White Water (3 page)

“T
HAT'S ALL HE WOULD SAY
!”
Kara told Tia later on the phone. “‘All in good time.' I wish I knew what that means.”

“It means he's hiding something.” Tia's voice dropped to a whisper. “Like, do you think it's got something to do with your Great-grandma Wakara?”

Kara felt a tingle of excitement. “Exactly. I'd give up riding for a week to find out what those papers say.”

“Oh, sure.” Tia's tone was sarcastic, and Kara had to smile. “You've been home exactly two hours, and I'll bet you've already ridden Lily all over the pasture.”

Kara grinned even though Tia couldn't see her. “No, the meadow, and partway up the trail. I had to get back to help Colin clean the barn.”

Tia laughed.

“Anyway,” Kara continued, “Grandpa told me he still remembers my Great-grandmother Wakara. That made me feel good. Grandpa Sheridan is seventy-five. It made me realize that no matter how old I get, I'll still remember Mom.”

“Well, sure.” There was silence on the line, and then Tia cleared her throat. “Does your Gramps like Phoenix? Does he still have an Irish accent?”

Kara sighed. She and Tia talked about everything. When Kara's mom had died in a fiery car crash, Tia had been there for her with hugs and flowers, or she would just sit and hold Kara's hand. Tia would always listen, but talking about death was hard for her. “I just don't know what to say,” she'd confessed one day. “I'm sorry, Wakara. I hope I'm still your best friend.”

“You'll always be my best friend,” Kara had reassured her. And that was still true today.

“Wakara? Are you still there?”

“Oh. Sorry, Tia. Sure, he likes Phoenix. Especially the early spring baseball games. And yes, he still has an accent when he wants to.” She laughed. “Dad calls it pouring on the blarney.”

Kara dragged the phone cord across the room and plopped cross-legged onto her bed, where she could see out the window. Dad was in the driveway, tinkering with the engine of his pickup truck. “You should have seen them together, Tia. Dad was loving it. I haven't seen him that happy in a long time. I wish Grandpa could have come home with us, but he promised to visit us again before he goes back to Ireland.”

Tia sighed. “Wow, it must have been a cool trip. When are you watching that movie?”

Kara laughed again. “Tonight. And yes, you're invited. I think Anne cooked roast beef for dinner. I'll tell her to add another potato.”

“Carrots?”

Kara rolled her eyes. “Always.”

“Cool! See you in a few.”

The line went dead. Kara hung up the phone and gazed back out the window. Ryan was racing his remote control car up and down the gravel driveway. The wind had picked up a little and blew the fringes of shaggy, blond hair off his forehead.
He needs a haircut
, she thought automatically,
and I should make him put on a sweater
. But she knew he would argue, and in all fairness, she hadn't even needed a jacket this morning when she'd exercised Lily.

She opened the window and inhaled the fresh, clean air. She loved living in the Northwest, rain, snow, and all. Phoenix was okay for Aunt Peg, but no way did Kara ever want to live there.

A flash of sunlight bounced off the shiny plastic on Ryan's car as it raced by. Kara smiled, then listened as she heard the crunch of hooves on gravel. She leaned out and looked down the drive just as Greg and Colin came around the corner leading two horses. Her stomach did a little twist at the sound of Colin's laughter. His blond hair was hidden underneath a beat-up Stetson. The hat was pulled down enough so she couldn't see his wide, brown eyes, but she knew how the green specks sparkled when he smiled.

Greg was laughing too, and Kara felt a flutter of relief. It must have been a good ride. His riding helmet dangled from his right hand, and he led the horse, a spirited Arabian named Lyman, easily with his left. Her brother's speech had returned to normal, and even though he still had headaches and spells of feeling weak, he was pretty much the same as before the accident.

“You're lucky,” the doctor had said. “When they first brought you in, I would have bet you'd never talk again.”

Greg just grinned. “Not luck, Doc. I had a lot of people praying for me.”

Kara felt a surge of pride, just thinking about it. The doctor had been impressed enough to answer, “Well, somebody up there is looking out for you.”

And Greg had answered, “Not somebody, Doc. God.”

Greg's horse, Lyman, danced a little as they passed Ryan, who was fiddling with the remote for his toy car. Kara almost called out a warning, but Ryan stood still, and the horse settled down.

A couple of months ago, Greg had decided he wanted to ride again. He'd picked out this horse at an auction. Kara winced. It wouldn't have been her choice. The young Arabian would tolerate a saddle and rider, but he wasn't very well trained. He was nervous and spooked easily—not a good choice for someone like Greg who was used to riding the sturdy, bombproof ranch horses. But Dad had agreed with Greg, thinking that Greg needed a challenge—something to boost his spirits—and training a new horse could be just the thing.

As they led the horses past the house, Colin looked up at her window and waved. Kara's smile froze as she heard the whir of rubber tires spitting gravel. She gasped as Ryan's black roadster went hurtling down the drive, hit a rock, and spun out right under the horses' feet.

It happened so fast, it took her breath away. Dakota side-hopped, knocking Colin into the bushes. Lyman went ballistic. She watched in horror as Greg tried to hang on to the reins with his weak arm, but the horse reared. His front hooves flailed just inches from Greg's face, then he broke away and bolted for the barn.

Kara didn't wait to see the outcome. She raced down the stairs and out the front door.

Dad got there ahead of her. He went straight to Greg and began examining his arm. Kara laid one hand on Ryan's shoulder and took away the remote control. The car lay smashed in the middle of the driveway. Ryan's eyes were wide with shock. Kara breathed a prayer of thanks that Dad was here. She was too worried about Colin and Greg to deal with her little brother.

Colin had jumped up, and he had Dakota under control. The big buckskin trembled when Kara went over and rubbed a hand against his neck, but he held steady under Colin's examination.

“I think he's fine.” Colin moved around his horse, looking for any obvious injuries.

Kara was winded from running and sucked in air. “What about you?” she asked.

“Nothing broken.”

His eyes were still roaming over Dakota, and Kara didn't know if he meant himself or the horse.

They heard a sharp whinny, then a thud.

“Lyman!” Kara could hear the panic in Greg's voice, and then Dad's firm command, “Stay still, Son, I'm not through . . .”

She spun around and sprinted toward the barn, where she found Lyman, sides heaving, blowing foam and kicking at the metal sliding door. She stopped, then moved slowly toward his shoulder, talking softly. “Hey, boy, it's okay. You're safe now. Nothing's going to hurt you.”
Gently
, she reminded herself,
like singing a baby to sleep
.

When Lyman caught sight of her, he threw his head, rolled his eyes, and stamped the ground. Then he banged the metal door again with one front foot.

“All right, boy,” Kara crooned and inched closer. “I'll let you in. Just be still.”

He moaned under his breath and jerked when she caught his headstall, but a few seconds of silent pressure and he lowered his head. His ears came forward, and Kara could feel his muscles relax under her hand.

She clucked softly and backed him up, then carefully slid open the door and led him into the barn. Once she got him on the grooming mat, she slipped off the headstall and replaced it with a halter. She took the saddle off, grabbed an armful of hay, and let him eat while she examined him
.

He startled once when Colin came in leading Dakota. “You'd better put him in crossties, Wakara.”

Colin's voice was calm, but she could hear the censure in his tone and felt a flash of irritation. She'd been working with horses a lot longer than Colin had, so what made him the expert?

“Crossties will only make him nervous.” She moved slowly, running her hands along the horse's flank and down his legs. He winced and jerked away when she rubbed the tendon just above his right rear hoof. She looked closer and found a slight cut on the inside of his fetlock.

“It's not bad,” she said when Colin squatted down next to her. “Just a surface wound. Will you please hold him a minute?”

Colin's eyes sparkled with humor. “Yes, Ma'am,” he drawled, “I'd be happy to oblige.” He grinned, then pushed to his feet and took hold of Lyman's halter.

Kara lifted the hoof and flexed it. The Arabian snorted, but didn't pull away. “I don't think there's any tendon damage. Let's walk him around a little.”

“And take him away from his dinner?”

Colin's tone sounded sarcastic, but when she stood up, he flashed her a look of wide-eyed innocence. “What?”

She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Colin Jones, if you don't want to help . . .”

“What's going on? Is he okay?” Greg's worried voice interrupted her.

Colin steadied Lyman, and Kara turned to her brother. His face was white, but he moved past her, rubbing his hands over the horse's back and side.

“He's fine. Just a slight cut.”

Greg looked at Colin, who nodded in agreement. “Wakara checked him out. We were just going to walk him around.”

Greg looked relieved. “Okay.” He nodded in her direction. “Thanks, Sis. I owe you one.”

You don't owe me anything
. Kara felt a twist of sadness. Greg was four years older than she was and they had never been close, but he was her brother and she loved him. He didn't have to pay her back. But she kept her thoughts to herself.

Greg's left arm trembled a little as he clipped a lead rope to the horse's halter.

“What about you?” She fixed her eyes on his face. “Are you okay?”

He nodded. “I'm fine. Just shook me up a little.”

She and Colin stepped out of the way as he turned the horse around and led him to the door. “I'll walk him. You watch.” He led Lyman out of the barn and down the driveway. Kara looked at Colin. He shrugged, grabbed his hat from the top of a hay bale, and trotted after them.

As Greg walked Lyman, they could see that the horse had only a slight limp. Greg turned down Kara's offer to dress the cut and did it himself. While Colin took off Dakota's saddle and measured grain into the feed pans, she added some wood shavings to Lyman's stall and filled the feeder with another pad of hay.

Two stalls down, Lily nickered for attention. Kara rubbed her down and fed her, then did the same for Ryan's pony, Star, adding a scoop of glucosamine to his grain. The pony was over eighteen years old and had developed some arthritis, but Ryan still rode him once in a while. Last year they had taken him to Eagle Lodge for the season so the younger kids could ride him. Dad had said they might leave him home this year, though, and Ryan had had a fit.

Kara sighed. Ry was really in for it this time. He'd been raised on this ranch and knew the rules. She couldn't believe he'd been careless enough to run that car while the horses were in the driveway. She looked around. The barn chores were done. Greg and Colin had put all the tack away and just stood there watching her.

Colin cleared his throat. “Uh, well, I've got some stuff to do in the bunkhouse. Guess I'll see you guys later. I may not make it in to dinner.” He tipped his hat and started for the door.

“Wait up.” Greg started after him. “I'd better get some homework done. I've got an early class on Monday.” He glanced at her, then looked away. “Tell Dad I think I'll hit the hay early tonight. My arm's a little sore.”

Kara couldn't believe it. “Wait a minute! What's with you guys? Anne's making a special dinner, and we're supposed to watch that tape, remember?” Then it hit her.
Those cowards!
They knew Ryan was in trouble, and they didn't want to be around for any punishment. Dad would surely make him apologize to both of them, and Kara knew from experience how uncomfortable that could be. She ran to catch up with them, but before she could get the barn door closed, a horn honked in the driveway.

Kara spun around, startled when she saw the slender, dark-haired girl in a short, ribbed T-shirt and blue jeans walking toward her carrying a small, brown shopping bag. “Hey, Wakara, wait, I brought some carrots for Lily and Star.”

Tia! With all the commotion, she had forgotten her friend was coming for dinner, and she hadn't even told Anne, let alone Dad.