Gift Horse (2 page)

Once Stevie, Carole, and Lisa had received their food, they found a shady spot away from the others and sat down to eat.

“We’ve got to think of ways to improve before next week’s rally,” said Stevie. She was still thinking about their third-place finish—or more accurately, their second-to-Phil finish.

Lisa swallowed a bite of peanut-butter sandwich. “We didn’t really make any bad mistakes,” she pointed out. “I mean, I did drop my egg once in the egg-and-spoon race, and Veronica forgot her eye patch, but those weren’t major errors.”

“True,” Carole agreed. “Cross County was just a little sharper, that’s all.”

Stevie nodded. “That’s why
we
have to get sharper before next weekend,” she said firmly. “We’ll have to put in some extra practice time. I hope Veronica’s agreeable mood continues for a while.”

“Me, too,” Carole said. “And not just because of the rally. She’s really a lot more pleasant to be around when she’s not being snotty and superior every second. I haven’t seen her act this nice since Thanksgiving.” Veronica had spent the holiday with Carole and her father the year before when Veronica’s parents had had to leave the country on business. Carole had been surprised to discover that the spoiled little rich girl actually had a human side. Unfortunately, as soon as the visit had ended, so had Veronica’s friendly mood.

“Definitely,” Stevie said. “I wonder what’s up with her these days.” She took a long swig of soda.

“I think I may have an idea about that,” Lisa commented. “I overheard my father telling my mother that Mr. diAngelo’s bank is in some kind of serious trouble.”

“What does that mean?” Carole asked.

Lisa shrugged. “From the way my dad was talking, it sounded as though it might have to shut down.”

“Wow. That would mean Mr. diAngelo would lose his job,” Carole said slowly.

“And all his money,” Stevie added, with just a hint of a
smirk. “Can you imagine that? Poor Veronica would have to give up her weekly trips to the mall.…”

“And her chauffeured Mercedes,” Lisa put in.

“And her designer riding clothes,” Carole finished. “Then she’ll have to start dressing like you, Stevie.”

Stevie and Lisa laughed. Even if Veronica had been acting nicer lately, they couldn’t work up much sympathy for her predicament.

“Hey, is there room for one more at this table?” Phil Marsten asked, walking up to them.

“Sure,” Stevie said with a smile. “Pull up a chair.”

“Thanks.” Phil dropped to the grass beside Stevie and began unwrapping his sandwich. “You all did great today,” he told the three girls.

“Not as great as you did,” Lisa replied honestly. “But thanks.”

Carole nodded in agreement. But out of the corner of her eye she could see Stevie’s face, and she didn’t like what she saw. There was a definite competitive glint in Stevie’s eye.

Luckily Phil changed the subject to ask about No-Name, who had been a temporary boarder in his family’s barn before moving to Pine Hollow. Soon he and Stevie were chatting easily together about how much the mare had seemed to enjoy the day’s events.

But Carole couldn’t help remembering some of the times Stevie’s competitive nature had gotten her in trouble in
the past. Once Max had decided to teach them to play polocrosse, a combination of polo and lacrosse. Stevie had ended up practicing so hard for a game against Phil’s team that she’d injured her ankle. Still wanting to be a part of the competition, she’d volunteered to coach the team. But she had been so demanding that the whole team was ready to quit before long.

That experience had turned out just fine in the end, Carole reminded herself. Once Stevie had figured out how impossible she was being, she had turned into an excellent coach. Maybe by next weekend, Stevie would realize coming in first wasn’t important and forget all about coming in third today.

After lunch it was time for the younger riders to compete. Stevie had volunteered to coach the team made up of Pine Hollow’s youngest riders. She knew she’d done a good job, too. The team was enthusiastic and well prepared for every race. Stevie watched from her position on No-Name’s back, shouting encouragement and advice the whole time. Under Stevie’s expert guidance, the team came in first or second in almost every event, from the water-balloon toss to the blindfolded relay race.

Carole and Lisa cheered from the sidelines as the competitors lined up for their last event, the classic egg-and-spoon relay. All around them the other spectators were just as enthusiastic. It was fun watching the young riders, because they were so obviously having fun themselves. But
no one seemed to be having more fun than Stevie and No-Name.

“Go, May!” Stevie shouted from the sidelines as the race started. She bounced up and down excitedly in No-Name’s saddle. “You can do it!”

May Grover didn’t look around at Stevie—that would have broken her concentration—but Lisa saw the young girl nod with determination. Lisa smiled. Stevie really was a good coach. It was obvious that the team wanted to do well for her as well as for themselves. Lisa started cheering even louder as May reached the end of the ring and carefully handed her spoon to the next rider, Jasmine James. The pass-off went effortlessly, and Jasmine rode her pony back across the ring at a smooth walk, well ahead of the other teams.

Just then Lisa noticed one person in the crowd who wasn’t cheering. A girl was standing silently nearby, staring intently at something in the ring. She was a little older than Lisa, with short blond hair, and she was wearing riding clothes. Lisa recognized her as a member of the Mendenhall Stables’ Pony Club, but she didn’t know her name. When Lisa followed her gaze, she realized the older girl was staring at Stevie and No-Name with a decidedly odd look on her face.

A roar went up from the rest of the crowd, and Lisa quickly turned her attention back to the race, forgetting all about the girl who seemed so interested in Stevie and her
horse. Joey Dutton was crossing the finish line yards ahead of his closest competitor. Lisa cheered, her voice almost lost among the others around her.

But a moment later one voice could be heard above the rest, shrill and angry.

“That’s my horse!” the blond girl cried, pushing her way to the front of the crowd and pointing at No-Name. “That’s my horse!”

O
UT ON THE
field, Stevie was vaguely aware of the blond girl in the crowd, who was pointing at her and shouting something about No-Name. It almost sounded as though she was yelling that No-Name was her horse. But Stevie didn’t pay much attention—she was too busy congratulating her victorious team.

Besides, there was no doubt that No-Name was Stevie’s horse. The Lakes had bought the mare from Mr. Baker, the director of the Cross County Pony Club, a few weeks earlier. And Stevie knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the spirited mare was meant to be hers forever.

Stevie was crazy about a lot of horses. One of her favorites was a skewbald pony named Stewball who lived on her friend Kate’s dude ranch out west. Stevie also loved Carole’s
horse Starlight; Topside, Max’s Thoroughbred gelding; and just about every other horse she’d ever met.

But now Stevie knew that none of those horses could ever belong to her the way No-Name did. The two of them were perfectly matched in personality. Where another rider might get annoyed at the mare’s curiosity and playfulness, Stevie loved it. Where another horse might get confused at Stevie’s impulsive commands during mounted games, No-Name seemed to know what Stevie was thinking almost before Stevie did. Like Stevie, No-Name also had a talent for dressage, a form of riding requiring precision, skill, and careful training. Not every horse had that kind of talent—and not every rider, either.

“That’s my horse!” the shout came again. Stevie glanced at the girl, who had short blond hair and an angry look on her face. Then she returned her attention to her team, helping the excited girls and boy lead their ponies out of the ring.

Carole and Lisa were there a moment later to greet and help her.

“What was that girl shouting about?” Stevie asked them as they headed into the barn.

Carole and Lisa both shrugged.

“Something about you and No-Name,” Carole replied.

Before any of them could say another word, May Grover rushed up to Stevie with her pony trailing behind her. “Stevie, will you help me find a hoof pick? I lost mine.”

“Sure thing,” Stevie replied instantly. With that, the three older girls forgot all about the blond girl and set to work assisting the younger girls with their horses. There was a lot to do to get the horses ready for the trip back to Pine Hollow, which meant there was no time to waste thinking about strange girls yelling odd things in the crowd.

A few minutes later Carole was leading Diablo out of the barn toward the van when she passed Red O’Malley, Pine Hollow’s head stable hand. His normally cheerful face wore a puzzled expression.

“What’s the matter, Red?” Carole asked, immediately concerned. Ever since she’d owned Starlight, she knew better than ever how easy it was for things to go wrong with a horse. Spotting problems or potential problems quickly was one of the skills Max tried to teach them in Horse Wise. Carole was good at it. So was Stevie. For instance, Stevie had been the one to figure out No-Name’s allergy to weeds, thereby saving the mare a lot of unnecessary discomfort.

Red shook his head. “Nothing’s the matter,” he replied, reaching out to take Diablo’s lead. “At least, I don’t think so. But you’d better go take a look for yourself.” He gestured toward the row of temporary stalls behind him.

Carole hurried in the direction he’d indicated, still feeling a little worried. A voice came out to greet her—Veronica’s voice.

“That’s right, Jessica,” Veronica was saying from inside
one of the stalls. “If you need to walk around behind him, you should run your hand over his back and quarters, move slowly, and talk to him the whole time. That way he knows what you’re doing, and he’s less likely to get spooked. See?”

Carole smiled, understanding why Red had looked so shocked. One of Pine Hollow’s many traditions was that riders helped care for the horses they rode. That meant grooming, cleaning tack, mucking out stalls, and everything else that had to be done. Another tradition was that riders helped each other whenever necessary. Both traditions were ones that Veronica liked to ignore. Normally she seemed to consider Red her own personal stable hand, and the last place anyone would expect to find her was helping someone else.

But now, here she was helping out another rider. Carole shook her head. Had Veronica really turned over a new leaf this time? Then another thought occurred to her, and her smile faded a little. Did this change of heart have anything to do with the rumors about her father’s bank?

Before she could think about that any further, she heard footsteps behind her. She turned to see Stevie and Lisa approaching. Lisa was leading Prancer, the lovely Thoroughbred mare she usually rode, and Stevie was carrying Prancer’s grooming bucket. The grooming bucket contained all the grooming tools Lisa would need, including brushes and combs, sponges, rags, a hoof pick and oil, and an extra lead line. Each horse at Pine Hollow had a grooming
bucket, and the riders were supposed to make sure the buckets remained clean and fully stocked. Having everything in one place was especially helpful during trips like this, but it also made things easier back at Pine Hollow.

“What’s the big idea?” Stevie demanded with mock seriousness. “How can you stand around here daydreaming while the rest of us are working?” She put her hands on her hips in imitation of one of Max’s favorite poses.

Carole giggled. “If you think that’s weird, just listen.” She nodded toward the stall where Veronica, still oblivious to their presence, was giving Jessica tips on watching a horse’s ears to figure out his mood.

Lisa’s eyes widened. “This is almost spooky!” she whispered.

“I know,” Carole agreed. “I was just wondering whether Mr. diAngelo’s money troubles have anything to do with this new and improved Veronica.”

Stevie shrugged. “Well, whatever the reason is, let’s not mention anything to Veronica. After all, we don’t want to make her self-conscious about how nice and helpful she’s being these days. You know what they say about never looking a gift horse in the mouth. She might stop!”

The others laughed and agreed. Just then Stevie spotted Phil approaching and smiled. “Hi,” she called to him happily. “You’re just in time. We were just going to get No-Name and load her up for the trip back.”

“We were?” Lisa said, but Stevie and Phil didn’t hear
her. The two of them were already heading down the aisle toward No-Name’s temporary stall, chatting enthusiastically. Lisa and Carole exchanged smiles and shrugged.

“I guess when she said ‘we,’ she meant herself and Phil,” Carole said with a laugh. “Come on, I’ll give you a hand with Prancer.” The two of them headed in the opposite direction.

When Stevie and Phil arrived at No-Name’s stall, Stevie opened the door and started to go inside. “Hi there, you big beautiful hor …”

Her voice trailed off, and she backed quickly out of the stall. “Hey, what are you doing in there?” she demanded, her voice hard and suspicious.