Racing Against Time

by Suzanne Weyn

  Taylor thought about it. “I don’t think so,” she said truthfully. “Daphne says everyone falls.”

  “That’s why you wear helmets. Let me go see what your mom needs help doing,” Claire said, heading toward the kitchen.

  Taylor went back to her peeling, but after a minute her cell phone tone signaled that she was receiving a text message. It was from a number she didn’t recognize.

  R U OK? CAN I C U AFTER SKOOL? ERIC

  Taylor’s breath stuck in her throat.

  Eric wanted to visit her … here, in her house?

  It was either too good to be true — or it was a total disaster. Taylor wasn’t sure which.

  Her small farmhouse-style home had been built in 1821. It had low ceilings and wide-plank floors. It was antique, but not in a fancy way. And since her mother had started working so hard on her catering business, it had become a bit on the messy side, too.

  But Eric wanted to come see her. It was too exciting! How could she say no?

  “Mom!” Taylor called. “Mom! Can Eric come over after school?”

  “Eric who?” Jennifer shouted back from the kitchen.

  Taylor tried to think of Eric’s last name, but she didn’t remember ever having heard it. “I don’t know. He’s the guy from down at the ranch I told you about.”

  “Okay. I guess it’s all right.”

  Claire walked into the living room. “I’ll be here while your mother is at the luncheon,” she said. “Does Travis know you have a new boyfriend?”

  “Travis isn’t my boyfriend,” Taylor insisted. “It’s not like that.”

  “Are you sure?” Claire asked in a teasing voice.

  “Yes! I’m sure.”

  “So this Eric is your boyfriend?” Claire checked.

  “No! He’s not my boyfriend, either. I don’t have a boyfriend.”

  Claire grinned with laughter in her eyes. “Whatever you say.”

  “Neither of them is my boyfriend,” Taylor insisted.

  * * *

  “I feel like it’s all my fault,” Eric said. He was sitting in a kitchen chair beside the couch. Taylor had done her best to brush her hair to a shine and had arranged it carefully on her pillow the moment she heard the front doorbell ring.

  “It wasn’t your fault. You told me to take it slow. I just never expected Shafir to run out like that.”

  “Mercedes was supposed to be keeping an eye on her,” Eric said.

  “And she’d just finished giving me a big talk about not letting Prince Albert get away from me. She forgot how much Shafir likes to play,” Taylor said. “She never expected Shafir to break out like that, either.”

  “It could have been a lot worse if Mandy hadn’t veered off in time,” Eric said. “If you guys had crashed” — his shoulders shuddered — “I don’t even want to think about it. That’s probably why Mrs. LeFleur got so upset. She knew what could have happened.”

  “I heard that her son got stuck in a wheelchair because of a riding accident,” Taylor told him.

  “That stinks. Have you ever met him?”

  “No. She’s never mentioned him, either.”

  “I wonder if he still rides,” Eric said.

  “I don’t know.”

  The doorbell rang, and Claire came out of the kitchen to answer. “Are you expecting anyone else?” she asked Taylor.

  “No.”

  Travis walked into the room behind Claire. “Hey, Taylor, how are you —” He cut himself short when he saw Eric.

  “Hey, Travis,” Eric said.

  “I didn’t know you had company,” Travis said to Taylor. “I should have told you I was coming over.”

  “That’s all right. Come and sit down,” Taylor said. Why did she suddenly feel guilty? She wasn’t doing anything wrong.

  “I’m going to go,” Travis said.

  “But you just got here,” Taylor pointed out.

  “I have something to do. I just remembered,” Travis said.

  Taylor could always tell when Travis was lying, but this time she wasn’t sure. He seemed to be telling the truth, but what could he have to do?

  “I’m going to school tomorrow,” she told Travis. “My dad brought me a cane to lean on. So I’ll see you on the bus, okay?”

  Travis turned to Eric. “Taylor and I always sit together on the bus. Always.”

  An uneasy silence arose in the room.

  Claire broke the tension by walking in holding a bag of pretzels and popping it with a small bang. “Anybody hungry?” she asked.

  “No, but if you have an apple, I’ll take it,” Travis said. “I’m going down to Wildwood to check on Prince Albert and Pixie. I’ll make sure they’re fed and that someone turns them out for a while. I’d do it myself, but Prince Albert hates guys.”

  “Tell me about it,” Eric said with a laugh.

  Taylor was surprised to discover that Travis actually did have something he intended to do. She’d been sure he was just making an excuse to leave. Maybe he’d just thought of it.

  “Thanks so much, Travis,” she said. “I really appreciate that.”

  “You don’t have to go down there,” Eric told Travis. “Mercedes has them in the pasture, and she’ll feed them. I already checked.”

  “How could you have done that already? We just got out of school,” Travis said.

  “The Johnson School gets out before PV,” Eric reminded him. “So I got there before you did.”

  You didn’t have to run off like that yesterday. Do you not like Eric or something?” Taylor asked Travis on the school bus Wednesday morning. Bored of sitting on the couch — and of peeling vegetables — Taylor had managed to hobble onto the bus with the aid of the cane her father had brought her, even though each step hurt.

  “He acts like he’s so great just because he goes to that fancy Johnson School,” Travis replied.

  “I think he’s nice,” Taylor insisted.

  Travis made a sort of choking noise in his throat. “Yeah, like, no kidding!” he scoffed. “Anyone can see that. That’s why you can hardly walk right now. You were showing off.”

  “I was not showing off in front of Eric the other day!” Taylor insisted firmly.

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Daphne says everyone falls sooner or later.”

  “Everyone who shows off falls.”

  “No! Not just show-offs — everyone falls!” Taylor stated. “And I wasn’t showing off!”

  “Whatever,” Travis said again as he took a Batman comic from his pack and began to flip through it.

  Despite her private doubts, Taylor would never admit to Travis that she might have, indeed, been showing off. But why not tell the truth? Couldn’t she simply say that Eric was really cute and she wanted him to like her? It wasn’t as if Travis was her boyfriend. Normally, she told him everything. Why was this so different?

  Travis was not looking up from his comic, so Taylor slid her copy of the Hobby Horse catalog from her pack and perused the Western riding show apparel. Although she admired the formal English-style outfits with their starched white shirts, tailored jackets, and domed velvet helmets — which were also represented toward the back of this catalog — she thought the Western gear was much more fun. Taylor wore a helmet at Wildwood Stables, but not one as nice as these, and she liked the sparkly show shirts.

  “I could see you wearing that,” Travis said, pointing to a smiling brunette modeling a yellow-and-black rhinestone-studded shirt, a black cowgirl hat, and fringed chaps. “You’re the cowgirl type.”

  Taylor smiled at him, relieved their argument about Eric was over. “Really? I could see me wearing it, too. Are you going to help out with the games event?”

  “Yeah, I guess so,” Travis replied, closing his comic.

  “I hope this ankle is better in enough time so I can participate in the games. I’ve got about two weeks. That should be enough time. I am so looking forward to this.”

  “It’ll be better,” Travis assured her. “When you want to do
something you don’t let anything get in your way.”

  “You make me sound so tough,” Taylor commented.

  “No, just determined,” Travis replied. “It’s a good thing.”

  * * *

  During her lunch period, Taylor got permission to put up flyers announcing the game event at Wildwood Stables. Mrs. LeFleur had taken a photo of the front sign and written an announcement that told anyone who was interested in participating to call the ranch. Pixie would provide pony rides, and there would be refreshments and games for little kids. Mercedes and Daphne were posting the flyers at the high school, and they adorned the walls of local businesses where Mrs. LeFleur had already been.

  Taylor was tacking a flyer to the bulletin board outside the main office when she realized Plum was standing behind her. Forcing a smile to her lips, Taylor turned. “Hey,” she greeted Plum.

  “Nobody’s going to trailer a horse all the way over to Wildwood for this stupid thing,” Plum stated.

  Taylor’s nostrils flared slightly as she drew in a calming breath. “We only need a few people to compete. Everyone else can watch,” she replied in a voice she hoped was even and friendly. “Daphne has already talked to some of her friends from the high school who might be interested.”

  “Might be,” Plum echoed pointedly.

  “Maybe we could get Shafir ready in time for you to ride her,” Taylor suggested.

  “I could do it if you all would let me train her my way.”

  In that case, Shafir might be dead by the day of the games event, Taylor thought. “It’s more fun if we all work together,” she said brightly, then turned and hobbled to class.

  * * *

  Taylor wasn’t able to ride her bike to the ranch so her mother drove her. “You are not to ride today, do you hear me?” Jennifer demanded. “Do you understand?”

  “I understand. I hope Prince Albert understands, though.”

  “He’ll just have to,” Jennifer insisted. “I don’t know why you even had to come here today. You should be resting.”

  “There are other things I need to do besides ride. For one thing, Dana has a therapeutic lesson today.”

  Jennifer pulled to a stop outside the main building. Dana, Lois, and Alice were already in the corral with Prince Albert and Pixie.

  A sudden anxiety grabbed hold of Taylor. Why was Prince Albert saddled? Was Dana going to try to ride Prince Albert today?

  From her perch on the top rung of the corral fence, Taylor watched the scene before her through the lens of the lightweight, handheld video camera. Dana was leading Prince Albert through a small obstacle course set up in the corral. The reliable quarter horse walked in between two benches, around three orange cones, and across a platform that had been propped up on planks to create a low bridge. Taylor’s worries had faded once she realized Dana was just leading Prince Albert, not trying to mount him yet.

  Pixie had been hitched to the fence, probably to keep her from following Prince Albert through the course. The small pony watched intently as Prince Albert walked steadily along. Dana coached Prince Albert and sometimes used the lunge whip as a gentle guide.

  Dana beamed proudly, as she always did while working with Prince Albert. She was no longer the sullen, moody girl she often seemed to be when she first drove in with her mother, Alice, at the start of each class.

  When the obstacle course was successfully completed, Dana was radiant. “He does what I say. He’s my friend,” she announced jubilantly.

  Lois, Dana’s teacher, leaned close to the girl. Taylor zoomed in with the camera. “Dana, would you like to try to ride Prince Albert today?” Lois asked.

  Taylor nearly dropped the camera as she pulled in an alarmed breath. Prince Albert was not ready to take on another rider.

  Alice, who had been standing near the gate, watching, hurried to them with an anxious expression. “Do you really think she’s ready for that?” she asked Lois.

  “We’ll just walk around the corral,” Lois replied. “She’ll be fine.”

  Taylor quickly switched off the camera and lowered herself gingerly from the top rung of the fence, landing on her good foot. She hopped toward Lois as fast as she could.

  Taylor hadn’t expected this to happen so soon. She had hoped that by the time Dana was ready to ride Prince Albert, he would be agreeable to being ridden. “Why not let Dana ride Pixie?” Taylor suggested. “Dana is petite, and Pixie is probably a better size for her.”

  “Would you rather ride Pixie, the pony?” Lois checked with Dana. “She’s nice, too.”

  Dana folded her arms and stared down at her riding shoes. She shook her head, tossing her blonde curls. “Pixie is not my friend. Prince Albert is my friend.”

  “Pixie can be your friend, too,” Taylor coaxed Dana. “Want to pet her mane? It’s nice and soft.”

  “No! No! No! No!” Dana shouted.

  Lois smiled softly. “I guess she doesn’t want to.”

  “I guess not, but sometimes Prince Albert is funny about new people riding him,” Taylor said.

  “Funny, in what way?” Lois asked.

  “Like … sometimes he doesn’t let a new person get in the saddle,” Taylor admitted with a sheepish grin. She felt guilty about using the word sometimes when the truth was that Prince Albert had never let anyone other than Taylor in the saddle, at least not since Taylor had owned him.

  “Why didn’t you tell me that before?” Lois asked.

  “Actually, I did,” Taylor said. “Dana insisted on working only with Prince Albert. Remember, you tried to start her on Mandy, but Dana wouldn’t have any horse but Prince Albert. We’ve been working with him, but he’s not ready for her to ride. I’m pretty sure I mentioned the problem at the time.”

  Narrowing her eyes thoughtfully, Lois nodded. “I remember now. You did mention it. Sorry.”

  “It’s okay.”

  Lois looked at Prince Albert, over at Dana, and then turned her attention back to Taylor. “He seems very relaxed with Dana. Why don’t we see if he’ll let her up on his back?” she suggested.

  “We could try,” Taylor allowed, although she didn’t feel hopeful about the outcome.

  “He doesn’t nip or rear, or anything dangerous like that, does he?” Alice asked.

  “No,” Taylor replied. He hadn’t done anything of that sort before, and Taylor really hoped he wouldn’t start now.

  Dana was resting her body against Prince Albert’s side, tenderly rubbing his coat. Prince Albert had swung his head around and was watching her. “They look pretty comfortable with each other,” Lois noted. “Let’s give it a try.”

  Taking hold of his reins, Lois led Prince Albert out of the corral and brought him alongside the picnic bench beneath the big maple. Dana and Alice followed her out of the corral. “Taylor, do you have the camera ready?” Lois asked. “This is going to be an important moment.”

  Still holding the camera, Taylor switched it back on. “Ready,” she confirmed.

  Taylor’s mind raced with thoughts of all the things that could go wrong. “Don’t let him step on you,” she warned Lois. “If he doesn’t want a rider to get in the saddle, he sometimes moves to the side at the last second.”

  “Thanks for the warning,” Lois replied. “Keep filming.”

  “Okay,” Taylor said, training the video camera on Lois and Dana.

  Alice had hurried to her car and returned with a black school helmet that she put on Dana, making sure it was buckled on securely.

  Lois helped Dana up onto the picnic bench.

  “Please, Albert, please,” Taylor whispered. “Let her ride you.”

  Instructing Dana to swing her leg across, Lois guided her into the saddle.

  Prince Albert swung his head around to look at Taylor. His dark eyes questioned her. Is this all right? Do you mind?

  Taylor held the camera to her side and nodded reassuringly. “It’s okay,” she said gently. She hoped he could understand her expression as well as she could read his. They were still
best friends. She needed to communicate that so he wouldn’t worry. “I’m proud of you. Good boy,” she told him softly.

  Prince Albert neighed, and Taylor felt sure it was his response.

  “I’m on a horse!” Dana cried joyfully when she was seated. “I’m riding a horse!”

  Lifting the camera again, Taylor filmed Dana’s reaction and then trained the video camera on Prince Albert. She stayed focused on her horse while Lois led him back into the corral with Dana in the saddle. “No problem,” Lois said to Taylor. “He’s doing really well.”

  “Yeah, he’s great,” Taylor agreed, still filming. It was only when the view through the lens looked blurry that she realized there were tears in her eyes — tears of happiness and pride.

  Hello, Wildwood Stables … You’re interested in the rodeo? Great!”

  By the end of the afternoon, Taylor’s ankle had begun to ache, so Mrs. LeFleur assigned her to answer phones in the main office. It was turning out to be a much livelier assignment than Taylor had expected.

  “Yes, you can trailer her horse here,” Taylor told a woman who had called inquiring about how her daughter could participate. “Where is the horse currently boarded? By himself on your property? Well, that’s not really good for the horse. Horses are herd animals and like to be with other horses. You might want to consider boarding him here where he’d have some company. You can check out the stables when you come for the rodeo. Okay, see you then. Bye.”

  “Hey, what a saleswoman!” Eric cheered as he came into the office.

  “Thanks, I’m trying! Look at this!” Taylor handed him a yellow legal pad on which she’d listed the names and numbers of all the people who had called about the games event. “And Maria’s Pizzeria is giving us pies at half price so we can sell them to earn money,” Taylor added.

  “Why are they being so generous?” Eric asked.

  “Maria said she liked Mrs. LeFleur’s uncle, and she’s glad to see the place reopen,” Taylor said. “Plus, Maria’s is the closest pizzeria. If the ranch gets busy, our riders will go there afterward.”

  “Mmm, a smart businesswoman, too,” Eric proclaimed as he dropped into the couch to study the legal pad.