Driving Team

by Bonnie Bryant

  “Uh-oh,” laughed Red. “You’ve got them going north and south at the same time! Stop them and let’s try it again.”

  Stevie pulled Belle to a stop and managed to turn Danny around. They tried again. This time Belle wanted to charge ahead of Danny, and they seemed to bound around the ring in spurts, rather than with a smooth gait. The next time, both horses turned completely around when Stevie tried to negotiate the turn. After an hour of stop-and-go driving practice, Stevie, Danny, and Belle all stood before Red, sweating and exhausted.

  “Wow,” breathed Stevie with a wide grin. “This is hard work, but it’s lots of fun!”

  “You did okay,” said Red. “Next time we’ll see how they’ll do hitched to the wagon.”

  “When can we try that?” Stevie asked excitedly. “We’ve only got about ten days before the demonstration for Cross County.”

  “How about Friday afternoon?” suggested Red. “Not much is going on here then.”

  “Great,” said Stevie. “I’ll be here right after school. And thanks, Red. You’ve been wonderful!”

  “My pleasure,” said Red with a grin. “Only next time, don’t forget those gloves!”

  Stevie untacked both horses and cooled them down, then put them back in their stalls with an extra forkful of hay. She was so excited about her driving success that she practically ran all the way home. She couldn’t wait to tell Carole and Lisa how much fun driving was, but first she wanted to call Veronica and find out how poor Robespierre was doing. Maybe if the news was not good, hearing about how wonderfully Danny had done would make her feel better. As soon as she reached her house, she hurried upstairs to her room and dialed Veronica’s number.

  The phone rang once, then twice, then three times, and then an answering machine switched on. “This is the diAngelo residence,” a snooty voice said. “Leave your message at the tone, and your call will be returned.”

  Stevie frowned and hung up. She didn’t feel comfortable leaving a personal message about poor Robespierre with the cold voice on the diAngelos’ answering machine.

  “Maybe I’ll e-mail her,” Stevie said aloud. “That way she can read my message and nobody else can hear it.”

  She looked up Veronica’s e-mail address and hurried down to her father’s study, where the Lakes kept their home computer. Fortunately none of her brothers was online or playing one of their space invader games, so Stevie had the machine to herself. She logged on, then began to type her message.

  Dear Veronica,

  I just wanted to let you know how much I missed you in riding class today and how much I’ve been thinking about Robespierre. I hope he’s getting better, but even if he’s not, it helps to remember that things always work out for the best. I had a good workout today with Danny and Belle (Red O’Malley helped me). I made a bunch of mistakes, but the horses did great and learned a lot. I don’t think you’ve missed too much. Red and I will be working again on Friday afternoon. It would be wonderful if you could join us, but if you can’t, that’s okay, too. Just remember that we’re all thinking about you, and if you need me to do anything else for you, all you have to do is call.

  Your friend,

  Stevie

  Stevie reread her message, then clicked on Send Now. She turned off the computer and smiled. Veronica would probably feel a whole lot better once she read that message. At least she would know that somebody who understood how people could feel about animals was thinking about her and cared about what happened to poor Robespierre.

  “BYE, MOM!” STEVIE called as she walked out the door. “Thanks for lunch. I’ll see you later!”

  She heard her mother’s muffled okay from the laundry room, then took a bite of her slice of still-warm gingerbread. There was nothing she liked better than finishing her lunch while she walked to Pine Hollow. She figured the eating part probably saved her five minutes of just sitting at the table, and the walking part gave her time to ponder what was going on in her life.

  She sighed as she thought about what was going on in her life right then. Earlier that day she’d attended the Horse Wise meeting at Pine Hollow and taken her regular riding lesson. Veronica hadn’t attended either of them, nor had she practiced driving with Stevie on Friday afternoon. Stevie had seen Veronica after gym class at school on Friday, but she’d been with a group of her own friends and they hadn’t had any time to talk. Though she’d answered Stevie’s e-mail, her message had only read, “Thanks. Okay. See you.”

  Stevie took another bite of gingerbread and frowned. The more she thought about that e-mail, the more uncomfortable she felt—as if she had poured out her heart to Veronica and Veronica had said nothing in return. Maybe she’d been wrong to express so much sympathy about Robespierre. Maybe that had upset Veronica even more, reminding her of something awful that she didn’t want to be reminded of. Maybe Stevie should have said nothing about the dog and only told her about how good Danny was at learning to drive.

  Stevie kicked a pebble across the street. Maybe she shouldn’t have e-mailed Veronica at all. She shook her head. Sometimes when she tried her hardest to do the right thing, she wound up doing exactly the opposite.

  Suddenly a familiar car came into view—a white Mercedes with dark-tinted windows. It was the diAngelos’ car! Stevie gulped down her mouthful of gingerbread and smiled, but the car did not stop or slow down. It cruised past her, away from Pine Hollow.

  “In the direction of Doc Tock’s,” Stevie said aloud, turning and watching the car glide smoothly down the street and around a curve. Sudden tears stung her eyes as she imagined what must have happened. Veronica must have been at Pine Hollow waiting for her to come and work with the horses. Doc Tock had called to tell her that her dog was almost gone, and her parents had come to get her—to say a final good-bye to her beloved Robespierre.

  “That’s so sad,” Stevie said, using her gingerbread napkin to wipe her eyes. She turned back toward the stable.

  “Well, there’s nothing I can do about Robespierre,” she told herself. “That’s all up to Doc Tock. But I can help Veronica by taking the driving-team pressure off her shoulders. That way she can concentrate on Robespierre’s last days, and we can still have the best driving team Pine Hollow has ever had!”

  Stevie finished her gingerbread and hurried into the stable. She walked directly to the locker room without even saying hello to Belle. There was something important that she had to do right away. In the back of her cubby, hidden behind a couple of old sweatshirts and wrapped inside a plastic shopping bag, was the elegantly wrapped package that contained the china dog she and Carole and Lisa had bought for Veronica. Stevie had planned to give it to her later, but now was the perfect time, when Veronica needed to know that someone was thinking about her in her time of sadness. Surely Veronica would come to the stable soon, to be with Danny, the one remaining animal she loved.

  Stevie sealed up the card she’d spent so much time choosing and wrote, “From your friends Stevie, Carole, and Lisa” on the envelope. Then she took the card and the package and put it in the top of Veronica’s locker. What a nice surprise that will be, Stevie thought as the little present sat invitingly on the top shelf.

  She closed the locker and hurried back out to Belle. She felt good about all the things she’d done to help her friend Veronica. Now the only other thing she could do was to get out there with Red and turn Danny and Belle into a real team of driving horses.

  “I WONDER IF You-Know-Who is here today.” Carole hurried up the library steps beside Lisa.

  “Cynthia?” Lisa shrugged. “If she is, I don’t think we can help her out too much today.”

  “I know,” said Carole. “Our report’s due in a week, and we really haven’t gotten much done.”

  “We’ll just have to work triple hard from here on out.” Lisa held the big library door open.

  Inside, the place was bustling with patrons. The girls looked for Mrs. Davidson and soon found her at her usual station, behind the checkout desk.

  “L
et’s go get our forty-two books,” whispered Lisa. “Then we’ll chain ourselves to a table until we finish.”

  “Right,” Carole said with a grin.

  They hurried over to Mrs. Davidson.

  “Well, here come my helpers.” She greeted them with a warm smile. “I’ve missed you girls.”

  “We’ve been busy at school this week,” explained Lisa. “Are our books still on reserve?”

  “They are until five o’clock tomorrow afternoon,” Mrs. Davidson replied. “You want some help getting them to a table?”

  “That would be great.” Carole and Lisa both nodded.

  Mrs. Davidson helped them lug all the books to a library table. Then she had to go and help someone find an old copy of The Washington Post.

  “Now,” said Lisa in a stern voice as she pulled note-paper out of her backpack. “We’ve got to sit here and go through these books. We can’t get up for anything! Not Cynthia or Mrs. Davidson or that little old lady who wanted us to look at her mushroom books! Nothing can make us leave these seats!”

  “How about Veronica diAngelo?” Carole asked, blinking.

  “What?” Lisa turned around in her chair. There, coming through the door, was Stevie’s newfound friend, Veronica. As soon as she got inside, she stopped and sniffed, as if the library didn’t smell good; then she waltzed over to the reserve desk. She looked at Lisa and Carole as she passed, but she acted as if she didn’t recognize them.

  “I don’t believe it,” whispered Carole. “Veronica diAngelo in the public library on a Saturday afternoon. Now I’ve seen everything!”

  “Shhh!” said Lisa. “Be quiet and maybe we can hear what she’s asking for.”

  The girls pretended to hunch over their books, all the while listening to what Veronica was saying to Mrs. Davidson.

  “I assume you have some books on dogs,” Veronica said in her snootiest voice.

  “Yes, dear, we do,” Mrs. Davidson replied sweetly.

  “And where might I find them?”

  “Have you ever been to a library before?” Mrs. Davidson asked.

  “Of course I have,” Veronica snapped.

  “Well, you must know then that most libraries use the Dewey decimal system. Dogs are classified at 636.7. When you see those numbers on the spine of the book, you’ve found a volume on dogs.” Mrs. Davidson smiled. “You might start over there, just past where those two girls are working at the table.”

  “Thank you,” Veronica said archly. She turned and walked past Lisa and Carole, again barely giving them a glance.

  After she passed, Lisa and Carole looked at each other.

  “This must really be serious,” Lisa whispered. “Veronica’s actually asking the librarian where the dog books are.”

  “I know,” Carole replied. “She must be doing research to help Doc Tock figure out what’s wrong with Robespierre!”

  “Poor Veronica,” said Lisa. “She must feel awful. I wonder if there’s any way we can help?”

  Carole shook her head. “I think the best thing is to leave her alone. She didn’t really look like she was in the mood for company.”

  “You’re right,” agreed Lisa. “Anyway, we’ve got enough stuff of our own to do.”

  The girls returned to the thick tomes that were open on their table. Lisa started reading about how horses may have pulled some of the huge rocks that the Egyptians used to build the pyramids, while Carole took notes on how teams of horses helped build the Erie Canal. Suddenly they heard a strange yet familiar noise. They both stopped writing and looked up.

  “Did you hear that?” asked Carole.

  Lisa nodded.

  “Is it who I think it is?” Carole frowned.

  “I don’t know,” said Lisa. “Let’s listen harder.”

  They put their pencils down and concentrated. Ever so faintly, they heard two voices, arguing.

  “Shhhhh!” one voice said. “No!”

  “Please?” another voice whined. “Pretty please?”

  “What are you doing here, anyway?” replied the first voice.

  “It won’t take long,” insisted the second voice.

  “No, I will not!” the first voice snapped. “You need to go someplace else. You’re in my way!”

  Lisa and Carole looked at each other and got up from the table at the same time. Sometimes the library could be full of pesky people who just wouldn’t leave other people alone. Veronica shouldn’t have to deal with one of them today, particularly when she was doing research to try to save her dog!

  “We’ll just go and rescue her quickly,” said Carole. “Then we’ll leave her alone to deal with her problems in her own way.”

  “Right,” Lisa said. “That’s exactly what we’ll do. It shouldn’t take more than a minute.”

  The girls walked down the aisle together, then turned the corner. Their mouths fell open. It wasn’t just another library pest who was bothering Veronica—it was Cynthia! She had parked herself in front of the dog books and was trying to get someone to read to her. She still had Misty clutched against her chest. All four girls turned and looked at each other, unbelieving.

  “Cynthia?” said Carole.

  “Lisa?” said Cynthia.

  “Veronica?” said Lisa.

  “Carole?” said Veronica.

  “Cynthia!” yelled a voice so stern they all jumped. They turned. Mrs. Davidson was standing there, her pretty eyes flashing with anger. “Carole, Lisa, Veronica, will you excuse us, please?”

  They had no choice but to leave immediately.

  “OKAY, STEVIE. TRY it once more. Walk them down to the end of the ring, then make a wide turn and go into a trot.” Red looked up at Stevie, who was perched in the Pine Hollow wagon, reins in hand.

  “You think I can do it?” Stevie’s face was flushed with excitement. All Sunday afternoon they’d been working with the horses hitched to the wagon. It felt funny to drive two horses from a seat high above them, but Danny and Belle had responded to her aids better than she had ever dreamed.

  “Give it a go and see what happens,” urged Red.

  Stevie settled herself on the seat and flicked the reins over the horses’ backs. At the exact same moment, they began to pull together, Danny on the left, Belle on the right. Stevie let the reins rest lightly in both hands as the horses walked down the ring, then pulled Danny ever so gently to the left. He made the inside turn, with Belle following on the outside. So far, so good. Then she had to ask for a trot. She took a deep breath, then tightened her fingers on the reins and flicked the long whip over their heads. After a moment’s pause, both horses reached forward in an extended trot, the wagon rumbling loudly behind them.

  “Look!” Stevie cried to Red. “We’re trotting!”

  “You sure are,” he said proudly. He watched as they trotted once around the ring. Stevie turned them and pulled them to a halt in the middle.

  “Wow!” Stevie said. “Wasn’t that great? Aren’t they terrific horses?”

  “You bet they are,” agreed Red, giving Danny a well-deserved pat on the withers. “But why are you holding your hands so funny?”

  Stevie looked down. She was holding her fingers wide apart. “I keep forgetting my gloves,” she admitted sheepishly. “My hands are a little sore.”

  Red grabbed her left hand and looked at it. Each finger had a bright red blister where the reins had rubbed it raw. “Does your right hand look as bad as this?” he asked with alarm, his eyes full of concern.

  “Well, kind of,” Stevie said, wishing she hadn’t left her gloves at home.

  “Then get down off that wagon, Stevie. You’re done for the day.”

  “But I can’t be done for the day, Red,” she pleaded with him. “Our demonstration is only six days away. I’ve got to do better than my very best if I’m going to do both mine and Veronica’s part and still impress Phil.”

  Red snorted. “Is that what this is all about? Impressing Phil?”

  “Well, kind of. But not really. I mean, I always want
to impress Phil, but this time Veronica is the one who really needs my help.”

  “And tell me when Veronica doesn’t need someone’s help.” Red crossed his arms over his chest.

  Stevie frowned. “I know you have to do a lot of her work for her, but this time she’s really in bad shape. Her little white poodle, Robespierre, is dying! Veronica can hardly talk about it, but she’s constantly at Doc Tock’s office with him, and she’s even gone to the library to do research on dog diseases. She’s desperate to find a cure.”

  Red’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “And you’re coming to her rescue over this driving demonstration? I didn’t think you guys were friends at all. In fact, I didn’t think you could stand each other.”

  “Well, for a long time we couldn’t, but we had a long talk in the back paddock, and she’s really nice once you get to know her. She loves animals just as much as we all do, and she’s heartbroken about her dog.” Stevie’s eyes brightened. “Carole and Lisa and I even pooled our money and bought her a little china dog from the BonTon gift shop, just to make her feel better about Robespierre. It’s in her cubby right now. I can’t wait for her to get back to the stable to see it!”

  Again Red looked surprised. “Stevie, I don’t know about any china dog, but Veronica has already been here today. She came by earlier to pick up her riding clothes. She was muttering something about having to get them dry-cleaned ‘before the dumb demonstration Saturday.’ ”

  “Really?” Stevie blinked. Surely Veronica had seen the gift on the top shelf of her cubby—it would have been impossible to overlook. She must have taken it home. Still, wouldn’t she have called or e-mailed or something? Stevie shook her head. Veronica wouldn’t be intentionally rude. Her concern over Robespierre must have crowded out every other thought in her head.

  “Look,” Red was saying. “Don’t think about Veronica and any little china dog now. You need to take care of those hands immediately. Go wash them, then get the first-aid kit and rub some ointment into them, then put some gauze over the blisters. Since you shouldn’t ever leave horses unattended when they’re harnessed to a wagon, I’ll wait here and help you unhitch everybody when you get fixed up.”