into the cab of the pickup than Max appeared, leaning against the driver’s side door. “Hi, boss,” said Red.

“Welcome home,” Max said warmly. “We sure are glad to see you.”

“Max!” Stevie wailed. “Didn’t we do a good job?”

“The best,” Max said. “But it’s still nice to have my right-hand man back.”

Red explained that they were all going to grab lunch and would be back shortly.

“How about if I come, too?” Max said. “I’ll follow in my car.”

“Sure. Sounds good.”

Max stood back to let them go. “And I’ll treat, too—to welcome you back, Red, and to thank you girls for all the hard work you put in while Red was gone. What do you say to … TD’s?”

Stevie, Lisa, and Carole were delirious with happiness. “Max? Treating us to
TD’s
?” Stevie shrieked. “Ice cream for lunch? I think I’m in heaven!”

At Tastee Delite, the three girls claimed their usual booth. Red took an adjoining table for him and Max. When Max arrived, they saw he had brought Mrs. Reg. And Mrs. Reg had brought Maxi.

“It’s turning into a party,” Stevie said gleefully.

After the waitress took their orders, the adult table fell to talking about Pine Hollow business.

The kids’ table chattered away about nothing at all—the weather, ice cream flavors, horse stories. Lisa found herself laughing and talking easily with her friends. The strange, fearful mood that had held her in its grip seemed to be fading away. When their sundaes came she did something she’d been meaning to do for a long time: She thanked Stevie and Carole for their support.

“No matter how I do, riding in the Macrae is the most incredible chance for me,” Lisa said, and she meant it.

“Maybe you’ll win and I’ll get second,” Carole tossed out, just because it was fun to imagine.

“Vice versa would be fine with me,” Lisa said, grinning.

“Just concentrate on doing your duty,” Stevie joked, “not to Samson or Starlight or Max or your parents but to me, Stevie Lake, a girl with a mission. Remember, Project Secret Horse is still secret from Veronica.”

Max turned his head toward them. “Did you ask about Veronica? She couldn’t come. I invited her but she had lunch plans already.”

“Oh, too bad,” said Stevie with a wicked grin. “What’s she doing, dining at a four-star restaurant?”

“I don’t think so,” said Max. “She told me she had to hurry home because Tom Riley is coming over to discuss strategy with her.”

“Tom Riley?” Red said. “I met him up at Old Stone Farm.”

“You did?” Carole said.

“Yeah,” Red replied. “Toby had him up one weekend to teach a guest clinic on show jumping.”

“He’s supposed to be very good,” Mrs. Reg said, bouncing her granddaughter gently on her lap. “I always see his face on the cover of riding magazines.”

“Like
Sporting Horseman
?” Lisa asked impishly, kicking Stevie under the table.

“No, I don’t know that one, but lots of others,” Mrs. Reg said.

“I hear he’s excellent as well,” Max said. “What did you think, Red?”

“Oh, he’s a great teacher, no doubt about that. He taught
me
a lot anyhow. He’s also a nice guy. He’s got a lot to say about making a living in horses. It’s tough, I guess.”

The Saddle Club stared at Red. Stevie dropped her spoon into her dish.

“It’s tough?” she repeated.

“Absolutely. Tom has to coach all kinds of students because it pays well. He said he gets some real spoiled brats. He said—”

But Red couldn’t finish his sentence. The Saddle Club had erupted in laughter so loud that the waitress and the man behind the counter were giving them strange looks. Max, Red, and Mrs. Reg were used to the girls’ outbursts, though. When the guffawing showed no signs of tapering off, Mrs. Reg kindly suggested to Stevie, Lisa, and Carole that they get their sundaes to go and take themselves out into the parking lot.

Outside, the girls finally managed to control themselves. “Do you think I have ESP?” Stevie asked.

“Maybe just Veronica ESP,” Lisa said. “What do you think she’s doing now?”

“Hmmm …” Stevie put a hand to her forehead. “I
picture her seated at a long table munching carrot sticks. There’s a man there, a very successful rider, and he’s … bored to death!”

Carole and Lisa laughed again. At this point they probably would have laughed at anything Stevie said. It was such a relief to know they were going to the Macrae, to know their project had worked. For once Carole didn’t feel as if she should be knocking wood. Samson’s training was no superstition: It was real. And Carole had high hopes for Starlight
and
Samson. She knew Lisa could do the job as long as she believed in herself.

The two girls leaned companionably against Red’s pickup, watching Stevie’s antics. Stevie had found a grassy stretch beside the parking lot and was turning cartwheels along it.

“Come on!” she yelled. “Doesn’t anyone want to join me?”

“On a full stomach?” Carole said. “No thanks!”

Eventually, though, Stevie talked them into it. Lisa and Carole walked over to the grassy border. Stevie went, then Carole went, leaving Lisa standing alone on the parking lot side. “I always get scared about doing cartwheels when I haven’t done them for a while!” she cried.

“C’mon!” Stevie yelled. “You can do it!”

Carole and Stevie jumped up in the air, imitating cheerleaders. “Go, Lisa! Go, Lisa!” they yelled.

Lisa grinned. With friends like The Saddle Club, she could do anything she set her mind to. All it took was confidence. With their cheering urging her on, she took a breath, raised her right hand, and turned three perfect cartwheels.

Bonnie Bryant is the author of nearly a hundred books about horses, including The Saddle Club series, Saddle Club Super Editions, and the Pony Tails series. She has also written novels and movie novelizations under her married name, B. B. Hiller.

Ms. Bryant began writing The Saddle Club in 1986. Although she had done some riding before that, she intensified her studies then and found herself learning right along with her characters Stevie, Carole, and Lisa. She claims that they are all much better riders than she is.

Ms. Bryant was born and raised in New York City. She still lives there, in Greenwich Village, with her two sons.