“Hi, girls,” he said. He took another look at them. “Is something wrong?”
“Jasmine has horse show nerves,” May said.
Mr. Grover looked over to where Jasmine was talking earnestly to Outlaw. “I remember my first horse show,” he said. “I kept wishing I would break my arm so I wouldn’t have to ride.”
May blinked in surprise. “You?”
Mr. Grover nodded. “It’s one of the worst memories I have.”
“I hoped there would be an earthquake so my first horse show would be canceled,” Corey said.
“Some people hope for lightning and thunder,” Mr. Grover said. “Or an invasion of ants. It depends.”
May and Corey exchanged grins. Mr. Grover always knew how to make them feel better.
“How come you guys aren’t on horseback?” Mr. Grover said. “It’s a perfect day for riding.”
“We’re going to Pine Hollow Stables, and it’s too far to ride alone,” said May.
“Hmmm,” said Mr. Grover, rubbing his chin. “I might have the solution to that problem. I have to talk to Max and his mother about something. Why don’t the three of us saddle up and ride over?”
“I could handle that,” May said. She hugged him. “You are the world’s greatest father.”
Corey sighed. Looking at May and her father with their arms around each other made her miss her own father. Corey’s parents were divorced. She saw her father a lot, and she loved him as much as ever, but it wasn’t the same as when he lived with her and her mother.
May must have known what Corey was feeling because she swept her into the hug. Corey felt a lot better. She reminded herself of what she’d told Jasmine: Nothing is ever perfect.
“So let’s ride,” said May happily. The girls went to get Samurai and Macaroni.
A few minutes later Corey rode Sam over to the Grovers’ barn, where May and her father were waiting.
“Tallyho!” said May. “Let’s go.”
As they rode into the pasture behind the barns, they saw Jasmine and Outlaw. She had her arms around his neck, and she was talking a mile a minute. Outlaw looked miserable.
“You’re sure you don’t want to come?” May called to Jasmine. “My father’s with us, so we can ride to Pine Hollow.”
Jasmine shook her head. She watched Corey and May and Mr. Grover ride to the top of the hill. The ground was boggy after a recent rain, so they went slowly. At the top of the hill they turned to wave. Macaroni’s yellow mane blew back in the wind. The blaze like a curved sword on Samurai’s nose shone in the morning light. Then they disappeared on the far side of the hill.
Jasmine turned back to Outlaw. “We’ve got lots of work to do,” she said to him. “We have to review cantering.”
Outlaw raised his head. He looked at Jasmine as if she were totally nuts. He snorted. He reared, jerking the lead rope out of Jasmine’s hand, and took off after the other ponies.
Jasmine took off after him, but Outlaw was fast.
“Outlaw!” Jasmine yelled, still running. “Don’t run! You could hurt yourself.”
Outlaw put his head down and ran as fast as he could.
“Please,” Jasmine called. “I’ll never mention the show again.”
Outlaw stumbled and fell.
As Jasmine got to him, he was struggling to his feet.
“Are you okay?” she said.
His eyes were full of pain.
“Where does it hurt?” she said.
Outlaw nickered and looked down. He was holding his right hoof off the ground.
“It’s my fault,” Jasmine said. “I’ve been acting like a creep.” Tears ran down her face. “Other ponies have normal owners. You have a nut.”
Outlaw nudged her with his nose as if to tell her not to be so hard on herself.
She kissed her fingertips and put them on Outlaw’s right ankle. This was a pretty silly thing to do, but when Jasmine was little and she hurt herself, her mother used to kiss the hurt place, and it always made Jasmine feel better.
Outlaw stared at her with his big brown eyes.
“Can you walk?” she asked. He took a tentative step. He winced, but he kept going.
The two of them struggled down the hill. As they neared the barn, Outlaw’s limp got worse. Jasmine could tell that his ankle was hurting even more.
She led him into his stall. Gently she took off his bridle and saddle. “I’m going to get Judy Barker,” she explained. “Judy will know what to do.” Judy was Pine Hollow’s horse veterinarian.
Outlaw dropped his head and poked his ankle with his nose as if he were trying to figure out what was wrong with it.
Jasmine ran into the house to call Judy.
Her father was on the phone. Jasmine touched his arm to let him know she needed to make a call. He held up a finger to show her he’d be done in a moment.
“You wouldn’t believe such a big cough could come from such a little thing,” Mr. James said. “It scares me.”
Jasmine realized that Sophie, her baby sister, must be sick.
“She snuffles,” Jasmine’s father said. “But what’s most worrisome is that cough. It’s so deep.”
Jasmine tugged his sleeve. “Is Sophie okay?”
Mr. James nodded reassuringly. “I’m talking to Dr. Santiago.” He was the family pediatrician.
Everything is going wrong, Jasmine thought. Sophie is sick. Outlaw is injured.
She began to think of the pictures in her riding book. There was a whole chapter devoted to injuries of the foot. Outlaw’s sore ankle might not be just a sore ankle. It could be a strained tendon. Or a torn tendon. Or it could be a curb, a strain of the ligament at the back of the leg.
Jasmine tried to make herself stop thinking these horrible thoughts. But all she could think of was the picture in the book of a pony with his legs in bandages. If a leg injury was really bad, Jasmine knew, sometimes a pony could never be ridden again.
“Dad!” Jasmine said. “It’s an emergency.”
“I’ve got to go,” her father said into the phone.
As he hung up, Mr. James asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Outlaw hurt his ankle,” Jasmine said. “He can hardly walk.”
Mr. James put his arm around her. “Let’s go look. And then we can phone Judy Barker.”
4 May’s Great Idea
“My saddle is a disaster!” someone wailed.
May and Corey looked at each other and grinned. Excitement about the show was building. By Saturday everyone would be in a tizzy.
May and Corey were helping Judy Barker examine the Pine Hollow horses and ponies in preparation for the show.
“Nickel looks fine,” said Judy Barker as she backed out of his stall. Corey, who was holding Judy’s records, found Nickel’s file and handed it to her. Judy made a few notes.
“The ponies can tell something’s coming,” Judy said. “By the end of the week they’ll be as keyed up as the riders.”
Judy handed the file back to Corey. “It’s great to have an assistant who knows what to do,” she said.
Corey flushed with pleasure. Lately she’d been thinking that she wanted to be a vet like her mother and Judy. Maybe someday she’d be examining ponies before a show, just like this.
The cellular phone in the pocket of Judy’s blue blazer cheeped. It didn’t sound like a regular phone. It sounded more like a bug.
Judy pulled out the phone and opened it. “Hello,” she said. Her eyebrows shot up. “Jasmine.” She looked at May and Corey because she knew the three of them were best friends.
May and Corey moved closer. What could be wrong?
“I’ll be over as soon as I can,” Judy said. She looked down the aisle of the barn. “I’ve got ten more horses to check. Then I’ll be on my way.”
May and Corey looked at each other.
Judy closed the phone. “Outlaw twisted his ankle,” she said.
“We’ve got to go help Jasmine,” May said. She looked around for her father. He was standing
in the doorway of the office, talking to Mrs. Reg, Max’s mother. May ran over to him and said, “Jasmine just telephoned Judy and told her that Outlaw’s hurt. We have to go home right away.”
“I just finished. Let’s go,” Mr. Grover said. He went to get his horse.
May ran to the stall where Macaroni was munching on the hay in his feed net. He had the dreamy look he got when he was settling down for a long snooze.
“Outlaw is hurt,” May said.
Macaroni heard the worry in her voice. He shook his head and stood up straight. As she saddled him, May muttered, “I knew it. I knew something was going to go wrong.”
When May led Macaroni out to the mounting block, Corey was there already. Mr. Grover arrived a few seconds later.
“I hope it’s not serious,” Corey said.
May nodded grimly.
Mr. Grover opened the gate to the pasture. Jasmine’s barn seemed very far away.
“I wish we could gallop,” May said.
“No way,” Mr. Grover said. “The ground is mucky. It’s dangerous.”
When they got to the gate that led into Jasmine’s yard, Jasmine ran out of the barn, her hair tangled, her face white.
“I wrecked everything,” she said. “The Dream Team. Outlaw.”
Corey jumped off Sam and tied him to the fence. She put her arms around Jasmine.
May got off Macaroni and tied him. She put her arms around both her friends. “Judy’s on her way. She’ll know what to do.” May smoothed Jasmine’s tangled hair. “You’ve got to be calm and collected when Judy comes.”
Jasmine took a deep breath. “Poise, that’s what I need,” she said.
“Let’s go see Outlaw,” May said. The three girls ran into the barn.
Outlaw’s head was down, and his eyes were clouded. Usually he looked saucy and rambunctious. Now he looked miserable.
“I hate myself,” Jasmine groaned.
Out in the yard they heard the rattle of Judy Barker’s pickup truck. They heard Mr. James’s deep voice as he talked to her. Then Judy appeared in the doorway of the barn.
“Outlaw was running and he caught his foot,” Jasmine said.
Judy put her hand on Jasmine’s shoulder. “It’s wet and muddy in the fields. These things happen.”
Judy went into Outlaw’s stall and talked to him softly. She ran her hand over his back and down his neck, giving him time to get used to her presence. “Which ankle is it?” she asked over her shoulder.
“The right front one,” said Jasmine.
Gently Judy touched Outlaw’s ankle. He nickered but didn’t try to pull his foot away. She lifted his leg and moved his foot back and forth. She checked the inside of his hoof. Then she put his foot down. She straightened up and walked to the end of the stall. “He’ll have to take it easy until the beginning of next week, but then he’ll be fine. It’s a mild sprain.”
“You mean he’ll be okay?” said Jasmine.
Judy Barker smiled at Jasmine. “You can wrap his ankle. But mainly he needs to rest. He’s a strong, healthy pony. He’ll be fine.”
Jasmine burst into tears of relief.
Judy fished a packet of tissues out of her veterinarian’s bag. She offered one to Jasmine. “It seems like I’m always needing these,” she said gently. Jasmine figured this was Judy’s way of saying that it was okay to cry.
“I know you’ll take good care of him,” said Judy with a smile.
“Will I!” Jasmine said.
As Judy drove away, Jasmine said, “What a morning. I’m a frazzled wreck.”
“I know how to fix that,” said May with a confident smile. “Knock knock.”
A knock-knock joke! Sometimes, Jasmine thought, May can be pretty silly.
“Who’s there?” asked Jasmine.
“Wanda,” said May.
“Wanda … who?”
“Wanda come over and play?” said May.
“That’s the worst knock-knock joke I ever heard,” Corey said.
“I thought so myself,” said May proudly.
Suddenly Jasmine felt a little better. At first she’d been disappointed that she couldn’t ride in the show. Now she knew she could handle it.
“Now that I can’t be in the show, I’ll be your number one fan,” she said. “I’ll lead the cheers.”
“Excuse me?” said May.
“I’ll root you on to victory,” Jasmine said.
“Not so fast,” said May, crossing her arms.
“Outlaw has to rest. I can’t ride,” Jasmine said.
“You are going to ride,” May said.
“Without a pony?” Jasmine asked.
Corey was dying of curiosity. “What’s up?”
“I have a great idea,” May said.
“Not another great idea,” Jasmine groaned. “It’s been a rough day. I can’t take a great idea.”
“Wait till you hear this one,” May said. “We only have two ponies for three riders. But when did a little thing like that stop the Dream Team? We’ll share ponies. You can ride Macaroni in the Equitation Class and Samurai in the Relay Race.”
Jasmine knew how much May loved to ride in shows. “You’d do that for me? You’d give up riding in the Equitation Class?”
“I’m doing Macaroni a favor,” May said. “You’re a lot better at equitation than I am.”
“Not!” said Jasmine.
“I want you to ride in the Relay Race,” Corey said. “You’ll be great.”
Jasmine put her arms around her friends. “You two are the greatest. The Dream Team lives.”
“And it’s dreamier than ever,” said May.
5 A Bad Hair Day
When Jasmine woke on Saturday, the morning of the horse show, she was excited. She got up and put on her best riding clothes. She looked at herself in the mirror and saw that she looked like a real rider, not a beginner. She sighed with relief.
But something was missing. She stared at herself, trying to figure out what it could be. Her new black riding jacket was sleek and unwrinkled. Her black riding hat was velvety. Her boots gleamed.
So what was missing? She scratched her head, trying to remember. It began to come back to her. Head. Hair.
She remembered. She and May and Corey had agreed to wear ponytails to show that they were members of the Pony Tail Dream Team.
Jasmine didn’t usually wear a ponytail. Her hair was too flyaway for that. But she’d do anything for the Pony Tails. She went to the kitchen and got a rubber band. It was red and festive-looking. She thought it would be just right.
She took it upstairs and laid it on her dresser. Then she brushed her hair back. The top lay down nicely, but then the sides stuck out like crazy. She brushed the left side, and then the top and the right side stuck out. She brushed the right side, and the left side popped out.
“I hate my hair,” she muttered.
She took both hands and pulled her hair back. She crammed all her hair into one hand and grabbed the red rubber band and twisted it around her ponytail once and then twice. It stung. Her hair wasn’t used to being held so tight. She let go. Her ponytail stood out in all directions like a fan.
“I wish I were bald,” she said.
But she wasn’t bald, and she had to do something. She realized that her mother had hair just like hers. Her mother would know what to do. Jasmine went down the hall to her parents’ room.
The door was closed, so Jasmine knocked.
“Come in,” came her mother’s voice.
Jasmine opened the door. Her mother was sitting in bed with Sophie in her arms. Her mom had dark circles under her eyes.
“Sophie was coughing so much we called the doctor during the night,” Mrs. James said. “That’s why we shut the door. We didn’t want the noise to wake you.”
From the slump of her mother’s shoulders and the paleness of her face, Jasmine could tell that her mother hadn’t gotten much sleep.
“You look wonderful in your riding clothes,” said Mrs. James with a smile.
>
“I do?” said Jasmine. Obviously her mother was so tired that she couldn’t see straight.
“What’s wrong?” asked Mr. James. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, but he didn’t look quite as tired as Mrs. James. He could tell that something was bothering Jasmine.
“It’s my—” Jasmine began.
Sophie coughed. Her face turned red. Her eyes filled with tears.
“We’re taking her to the hospital,” Mrs. James said. “Dr. Santiago wants us there at ten.”
The hospital! Jasmine panicked.
“It’s just for tests,” Mrs. James said. “Dr. Santiago can’t do some tests at his office because he doesn’t have all the equipment he needs.”
How can going to the hospital not be serious? Jasmine wondered.
“Go downstairs and have some breakfast,” Mrs. James said to Jasmine. “You’re going to need lots of energy.”
When Jasmine got to the kitchen, she propped her horse book against the sugar bowl and read it while she tried to eat. “Heels down,” she read. “Hands up, knees in, back firm but not tense.” She raised a spoonful of cereal toward her mouth. It didn’t look tasty at all. She put it back in the bowl.
“A light and easy carriage should be maintained at all times,” she read. Her stomach began to hurt.
A few minutes later Mr. James came downstairs. “I’ll drive you to Pine Hollow,” he said. Then he took another look at her. “Are you okay?”
“I’m okay,” Jasmine said. She pulled her riding hat over her horrible ponytail and headed for the door.
6 Dead Last
“And now May the Magnificent and her marvelous mount, the magical Macaroni,” said May into an imaginary microphone. She and Corey had groomed and saddled Samurai and Macaroni. They had nothing left to do, so May was clowning around.
“Don’t you ever get nervous?” asked Corey.
“I am nervous,” May said. “This is what I do when I’m nervous. I act like a dope.” May raised her arms like a rock star quieting a crowd. “And now Corey the Courageous on her standout steed, Samurai.”
Corey couldn’t resist. She doffed her riding hat as if she were bowing to a crowd.
Jasmine's First Horse Show (Pony Tails Book 13) Page 2