“Ponies are so dumb!” Alice said. “And so is riding them! The only time I tried to go riding,” she went on, “the stupid pony stepped on my foot before I even climbed into the saddle!”
Corey felt anger boil up inside her, too. “Ponies are not dumb!” she shot back. “You’re the one who’s—”
Doc Tock gave Corey a warning look. “That’s enough, Corey,” she said quietly.
Corey stared down at her plate, angry tears forming in her eyes. Why had her mother told her to be quiet when it was Alice who had started the whole thing?
A second later, Alice’s fork fell to her plate with a clatter. She pushed her chair away from the table.
Kyle looked up. “Where are you going, Alice?”
“The rest room,” Alice replied.
As she stomped off, Doc Tock and Kyle started talking politely about the beautiful spring weather. Corey stabbed a french fry with her fork. If Alice thinks riding ponies is dumb, then I think she’s dumb! she thought angrily.
Corey didn’t look up when Alice returned to the table, and neither of them said another word for the rest of the meal.
Corey had gotten to know Alice better, all right. And now she knew Alice well enough to see that she was the stupidest—and nastiest—girl in the world!
A short while later, Doc Tock opened the back door of the Lees’ black Jeep.
“Thank you for dinner, Kyle,” she said warmly. “Our next meal is my treat.”
Our next meal? Corey thought. No way. She was never going to have dinner with Alice—or her father—again.
From the look of things, Alice wasn’t eager to go out with the Takamuras again, either. She was slumped in the front seat beside her father. Her arms were folded across her chest, and an angry scowl darkened her face.
“Thank you, Kyle,” Corey said, trying to be polite. She completely ignored Alice as she got out of the Jeep after Doc Tock.
“You’re welcome, Corey,” Kyle replied. “See you soon.”
Corey was about to close the car door when she noticed that Alice had turned around. In a low voice, Alice said something to Corey.
“Excuse me?” Corey said coldly. She hadn’t heard what Alice had said, but she expected another insult.
Alice mumbled something again. This time Corey could hear the words more clearly.
“I’m sorry.”
What? Corey had heard the words, but she couldn’t believe her ears. Had Alice really apologized?
As Corey stood there, staring at Alice in shock, she saw Kyle reach over and pat his daughter’s arm.
So that’s why Alice apologized, Corey realized a second later. Her father made her do it.
Without saying anything, Corey swung the Lees’ car door closed. Obviously, Alice hadn’t meant the apology.
So why should I bother to accept it? thought Corey.
3 Corey’s Nightmare
“Good night, Corey.” A little while later, Doc Tock poked her head into Corey’s room.
Corey lay on her bed reading a horse magazine. “’Night, Mom,” she mumbled without looking up.
Doc Tock came into the room and sat down on Corey’s bed. “That article looks interesting.” She pointed to the cover of the magazine, which showed a picture of a herd of wild ponies.
“I guess so.” Corey knew she wasn’t being very polite, but she didn’t want to be polite. She was still angry at her mother for making her go out to dinner with Alice in the first place.
“It must be kind of strange to have your mother going out on dates all of a sudden,” Doc Tock said softly. “I’ve been wondering if that’s part of the reason why tonight’s dinner didn’t go very well.”
Corey felt another flare of anger. “It has nothing to do with your dating, Mom. It has to do with the fact that Alice isn’t very nice. I tried my best to be friends with her. She’s the one who said ponies are dumb!”
“I’m sure Alice’s remarks hurt your feelings, Corey,” Doc Tock replied. “Maybe she—”
“Alice didn’t hurt my feelings,” Corey interrupted. “She just proved that she’s a nasty person.”
“Alice isn’t a bad person just because she doesn’t share your interests, Corey,” Doc Tock said. “She isn’t around animals all the time the way we are. Maybe she’s not used to them.”
Corey just glared at her mother. Doc Tock had heard what Alice had said. So why was she taking Alice’s side?
Finally Doc Tock stood up. “Well, thanks for coming to dinner, honey.” She leaned over to give Corey a kiss. “Sleep tight.”
“Good night,” Corey replied.
Alice wasn’t only rude to me, Corey thought as her mother left the room. She was rude to Mom, too. She was even rude to her own father! Corey had never met such an unfriendly girl.
A few minutes later, Corey tossed the magazine on the floor and turned out the light. As she settled between the sheets, she could hear the litter of puppies yipping out in the barn. The sound made her picture the round table at Sir Loyne’s all over again. She could still see Alice’s disgusted expression. How could someone hate being licked on the face by an adorable puppy? The dinner kept replaying in Corey’s mind.
She sat up to rearrange her pillow. As she lay back down, she forced herself to think about something besides the terrible meal. She remembered that she was going to her father’s apartment tomorrow to stay for the next few days. She pictured her father, with his dark hair and friendly brown eyes. Then she imagined her cheerful room at his apartment. It was decorated with pony wallpaper and lots of horse posters.
Finally Corey’s eyes closed. As she drifted off to sleep, she was still picturing her room at her father’s apartment. But now she was picturing herself packing up her things to come back to her mother’s house …
“Bye, Dad,” Corey said as she opened the car door. “Thanks for everything.”
“See you in a few days, honey,” Mr. Takamura replied.
Corey hurried up the path.
Her mother stood waiting at the back door. “Hi, honey,” she said, hugging Corey. “I’m so happy you’re back. Wait till you see what I’ve been working on in the barn.”
Excitement rippled through Corey. For the past few months, her mother had been promising to build a bigger stall for Samurai. Mom finally got around to doing it! Corey thought.
Eagerly she followed her mother out to the barn. She couldn’t wait to see Sam’s new stall. Corey’s pet goat, Alexander, loved spending time with Sam. He would enjoy the extra space, too.
But to Corey’s surprise, Doc Tock didn’t lead Corey to a new stall for Samurai. She led Corey to Samurai’s old stall.
“Here we are, Corey.” She opened the door with a proud expression.
“But …” Corey peered into the stall. Then she glanced back at her mother, puzzled. “Where’s Sam?”
Doc Tock beamed at her. “Oh, I sold Samurai, honey. He’s such a big pony, and we need the extra room for …”
Corey glanced into the stall again. “Bookshelves?” she said in disbelief.
“That’s right, honey,” her mother replied. “Isn’t it wonderful?”
Corey couldn’t believe it. Lining the walls of Sam’s stall were rows and rows of shelves. On all the shelves were hundreds of copies of Alice’s favorite book, Harriet the Spy!
“No! No!” Corey cried in horror. “No!”
Corey tossed and turned, tangling her legs in the sheets. At last her eyes flew open. She sat bolt upright in bed.
“Oh my gosh!” she gasped. She wasn’t out in the barn looking at Samurai’s empty stall. She was in bed, having a terrible, terrible nightmare.
“Thank goodness,” she whispered.
Relieved, she lay down again. But her fingers were still trembling. Her heart was pumping hard. It was just a dream, but it had felt so real.…
It took a long time for Corey to relax again. When her eyes finally closed, it was almost midnight.
This time, as Corey drifted off to sleep, she didn�
�t have a nightmare. She had a dream—a sweet dream—about a big moving van parked in front of the Lees’ house.
“Where are the Lees going?” May asked in Corey’s dream.
“Oh, far, far away,” Corey answered. She smiled happily as the moving van drove past her house. “Isn’t it wonderful, May?” Corey said to her friend. “Alice and her father are moving to Mars.”
Buy Corey’s Secret Friend Now!
About the Author
Bonnie Bryant is the author of over one hundred forty books about horses, including the Saddle Club series and its spinoffs, the Pony Tails series and the Pine Hollow series. Bryant did not know very much about horses before writing the first Saddle Club book in 1986, so she found herself learning right along with the characters she created. She has also written novels and movie novelizations under her married name, Bonnie Bryant Hiller. Bryant was born and raised in New York City, where she still lives today.
All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 1997 by Bonnie Bryant Hiller
Cover design by Connie Gabbert
ISBN: 978-1-4976-5377-1
This edition published in 2014 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.
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New York, NY 10014
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May Goes to England (Pony Tails Book 11) Page 6