White Water (5 page)

“Wakara?” Colin's voice interrupted her thoughts. Light filtered through the open door, then vanished as Colin closed it behind him. She shivered a little when he walked up and stood beside her. “Aren't you cold?”

She shook her head. If she tried to talk, she was afraid her voice would shake too.
Knock it off, Wako, it's just Colin
. Right, if it was “just Colin,” why did she feel all jittery inside?

Colin walked past her, turned around, and leaned backwards against the railing, his head thrown back until he was practically upside down.

Kara giggled and finally found her voice. “What are you doing?”

“The Milky Way, see?” He pointed to the sky over the steeply pitched roof, then motioned her to stand beside him
.

She laughed. “Why don't you just go out into the yard? You could see it better from there.”

“This is a lot more fun. Come on, try it.” He reached for her hand and pulled her to the railing.

Kara took her place beside him and leaned back, craning her neck to spot the Milky Way. But the fluttering in her stomach had nothing to do with a band of stars.

“Colin? Wakara?” The front door opened again, and this time the porch light flicked on. Kara blinked and jumped away from the railing as if it was on fire. “Hey, sorry,” Greg said. She could hear the chuckle in her brother's voice as he reached out to steady her. “Dad wants you guys in the house. Family meeting.”

Greg held the door for her, and she rushed into the family room. Dad watched her with that thoughtful look again, and motioned for her to sit down. Ryan sat on the floor in front of the TV, sorting through his box of John Wayne movie tapes.

When Colin and Greg came in, Dad said, “Thanks, guys, this won't take long.” He looked around the room, his face sober.

Kara felt a stab of fear.
Was something wrong?

Dad cleared his throat. “I know we just returned from a long weekend, but spring break is just around the corner.” He paused and grinned. “How would you all like to spend the week at Eagle Lodge?”

“Yippee!” Ryan jumped up and spun around the room, nearly knocking over Colin, who squatted on his heels by the door.

Greg stood beside Colin, leaning against the wall. “Yeah, yippee for you,” he said with a trace of sarcasm in his voice. “I have a feeling that for the rest of us it means work.” Kara hadn't heard him use that tone in a long time, but at least now he was smiling.

Dad laughed. “I'm afraid Greg is right. It won't be just a pleasure trip. We've got a lot of extra work to do because of the fire.”

Stuff they didn't get done last fall because of the storm that practically shut down the ranch—the same blizzard that nearly killed Greg
. Kara kept her thoughts to herself. She didn't want to bring up bad memories.

It had gotten quiet in the room, and Kara realized Dad was staring at her. She blushed. She'd been daydreaming again. “Sorry, Dad. What did you say?”

“I just wondered if this upsets any plans you had for spring break.”

She thought a minute, then stole a glance at Colin. A bunch of kids from youth group were planning a rafting trip, and Colin had said he would come and bring his new four-man raft. “We did have plans,” she said aloud, “but I guess we could do it another time.” She tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice. Eagle Lodge was a main source of income for their family, and Dad needed all the help he could get to keep it running. Besides, she really liked it there. Sure, it was a lot of work, but the lodge itself was comfortable, and the wilderness that surrounded it was nothing short of spectacular. At least it used to be, before the forest fire. When she'd been up there last, there was so much snow she hadn't been able to tell how much of the forest had been destroyed by the flames.

Tia would be really disappointed, though. They'd
planned on going shopping for some summer clothes.

“Tia would be a help, I think,” Anne said. Kara looked at Anne, astonished, then felt a rush of gratitude when Dad nodded.

“Yes.” His eyes shifted to Colin, then quickly back to Kara. “I think that would be a good idea. If her parents agree, she can come along and help.”

Dad slapped his knees and stood. “Okay, then, we leave a week from Friday.” He glanced at Anne. “Is that enough notice?”

The cook nodded. “We will all go?”

“Yes,” Dad answered. “You can close up the house. Bud Davis will send some hands to take care of the stock.” He turned to Colin and Greg. “We'll need horses. You can bring your own and lead a couple of others.”

Ryan leapt to his feet. “Star gets to come!”

Dad wrapped one arm around Ryan's skinny shoulders. “Not this time, Tiger.”

Ryan's face clouded up and Kara expected him to argue, but he must have realized it wouldn't do any good. He just hung his head and went back to sorting his tapes.

Colin stood up, and Greg clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Is that it?” He looked at Dad, who nodded. “Good. I don't know about you,” he said to Colin, “but I'm headed for the bunkhouse. I've got a class tomorrow morning, and 5:00
A.M.
comes early.”

Kara glanced at the clock and groaned out loud. Ryan should have been in bed an hour ago. Now he'd be a bear when she tried to get him up for school tomorrow. She kissed Dad goodnight. “Come on, Ry, I'll race you up the stairs.”

She let him win, of course, and smiled when he ran into the bathroom and locked the door behind him. She remembered when she was about the same age and wanted privacy. Mom hadn't said anything, just backed off and allowed her to become more independent every year.

“He's growing up, Mom,” she whispered. “I know I can't do as good a job as you would, but I'll try.”

Ryan changed into his cowboy pajamas and fell asleep before Kara could remind him to say his prayers.

Kara brushed her teeth, undid her braids, and pulled her long, black hair over one shoulder so she could untangle it with the brush. Just thinking about all she had to do in the next few days made her tired. First thing tomorrow morning, she would invite Tia to come with them to Eagle Lodge.

She was really disappointed to miss the rafting trip, especially since she'd planned on manning the oar opposite Colin in his raft. Maybe there'd still be time for a river run before the spring season was over. She yawned at the mirror, set the brush aside, and headed for her room.

Her closet door stood open, reminding her of the shopping trip she would have to postpone. Most of her summer clothes had smoke damage from the forest fire. She'd managed to save a couple pair of shorts, but everything else was terminal, and that included most of Ryan's things as well. She groaned and promised herself she'd have a talk with Dad in the morning. Maybe he could take them to the mall the Saturday after they got back.

Her head was spinning when she laid it on the pillow.
Be anxious for nothing
. The Bible verse popped into her mind.
But in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God
.

Prayer always worked when she asked God to help with the big things, like rescuing people from fire and snow. Was it true He cared about the little things as well? She knew Mom and Anne thought so.

She whispered a prayer, mentally giving everything she was worried about to God and thanking Him ahead of time for the answer. Then she turned on her side and closed her eyes.

K
ARA MET
T
IA ON THE
school steps as usual, ten minutes before the first class
.

“You'll never guess!” Tia squealed. “Never in a zillion years!”

Kara couldn't guess, but it didn't matter, because Tia didn't give her a chance to answer. “We did it, Wakara. Patches and I made the cut.”

This time Kara squealed. “You're in with Mrs. Bryant?”

Tia's grin would have outshone the moon. “Only the best barrel racer in the country.” She grabbed Kara's arm. “And, the best part is, we're one-on-one!”

“Private lessons?” Kara was shocked. Mrs. Bryant only took on private students when she thought they had exceptional talent. Was Tia really that good?

Tia was bobbing her head as if Kara had spoken out loud. “She said Patches and I have done a good job on the preliminaries. She said he's fast and well trained—no, she said he's
very
well trained, thank you very much, and we have this bond—sort of like ESP, you know? And that's, like, really important. She thinks we have what it takes.” Tia shouted over the blare of the first bell. “Rodeo circuit here I come!” Kara laughed as Tia danced her in a circle, then linked arms and pulled her through the open doorway into the crowded hall.

Kara was excited for her, but if Tia was starting barrel racing lessons with Mrs. Bryant, she might not be able to go with them to Eagle Lodge.
Well, there's no time to talk about it now
, Kara thought as the bell rang a second time.

“Yipes,” Tia squealed. “I can't be late again. See you at lunch!”

Kara took out her history book, stored her backpack in her locker, and walked ten feet down the hall to the most boring class of the day.

At noon, she carried her lunch tray to the table where Tia was burning her boyfriend Devon's ears about Patches, barrel racing, and rodeos. Devon rolled his eyes at Wakara in greeting. She grinned and shrugged her shoulders. What could she do? When Tia got this excited about something, you just had to let her get it out of her system. The news about Eagle Lodge would have to wait.

After school, Kara waited for Ryan. She always let him choose his own seat on the bus and usually he sat with some of his friends, but today he took the seat next to her. By the time they reached their stop along the rural road, Kara's ears rang from his constant chatter.

Greg had promised their little brother he could help with Lyman for half an hour, and Ryan was so excited he jumped the last step off the bus and raced on ahead. Kara held her breath until he was safely over the slick, wooden bridge, then sighed and followed him across.

It had rained off and on during the day, adding a shimmer of silver to the tumbling river and shining up the new spring leaves. She usually felt a thrill at the first signs of tulips and daffodils sprouting from the once-frozen ground; she loved spring with its cycle of rebirth. Mom always called March and April “the renaissance months.” A time of new beginnings when creation portrayed Christ's death and resurrection
.

But today for some reason, Kara felt anything but
renewed, as if new beginnings were for everyone but her. Tia was moving on from trail rides to barrel races. Ryan would learn to work with horses while Greg trained Lyman.

As she moved closer to the house, she sighed. Mom always said self-pity was a pit you'd be wise to walk around. Well, today it felt like she was balancing right on the edge of the pit. She felt tears sting her eyes and swiped them away with the back of her hand. What was wrong with her, anyway? She was fifteen years old, and the past eighteen months had brought her enough new challenges to last a lifetime.

Anne came out of the kitchen as Kara hung her jacket on the rack in the entry hall. She said nothing, and Kara almost ran by her up the stairs, but she stopped when she caught a glimpse of the woman's kind smile. Kara sighed and forced herself to turn around. “Do you need any help with dinner?”

“No. It is almost done.” The concern on Anne's face made Kara want to cry again, but instead of asking Kara if she wanted to talk, which she didn't, Anne nodded toward the window. “You must hurry if you want to ride before dark.”

Kara could have hugged her. Instead, she flashed her a watery smile and rushed up to her room to change.

Lily's apricot-colored coat smelled warm and sweet as Kara brushed her. Then Kara quickly threw on a bareback pad. She slipped a bit into her horse's mouth, gathered the reins, and led her to the mounting block.

Kara was already on her horse before she remembered she'd left her helmet hanging on a hook next to the tack room door. She started to dismount, then changed her mind. What could happen? They weren't going very far.

Whatever her problems, Kara always felt better once she was on Lily's back. She waved at Ryan and Greg, who were putting Lyman through his paces in a smaller round pen behind the barn, then clucked softly, urging her horse into a fast walk until they reached the open meadow. Then she balanced herself, gripping with her thighs as the mare cantered across the rain-slick grass.

Kara didn't know about ESP, but she'd been riding Lily for so long that the horse seemed to know what she wanted before she asked. The mare was fast and surefooted. They would do well together at barrel racing. Tia had been trying for months to coax her into doing something like that, but there was just no time.