Saddle Sore

by Bonnie Bryant

  “Not ride!” Stevie said. “We couldn’t not ride!”

  “Tell Christine good luck for us, please, Kate,” Lisa said, “but we were planning to spend the afternoon in the saddle.”

  Kate smiled. “She’ll be less nervous without an audience, anyway,” she said. “I know she’ll understand.”

  “Ask her to come back and ride with us,” Carole said. “She needs to meet Emily.”

  Kate agreed readily. “Don’t show Emily all the good spots until I get back.”

  “How could we?” Stevie asked. “We can’t ride fast enough to see all the good spots in one afternoon.”

  THE SADDLE CLUB and Emily offered to clean up the kitchen so that Kate and her mother could leave. Stevie cleared the table, Emily started filling the dishwasher, and Carole and Lisa began to put the extra food away. Suddenly a thought occurred to Lisa. “They didn’t eat!” she said.

  “The honeymoon couples? Kate remembered to put their baskets out,” Carole replied.

  “No, Monica and her parents. They didn’t come to lunch. Should we make them a basket, too?”

  Carole paused from pouring leftover chips back into their bag. “I don’t know. They must have heard the lunch bell. Wouldn’t they have come by now?”

  “Maybe they aren’t hungry,” Emily suggested. “Maybe they had lunch in the car on the way here.”

  “Or maybe they’re just getting settled,” Lisa said. “My mother always likes to unpack before she does anything.”

  “Since they’ve been here before, they’ll know where they can get food if they’re hungry,” Carole said. “I guess they probably don’t need a basket. What do you think the chances are that Monica will come riding with us this afternoon?”

  “Slim,” Lisa said. She grabbed a wet cloth and wiped the countertop down. “She doesn’t think she can do it, remember?”

  “She might change her mind and want to try,” Emily said. They all agreed that this was possible.

  When they were finished with the kitchen, they went outside and looked at the long row of bunkhouses. “That’s Monica’s, the third one down,” Lisa said, pointing. “I saw Colonel Devine and Mr. Hopkins carrying their luggage in.”

  Carole bit her lip. “Do you think we should go ask Monica to ride?” she asked. She hated to think of Monica’s being left out, but on the other hand the girl hadn’t acted very friendly, and she didn’t know them at all. Probably she wouldn’t come with them.

  Stevie looked at the quiet bunkhouse and shook her head. “Let’s give her until tomorrow. We’ll ask her then.” They all agreed.

  They started to walk back to the barn, but before they were halfway there, Colonel Devine came out of one of the outbuildings and began to walk alongside them. “Do you all have specific plans for this afternoon?” he asked.

  “We’re riding,” said Stevie.

  He laughed. “I guessed that. I mean, do you have somewhere special you’re planning on riding?”

  “Everywhere seems special here,” Carole said. “But no, we’re saving all the extraspecial rides for when Kate and Christine can be with us.”

  Colonel Devine grinned. “Then maybe, since Kate isn’t here, you’d spend the afternoon with me. I’ve got a few new trails to show you.”

  “New trails? Cool!” said Stevie.

  Inside the barn, John proudly showed off the narrow shelves he’d built into the aisle. He’d added one near every pair of cross-ties, and he’d put them on hinges so that they could fold against with the wall when not in use. “I rounded the corners, too,” he said, “so that if a horse bumps into one, it won’t get scratched.”

  Emily examined the shelves with pleasure. “Gosh, we should have you come to Free Rein!” she said. “These are fancy!”

  “Wait until you see the rest of our handiwork,” Colonel Devine said. He saddled up a big Appaloosa gelding for himself, and before long they were all ready to ride.

  “Here we go,” Colonel Devine said, leading the way at a swinging walk. He rode behind the barn and followed the paddock fence for a little while. Where the fence ended a small patch of scrub and a stand of pine trees began. The land rolled away toward a wide stream.

  “This is pretty!” Carole exclaimed. “I didn’t know this was here.”

  “It’s so close to the ranch house, it’s easy to overlook,” Colonel Devine replied. “Now, do you see my markers?” He pointed to a row of small, widely separated wooden signs, bearing the numbers 1 through 6. “Which one first, ladies?”

  “Begin at the beginning, I guess.” Lisa was mystified. “Are these riding trails?” Now that she looked, she could see several wide paths leading into the woods and brush. The Bar None was so big that the horses rarely wore trails in the earth even along the most popular rides. There was simply too much grass. But these looked as if they were cut on purpose.

  “Trail Number One it is.” Colonel Devine rode toward it. “We can fit three abreast on these trails. Emily, you come up here and ride beside me. I’ll want your opinions.”

  Emily rode forward with a smile on her face. “You made these trails, didn’t you?”

  He grinned back. “You’re a fine rider,” he said, “and I know you can handle anything on this ranch. But as you know, our ranch has always welcomed beginner riders. On a quiet, well-trained horse, with proper supervision and if they take it slow, most beginners can ride over most of our land, too. But if you have a beginner rider who’s also disabled—”

  “A lot of the riders at Free Rein are more disabled than me,” Emily said, nodding her head understandingly. “Some of the people who use wheelchairs all the time probably won’t ever be able to ride safely without having someone lead their horse or walk beside it to make sure they don’t fall.”

  “Leaders and sidewalkers,” Colonel Devine said. “I know all about it. See? I’ve been doing a lot of research.

  “I don’t want to limit our guests to just riding in the paddocks, no matter what their circumstances. I want them to be able to enjoy the land. That’s why I developed these trails, and that’s why they’re so wide—so that the leaders and sidewalkers would have enough room.”

  Emily looked around. Trail Number One was a simple walk through pine trees. Sunlight filtered coolly through the branches, and the air smelled sharp. Birds twittered. They could hear the gurgling of the nearby stream. The path was wide, as Colonel Devine had said; it was also smooth and flat, with none of the rocks or bumps she’d noticed elsewhere. “I think you were really smart,” she said. “People will love it here.”

  “I hope so,” he replied. “Guests only come back a second time if they’ve enjoyed the first. Now, as we ride along, try to imagine that some of the other people from Free Rein are here. Tell me if you think I should change anything. Okay?”

  “Okay,” Emily promised. She closed her eyes briefly. The wind blew against her face. The pine scent seemed sharper. “Even the blind people will love it,” she said.

  “Blind riders?” Colonel Devine sounded surprised.

  “Sure,” Emily said. “We’ve got tons of them at Free Rein. I know one girl who jumps.”

  “How could she?”

  Emily shrugged. “Her horse can see.”

  They rounded a bend and Emily saw to her surprise that they were back at the barn.

  “Trail Number One is the shortest,” Colonel Devine explained, as they waited for The Saddle Club, who had fallen a little behind. “It’s only half a mile long. I figured that might be enough for some of the walkers. I end all the trails at the barn, too, to make things easier on everyone. Ready for Trail Number Two?”

  Each trail was a little different, and they were progressively longer; Trail Number Six lasted nearly three miles and included two shallow stream crossings. Colonel Devine had graded the crossings and added sand to keep them smooth. “What about the walkers here?” Emily asked, as Spot splashed across. “Will they have to get their feet wet?”

  “We’ll tell them to wear waterproof boots for
Number Six,” Colonel Devine replied. “Foot-bridges would just wash out in the spring floods. A crossing is easier for us to maintain.”

  Since they stayed at a quiet walk, riding the six trails took up the entire afternoon. Back at the barn, Colonel Devine had one final question for Emily. “Mr. Brightstar and I have been talking, and we could fence in Trail Number One,” he said. “If we ran a rail fence down both sides—”

  “No,” Emily cut in firmly. She leaned against Spot, gathering her strength before sliding his heavy saddle off. “No fences.”

  “But I thought—”

  “No fences,” Emily persisted. “Not here.”

  Colonel Devine grinned. “All right, then.”

  Mr. Brightstar came up to speak to Colonel Devine, and John followed and offered to take care of the horse. Colonel Devine agreed, and the two men went off, talking urgently.

  “There’s a problem with the water pump in the calf pasture,” John explained to Emily. He turned toward her just in time to see her nearly drop Spot’s saddle in the aisle. He grabbed it quickly. “Whoa, Emily! What’s wrong?”

  Emily started to lose her balance. She caught herself and sat down on the hay bale that was still in the aisle. “I guess I’m tired,” she said. “My legs aren’t cooperating, and I’m even having trouble straightening my arms.”

  John bent forward. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Lisa!” He motioned her over. Lisa and the rest of The Saddle Club came quickly.

  “What’s wrong?” Lisa asked.

  “I’m just tired,” Emily said. “I always have a little more trouble when I’m tired. Please, it’s no big deal, I promise. Only, would one of you mind putting Spot’s saddle away for me? I can handle everything else.”

  “Sure.” Stevie took the saddle from John and swung it onto her hip. “These things are a lot heavier than English saddles, anyway.”

  “Is there anything else we can do?” Carole asked. Lisa went back to Chocolate’s side, but Carole stayed near Emily, just in case. Emily did look tired, and the tiredness seemed to be making the muscles in her arms and legs more tense than usual.

  “No,” Emily said. “I’m fine, I promise. A hot bath is all I need. And dinner. I’m starving.”

  “Me too. Whenever we ride this much, we always get this hungry. Colonel Devine said we were having chicken and noodles.”

  “Great!” Emily stood and started to brush Spot off. Carole returned to Berry. John finished taking care of Colonel Devine’s horse and put Spot out in the pasture for Emily. Just as they finished tidying the barn, the supper bell rang.

  On the way to the ranch house, Emily walked much more slowly than usual. Her friends kept pace with her. Lisa tried not to show how anxious she felt. What if all that riding had done Emily some harm?

  “Lisa,” Emily said, as if she could read her thoughts, “if you don’t stop hovering over me I’m going to hit you with my crutch. Think about it. You guys have seen me this tired before—it’s when I usually resort to using my wheelchair.” She tripped and fell but got up quickly.

  “I could get your wheelchair,” Stevie volunteered. “It would only take a second.”

  Emily continued forward. “For a two-minute walk to the ranch house? Please, don’t be silly.” She fell again. “Okay,” she said as she stood back up, “so it’s becoming a two-hour walk to the ranch house. I still don’t want my wheelchair. I want to let it get all dusty and cobwebby under my bunk. I’m not going to use it at all this week.”

  Lisa could see how determined Emily was. “We want to do what’s best for you,” she said.

  “What’s best for me is a big plate of chicken and noodles. That, and no wheelchair. See, Stevie?” she added, as she started up the ramp to the ranch house porch. “It didn’t take me two hours after all.”

  “You’re the one who said it would,” Stevie retorted. “I never thought it would take you longer than an hour and a half.”

  Emily laughed. “I’m glad to be around people who have faith in me.”

  Carole opened the door to the house. “We’re just glad to be around you,” she said.

  INSIDE, ONLY SEVEN places were set for dinner. As the girls sat down, Kate and Mrs. Devine came out of the kitchen with big platters of chicken and noodles and steamed vegetables. Carole jumped up to help them bring out rolls and fruit salad.

  “Where is everybody?” Stevie asked.

  Kate and Mrs. Devine looked at each other. “Well, the honeymooners are taking some more moonlight rides,” Mrs. Devine said. Colonel Devine came in and sat down, and they all started eating.

  “Monica won’t come to dinner,” Kate added sadly. “Her mom came and got some food to take back to their bunkhouse.”

  “She said Monica was tired from the trip,” Mrs. Devine explained, putting a sympathetic arm around Kate’s shoulder.

  “She also said Monica was embarrassed,” Kate said, sounding disappointed and hurt. “She came up to Mom and whispered, ‘Monica doesn’t want the girls to see her with, you know, one leg.’ As if we cared about that!”

  “Plus, we’ve already seen her with, ‘you know, one leg,’ ” Stevie said. “That doesn’t make sense. She’s not likely to grow a new leg while she’s here, so unless she plans on staying inside her bunkhouse the whole time, we’re going to see her with one leg.”

  “I know,” Kate said gloomily. “I wish—I mean, we were friends. Why would she be embarrassed to be around me?”

  “Don’t be hard on her,” Carole said gently. “Everything’s still so new for her that it’s got to be difficult. This is only her first night here, and she doesn’t know us at all. No wonder she’s feeling shy. Kate, I’m sure she still counts you as a friend—she’s just having a hard time right now.”

  “Anyone would be,” Lisa said. She couldn’t imagine the adjustment it would take. “I’m sure she’ll feel better by the end of the week.”

  “Unfortunately,” Mrs. Devine said, as she passed the vegetables to Stevie, “I don’t think the Hopkinses are going to stay here that long.”

  “Mom!” Kate said. “They made reservations for a week!”

  “Monica’s miserable,” Mrs. Devine replied. “She’s so unhappy that they really regret coming. Mrs. Hopkins told me she and her husband never thought it was a good idea. Monica’s been crying all afternoon. She can’t ride, she says, and that’s all she ever did when they came here before.”

  “I suppose seeing us all on horseback didn’t help,” Kate said gloomily. She set her fork down and pushed the plate away.

  “How ever Monica’s feeling right now, it’s not your fault,” her father told her sternly. “You just go on being her friend as best you can, and let her work out her problems.” He spoke to his wife. “Monica should be able to ride, though, shouldn’t she? I can’t think of a reason why she shouldn’t. She can start on our new trails, if she feels unsteady—but she was such a good rider, I’m sure she’ll be able to compensate.”

  Emily spoke up. “Her seat’ll feel the same, and she’ll be able to use the reins just as well. Did she ever ride English?”

  Kate shook her head. “Just Western. She used to barrel race sometimes.”

  “She’ll have to get used to carrying a crop, to substitute for leg signals, but that won’t be too hard,” Emily continued. “I think once she’s on a horse she’ll do okay. It’s getting her on one that might be the problem.”

  Stevie took a roll and tore it into pieces. She spread butter on each piece. “Maybe we could make a plan,” she said excitedly. “We can trick her into riding. Maybe Kate can ride Moonglow over to the Hopkinses’ bunkhouse, and then she can fall off and pretend to be injured. The only way Monica will be able to get help fast enough is to hop on Moonglow and gallop—”

  “Forget it,” Carole said. “That’ll never work. In the first place, the bunkhouse is only fifty yards from here. Kate could yell and someone would hear her. In the second place, Monica’s mom and dad are right there with her, so one of them would do all
the rescuing, anyway.”

  “Okay,” said Stevie, undaunted. She stuffed two pieces of roll into her mouth and chewed hard, thinking. “Okay, how about this. We lure Monica out—”

  “Forget that, too,” Emily said. “We can’t make her ride. We can’t make her do anything. She has to come to terms with being disabled on her own. We can encourage her, but we can’t force her. The last thing she needs, Stevie, is one of your schemes. Monica needs to decide to ride on her own.”

  Stevie sighed. “I guess you’re right.”

  “I know I am,” Emily said.

  Colonel Devine changed the subject, telling Kate and his wife all about that afternoon’s ride. “I think they liked our trails,” he said proudly.

  “Did you?” Kate grinned. “I hope so. I helped lay them out, you know, and John and I hauled brush away until we thought we’d die from over-work and exhaustion.”

  “They’re fantastic,” Emily said. “Everybody at Free Rein would love to ride somewhere this beautiful.”

  “Emily had a few good ideas,” Colonel Devine continued. “She thought we should put benches halfway through the longer trails, so the leaders would have a place to sit down and rest. And she thought we ought to cut down that low branch you warned me about, Kate.”

  “I told you so,” Kate replied.

  “Emily’s been thinking hard all day,” Stevie said with a grin. “The rest of us, we’re not thinking about anything except where to ride next, and what we can eat when we’re finished riding.”

  “Tomorrow we’re going to combine them,” Lisa said, “We’ll take a picnic breakfast, if that’s okay.”

  “Sure,” Mrs. Devine agreed. “I’m already doing that for the honeymooners.”

  Emily dropped her fork with a clatter. “Sorry,” she said with a blush. “I told The Saddle Club in the barn, I’m a little tired tonight.”