“That’s okay,” Stevie said. “The lights in the indoor ring were bright enough. It looks almost like daylight on film.” She was glad that Belle seemed to remember her training pretty well, even though Stevie hadn’t had much time to work with her.
Stevie and Carole both stopped what they were doing and turned to watch as Lisa took Prancer through the small jump course she’d set up in the center of the ring. Prancer jumped every fence without knocking down a rail, but Carole and Stevie could see that Lisa wasn’t having an easy time getting her to do it. Prancer still hesitated before every jump, and Lisa had to urge her forward insistently with all her aids. That meant her scores in the hunter competition would be low, since the whole performance had a rough, choppy look and Lisa’s aids were much more noticeable than they should be for hunter jumping.
For the first time, Stevie started to put her mind to Lisa’s problems. Lisa had helped her out yesterday, and now Stevie wanted to return the favor if she could. “What do you think is holding her back?” Stevie asked as Lisa rode over to join her friends near the gate.
Lisa shrugged. She was breathing hard after the strenuous ride. “I don’t know,” she said when she caught her breath. She patted Prancer on the neck. “I had hoped she’d gain some confidence after she saw she could do it a few times without trouble. But she still seems nervous.”
“Try it again,” Stevie suggested. “We’ll watch her carefully and see if we can get any hints.”
Lisa nodded and turned Prancer back toward the first fence. Now that the entire Saddle Club was concentrating on the problem, maybe—just maybe—they could figure out what to do.
They took the course again. And again, Prancer jumped cleanly but awkwardly, ruining her form with her jerky pauses before each obstacle.
Lisa was shaking her head as she rejoined her friends. “Exactly the same,” she said grimly. “Any ideas?”
Carole had to admit that she didn’t have a single one.
“I have an idea,” Stevie said. Lisa and Carole turned to her hopefully. “My idea is that we should take a break and go on a trail ride.”
Her friends looked surprised. “But the competition is tomorrow,” Carole pointed out. “Don’t you think we should do all the practicing we can today?”
“There’s such a thing as overpreparing,” Stevie said.
Her friends thought that was a little strange, since as far as they knew Stevie and Belle had hardly prepared for this competition at all. But they had to agree that a trail ride sounded like a wonderful idea.
The three girls rode out of the stable yard and headed across the fields toward their favorite wooded trail. They kept their horses at a walk, not wanting to tire them too much the day before the competition. At first they didn’t talk. They just rode, enjoying the nice weather and each other’s company.
When they entered the woods, Lisa turned to glance at Stevie, who was just behind her. “The usual spot?” she asked.
Stevie nodded. Carole did, too.
A few minutes later, The Saddle Club had reached their favorite spot—a shady area overlooking the creek that had given their hometown of Willow Creek, Virginia, its name. They dismounted and headed down to sit by the tumbling stream, leaving their horses to rest and munch on the new spring grass that was just poking its way up in the clearing.
Lisa settled down on a large, mossy boulder and sighed. “This is nice,” she said.
“It sure is,” Stevie agreed. She perched on a smaller rock nearby and rested her arms on her knees.
Carole took a seat on the grassy bank of the creek. “It’s been a while since we’ve been on a trail ride, hasn’t it?”
“It’s been too long,” Lisa agreed. “I guess that’s because we’ve spent so much time trying to fix Prancer’s jumping problem”
“And I’ve been busy with my film,” Stevie added.
“That reminds me,” Carole said. “I wanted to apologize again about that, Stevie. I was thinking about it last night, and I realized we really weren’t fair about the whole thing.”
Lisa nodded. “That goes double for me,” she said. “We should have believed you when you said you’d given up practical jokes.” She paused. “Although in a weird way, I’m kind of sorry you turned out to be serious about that. Even though your pranks sometimes got to be too much, I have to admit I’m going to miss them.”
Carole nodded in agreement. She had been thinking the exact same thing. Somehow Stevie just wouldn’t seem quite as, well, Stevian when she wasn’t playing practical jokes all the time.
Lisa went on. “Anyway, we should have realized you really needed serious help with your film. Especially when you asked us to make it a Saddle Club project.”
“Right,” Carole said. “After all, that’s one of the most important things about being a member of The Saddle Club—asking for help and being sure you’ll get it.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Stevie said with a wave of her hand. “It’s all water over the bridge now. Or is it under the bridge? I can never remember. Anyway, the important thing is that you guys came through in the end.”
“I’m glad we wised up in time,” Carole said, rolling over on her stomach to examine a small blue flower that was sprouting nearby.
“Stevie made us wise up, remember?” Lisa corrected her. She smiled. “That was pretty clever, Stevie, getting Mr. French to play movie director! It really got our attention.”
Stevie grinned and shifted to a more comfortable position on the rock. “That was the point. And I think he had fun doing it, too.”
“Anyway,” Carole said, rolling onto her back once again, “the point is that it shouldn’t have been necessary.”
Lisa nodded. “We should have trusted you in the first place, Stevie.”
“That’s okay,” Stevie began. “Like I said, it’s all—”
Carole suddenly sat bolt upright. “That’s it,” she said.
Stevie and Lisa stared at her. “What’s what?” Lisa asked.
“That’s the answer to your problems with Prancer,” Carole said. “When you just said we should have trusted Stevie, I realized that trust is the key to your jumping problems, too.”
“What do you mean?” Stevie asked.
But Lisa had already figured it out. “You mean Prancer has to learn to trust me completely again before she’ll jump for me?” she said. She flicked an ant off her leg and shrugged. “I guess that’s probably true. But what can I do about it? After all, I didn’t have anything to do with that alarm going off in the first place. How can I convince her I can keep it from happening again?”
“I don’t know,” Carole admitted. “I just know that if you can get her to trust you as much as she did before, she’ll be able to jump just as confidently as she did before.”
“Easier said than done,” Lisa murmured. She knew Carole was trying to be helpful, but she didn’t see what good it did to know that Prancer didn’t trust her fully. Even if Lisa hadn’t put it in quite those words before, it had been obvious from the beginning that that was at least part of the problem.
Stevie frowned. “I can’t believe Veronica managed to cause so much trouble with one little prank,” she said. “It makes me gladder than ever that I decided to give up …” Her voice trailed off, and she looked thoughtful.
“What is it, Stevie?” Carole asked. Stevie had a very odd look on her face. It was the look she got whenever she came up with one of her wild schemes.
Carole and Lisa traded hopeful glances. Did this mean what they thought it meant? Was their friend Stevie ready to take up her crown again—the crown of Master of Practical Jokes?
Suddenly Stevie grinned. “I think I just figured out what’s missing from my film,” she said mysteriously. “And I also think I’ve got the perfect way to get back at Veronica for messing up your jumping, Lisa. I’ve just got to work out a few important details.…”
Carole and Lisa laughed and leaned forward to exchange high fives with their friend. The old Stevie
was back!
“WHAT DID RED SAY?” Lisa asked Stevie. It was Saturday, and the Pony Club hunter competition was scheduled to start in thirty minutes.
Stevie grinned and gave a thumbs-up sign. “He said we can go ahead,” she replied. “For a second I thought he was going to say no, but then he decided to play along—or rather, play dumb. I think he’s still mad at Veronica for that personal alarm thing, too.”
Lisa grinned back. Stevie’s latest scheme was up and running, and the good news was that Veronica diAngelo was going to pay—but big. The bad news was that Lisa still wasn’t sure what to do about Prancer. After the trail ride the day before, she had taken the mare through the jump course several more times. Prancer had been as hesitant as ever.
Finally, Lisa had given up and returned the mare to her stall, hoping that a miracle would happen overnight. But she knew better than that. When it came to training horses, there were no miracles, just hard work. Still, it seemed a shame to accept a low score in today’s competition when Prancer had come this far. It would be like letting Veronica win—in more ways than one. And no Stevie Lake revenge plot, no matter how clever, would be able to change that.
Carole was in Starlight’s stall when Veronica arrived twenty minutes later. The competitors were due in the ring in less than ten minutes, and the gelding was tacked up and ready to go. He seemed to be in good spirits, and Carole had high hopes for his performance in the competition. He was ready, and so was she. When she heard the familiar shriek of anger, she grinned. Giving Starlight a quick pat, she let herself out of the stall and hurried down the aisle toward Danny’s stall.
When she arrived, Stevie and Lisa were already there. Lisa was holding the Lakes’ camcorder in one hand, and both she and Stevie were trying hard not to laugh. Veronica was standing in the aisle, holding Danny’s lead line and practically hopping up and down with fury.
Danny gazed down at his owner, unperturbed and not seeming to realize or care how ridiculous he looked. His mane and tail were intertwined with gaudy multicolored ribbons. His legs were carefully wrapped with neon orange bandages. His sides were striped with an intricate pattern of painted black lines, making him look a little like a zebra. And someone had painted a bright-yellow smiley face right in the middle of his forehead, just below the brow band of his bridle.
Carole grinned when she saw that. It was a real Stevie Lake touch. “What did she use to paint that on him?” she whispered to Lisa.
“Nontoxic poster paint,” she whispered back. “The stripes, too.”
Carole was impressed with Stevie’s cleverness. She had known the basics of the plan. But her contribution had been to tack up Belle and Prancer, as well as Starlight, so that her friends could get Danny ready before Veronica arrived. So she hadn’t seen the results until this minute. Now that she saw them, she knew the plan was brilliant. There was no chance Veronica could get Danny looking normal again in the next ten minutes. And there was even less of a chance that the snobby girl would ride him looking like some kind of weird circus horse.
“He looks, um, wonderful,” Carole said with a giggle. She glanced at Veronica. “You must be so proud.”
Veronica whirled angrily to face her. “You shut up, Carole Hanson,” she screeched. “I know why you three jerks did this. You all want Danny and me out of the show because you can’t stand the competition. You knew we’d win.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Stevie saw that Lisa had raised the camcorder and was taping the scene. Luckily Veronica hadn’t noticed. “Get real, Veronica,” Stevie said, tossing her head. “There’s no way you could beat The Saddle Club. Not on your best day and our worst.”
“Ha!” Veronica put her hands on her hips and glared daggers at Stevie. “What a joke! Danny’s the best horse in this entire stable, and I’m a better rider than all three of you put together. You’re just jealous, that’s all. You’re jealous of me, and my horse, and—and—”
“And your horse’s wardrobe?” Stevie supplied helpfully.
Veronica just sputtered for a moment. Her face turned redder than ever. Finally she found her voice again. “I hate you, Stevie Lake!” she shrieked, her hands clenched into fists. “I hate you! I wish I had my personal alarm with me today! I’d set it off again, and this time I’d make sure I did it while you were riding so you’d fall off in front of everybody! Then we’d see what you had to say!”
Lisa’s eyes widened. This was an unexpected bonus. Not only was Veronica confessing to setting off her alarm on purpose, but she was doing it on tape! She kept the camera rolling, not wanting to miss a thing.
Suddenly Veronica noticed what Lisa was doing. “What’s that?” she snapped. “A camera? Turn that off! Who gave you permission to film me?”
“She just wants some candid shots of Danny looking his best,” Carole piped in. “Maybe the local TV station will want to show them on the news tonight.”
Veronica snarled at Carole, then turned back to Lisa. “Turn that off right now, I say!” she yelled. “Turn it off, or I’ll turn it off for you!” When Lisa didn’t respond, Veronica tried to carry out her threat. She lunged at Lisa with an outraged shriek, her newly manicured fingernails splayed like weapons.
Lisa jumped back out of range, a little worried. She had never seen Veronica so angry. Luckily, at that moment Red O’Malley stepped out from around the corner. Moving calmly and smoothly, he stepped over to Veronica and grabbed her firmly by both arms.
“That’s enough of that, Veronica,” he said quietly.
“What are you doing?” Veronica screamed. By now her long black hair had come loose from its neat braid. One strand had fallen into her face and gotten stuck in her freshly applied lipstick. “Take your hands off me!”
“Not until you calm down,” Red said firmly.
Veronica struggled for a few seconds, then seemed to realize that Red was much stronger than she was. Finally she held still. “All right,” she said icily. “I’m calm. Now let me go.”
Red did so. “Are you all right, Lisa?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” Lisa replied. She switched off the camera and glanced at Stevie. Stevie winked, looking pleased as punch.
Red glanced at Danny, who had been watching the entire scene disinterestedly. “You’re lucky you didn’t spook your horse,” he said.
Veronica tossed her head. “Danny’s a pro,” she said. Her voice was returning to its normal haughty tone. “And now that you’re here, you can help me get this ridiculous getup off him so we can be ready in time for the competition. Max will just have to let us go near the end.”
Red shook his head. “I don’t think so, Veronica,” he said. “Once Max hears that you set that alarm off on purpose, you’re not going to be in any shows here for a long time.”
Stevie grinned. This was turning out even better than she had planned.
“What do you mean?” Veronica asked with a frown. “My personal alarm went off by accident. I told Max that when it happened.”
“But you just told these young ladies something different,” Red said. “I was in the next aisle, and I clearly heard you say you set the alarm off the first time and wished you could do it again.”
Veronica shrugged and started to tuck her hair back in place. “You must have misunderstood,” she said, smiling calmly. “I’m sure I said no such thing.”
“I’m sure you did,” Lisa said. She held up the camera. “And what’s more, I can prove it.”
Veronica’s calm smile changed to an expression of rage. Once again, she launched herself at Lisa. But Red caught her again.
“Come on, Veronica,” he said grimly. “Let’s go have a little talk with Max, shall we?” As he dragged her away, he glanced back at The Saddle Club. “You three wouldn’t mind looking after Danny, would you?”
“Of course not,” Stevie called after him. “We’re always glad to help out!”
* * *
LISA GULPED DOWN a knot of nervousness as she trotted Prancer around the front paddock to warm
her up. There were only two more riders to go, and then it would be their turn.
She turned and watched as Polly Giacomin rode into the ring. Polly’s horse, a brown gelding named Romeo, jumped a little when the audience began to applaud, but he calmed down quickly.
“At least you’re used to the roar of the crowd, right, girl?” Lisa told Prancer quietly, giving her a pat. In her days as a racehorse, Prancer had had to deal with much larger crowds than this. There were dozens of people watching the hunter competition, including the members of the new Pony Club and their adult chaperones, the young riders from Pine Hollow who had already ridden or hadn’t gone yet, and a number of parents and adult riders who had come to watch. At one end of the ring sat the three judges, Max, Red, and Mrs. Reg. Max’s wife, Deborah, sat nearby in front of a table of gaily colored ribbons that would be awarded at the end of the show. Phil was standing next to her, chatting with Mr. French.
Lisa watched as Polly and Romeo went through the course. They began at a smooth and even pace and approached the first fence perfectly. Romeo nodded his head a little after he had cleared it, as if congratulating himself, and Lisa smiled. The pair went over the next three fences just as easily, but at the next one they ran into some trouble. Romeo didn’t lift his hind feet enough as he went over, and his hoof clipped the top rail, bringing it down with a clatter. The noise seemed to unnerve him, and he brought a rail down on the next fence as well. The audience groaned in sympathy. After that, Polly managed to steady him, and they finished the course without another major fault. She looked disappointed as she tipped her hat to the judges, and Lisa didn’t blame her.
“We all want to do well today, don’t we?” she murmured to Prancer as Polly rode out of the ring and the next rider rode in. “At least, I know I want to do well. And I hope you do, too.” She sighed as she said it. Despite their best efforts, The Saddle Club hadn’t been able to come up with a solution to Prancer’s jumping problem.
Horse Capades Page 8