And they did. In fact, everybody in the entire arena rose to their feet and gave him a standing ovation. It was wonderful. And not only was that good for Eli, but it was also good for The Bar None. Lisa saw Kate give her father a squeeze. It was really something to be happy about.
The rest of the calf roping was almost a letdown after Eli’s performance. The riders knew it and the crowd knew it. There were some good times, there were some flashy performances, but it was clear that there was only one Eli. And one of the nicest things was that every time the announcer said Eli’s name, he also mentioned The Bar None.
It almost surprised Lisa when lunch break was announced. She’d been feeling so good about Eli’s performance that she’d forgotten about Stevie’s secret scheme. She’d also forgotten that their own performance was coming up. It was one thing to be excited about Eli. It was another thing altogether to think about their barrel race. What if they blew it? She shook her head. Think positive, she told herself. It wasn’t easy.
“Come on,” Stevie said. “We’ve got to practice.”
If somebody else had said that, Lisa might have wondered what it was she wanted to practice, but with Stevie, it was easy. It was time to practice treachery!
“OKAY, GIRLS,” STEVIE said when they’d reached the corral with the practice barrel-race course. “You all wait over here. Saddle up the horses if you want. Do anything to make it look good. Eli’s going to be here in a few minutes. He’s coming to give us some last-minute pointers. Make sure you’ve got some questions to ask him, okay?”
“No problem,” Carole said. “But what will you be doing?”
“I’ll be setting the trap,” Stevie said mysteriously. She loved her plan, and she was sure it would work, but she didn’t want to reveal the whole thing until it was a success. Since there were so many problems to solve at once, there were a lot of pieces to move around. Sometimes, she knew, her friends did a better job if they didn’t know just what she was up to.
Stevie left the group waiting at the barrel-racing corral and began Phase One of her plan. She went in search of her first quarry: Eli.
She found him being congratulated by his fellow calf ropers near the registration tent. Jeannie was there, too—as she’d expected.
“Oh, I’m so glad I found you!” Stevie told both of them. They didn’t know how much she meant it!
“What’s up, Stevie?” Eli asked.
“It’s the team,” she said, letting a bit of panic creep into her voice. “They’re getting the worst stage fright. They’re all over by the practice course and they’re scared and worried. Can you go over and talk to them? Both of you?”
“Oh, sure,” Eli said.
“Thanks. I’ll be there in a minute. I’ve got to find the ladies’ room first.”
“I’ll show you where it is,” Jeannie offered. Stevie didn’t want that at all.
“Oh, no,” she said hurriedly. “The team needs both of you. Right away!” She hoped she sounded urgent. The last thing she wanted was to have Jeannie along with her. “I can find the ladies’ room by myself. Go with Eli, okay?”
Fortunately, going places with Eli was an activity Jeannie didn’t need to be forced into. Obediently, she followed him to the barrel-racing corral.
As soon as they were out of sight, Stevie began Phase Two of her plan. She had to find Derek.
She spied him on the other side of the arena, still hanging around the souvenir stands. Probably waiting to see if there were any messages from Marshall, Stevie thought. She had suspected as much and was glad for it since it meant he’d been lying low—and hadn’t seen Eli for a long time.
Stevie nodded hello when he spotted her. “Too bad about Eli,” she said as she approached him.
“What do you mean, ‘too bad’?” Derek asked suspiciously. “He took first place, didn’t he?”
“Sure, but then who knew that horse would go wild on him?”
“What horse?” Derek asked.
“Oh, you didn’t hear?” Stevie hoped she sounded very surprised. Derek shook his head, bewildered. “But you’re going to be so disappointed. He’s out for the day. He was helping one of the wranglers round up the broncs, slipped on some mud, and a bronc took after him. He got badly bruised and cut. They took him off in the ambulance. They think he’s got a concussion. We’re going to meet him in the hospital right after the barrel racing.”
“Oh,” Derek said. He sounded surprised, but not too disappointed. He adjusted his voice and tried again. “Oh, that’s terrible,” he said, sounding much more sincere this time.
“I bet you want to get right over to the hospital now and be with him, don’t you?”
Derek just stared at her for a second. Then he came to his senses, as Stevie had known he would. Of course he couldn’t let Stevie know he had no intention of going to the hospital. With Eli out of commission, Derek’s job was done. The only thing for him to do was to leave the rodeo, but the last place he would go was the hospital, which was about fifty miles away. Sure as anything, he’d be back at The Dapper Dude within a few minutes.
“We’ll see you at the hospital later, then?” Stevie asked.
“Sure thing,” Derek promised.
Stevie knew a lie when she heard one. It made her feel good that her plan was working so well. She made Derek promise to tell Eli how much they all cared and that they were rooting for him, and they were dedicating their barrel race to him. She was afraid she might have gone too far with that one, but Derek seemed to swallow it and promised to tell Eli.
Derek couldn’t wait to get to his pickup truck. Soon Stevie found herself waving good-bye to him through a cloud of dust. She was glad for the dust. There was no way Derek could see her triumphant grin through it!
“Phase Three,” she said out loud. She returned to the barrel-racing area and found the stage set. Jeannie was answering questions. Eli assured the team that she knew what she was talking about.
“The thing you want to do is to lean into the turn,” Jeannie was saying. “But not too much or you’ll lose your balance.”
“Listen to her, girls,” Eli said. “She knows what she’s talking about.”
“Before you come out of a turn, you should already be signaling the horse for the straightaway gallop. Don’t let him ease up just because he’s done something right.”
“But—” Christine began.
“No buts,” Eli said firmly. “There’s no better precision rider in the county than Jeannie. Do what she says.”
Stevie couldn’t believe her ears. It was a perfect cue for her.
“Say, Eli,” she interrupted. He looked up at her. “Something funny just happened.”
“What, you signed up for another contest and you want me to tell you what it is?” Eli loved to tease Stevie.
“That’s very funny, but no, this is serious funny.”
“What’s the matter?” he asked.
“Well, I was on my way back here and I saw that guy who’s supposed to be hazing for you. What’s his name—Derek?”
“I’ve been looking all over for him,” Eli said. “It’s time for us to go over some things.”
“Well, you’re not going to find him,” Stevie said. “He’s gone.”
“Gone?”
“Yeah. He saw me, told me to tell you something came up and he couldn’t stick around, and that he was really sorry, but before I could ask him what the problem was, he was in his truck and hightailing it out of here.”
“Gone?” Eli repeated, stunned. Stevie saw her teammates exchange sly glances. She knew they’d suspect her fine hand. She had to tie up the loose ends quickly before a giggle gave her away.
“But where in blazes am I going to find a hazer just fifteen minutes before the steer-wrestling event begins?”
Stevie let the question hang in the air for a few seconds. She scratched her head thoughtfully. She was going to rub her chin, but she thought that might be a bit too much. “How about the best precision rider in the county?” she
asked.
“Great idea,” Eli said, “but who is he?”
“It’s a she. And you’re standing next to her,” Carole said, reminding him of his own words a few minutes earlier.
“Jeannie?” he asked.
“I do,” she said.
MOST OF THE barrel racers spent the time during the steer-wrestling event checking their horses and their tack and readying themselves for their race. But The Bar None Riders were in the stands. They weren’t going to miss a minute of the steer wrestling. They’d have to rush before their own event, but that didn’t matter compared to watching Eli and Jeannie’s performance.
“This is either the longest or shortest event there is,” Stevie remarked after watching one cowboy down a steer in less than six seconds and another chase the frightened animal all over the ring. That poor man never caught up with the steer.
“All these other guys can take as long as they want,” Kate said. “It’s Eli who will be done with it the fastest.”
“Eli and Jeannie,” Stevie said, reminding her of the good deed The Saddle Club had done.
“Keep your fingers crossed,” Christine said. “The last time I saw them, Eli was still staring at her like he’d just discovered she was alive.”
“Love does funny things to people,” Lisa remarked. “At least that’s what I’ve noticed.”
“Hmmmmm,” was all Stevie would say.
By the time it was Eli’s turn, most of the contestants had already gone and the competition was very stiff. Eli didn’t expect to win. All he really hoped was to do respectably against the clock. When he was applying for his rodeo scholarship, his total score was what mattered, whether he placed or not.
“Our next competitor is Eli Grimes and we’ve got an unusual story here, ladies and gentlemen,” the announcer said. “We’ve got this rodeo’s first woman hazer, Ms. Jeannie Sanders. This pair works together on The Bar None ranch. Let’s see how they work together at the Two Mile Creek Rodeo!”
The crowd clapped enthusiastically. They remembered Eli’s performance in the calf-roping event. The Saddle Club exchanged triumphant grins. This was all good for Eli, but it was great for the ranch.
The steer was rounded into the chute and the starter, who would shoot him out, climbed in behind. Eli and Jeannie took their places.
The chute’s gate opened with a clack! and the steer shot out into the ring. Stevie saw the whole thing as if it were in slow motion. Jeannie’s horse sprang after the steer, keeping him on a straight path. Eli’s horse burst out of his starting gate, neared Jeannie and the steer in a split second, and began the hard work. When the head of Eli’s horse was even with the rump of the steer, Eli slid to his right, lowering himself onto the steer. His right arm came up under the steer’s right horn from behind. His left arm circled from in front. Then Eli was off his horse and moving forward with the momentum of the running steer. His own heels dug into the dirt. He used all his weight to pull the steer toward him. Then, just as the steer’s flanks rose to protest, Eli twisted, turning the steer’s neck toward the ground. The rest of the animal followed. And it was over!
Eli stood up, releasing the steer, and then turned to look at the clock. Four point nine-three seconds. He was in first place!
Jeannie couldn’t help herself. She rode over to where Eli stood, bringing him his horse, but when she reached him, she slid down off her own saddle and flung her arms around him. He was so happy, he hugged her back. Then, to the surprise and delight of everybody in the arena, Jeannie kissed him. And to the surprise and delight of everybody, especially The Bar None Riders, Eli kissed her back!
“Whew!” Stevie said. But nobody heard her. Everybody was standing up, yelling and clapping.
“He’s got it. Let’s go,” Kate said. She was right. Even if another cowboy rode faster and Eli came in second, they had still won. He’d beat his own best time, and everybody in the crowd knew that he rode for The Bar None. That kiss in the center of the arena had left an indelible impression on everybody! The girls left the bleachers and headed back to get their horses ready for the barrel racing.
“You know,” Kate said as they walked. “It doesn’t really matter now if we win. Eli’s done all the work for us.”
“Eli and Jeannie,” Stevie corrected her.
“Eli and Jeannie and Stevie,” Carole said.
“Oh, it’s teamwork. It’s all teamwork,” Stevie said modestly.
“One of the secrets of successful teamwork is letting the team members do the things they are best at,” Lisa said. “And on our team, there is nobody better at telling whoppers and carrying out crazy schemes than Stevie.”
They all agreed with that and clapped Stevie on the back to congratulate her.
A FEW MINUTES later, the team was all business again. It was time to compete in the barrel racing. The girls checked their horses’ tack and then put their red team T-shirts back on. Each girl also put on a new white cowboy hat. They did look like a team, but, Lisa thought, more importantly, they felt like a team.
“Now, if only we can perform like a team,” she muttered to herself, recalling the several times she’d ended in the dirt.
The way the team barrel-racing competition worked at Two Mile Creek Rodeo was that the number one riders from each team would race in turn, then the number two riders, and so on. When all five riders from all four teams had gone, the worst score from each team would be dropped out. The final score was the total of the four best scores on each team.
The Bar None Riders had chosen their order with care. Carole would begin, then Lisa, Stevie, Christine, and finally Kate. They wanted to get a good edge with a strong first rider and they wanted to end with the best. Lisa, Stevie, and Christine were just to do the best they could.
Lisa knew she was the least-experienced rider on the team and her score would probably be the one dropped out. She was determined to have fun anyway.
The girls didn’t know anything about the first two teams, and they didn’t really care. It was the fourth team, the one that followed them, that they knew they had to beat. That was the team from The Dapper Dude. The girls from The Dapper Dude were dressed for the occasion, too. Each of them was wearing a sparkling-clean white cowgirl outfit, with fancy black piping and shiny black buttons. Lisa glanced down at her red T-shirt. It looked almost shabby compared to The Dapper Dude outfits.
Stevie yanked at her elbow. “It doesn’t matter what we wear,” she said firmly. “It matters how we ride.”
“I know,” Lisa said, but she couldn’t help sounding wistful. “Sort of.”
The number one riders from the first two teams told Lisa and the other riders that their biggest competition was going to be from The Dapper Dude. The announcer called their names, and the girls made it through the course all right, but even Lisa knew that they weren’t fast enough to win.
“Bar None Rider Number One!” the announcer said. “Miss Carole Hanson!”
Lisa thought she heard a “Yahooo!” from the stands. It had to be Eli. She grinned.
Carole had a stiff, serious look of concentration on her face. Lisa thought she probably hadn’t heard anything after her own name.
“Go!” the starter yelled.
Carole was out of the gate. She swung her horse, Berry, over to the right. He rounded the first barrel okay, though his feet seemed to slip a little and his balance was off. By the time he got to the second barrel, though, Carole was in trouble. She was going fast all right, but she was in such a hurry and Berry was so eager to please her that there was no way they’d make it!
“Slow down!” Lisa yelled, but it was too late.
Carole made Berry cut the corner too sharply. His shoulder hit the barrel. The barrel knocked against Carole’s knee, rocked perilously, and then tumbled to the ground.
“Penalty!” the announcer said. That meant that five seconds would be added to Carole’s final time. There was no way that would be a winning round!
Carole completed her turn and brought Berry b
ack to where her friends waited. Her face showed nothing, but Lisa was sure it was taking every bit of Carole’s control to hide her disappointment.
“I guess it’s up to you four now,” Carole said, drawing into the circle her friends made for her.
Lisa didn’t even notice the start of the next racer’s run. Carole’s words kept echoing in her head. Her penalty meant that Lisa’s ride would count, no matter how bad it was. Her score couldn’t be dropped out because Carole’s was so high with the five-second penalty. If anybody else on the team was penalized, it would be virtually impossible for them to win. What Lisa did would matter, really matter.
It was strange and frightening to realize that she would make a difference. She hoped she’d make a difference for the better!
“Oh, that was a good one!” Stevie groaned. Lisa looked up to see a triumphant Dapper Dude rider return to her group. The score on the board indicated that The Bar None Riders really had their work cut out for them.
Now the number two riders took their turns. Once again, the riders from the other two teams didn’t worry The Bar None Riders. One team had a low score; the other had a default when the rider went the wrong way around the third barrel.
Then it was Lisa’s turn.
She drew up to the starting line. The world was a blur. She was only vaguely aware of the starter. Mostly, her head was full of instructions. Lean into a turn. Don’t lean too far. Go fast. Not too fast. Cut close to the barrel. Not too close. Right, left, left. Gallop. Use your spurs. Hold on. Right, left, left. Don’t fall off. Don’t fall off. Don’t fall …
“Go!”
Lisa touched Chocolate with the spurs and gave her a firm whack to get her started. Chocolate flew out of the starting gate, took a sharp right, and was on her way!
Lisa had never felt anything like it. She gave the horse signals and Chocolate responded instantly, shifting to the right on the straightaway toward the second barrel, turning to the left like a pro. Chocolate got into her gallop on the way out of the turn and was at the third barrel almost before Lisa was ready. Lisa laid the reins on her neck to turn left. Chocolate turned in a flash, almost running into the barrel. Then all Lisa could see was that Chocolate’s shoulder had brushed the barrel and her own foot was going to touch it, too. She squeezed her boot against the horse’s side to get it out of the way, but felt it hit the barrel anyway.
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