“I’m going, too,” Julian insisted.
“Nope.” Pru put up a hand. “To avoid a kaboom, we need the most experienced riders on this. That’s not you.” She eyed the kids. “Someone has to keep the campers safe.”
“Oh, the irony,” Abigail said. “The guy who wanted to lead them into danger now has to protect them.” She looked to her friends. “Do we trust him?”
Another small rock slide scattered down the hills from above them, and they all heard Oliver grunt.
“He can’t hold on long,” Lucky told Julian. “Do you agree to stay with the campers or not?”
He didn’t hesitate. “I’ll stay.”
“If even one of them gets a pebble in their shoe,” Lucky said, “I’m telling Aunt Cora everything.”
Julian frowned. “I’ll stay. Don’t worry. I’ll entertain them.” He moved Malu back to be with the campers. “Who wants to hear a story about my greatest adventures? I’ve been on so many… Where to even start?”
Lucky nodded at Pru and Abigail. “I hope he has a lot of interesting stories,” she said.
“We’d better hurry,” Abigail said.
Chica Linda, Boomerang, and Spirit took off toward the small path that wove around to the top of the outcrop.
“Oliver, hang on,” Lucky shouted as the horses neared the top edge of the canyon. The slightest misstep would cause rocks to fall from the top, raining down onto Oliver’s head. If he let go, he’d be swept into an avalanche of heavy stones.
“I can’t wait much longer,” Oliver whined, his voice echoing against the rocks. “My hands are slipping.”
“We have to work fast,” Pru told Abigail as she unwound a thick rope from Chica Linda’s saddle. Abigail took the end of the rope and tied it around her waist, then handed the loose end to Lucky.
“I’ll stay here and hold on like an anchor,” Abigail said, wrapping her arms around the nearest tree. “You get the rope to Oliver, and he can pull himself up.”
Lucky liked that idea. She tied the loose end of the rope around her own waist. “Okay, I’m going down to get him,” she said.
“Wait, I meant I could pull up only Oliver. I don’t think I can hold the two of you,” Abigail said, moving away from the tree. “Oliver is little. No offense, Lucky, but him plus you equals more than me.”
“I can hold you back,” Pru suggested, wrapping her arms around Abigail’s waist, and then the two of them held the tree. Even so, the unstable ground was brittle under their feet. One slip could send Lucky and Oliver and Abigail and Pru down to the canyon floor far below!
They came up with a third plan, which was to wrap the rope around the steady tree. That worked even better.
Lucky smiled at her friends and said, “I’ll be right back.” She carefully moved to the edge of the path. A small pebble skidded from under her foot and bounced its way down the rocks, narrowly missing Oliver’s right hand.
“Oliver,” Lucky said, “I’m coming down. Do not move.”
“I’m not moving,” he promised. “But hurry. My hands are very slippery.”
Lucky stepped down onto a boulder, testing the stability before putting all her weight down. Pru and Abigail held the rope tight around the tree.
She moved down another stone, and a few more, until there were about ten big stones between her and Oliver.
To keep him focused, Lucky counted them as she moved, slowly, methodically testing each rock before setting her feet firmly on it. “Three. Four. Five. Hang on, Oliver…”
“I don’t think I can much longer, Lucky,” Oliver said. “My hands really hurt.”
“Six,” Lucky said. “Don’t think about it. That’s seven. I’m almost there.”
“I can’t—”
“Want to hear the story of how I learned to ride Spirit?” Lucky suggested. She stepped to a rock just to the side of where Oliver was still hanging on for his life. “See, it started when my dad learned he was needed in Miradero.…”
As she lowered herself onto the rock next to him, which would have brought her side by side, the big stone creaked and began to slide out from under her feet. Lucky shouted to Pru and Abigail. “Hold the rope!” They pulled the rope firm and held her until she could find another place to steady her weight.
Then Lucky cried out to Julian below, “Move the kids back!” She couldn’t look to see whether he’d done it.
That one rock hit the one below it, and on and on until a rock slide formed. Lucky knew this was going to be bad. “Oliver,” she said, “grab my hand.” She reached out her palm toward him while rocks banged and crashed below them.
Oliver screamed. “I’m scared.”
Lucky looked him in the eye and said, “Me too.” She stretched her hand even closer to him.
Oliver reached out so he was clinging to the boulder with only one hand. “I can’t stay… Lucky…” Oliver shrieked as his other hand slipped and he began to fall.
Lucky swung herself forward and grabbed Oliver around the waist. She held him tight. They were both hanging off the side of the rocks. “Pull us up!” Lucky called to her friends.
“Uh, problem,” Abigail replied. Suddenly, it felt as if the rope had been loosed and they were going to plummet to the ground below, but an instant later, the rope went taut.
“Problem solved.” Abigail stuck her head over the edge and gave a small thumbs-up.
“Who’s holding the rope?” Lucky asked, trying desperately to hang on to Oliver.
There was a loud sound of hooves, and suddenly Lucky and Oliver began to rise toward the top of the outcrop, where the path was sturdy.
“Spirit,” Lucky breathed. Of course, it was Spirit!
Small pebbles fell forward, but Spirit continued to pull.
Oliver closed his eyes and put his head against Lucky’s neck.
She continued to hold tight to him as they rose slowly toward the top.
One last tug, and they made it over the top onto solid land.
Lucky looked around. The tree where Pru and Abigail had tied the rope had uprooted and tipped over. That was why the rope hadn’t held. Spirit had saved them both.
“I’m so glad you’re safe,” Pru said, dashing forward to hug Lucky. She looked at Oliver and frowned. “Oliver, how could you be so reckless?”
Lucky put out a hand to help him up. “He just wanted some adventure… and to be like Julian.”
“But he almost got you both killed!” Pru protested.
Oliver rose, dusted himself off, and faced Pru, Abigail, and Lucky. “I’m sorry, Lucky. I was mixed up,” he said. “I didn’t mean to get anyone hurt.”
Lucky squeezed his shoulder. “I know, Oliver.”
“Maybe all adventures don’t have to be dangerous like Julian said. Maybe… maybe we can have adventures like you and Pru and Abigail do. Can I come back to PALs Adventure Camp?”
“You know what, Oliver?” Lucky asked with a small chuckle, “I think that sounds great, too.”
Diary Entry
It’s been a wild summer in Miradero! I can hardly believe that today is the final day of the O-Mok-See!
All of Miradero is invited to participate.
There are horse games and prizes. We’re even running competitions that Boomerang, Chica Linda, and Spirit could compete in. In fact, I’m writing this during the break before one that Spirit and I are running in right now!
Mr. Winthrop brought a wagon loaded with ice cream for everyone, and Abigail made cherry pies. Aunt Cora brought more of her cookies. Dad and Kate are here, too.
While the campers decorated their horses and got into costumes for the day, Pru, Abigail, and I met near the barn.
Camp wasn’t over yet, and after the start of the O-Mok-See, there were new kids who wanted to sign up. New kids means more money. We’ve been working hard and earning it! In the end, there’d been enough to buy Aunt Cora the bubble bath and some new decorations for the barn, too.
This turned out to be the best summer after all.
&nb
sp; Then, it was time for the Boot Scoot. That’s everyone’s favorite game, and we’d started to do it every day. Today, the teams were mixed. Lester and Lilly with Stella and Turo versus Snips and Bianca and Mary Pat and Oliver!
Pru was right: Oliver had been afraid to ride, so I’d been taking him out after camp, teaching him the basics, and now he was ready. He rode Malu, who’s the most gentle of the barn horses.
Just before the Boot Scoot began, Julian came to me. He held his hands behind his back.
“I got something,” he said, bringing his hands around and opening his palms.
Rainbows from the small crystal bottle glittered in the sunlight.
“You bought it?!” I was immediately mad. “I have the money! You can’t give it to your mom. Please! I need that for Aunt Cora—”
“Slow down, RF,” Julian said. “I got it for you.” He handed me the crystal. It was filled with the lavender bubble bath that Cora loved. “It’s a thank-you present for saving Oliver. Now you can keep all the money you earned.” He gave a suave smile. “Buy yourself something you want.”
“I don’t know what I want.…”
I considered it. I never expected to have this much extra money all to myself.
“Then give me the money,” Julian joked. “And I’ll buy something I want.”
I shoved my money into my pocket. “I’ll think of something,” I assured him.
“I better go,” he said, looking over his shoulder.
Aunt Cora found out that Julian had put Oliver in camp, when he was supposed to be watching him. She dragged him to town, and now he works my old job at the ice cream parlor. I’m not sure how Cora convinced Mr. Winthrop that he did need help after all, but I smiled as Julian slipped my old frilly apron over his head and stepped behind the wagon cart to sell ice cream at the O-Mok-See.
Then Spirit came to get me, and together we strode tall and proud into the ring, ready to start the O-Mok-See in front of the whole town.
I gotta go, though, Diary. Now that the campers have finished their Boot Scoot, it’s the counselors’ turn. Me versus Pru versus Abigail—may the best PAL win!
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Spirit Riding Free: Lucky's Diary Page 7