No Time for Horses

by Shannon Kennedy

  “You look fine to me,” the man said. “What do we have here?”

  “Her horse spooked. She fell.” Robin took over, describing the impact, how I passed out, and how many times I threw up. She was going to be a great doctor, I thought dizzily. Too much was going on here, and I leaned back, shutting my eyes. That was better.

  * * * *

  Saturday, November 30th, 4:15 p.m.

  At the hospital, the doctor, a young guy in blue scrubs, fussed around me. He’d had me X-rayed and CT scanned and ran a bunch of tests. I told him that I felt better now. Okay, I was a bit stiff, but I’d been hurt worse at cheerleading. I was super grateful that Rocky insisted on the protective vest and equestrian helmet. My head ached, especially when Mom started complaining about the cost of everything the doctor did.

  He ignored her and studied the X-rays. “Okay, let’s talk about you, Vicky. No broken bones or cracked ribs. That’s good considering how far you fell and how hard you landed. How tall is the horse?”

  “Fifteen hands,” I said. “Barely a horse, size-wise, and he’s doing really well. It wasn’t his fault. Any horse could have spooked when a bunch of kids ran screaming at him.”

  “Typical of you horse-people,” the doctor said. “Nothing is ever the horse’s fault. What are you going to do with him?”

  I heaved a sigh, and my head throbbed. “Start over with more ground work which is a major pain in the tush. We’d just gotten to where I could ride him.”

  “You’re never riding there again,” Mom interrupted. “I can’t afford to have you hurt. Do you know what this is going to cost?”

  “Not that much, only the copay,” I said. “You have me on your insurance from work. Rick pays the insurance for his kids. And really, you should go harass him. If he hadn’t sent the five of them screaming at my horse, I wouldn’t have fallen.”

  “I had to take time off work to come here,” Mom said. “This is a big weekend. I need to get back to the casino.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I said. “Blah, blah, blah. Could you just shut up? My head already aches. When can I have an aspirin?”

  The doctor turned back to the lighted screen, his shoulders shaking in his blue scrub shirt. “Well, you’ve got some clarity of thought. The concussion might not be as bad as I thought. Mrs. Miller, who is going to take care of her if I let her go home tonight?”

  “What?” Mom asked. “You have to release her. She needs to be at home to take care of the kids. I’ve got to get back to work.”

  “And who will take care of this kid? I’m talking about Vicky. She has a concussion. No lifting, no straining, no riding, no school, and no cheerleading until I see her on Tuesday.”

  “Now, if you say no vacuuming, no cooking, no laundry, and no changing diapers, you’ll be my hero forever, just like Jack,” I said. “No walking the kids to daycare in the rain or picking them up at the elementary school to walk them home. No pushing Chrissy in the stroller.”

  “How long have you been practicing medicine? That sounds like a good prescription to me. Do I need to write it down?”

  Mom glared at both of us. “You two aren’t funny.”

  “I’m not laughing,” the doctor said. “I’m as serious as the long-term effects this child could suffer if someone doesn’t take care of her. We’re talking vertigo, lightheadedness, nausea, fainting, and even a coma. I’m not ruling out the possibility of a heart attack or stroke either.”

  “You’re just trying to scare me,” Mom said, folding her arms. “It’s not working.”

  “I wish something worked. I don’t know how to convince you that Vicky is hurt and needs care, Mrs. Miller.”

  Lifting a hand to my aching head, I told him, “Don’t waste any more time on Cleopatra, Doctor. Just let me go home with my mother-in-law.”

  “What mother-in-law?” Mom squawked.

  The doctor came back, pulling a mini-flashlight out of his shirt pocket. “Sounds like you’re worse off than I thought. Let me check your pupils. I didn’t know you were married, Vicky.”

  “I’m not, yet.” I blinked when he shone the little light in my eye. “I’m marrying Jack.”

  “Really? Does he know?” The doctor asked.

  “Of course he knows. It was his idea. I was good with us just living together. We’ll get married in six or seven years after I finish college and we open our own training stable. His mom likes me. She’s bound to be outside in the waiting room with him.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll go talk to them.”

  He disappeared out of the examining room. Mom gave me an evil look. She stalked toward me, a total demon in a teal tuxedo shirt and black slacks. “You’re milking this, Vicky. Don’t you think I know when you play sick by now?”

  “Considering how my head feels, I’m not playing,” I said. “Granted, if I had an ice pack and a ton of pain relievers, I’d feel better. But, I don’t think you should make me babysit today. If I had to run after Chrissy, I’d be puking my guts out. And if I pass out in your house, who would look after the kids or call 9-1-1? That’s a lot of responsibility to lay on Kevin. In case you forgot, he’s only ten.”

  Before she could answer, the doctor returned with Jack’s mom. She didn’t look much like him or Robin. Instead, she was an older version of Felicia, strawberry blonde, blue-eyed with a propensity for wearing cowgirl clothes.

  She came across to me and rested a hand on my forehead. “How are you feeling, sweetie?”

  “I’m sorry, Maura.” Tears sprang to my eyes and streamed down my face before I could stop them. “I’m so sorry.”

  “For what?” She stroked my hair and hugged me, letting me bury my face against her and cry into her shirt. “For falling off your horse? Honey, it happens to the best of us. Do you know how many times I’ve gone splat when Singer erupts on the trail? Granted, I usually land on my butt, which saves me on the cost of a new helmet.”

  “Need a pillow?” I managed a weak laugh.

  “That might come in handy,” Maura agreed. When I straightened, she framed my face with her hands. “So, you’re going to be my daughter-in-law? When do I have to worry about being a grandma?”

  “Ooh, gross.” I wrinkled my nose. “I don’t know if Jack and I will ever have kids after raising my brothers and sisters. Considering how much work they are, you may have to wait until Robin or Felicia get married and give you some grandkids.”

  “Right answer.” Maura kissed my forehead. “I’ll take you home with me to rest up. Felicia is down at your house looking after your brothers and sisters. So, they’re fine.”

  “Oh, that’s great,” I said, and I meant it. “The accident wasn’t their fault. Rick told them to run and get me like a half-dozen times. So they did, and it freaked out Aladdin.”

  “Understandably.” Maura turned to look at my mom. “Felicia is driving back to school tomorrow morning, Gretchen. That will give you time to arrange for another babysitter.”

  “By then, Vicky…”

  “No, don’t go there.” Maura held up her hand. “I’ve been through this before, Gretchen. You haven’t. I have three very active teenagers who manage to hurt themselves doing sports and horseback riding on a regular basis. Take my word for it. Vicky needs constant supervision so she can be taken to the hospital if she collapses. I can handle that. You focus on your job and the younger set.”

  As the doctor and I watched, Maura urged Mom out to the waiting room. The doctor eyed me. “Wow, Mrs. Gibson is something. I think I want her for a mama-in-law too.”

  I giggled. “Well, I have Jack, and his sister, my best friend, already has a guy. I think Felicia could be available. She dumped her last boyfriend when he suggested she sell her horse to go to college.”

  “What was he thinking?”

  “I know. Go figure. Like a girl would give up the unconditional love of her horse,” I paused, “except I’m pretty sure that Aladdin’s is connected to all the carrots I feed him.”

  * * * *

  Sunday, Dece
mber 1st, 10:15 a.m.

  I heard someone moving around and opened my eyes to see Felicia rummaging in her closet. “Morning,” I said. “How are the kids?”

  “They’re fine.” Felicia tucked two shirts into her suitcase. “How are you?”

  “Okay. Your mom came in and woke me up about six times last night, asking me all sorts of questions. My name, age, birthday, stuff like that.”

  “All the things the doctor told her to do to check on brain function.” Felicia kept packing. “Dad’s making French toast. He’ll have Mom or Robin bring in a tray for you.”

  “He doesn’t need to do that. I can come to the kitchen table.”

  “Before you try doing that, Vicky, why not sit up?”

  “Good idea.” I eased up in bed. My head swirled, and I took a couple deep breaths until everything settled back down again. “Okay, maybe not. I’ve never had breakfast in bed.”

  “You’ll love it,” Felicia said. “Want some help getting to the bathroom first? You can brush your teeth and hair, not with the same brush. I’ll get my robe for you.”

  “Okay.” I waited for a moment or two. I pushed the covers off my legs. Slowly, I shifted on the bed till my feet were on the floor. “Why are you guys being so nice to me?”

  “We’re not.” Felicia came over with her robe and wrapped it around my shoulders. “This is the same way my folks and Robin and Jack treat me when I go corral surfing off Vinnie.”

  “Really?”

  “Yup.” Felicia put an arm around my waist and helped me stand. “Nobody’s treating you special, Vick. We’re just doing what we’d do for each other. Feel better now?”

  “Yes. I could so get used to this.” It felt like I was being spoiled even if she didn’t admit it. Nobody in my family ever helped me dress or go to the bathroom or brought me food. “Did you mean it when you said I could borrow your room for longer than a couple days?”

  “You can stay as long as you want.”

  Forever, I thought. I want to stay forever!

  Chapter Seventeen

  Sunday, December 1st, 3:00 p.m.

  Jack helped me move to the living room so Robin could clean the bedrooms, her usual Sunday chore when she got back from doing internship hours with Dr. Larry, the horse vet. I’d pointed out she wasn’t here yet, and Jack said he was just being efficient. He had to go to the barn and do stock work, now that he’d finished scrubbing down the bathrooms. He settled me in one of the blue recliners, brought me a bag of potato chips, a cola, and a bowl of ice cream. He handed me the remote, covered me with an afghan, then left.

  I turned on the TV and flipped through the channels until I settled on an old Clint Eastwood show about a cattle drive. He was young, hot, and had a gorgeous horse. “Head ‘em up. Move ‘em out.”

  I dug into the ice cream before Robin’s kittens could help me. Chocolate chip cookie dough, my favorite, smothered in caramel topping and whipped cream. Perfect. I held up the bowl so Pepper, the coal black feline, couldn’t dunk his nose. “He’s definitely my hero, and he does housework.”

  “Must be Jack that you’re talking about.” His dad, John came in, sipping a cup of coffee. He picked up Pepper and put him on the couch. I hadn’t seen Jack’s dad since breakfast. He’d had some kind of calf-roping practice with his buddies so he and his Quarter Horse, Buster, had gone off for most of the day.

  I knew that Jack would look like his dad when he got older. They each had black hair, but John’s had some gray threaded through it. They both had dark eyes and liked cowboy clothes, jeans and western shirts. I figured John knew what Robin did since he had on his socks. He must have left his boots in the mudroom. Tracking in barn muck meant scrubbing the kitchen floor on hands and knees which, according to Maura, was the only real way to get it clean. Personally, I preferred a mop.

  “Nobody likes cat hair in their ice cream. Get a clue.” John moved the black and white tuxedo kitten again and then sat down in the other recliner. “What are we watching? Oh, Rawhide. I like this show. Those guys could really rope.”

  I eyed him suspiciously. “What’s up? I’m okay by myself.”

  “Not here,” John said, giving the kind of long steady look that Jack always did when he was totally serious. Come to think of it, maybe that was where Jack learned it. “Not in this house with a concussion, Vicky. I’m just following orders.”

  “Did you talk to my doctor too?”

  “No, I got the word from Maura.” John drank more coffee then put the cup down to tear open the bag of chips. “I’ve been through this too many times with Felicia and Jack. Sulky looks don’t work on me. Eat your ice cream.”

  I gave up staring at him. I didn’t think I’d been sulky. It was kind of nice having someone stick with me, but I began to wonder how Robin and Jack stood the constant surveillance. Was that why Felicia went all the way across the state to go to college? No, I wouldn’t think anything nasty.

  When I was younger and too sick for school or daycare, I stayed home by myself. Now, if one of the kids was ill, I made a point of taking the day off to be there. Luckily, they were in pretty good health most of the time. I wasn’t doing to them what Mom and Rick did to me, figuring I could take care of myself from the time I was eight. Maura and John Gibson were good people and great parents. They loved their kids, and if the incessant smothering made me nuts—nope, wasn’t going there! I concentrated on my ice cream and Clint Eastwood.

  * * * *

  Monday, December 2nd, 10:00 a.m.

  I’d slept through chores, and everybody leaving for school and work. Robin must have turned off the alarm on Felicia’s clock radio. I rarely had the opportunity to sleep in, so I decided I’d enjoyed it. I found a stack of clean clothes on the dresser. My best friend must have washed the jeans, T-shirt, and sweatshirt I’d worn to the barn on Saturday. I headed for the shower in the adjoining bathroom.

  I had barely adjusted the water temperature when I heard a tap on the door. “I’m in here.”

  “Everything okay, Vicky?” Maura said, through the door.

  “Fine,” I called. “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

  “All right,” Maura said. “I’ll give you ten minutes before I check on you again.”

  “Sounds good.” I hoped I sounded polite and not like what I really thought. Come on, guys. Get a life and let me breathe!

  I stepped under the spray and enjoyed the chance to have some privacy. Unless I was on my mom’s list and sent to the basement, Chrissy hollered outside the bathroom door when I left her. But not this morning. Today, it was all about me. I used Robin’s strawberry body soap and her shampoo too. I felt squeaky clean when I turned off the water and got out to towel off.

  I dried my hair, dressed, and answered another knock. “I’m fine. Be out soon.”

  “I’m making you pancakes for breakfast. See you in the kitchen.”

  “Wonderful.” I hung up the towels and rinsed out the tub. I wiped down the counter and the sink so Robin wouldn’t have to deal with a mess.

  I arrived at the table just as Maura dished up pancakes and bacon. I sat down and picked up the glass of orange juice. “Thanks for making me breakfast.”

  “No worries.” She poured a cup of coffee and sat down across from me. “I have some sewing to do for the holidays. It’s a busy time of year for me. What do you plan to do today?”

  “I don’t know.” I spread butter on my pancakes and added syrup. “I’ll clean up the kitchen and maybe watch some TV, unless I can help with your crafts. I don’t know anything about them, but I’m a fast learner.”

  “TV, yes. Cleaning, no. You don’t want to over-do. Rest up until tomorrow. I’ll take you in to see the doctor then.”

  “I’m not used to sitting around. I got plenty of rest yesterday.”

  “And you’ll get plenty today too.” The phone rang, and Maura went to answer it. It was one of her customers because she began discussing an afghan order.

  I focused on eating my breakfast. When I finis
hed, I carried my dishes over to the sink and rinsed them. I put the plate and silverware in the dishwasher. I returned to wipe off the table. Maura finished her conversation, hung up the receiver, and came over to me. She took away the dishcloth and patted my shoulder.

  “Living room. Go watch TV.”

  “I need to make the bed and pick up Felicia’s room.”

  “No. I have that handled. The living room, Vicky. ‘Do not pass, Go! Do not collect two hundred dollars.’ Watch daytime TV. We have lots of channels.”

  I heaved a sigh and followed directions. Okay, so this was the longest vacation I’d ever had. I might as well enjoy it. The party would be over tomorrow when I arrived home. I knew nobody would look after me at Mom’s house.

  * * * *

  Tuesday, December 3nd, 4:30 p.m.

  While I drank a cola, I shared news of my weekend with Ingrid. She listened while I explained about Rick sending the kids to spook Aladdin and the consequences. I told her all about staying with the Gibsons. “It was weird,” I said. “I’ve spent the night with Robin before, but usually we just hang out. I hardly see her parents. This time, I swear I couldn’t get away from them. It was totally freaky.”

  “In a perverse way?” Ingrid made a note. “What made you the most uncomfortable?”

  “Maura waking me up every couple hours on Saturday night. She kept tapping on the bathroom door when I showered. She wouldn’t let me do any housework. I tried to help feed the puppies last night, and John Gibson sent me to watch TV again.”

  “Why do you think they treated you that way?” Ingrid focused on her notepad. “Were they trying to hassle you?”

  “No, the doctor said I had to rest because I had a concussion. They saw to it that I did. And they ran interference when Mom called too.”

  “How?”

  “Well, she didn’t really phone to find out how I was. She wanted to know where I kept Chrissy’s cookies and what to pack for lunches and where to find Cathy’s homework.”