The Island Horse (10 page)

They walked on, she ahead, he behind.

And after a time, she realized that they were not alone. She turned her head slowly. The herd was there! The island horse's little family. Two mares, the yearling, the two foals.

She saw them coming from the west, following along the crest of the dune. They were following their stallion, their leader.

They did not come close. Sometimes they were out of sight, in a valley or hollow, as Ellie and the island horse topped and descended a low rise, or when lingering to graze. Or even, once, when the littlest foal lay down, its tiny, knobbly legs giving out abruptly.

But Orchid seemed unconcerned. He seemed certain of their loyalty and their bond to him. He came forward after Ellie and put them in her care as well, trustingly. Sometimes he stopped to drink or to rub his leg daintily with his muzzle. And sometimes he was so close she felt his breath on her shoulder or her arm.

The wind blew, and the waves surged against the shoreline. It was a day like every other on the island — wind, waves and sand. And yet today Ellie was walking with her horse, and she had never had such a feeling of happiness bursting inside her chest.

Chapter Eighteen

The morning turned into afternoon.

We're moving too slowly. The roundup will be starting soon,
Ellie fretted.
Maybe it's started already!

Ellie had never been this far along the island before. After walking eastward for some time, she had turned inland, found Lake Wallace and walked until reaching its eastern end. And all the while, she had worried that the roundup riders would come bursting upon them, hallooing and whooping, and sweep her little brood away.

But they hadn't, and she and the horses had kept walking, moving southward. Now they had reached the southern beach and were moving eastward again. They should come upon the sand hills soon.
Soon,
Ellie hoped.

She was getting tired. She walked with her head down, determined. Trying to keep the pace brisk.

As long as the roundup riders don't come … as long as they don't find us now …
she told herself over and over.

Suddenly, from atop a high ridge of sand, as she glanced out along the coast, searching for the hills, she saw strange tall bones rising in the distance. Astonished, she saw them sticking out of the beach, an enormous rib cage.

What?! What strange animal is this? Could there be more, still roaming the shores?
Ellie wondered fearfully.

She shuddered, but she had nowhere to go but forward. She drew closer, along the ridge, her heart thumping. But as she came near, she realized, with relief, that the bones were not bones. Rather, they were the wooden skeleton of a wrecked ship. They were timbers, stripped to white by wind and waves.

Ellie's legs were weak from worry and her hours of trudging. She paused to scan the horizon again, looking for the hills. Her stomach grumbled. Realizing she was famished, she hastily ate a piece of cheese and drank a few sips of cold tea.

There was no time to waste, however, so she walked on, and the horses followed. And then, as the sun had reached its summit and was dropping lower, into mid-afternoon, she stopped and looked ahead again, shading her eyes. Ellie saw shapes in the distance that looked like mounds, rising from the beach.

There they were! The sand hills! Finally!

She picked up her pace. Orchid and his family stayed near.

But then, glancing back at him, always watchful, she saw his ears prick up.

“Oh, no,” she cried because she, too, thought she heard something in the distance, approaching. The roundup riders? Was it them? She wanted to cry, to give up.

The stallion raised his head higher, listening. He halted.

Ellie stopped, too. She wanted to sink down, drown.

Then Orchid turned his head, and looked at her. Fear and surprise were in his eyes … Was he going to panic? Flee toward danger?

She couldn't let it happen.

“No, we have to hurry. We have to hurry! Come on!” she called. She would not let them find him. She would not.

Ellie started to run. She summoned up all her energy and her hope and her love for the island horse, and she started to run as fast as she could.

She ran toward the hills, and when she glanced back she saw Orchid duck his head and kick up his heels. Then he tossed his mane and reared, and now he was galloping after her.

He caught up to her and continued on past her. He raced along the sand, tail high, hooves pounding. And now
he
was the leader. He was guiding Ellie, urging
her
onward.

She ran after him, as hard as she could, buoyant, and behind came his little herd, trotting, anxious to keep up.

As if they were all connected by an invisible thread, the stallion tore across the sand, exuberant and full of life, with Ellie and his family following.

And they reached the sand hills. Orchid disappeared behind one hill, and the other horses disappeared after him. Ellie stopped running, stood panting. From where she was, from where any roundup riders might be, the herd could not be seen.

It was late afternoon. But they were here, and no one had found them. Maybe it would be all right.

Ellie walked in among the sand hills, found Orchid and sat down gratefully. The horse stayed nearby, eyeing her. Was he wondering if there might be another exhilarating tear across the sand? He tossed his head and pawed his hoof in the sand, restless.

But after a time, the stallion settled. And he did not leave, although there was little food here, no grass at all. He dug down in the sand, and then drank the water that appeared. One by one, first the foals, then the yearling and then the mares came and drank. And then Ellie, watching and thirsty, went to the hole Orchid had made, and cupped her palm. Drank the fresh water.

Satisfied, she sat back on her heels and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Then she gasped.

Orchid was there. Right there, next to her.

She sat still.

Slowly, the horse stretched out his neck toward Ellie. He looked at her carefully. Then he hesitated.

Ellie held her breath.

Orchid's ears twitched. His muzzle came close. She felt his nose touch her shoulder, her elbow. He pushed at her gently. His nostrils flared.

Ellie remained still. She dared not move.

Yet now he was nudging her palm. Once, twice. She felt his velvety nose on her bare skin.

And so, slowly, slowly, she lifted her hand. She stroked his nose with the tip of her fingers. Once. Twice.

Ellie looked into Orchid's deep brown-black eyes, and he gazed back.

It was a moment only. But it was everything to Ellie.

Then, with a snort, Orchid stepped away. He tossed his head, and he flicked his tail. He headed back to stand near his herd.

Now it was early evening. The sun was still in the sky, but it was low. The rays were sliding across the sea toward them. The horses were here. They were together, with her.

Ellie, strong and determined, knew that no matter what happened, even if the roundup riders came and found them, she would protect the horse. She would not let him be taken. She and her father, and Sarah, would save Orchid and his family, too. Together they would not let the horses be taken from their home.

Chapter Nineteen

Ellie awoke in her father's arms. A crescent moon was shining down on a crescent island.

“Ellie, I found you,” he breathed. “You made it here!”

“It's over?” she asked, although she knew it had to be, because it was night.

He nodded. “Yes, sweetpea. The roundup ended long before the sun went down. They corralled sixteen horses in all. But it's over now.”

Ellie felt a pang. Sixteen wild horses had been taken. She knew some would be set free. Only the finest would be shipped away. But still …

Her father asked anxiously, “And your horse …?” He lifted his head and looked around. “Is he here? Is he safe?”

Ellie looked around, too. She saw sand and sea, and moonlight. But the wild horse had gone. And the others, too.

“He's not here anymore.” Ellie smiled at her father reassuringly. “But he came with me. He followed me here, away from the roundup. And his little herd came with us. I know he wasn't taken.”

“So, he's safe. And his family as well.”

“Yes, they're all safe,” Ellie said. “Thank you, Pa, for helping.”

“Oh Ellie, you're welcome, but I didn't actually do much!” he said lightly. “After lunch, we all headed out. I managed to tag along with two fellows who were heading this way. Although they seemed quite sure none of the stallions had claimed these sand hills as their territory, it was their job —
our
job — to check.”

He chuckled. “Well, I was able to delay them along the way. Poor Cora! I fell off her twice, no, three times! The first two times, she looked surprised. The last time, she actually looked a bit sorry for me!” He chuckled again. Ellie grinned, picturing it.

“And the lads weren't angry at all. Just laughed at me and said I needed riding lessons. Then finally they said we should turn back or we'd miss the roundup completely. So we never made it all the way out here, in the end,” her father concluded.

Ellie turned her head and pressed it against her father's chest. She hugged him. He had made himself look foolish in front of these men just to help her. “Thank you, Pa.”

“You know, I think it's that lass Sarah you need to be thanking,” he said, hugging her back. “I heard she created quite a commotion in the middle of the afternoon. She raced out to the riders moving east with some strange story. Told them they were needed back at the Main Station right away. That the
Ellie
needed help.”

Ellie caught her breath in surprise. But her father laughed — “The
Ellie!
” — and Ellie, relieved, laughed with him.

“They all turned back right away. Almost came the whole way in before they got wind that she was leading them in a dance.” Her father shook his head, smiling. “She's quite a one, that Sarah!”

Ellie swallowed hard. Sarah had done all this for her! For her and Orchid and his herd.

She hugged her father again, and he held her more tightly. She almost couldn't believe it. Orchid and his family were safe. There would be another roundup sometime. Maybe next year. Maybe sooner. But Orchid and his family were safe for now, and to Ellie, tonight, this seemed enough. More than enough! It was wonderful.

And
I'm
safe.
Ellie felt it suddenly. She knew it.
I'm safe. Even here, on this island. Maybe especially here,
she thought, thinking of her father, Sarah, Orchid.

Her father stood up, still holding Ellie in his arms. “Time to go home, sweetpea,” he said.

Ellie's father lifted her up onto Cora's back. Then he mounted, sitting behind the saddle, wrapping his arms around her.

Tomorrow, she would tell her father about naming the horse Orchid. She would tell him all about Sarah. And she would tell him that she'd like to continue her reading, writing and arithmetic.
Maybe I could have lessons with Sarah,
she thought. She imagined it for a moment and grinned.
It would be fun!

But that would all be tomorrow.

Now, Ellie closed her eyes and leaned back sleepily against her father. They set out, making their way across the shifting, moonlit sand. Together, she and her father were going home.