Racing Against Time

by Suzanne Weyn

  “Don’t worry. I’ll have Prince Albert all ready,” Taylor assured her.

  On Thursday, Taylor helped Mercedes and Daphne festoon the ranch with lines of red, blue, yellow, and white pennants. They climbed a ladder to hang the wires on which the multicolored triangles were attached from the main building to the big maple and back again to the building.

  Travis and Eric climbed the maple and looped the pennants around the branches. Although Travis wasn’t friendly to Eric, Taylor was glad to observe that he didn’t insult him, either. He was controlling himself for the sake of Wildwood, which Taylor found very commendable.

  By Friday, horses were starting to arrive in trailers of all sorts, ranging from small, one-horse trailers hitched to cars to monster trailers that were like buses. Mercedes, Daphne, Taylor, and even Travis and Mrs. LeFleur helped the owners get settled in their temporary stalls, which they rented for the night.

  “We’re going to move Pixie and Prince Albert into outdoor stalls,” Mrs. LeFleur told Taylor. “We have to make way for paying customers.”

  “Won’t they be cold?” Taylor asked, trying to disguise her dismay with a sensible question.

  “There are horse blankets in the tack room, and it’s only going down to the high forties tonight,” Mrs. LeFleur said, and then hurried off to meet an incoming trailer.

  Taylor stood there with her mouth open. Having to change Pixie and Albert’s stalls had taken her by surprise.

  “Don’t look so horrified,” Mercedes said. “They’ll be okay out there. We had partially covered stalls like these back at our stable in Connecticut. None of our horses ever froze.”

  “How many horses did you have?” Taylor asked. It always sounded like Mercedes’s family had their own herd.

  “Lots,” Mercedes confirmed.

  “And you really think they’ll be okay?”

  “The hay gives off some heat, and so does the body temperature of the other horses. They’re sheltered from the wind, and they have a roof. They’ll be fine.”

  Despite Mercedes’ words, Taylor still felt bad as she led Prince Albert and Pixie out of their inside stalls to the ones outside. “It’s only for a night,” she assured them. “Don’t worry.” She reminded herself that they had spent a week in Claire’s front yard under a tarp and been fine, but that had been back in September when the weather was warmer.

  There were horses in the paddock across from the outside stalls. Taylor knew things could be worse for Pixie and Prince Albert. Some horses didn’t even have shelter. Others only had a run-in shed, a roof with only one side.

  Turning, Taylor could see the paddock by the pasture, where Eric, Mercedes, and Daphne had set up an obstacle course, which would be the first event of Saturday morning.

  Seeing the ranch so busy and filled with horses of every description helped Taylor envision Wildwood Stables the way it must have been back in the day when Mrs. LeFleur was a blue-ribbon jumper and Taylor’s father came down here to ride. No wonder her father and Mr. Romano remembered it with such excitement. Experiencing the ranch like this gave Taylor a real glimpse into its vibrant past.

  By the end of the day, all the horses were fed and watered. Taylor stood between the outdoor stalls and the paddock of grazing horses. She yawned and brushed her hair from her eyes as Daphne approached carrying a pail of water in her work-gloved hand. “We’d better go home, or we won’t be good for anything tomorrow. I think we’re all done,” Daphne said.

  A shrill neigh followed by pounding hoofbeats made Taylor and Daphne both turn toward the paddock. A big chestnut quarter horse with a star on its forehead was chasing a palomino with a white mane and white socks. The quarter horse gave chase until the palomino ran a good distance away. “What was that about?” Taylor wondered.

  “They’re establishing their pecking order,” Daphne explained. “They’re like dogs or a lot of other animals that live in groups. They’re vying to see who’s at the top of the heap. That palomino was probably standing closer to the feeding trough than the big bay thought he should be.”

  “They’re only staying overnight.”

  “They don’t know that,” Daphne reminded her. “So, what do you think? Should we go home? You don’t want to ride back in the dark.”

  “Mrs. LeFleur will give me a lift if it gets too late. She’s still doing stuff in the office. I want to get Prince Albert spruced up for tomorrow. Since he’ll be outside, I don’t want to wash him, but at least I can brush him down.”

  “Want me to show you how to braid his mane?” Daphne offered.

  “Would you, really?” Taylor asked. She had always dreamed of having a horse with a braided mane. “Awesome!”

  On Saturday, Taylor rode her bike to Wildwood Stables at six-thirty in the morning. As she turned the corner from Wildwood Lane, the ranch seemed to glow with the pinks and golds of the first morning light. The festive pennants fluttered in the breeze. Occasionally, a horse sputtered while sleeping.

  There would be so many people there that Taylor didn’t feel it was safe to prop her bike against the maple as usual. Instead she got off and walked it to the main building. The activity of riding her bike had kept Taylor warm. Now that she was off it, she realized that it was a chilly October morning. In a week it would be Halloween, which meant daylight saving time would be ending any day now. The short days and long cold nights were about to begin.

  Sliding open the front door, Taylor parked her bike in the tack room. Coming out to the center aisle, she felt how the body heat of all the horses warmed the building. Even though she was supposed to want more horse boarders, she hoped all of them didn’t stay. Taylor wanted Prince Albert and Pixie to be able to return to their cozy stalls.

  Taylor went around to the side stalls. Pixie was lying down in a nest of hay, sleeping. Prince Albert stood, already awake, watching the horses in the paddock across from him that were starting to move around. “How beautiful you look,” Taylor praised him, impressed anew at the elegant French braid running down his back. His feed bucket was still half full, so she went to the old-fashioned hand pump in the back to get him some fresh water.

  While she was pumping, Taylor heard cars arriving. The night before, just as Daphne and Taylor had finished Prince Albert’s braid, Lois had arrived pulling a one-horse trailer hitched to a Jeep. They’d loaded all the tack and supplies they wanted to take. Now all there was left to do was to load Prince Albert and go.

  Taylor let Prince Albert drink awhile and then let him out of his stall. She was able to lead him simply by walking beside him with one hand on his side. As they passed Pixie’s stall, she was awake and on her feet. “We’ll be back later, Pixie,” Taylor told her. “You’re going to be giving pony rides today.”

  Pixie swung her head and neighed. Taylor knew she was demanding to come along with Prince Albert.

  Prince Albert stopped, waiting for her.

  “Come on, boy,” Taylor said, nudging him forward. “She can’t come this time.” Prince Albert moved ahead several steps and then stopped as Pixie whinnied shrilly.

  “Hi,” Lois said, coming around the side of the building. She stopped when she noticed the distress on Taylor’s face. “What’s wrong?”

  “Pixie’s upset. I don’t know if she’s ever been apart from Prince Albert.” Pixie turned in her stall and began kicking the door and neighing. Alarmed by the sounds, the horses in the paddock began whinnying uneasily. “I don’t know what to do,” Taylor admitted.

  “I can’t take her. It’s just a one-horse trailer,” Lois said.

  Taylor heard a car door slam, and in the next moment Mrs. LeFleur came around the side of the building. “She won’t let Prince Albert leave, will she?” she said. “I was worried this would be a problem.”

  “What should we do?” Taylor asked.

  “Just leave, I’ll handle it,” Mrs. LeFleur said. “She’ll settle down once Prince Albert’s gone.”

  “But she’ll be sad,” Taylor objected.

  “And the
n she’ll be glad again when he returns. Pixie has to learn to be without Prince Albert sometimes. This is good for her.” She went to Pixie’s stall, clapping her hands sharply. “Stop that, Pixie! Stop it right now!”

  For the first time, Taylor saw a flash of the horsewoman Mrs. LeFleur had once been.

  “Take Prince Albert away. I can’t calm her down until he’s gone!”

  * * *

  Taylor worried about Pixie all the way to the field where the horse show was being held. When they drove into the parking lot it was already loaded with horse trailers. Some horses were still inside, while others were being walked around the grounds by their owners.

  They found Alice and Dana parked on a grassy mound and pulled in beside Alice’s car. Dana jiggled nervously in her new riding outfit — a dark blue riding jacket, tan breeches, a light blue button-down shirt, and short, shiny paddock boots. “You look terrific!” Taylor said to Dana as she walked toward her. “Just like a real horsewoman.”

  Taylor noticed that Dana’s hands were fluttering like they had the first day she came to Wildwood. Instead of answering, the girl had a faraway look in her eyes. It made Taylor worry. “Prince Albert is here,” she said to the girl. “Want to come see him?”

  Dana didn’t respond.

  “She’s very nervous,” Alice said, sounding uneasy.

  “I’ll go get Prince Albert,” Taylor offered, moving back toward the trailer.

  * * *

  Inside the paddock that had been set up on the field, Taylor stood beside Prince Albert with Dana in the saddle. They were in a row with four other riders on horseback with their horse handlers. All the riders were between the ages of six and eight. There was a boy who appeared to have Down syndrome. The girl beside Dana had a severely curved spine. The conditions the other riders had weren’t apparent to Taylor. Mostly she was focused on Dana, relieved to see that her delicate hands were stroking Prince Albert’s neck. She was no longer far away in her own world.

  In front of them was a row of seated judges on a wooden platform. All around the paddock smiling parents, relatives, and friends watched.

  “Walk forward,” the center judge announced through a microphone.

  Taylor nodded to Dana. The girl tapped Prince Albert with her heels, loosening her reins. “Chin up, shoulders back,” Taylor whispered as Prince Albert stepped forward. Taylor wasn’t leading him, but she was ready to grab the reins should anything go wrong.

  The event involved halting, turning, walking some more, and halting again. Then the riders lined up and walked around in a line, following the inside perimeter of the paddock fence. “Walk at a steady pace,” Taylor advised Dana. “Don’t get ahead of the horse in front of you.”

  At the end of the event, all the riders won ribbons for participating. First, second, and third place ribbons were awarded for the horses. As they called the names of the horses, Taylor’s eyes wandered around, gazing at the happy faces of the riders and their families. It was easy to see why Lois wanted to specialize in horse therapy. It had to feel wonderful to make so many people this happy.

  “And first prize for best therapeutic horse goes to Prince Albert of Wildwood Stables!”

  Taylor’s head snapped forward. Had she heard the judge correctly? Taylor raised her eyebrows in a questioning expression and pointed to Prince Albert.

  The judge laughed. “Yes, I said Prince Albert of Wildwood Stables,” he repeated.

  Glancing up at Dana, Taylor saw that her mouth was open and her eyes were like saucers.

  “Come forward to collect Prince Albert’s ribbon, please,” the judge requested.

  Taylor took the reins and led Prince Albert and Dana to the judge’s platform. “Congratulations,” the judge said, rising to hand Taylor the ribbon.

  “Thank you so much,” Taylor replied.

  Leading Prince Albert out of the ring, Taylor knew she was beaming with pride and happiness. “You did it, Prince Albert!” she praised her horse, patting him robustly on his flank. “Good, good boy!”

  Prince Albert whinnied happily, shaking his head.

  It was two in the afternoon when Lois pulled the horse trailer into Wildwood Lane. “Wait until Mrs. LeFleur hears the news,” she said. “She’s going to be so thrilled. This is huge.”

  “We’re going to be incredibly busy if the entire County Therapeutic Riding Association wants to hold its lessons here at Wildwood,” Taylor said.

  “That’s what the woman told me. She’s going to call Mrs. LeFleur on Monday. It’s going to mean a lot more clients for me, too,” Lois said.

  Not only had they won a blue ribbon, but Taylor and Prince Albert had won a huge account for Wildwood. She had convinced the woman in charge of the program that Wildwood offered the best prices and facilities. Lois had agreed. Taylor knew they’d accomplished so much more than if they’d stayed for the games event.

  Lois wasn’t even to the bend in the road when they saw cars parked along Wildwood Lane. “The event is still going on, and it’s packed,” Lois observed.

  As soon as they turned into the ranch, Taylor could hear the music wailing from the loudspeaker. She was amazed by Wildwood’s transformation. There were people everywhere. A long line trailed out from where Norman was running his horseshoe toss. Travis’s lemonade stand was also doing a brisk business. Beside him, Mercedes and Daphne could barely serve the donated pizza fast enough to their eager customers.

  In the corral, Mrs. LeFleur was leading Pixie in a circle with an adorable four-year-old on her back. Whatever Mrs. LeFleur had done to calm the pony down had worked beautifully.

  Eric met the Jeep as Lois parked it. “How did the games go?” Taylor asked him as she climbed out.

  “Mostly other people we don’t know won the ribbons, except Plum got a third in bandanna snatch,” he reported.

  That made sense to Taylor, knowing how much Shafir loved to play that game.

  “Daphne won first in stalls, and Mercedes got a second in the obstacle course,” Eric added. “Too bad you couldn’t have competed. I bet you would have won something.”

  “Thanks, but we had a lot of fun. And we won a ribbon.” She held it up to show him.

  Eric raised his hand and Taylor slapped it.

  “Look at this place,” Taylor said as she headed to the back of the trailer to unload Prince Albert. “You really have to admit that Wildwood Stables is a great place.”

  “I see what you mean,” Eric agreed. “It is pretty amazing.”

  Daphne and Mercedes noticed Taylor and waved. So did Travis.

  Taylor waved her ribbon at them, grinning.

  Instantly, her friends left their stations and ran toward her, cheering. As she opened the door to the trailer, they applauded Prince Albert and he neighed, sensing their praise.

  Taylor’s cheeks hurt from smiling. Wildwood Stables really was the best place in the world.

  From Wildwood Stables #4: Learning to Fly

  Taylor Henry held Prince Albert’s lead line casually in one hand as she walked the quarter horse down Wildwood Lane. The tree-lined country path leading in and out of Wildwood Stables was now vibrant with the rustling red, yellow, and orange hues of early autumn. Taylor could have easily ridden the black gelding on the dirt lane, but right then she preferred to be eye level with her horse.

  They needed to have a serious talk.

  “So, I know you love me. I love you just as much — more even! But it can’t just be you and me. I wish it could,” she told him.

  Prince Albert neighed. Lately Taylor had noticed that whenever she spoke directly to Prince Albert he always made some noise in response. She loved that about him. It made her feel they were really communicating.

  Taylor gazed into his soulful dark eyes and felt she heard him as clearly as if he’d actually replied aloud in words. He wanted to know why not. Why couldn’t it just be Taylor and Prince Albert, without any other horses or riders?

  “Because you have to be available for lessons and trail rides, tha
t’s why. And I need to work with the other horses.” Taylor sighed in frustration. “It’s part of our deal with Wildwood. Don’t pretend you don’t know all this. We’ve been through it a zillion times already!”

  At this point Taylor was sure Prince Albert was simply being stubborn. It was mid-October, and he’d been living at the stable since the end of August. By now he had to understand that he couldn’t be a one-girl horse.

  Taylor had helped rescue him and his best pal, a cream Shetland pony named Pixie, when they’d been abandoned by their owners. Against all odds, she’d even found them a good home here at Wildwood Stables. But the ranch could only afford to keep Prince Albert if he was a working trail and school horse. And, so far, he had not been at all cooperative.

  “Sure, I know you’ve let Dana ride you,” Taylor acknowledged. Dana was a seven-year-old girl with autism who had horse therapy sessions at the stable once a week. She would only work with Prince Albert, and to everyone’s surprise, he allowed her on his back. They had even won a ribbon at a recent Rotary Club horse competition for kids with disabilities.

  “And it’s really great that you let her on; it’s meant so much to her,” Taylor continued. “But you have to do more. Being a two-girl horse is still not enough. Okay?”

  A black SUV swung in very quickly from Quail Ridge Road at the end of the lane. It zoomed toward Taylor and Prince Albert as though the driver was completely unaware that a slim thirteen-year-old girl with long brown hair and a large black horse were standing in the path.

  Startled by the car’s speed, Taylor dropped the lead line and jumped back. Prince Albert reared in fright, neighing shrilly as his front two legs rose from the ground, kicking the air.

  The glamorous blonde woman at the wheel of the SUV careened into a rapid curve to avoid the frightened horse in her path, but made no effort to slow down. Beside the woman, a slim girl Taylor’s age, also a blonde, watched the scene with unmistakable annoyance etched on her face.