“Making a present for one of the horses.”
“Which one?”
“Trooper.”
Caitlyn frowned. “I don’t know him.”
“He’s new.”
“Oh.” Caitlyn shrugged. “Want to come play in the hay barn today? My fort’s really cool, and no one’s allowed up there except me and whoever I invite. Which is just Tanya and you.” She wrinkled her nose. “Not Kyle. He’d ruin it. And Alison thinks she’s too good for hanging out in the hay barn, even though she used to do it all the time.”
Emily smiled at the invitation and the hopeful look on Caitlyn’s face. “Yeah, okay. I’ll try to come later.” She remembered well the days of having no one to play with when her dad was at work and she was stuck with a boring babysitter. Life was much better after she starting hanging out at the barn and had horses to take care of all the time and friends to hang out with.
“Really? When? Now?”
“After lunch.”
“Cool!” Caitlyn jumped off the chair and rushed back upstairs, shrieking with excitement.
Emily carefully picked up Trooper’s medal, realizing that Caitlyn’s invitation had made her feel really good. Despite her dad’s claim that this was family, the only time she’d felt like anyone at the farm actually cared about her was when Uncle Rick had hugged her hard when he found her in the field, and even that hadn’t lasted once he got the call about Trooper needing his help. No one else here even seemed to care much about her, or barely even like her. Except Sapphire.
And now Caitlyn. She might be only seven, but that little offer made Emily feel like she actually belonged here, even if just a tiny bit.
She shoved some extra baby carrots in her pocket for Sapphire and headed out to the barn, promising herself she’d go to the hay barn later on, even if it was only for five minutes.
She reached Trooper’s stall only to find the door open and the stall empty. She frowned and looked around, but he was nowhere to be seen. Turned out in a field? He’d like that.
“Emily?”
She whirled around to find Aunt Debby standing behind her, and her gut dropped with apprehension as she realized she was finally going to get her punishment for stealing Sapphire. How bad would it be?
17
Emily felt heat rise in her cheeks as she waited for the lecture on taking Sapphire out for a run. “Where’s Trooper?” She held out the medal. “I made this for him. It’s a medal of honor for saving all those horses.”
Something flickered across Aunt Debby’s face, something that made Emily’s belly tighten.
“Come with me for a minute.” Aunt Debby put her arm around Emily’s shoulders and led her to a hay bale. She sat Emily down and sat beside her, keeping her arm around her.
It felt good, but also, it felt weird. Why would Aunt Debby hug her right before she yelled at her?
“That was very nice of you to make Trooper a medal.”
Emily laid the medal in her lap and straightened out a carrot that had gotten twisted in her pocket. The hay prickled the back of her legs, and she wished she’d worn jeans. “He deserves it.”
“He does.” Aunt Debby looked down at Emily. Her face was sad. “Hon, Trooper’s injury to his side was really infected and his leg was shattered. It was unbelievable he had the strength to get as far as he did from the farm.”
Emily nodded. “That’s why I made him the medal.”
“Yes.” Aunt Debby cleared her throat. “See, the thing is, once Trooper got all the horses free, he’d accomplished his goal. He didn’t have to keep fighting.”
A sense of dread began to rise inside Emily. She stared at her aunt. “What are you saying?”
“Early this morning, Trooper passed away.”
Tears swelled in Emily’s eyes. “He died?” Her voice broke and she clutched Trooper’s medal to her chest.
Aunt Debby’s arm tightened around her. “Yes, it’s a sad thing, sweetie.”
Tears were streaming down Emily’s face, and her chest burned with grief. “But he can’t die…”
“He saved all his friends, and he got to go to a place where he wasn’t in pain anymore.”
Emily stared at the empty stall across from her and started crying harder. “But I made him a medal—”
“Oh, hon.” Aunt Debby wrapped her arms around Emily and hugged her, holding her tight. “We can cry for him because we miss him, but we also need to remember the forty horses he saved. For him, we need to take care of them.”
Emily clung to Aunt Debby, burying her face against her aunt’s shirt as the sobs wracked her body. “But he was such a hero. He isn’t supposed to die—”
“Maybe he was. Maybe that was his job. To save them all so they could live and be happy.” Aunt Debby kissed the top of Emily’s head and rocked her gently as Emily’s sobs began to subside. “He did his job, and now we do ours. It’s a team effort.”
Emily sniffled, clinging to her aunt as she tried to stop crying, but her breath kept catching in her chest.
“So with all these horses, I’m going to need help around here. Will you help?”
Emily swallowed hard and tried to sit up. Aunt Debby released her but kept her hand on Emily’s back, and Emily didn’t mind at all. It felt good. Like Aunt Debby really cared. “I guess, yeah.”
Aunt Debby gave her a real smile that made Emily suddenly feel better. Even her aunt’s eyes were smiling in a really nice way. “That would be great. What I need for you to do is to go in and clean up each horse. Give each of them a nice warm bath, brush them so all the dead hair comes out, clean out their feet. Make them feel better.”
Emily nodded and sniffled again. “I can do that.”
“But if one of the horses has a bandage on, check with your dad, Uncle Rick, or me first, okay? And if there’s a little red sticker on the horse’s name card, then don’t go in. That means they are cranky.”
“I’d be cranky if I lived in a mud pit and no one fed me.”
Aunt Debby hugged her. “I think we all would. Now, hop to it. There are lots of horses that need a good scrubbing.”
Emily stood up, clutching Trooper’s medal to her chest. “Okay.”
“And Emily?”
She winced at the change of tone in her aunt’s voice and turned to face her, raising her chin even though her knees had started to shake. “What?”
“Did you see Sapphire got hurt?”
She bit her lip. “Yeah.”
“And you did, too.”
Her ankle throbbed as soon as she thought about it. “Yeah.”
“That’s why I didn’t want you riding him.”
“It was a onetime thing. An accident.”
Aunt Debby frowned. “You still believe that?”
“Well, of course. He jumped a stream, and I wasn’t ready. He bolted once, and I stayed on fine through that. I wouldn’t let him do it again.”
Aunt Debby sighed. “I’m sorry you feel that way. I was hoping you’d learned your lesson, and I was going to give you a break, given how everything turned out.” She stood up. “But until I see a better sense of responsibility from you, no more riding unless you’re in a lesson with me. And I don’t want you near Sapphire at all.”
“What?” Tears stung the back of Emily’s eyes, but she refused to let Aunt Debby see them. “But I’m a good rider—”
“That’s not the point. The point is that you don’t respect the dangers of riding, and you aren’t responsible enough to be permitted to ride on your own. When you show me you are, then you can ride freely and I’ll be able to trust you with Sapphire.”
“But—”
“Trooper’s friends need you. You’ll be plenty busy with them. You won’t let Trooper down, will you?”
“No, but—”
“Good. I’ll see you later. I need to go help Uncle Rick with his rounds here so he can get out on the road.” Then she turned and walked away, leaving Emily standing in the aisle outside Trooper’s empty stall.
Emily felt her lower lip begin to tremble, and she quickly shook it off. Aunt Debby wanted to see responsibility? She’d show her responsibility. She’d take such good care of Trooper’s friends that Aunt Debby would have no choice but to admit she was wrong.
Emily deserved to have Sapphire in her life, and she was going to prove it.
18
Late that afternoon Emily shoved the metal hoof pick into the chunk of mud packed in Precious’s left hind foot. She’d already given Precious a bath, the seventh bath she’d given today. Her ankle was killing her, but she was refusing to acknowledge it. She had to keep going. Every time she stopped, she thought of Trooper and Sapphire and started to cry.
So, she didn’t stop.
“Got grounded, huh?”
Emily lifted her head, and sighed when she saw Alison leaning on the door, her elbows draped over it, her chin propped on her hands. “Are you going to make fun of me?”
Alison’s eyebrows went up. “Why would I do that?”
“Because you don’t like me.”
Alison’s eyebrow went even higher, disappearing under her bangs. “Says who?”
Emily frowned and draped her arm over Precious’s back, too tired to hold herself up. “Well, because I do dressage and stuff. You’ve barely spoken to me since I got here.”
“You’ve barely talked to me!”
“What? No way. It’s all you!”
“Me? Not even close. You’re the one who hates me!”
They stared at each other, then they both dissolved into giggles. “I thought you hated me,” Emily admitted.
“I thought you thought you were too good for me,” Alison said. “But after you’ve spent all day out here working on these horses, well, I thought that was kind of cool of you.”
Emily grinned. “Really?”
“Yeah. You didn’t have to help out like that.” Alison shrugged. “It’s cool.” She eyed Emily. “I also thought that was sort of…Well, I was sort of impressed that you took Sapphire out even when you weren’t supposed to. I didn’t realize you cared that much about him or riding or anything.”
Emily felt her cheeks heat up, and she decided not to tell Alison it was the first rule she’d ever broken. Or first big rule. Her dad had rules, but he didn’t really care if she followed them or not. “Yeah, well, it didn’t really turn out that great….”
“True.” Alison’s smile faded. “So, did you hear about Trooper?”
Emily swallowed hard and thought of the medal she’d broken up and doled out to Trooper’s friends. “Yeah. That was really sad.”
“I know.” Alison picked at a stray piece of hay stuck in the door. “He reminded me of my first pony. Same color.”
“Really? What was his name?”
“Sammy.” Alison smiled. “He was a terror. I fell off him about ten times a day.”
“Do you still have him?”
“No, we sold him.”
“Oh.” Emily scratched Precious’s withers. “Do you think your mom’s going to sell Sapphire?”
“Definitely. She’s been counting on it since she got him.” Alison eyed her. “I’m surprised you’re even allowed in the barn. She went crazy when she saw the swelling in his leg.”
Emily picked up a towel and began rubbing it over Precious’s damp coat. She got upset all over again about losing Sapphire and making him get hurt, so she changed the subject. “Caitlyn said you got grounded last month. What did you do?”
“I took one of the horses over the jumps when no one was home.”
Emily shot a glance at her. “So?”
“That’s what I thought! But my mom freaked because if I’d fallen off and gotten hurt, no one would have been around to save me.” Alison rolled her eyes and stuck the piece of hay between her teeth. “I fall off all the time. Who cares, right?”
“Totally. Falling off isn’t a big deal.”
“Except when you injure yourself.” They both looked at her leg. “Does it hurt?” Alison asked.
“It kills.”
“So why aren’t you inside on the couch?”
Emily raised her brows. “I have stuff to do.”
Alison grinned, a smile that said she knew exactly what Emily meant. “Last year I broke my arm and had to wear a cast and a sling. Didn’t miss a day of riding.”
“I broke my finger two years ago on the day of a show, and I rode all day before I told anyone it was broken. It was so swollen I couldn’t even bend it, but I still came in third.”
“Well, I got stepped on wearing flip-flops three years ago and broke four bones in my foot. Rode the next day.”
“With stirrups?”
“Without.”
“That’s the only way.”
“Totally.”
They exchanged a smile that made Emily feel like she’d finally made a friend. Alison might be a wild rider and be a little crazy, but in some ways they were the same. They understood each other. “I have to run,” Alison said. “I have to exercise a few of the horses while my mom worms all the new arrivals. Later!”
Emily felt a twinge of jealousy as she watched Alison stride away, pulling her riding helmet onto her head and strapping it under her chin. Precious snorted as she munched on the hay, and Emily sighed, turning back to work on her coat again. “I’m going to prove to Aunt Debby that I’m trustworthy. I’ll find a way.” She had to find a way to be allowed to ride Sapphire, let alone visit him in his stall. She had to.
But how?
19
Three days later Emily was furious. She’d worked in the barn for twelve hours a day, taken care of all the new horses, been incredibly responsible, and still Aunt Debby refused to let her visit Sapphire. It was time to get help. “Dad!”
Her dad had Jaws on the cross ties in the main aisle, and he was trimming the horse’s feet. Amazingly enough, her dad actually knew how to shoe horses as well. It blew her mind what a horsey guy he was and that he’d never told her. Jaws hadn’t bitten anyone else since he’d arrived at Running Horse Ridge, and Emily knew it was because he felt the love, but she almost wanted him to bite her dad for holding out on her.
Her dad glanced up, his curved knife in his hand as he carved off some of the overgrown hoof. “What’s going on, Em?”
She stood next to him, patting Jaws, wincing at the feel of his ribs under her touch. “So, I overheard the conversation the other night. About how the farm needs money and stuff.”
Her dad gave her a stern look. “You shouldn’t eavesdrop.”
“I know, but I did anyway.”
He raised his brows. “Emily—”
“So, anyway, what if you bought Sapphire? Then Aunt Debby and Uncle Rick would have the money they need, but Sapphire wouldn’t have to leave. Or we could take him with us back to New Jersey when we go.” She held her breath, her heart pounding.
He set the horse’s foot down and gave her a speculating look. “Is this because Aunt Debby won’t let you near him?”
“It’s not fair! I made one mistake and now she’s banning me? You know I’m responsible.”
“Taking him out wasn’t responsible.”
“But—”
“But?” he interrupted. “You don’t think it was wrong?”
“Only because she banned me. There was nothing wrong with doing it—”
“Then I can’t help you.”
She set her hands on her hips and felt like screaming. “Why not?”
“Aunt Debby said she banned you from Sapphire because she wasn’t convinced she could trust you to show good judgment. If you really believe there was nothing wrong with your decision to take Sapphire out, then I agree with her.”
Tears welled in her eyes before she could stop them. “Since when do you not agree with me? You always agree with me.”
“Maybe it’s time I stopped.”
“What? Why are you taking her side? I’m your daughter! I’m the one who should matter to you, not all these other people.”
He grabbed her should
ers and pulled her close so he could hug her. “Oh, hon, you are the one that matters. You’ll always be the one that matters, I promise.”
She clenched her fists and kept her body stiff. “So then why are you taking her side?”
He pulled back enough to look at her face. “I’m taking your side. I want you to be safe, because I love you.”
“I am safe!”
He gave her a half smile. “Emily, being around here has made me realize how much you’ve missed out by not having a mom and a family.”
She tensed at that statement, and she wasn’t sure why. “Why do I need a mom? I have you. You’re all I need. Are you going to leave me here when you go back to New Jersey?”
“No, no, no. We’re a team, I promise. I just realized that maybe it’s not a bad thing for you to get to know the rest of your family. To have someone like Aunt Debby looking out for you, too. Family’s important.”
She was about to argue, but then she remembered how good it had felt when Aunt Debby had hugged her when she’d been so sad about Trooper. Or when Alison had visited her in the stall the other day. For the first time in her life she felt like part of something bigger. Like maybe she had a place. Maybe. “Will you buy Sapphire?”
He met her gaze. “No, I won’t.”
The regret in his eyes told her the truth. “You used up my horse fund to help out the farm, didn’t you? There won’t be any horse for me, not even Rhapsody, will there?”
“I’m holding on to the money right now,” he said.
Emily gave a shaky sigh. “So what am I supposed to do?”
He ruffled her hair. “I have faith in you. You’ll figure something out. Now, scoot. I have five more horses to trim.”
Emily was so upset by the conversation with her dad that she couldn’t take it anymore. She actually tracked down Aunt Debby and begged her to release the restrictions on not touching Sapphire. Her aunt refused and told her that if she wanted to brush a horse, there were plenty of horses that needed brushing. She hadn’t seemed at all impressed when Emily had pointed out exactly how many horses she’d been brushing every day for the last three days.
Sapphire: New Horizons Page 9