Comet and the Champion's Cup

by Stacy Gregg

  This time, all the ear nets in the world couldn’t have muffled the noise of the crowd. The grandstand went wild with applause as the little skewbald landed on the other side. They were clear. They had won!

  “Isadora Brown and Blackthorn Comet are the winners of the pony Puissance!” the announcer called. “A fantastic jump at one metre seventy and a well-deserved win for the prize of the Puissance Cup!”

  “I get a cup?” Issie couldn’t believe it. “Tom, did you hear that? I get a cup!”

  “You get more than that,” Avery beamed at her.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Issie, you just won $15,000!”

  “What?” Issie couldn’t believe it. She had assumed there would be some prize money for the Puissance, but she had never dreamt it would be that much! “Why didn’t you tell me I was jumping for that much money?”

  “Because it would have made you nervous,” Avery said. “I figured you were coping with your nerves quite well. I didn’t want to say anything that might throw you.”

  “Ohmygod!” Issie still couldn’t believe it.

  “Go on!” Avery grinned at her. “Get into the ring for prize-giving!”

  Issie had to laugh as they took their victory lap of the arena with their trophy and the red sash tied around Comet’s neck. This was Comet’s moment and boy did the skewbald know it. He pranced about the ring with his neck arched and his head high as if to say, I told you all that I could do it, didn’t I?

  As they cantered out of the arena, the whole gang from Blackthorn Farm was on the sidelines to meet them.

  “Mum!” Issie jumped down off her horse and gave her mother a huge hug. “We did it!”

  “Wasn’t he a superstar out there?” Mrs Brown said.

  Issie hugged Comet tight around his neck. The pony wouldn’t stay still though; he was still prancing about, making the most of all the attention.

  “Comet, I can see you are going to be completely unbearable to live with from now on!” Issie giggled.

  Hester sighed. “Isadora, he was already unbearable before. I can see that I’m going to have to build some paddocks with bigger fences when we get him home.”

  “That might not be necessary,” said the woman striding towards her. Issie recognised the red hair and tan jodhpurs immediately. It was the same woman she had seen training Natasha Tucker. It was Ginty McLintoch.

  “Hello, Hester,” the red-headed woman said briskly.

  “Hello, Ginty,” Hester said. “I suppose you’ve come over to see our Puissance champion?”

  “I’ve come to do more than that,” Ginty said. “I’ve come to buy him.”

  “What makes you think he’s for sale?”

  Ginty looked Hester in the eye. “Don’t play games, Hester. Everyone knows your farm is in trouble. I imagine that a cash injection from a horse sale is just what you need right now, and I’m here to offer it to you.”

  “He’s not for sale, Ginty,” Hester replied coolly.

  “Oh, really?” Ginty raised an eyebrow and took out her chequebook. She smiled at Hester. “I’ve got a cheque here for $25,000 that says that he is.”

  Issie looked at her aunt. $25,000! That was more than enough money to save the farm and Hester and Issie both knew it. But her aunt wouldn’t, she couldn’t sell Comet. Could she?

  Issie watched in horror as her aunt paused for a moment. Her face was expressionless as she looked at Issie. And then Hester reluctantly reached out a hand and took the cheque.

  Chapter 17

  Hester held the cheque in her hands and looked at it. Then she turned once more to the red-headed woman. “I’m sorry, Ginty. That’s a lot of zeros you have written on here, but…”

  Ginty looked Hester in the eye. “OK, Hester,” she said. “If you want to play hardball. What do you want? Another $1,000? $2,000? All right, I’ll make that a $28,000 cheque. I’ve got a client that this pony would be perfect for. She’s looking for a new horse. And a horse just like this one could take her to the top.” Ginty ran a hand down Comet’s neck. “This pony will be perfect for Natasha.”

  Issie blinked. “You mean you’re buying Comet for Natasha Tucker?”

  Ginty looked taken aback. “You know Natasha?”

  “We go to the same pony club,” Issie said flatly.

  “Well, she asked me to find her a new horse,” Ginty said. “And I think I just have.”

  “Think again.” Hester lifted up the cheque daintily between her fingers and ripped it carefully and cleanly in two.

  “I’m sorry, Ginty, but I’ve been trying to tell you…Comet is not for sale. And even if he was for sale,” she added, “you’re talking to the wrong person. He doesn’t belong to me.”

  Ginty stiffened. “Well, who is his owner then?”

  “That would be my niece,” Hester said, turning to Issie. “Comet’s her pony, so Natasha will have the pleasure of seeing him at the next pony-club rally because Issie will be riding him there.”

  Issie was stunned. “Really? Aunty Hess, do you mean it? He’s mine? To take back home with me and everything?”

  “Absolutely!” Hester said. “That is, if you want him.”

  Issie didn’t need any more convincing. “Of course I want him!” she said. She turned to Comet and threw her arms around his patchy chestnut and white neck.

  “Well,” Ginty sighed. “I think you’re all mad, of course. You won’t get a price this good from anyone else in the business.” She handed her card to Issie. “If you ever change your mind and want to sell him, these are my details. My offer still stands.” Issie accepted the card and shoved it in her jodhpur pocket.

  Ginty ran her eyes over Comet one last time. “That’s quite the pony you have there,” she said to Issie.

  “I know,” Issie replied. “He really is.”

  “Do you think we did the right thing?” Issie asked her aunt as they sat around the kitchen table back at Blackthorn Farm that evening. “I mean, should I have taken Ginty’s money? It would have got you out of trouble–with the farm and everything, I mean.”

  Hester shrugged. “I suppose it would have been the logical thing to do,” she said, “but then I was never really one for logic. Besides, I’m not sure that Comet would be worth all that money without you riding him. You and that skewbald were made for each other and I’m not about to split you up now. You’ve got a lot of adventures ahead of you yet. Maybe not at this farm–but I couldn’t sell Comet to save this place. I just couldn’t. Now,” Hester looked around the table at Mrs Brown, Stella, Kate, Ben, Dan, Avery and Aidan, “shall I put the kettle on for tea then?”

  Hester was just about to stand up when Issie shoved an envelope across the table to her. “Aunty Hess? I want you to have this.”

  Hester looked at the envelope in front of her on the table. She didn’t pick it up.

  “What is it?”

  “$15,000,” Issie said. “It’s my winnings from the Puissance.”

  “Can I add something to that?” said a voice across the table. It was Aidan and he too thrust an envelope across the table at Hester. “It’s $10,000. My winnings from the showjumping. I still came second in the novice hack–plus managed to ace a couple of other events on Destiny.”

  Aidan looked at Hester. “I want you to have the money. With my money and Issie’s combined that makes $25,000. It’s enough to save the farm for now. It will see us through until we get that next big film job.”

  Hester shook her head. “No. I won’t let you kids do this. This is your money. I won’t take your charity.”

  There was silence at the table–and then, finally, Mrs Brown spoke. “I agree,” she said. She turned to her sister, “You’re right, Hess. I won’t let Issie give you $15,000. That money could be her future. She could invest it and use it for university…”

  “But, Mum! I want to do this…”

  “Let me finish, Issie!” Mrs Brown said firmly. “I said I won’t let you give it to your aunt, but I will let you invest it with her. Th
at is, if Hester is willing to take you and Aidan on as her business partners.” Mrs Brown smiled at her sister. “Hess, I know I always tease you about this place being a money pit, but since I got here I’ve been seeing things differently. It’s beautiful here. I can see why you love it so much, and the riding school could be a real success in the future or maybe you could breed Blackthorn Ponies? If they all show as much promise as Comet then you could have a lucrative business on your hands selling up-and-coming showjumpers to people like Ginty McLintoch. Not to mention the film work, which I’m sure will pick up again.”

  Hester looked at her sister. “What exactly are you suggesting, Amanda?”

  “I’m suggesting that you take Issie and Aidan on as your junior business partners.”

  Hester stared at the envelope on the table and then she picked it up and put it in her pocket. “Well,” she said, extending a hand to an astonished Aidan and Issie, “I guess we should shake on that, don’t you? I’m sure your mum can do some paperwork, Issie, and make it all official.”

  Aidan and Issie both took turns shaking her hand in stunned disbelief.

  “Congratulations,” Hester grinned at Issie. “You are now the proud owner of one skewbald gelding–and shareholder in an utterly barking mad horse farm!”

  Leaving Blackthorn Farm was much harder this time. It wasn’t just because it was Issie’s farm too now. It was everything. The manor, the ponies, the kids…

  “Even Kelly-Anne?” Stella had asked Issie teasingly “Well, maybe I won’t miss Kelly-Anne,” Issie said, “but even she hasn’t been so bad lately.”

  In fact, since Stella had got Kelly-Anne to help out as groom at the Horse of the Year, there had been a real attitude change in her. On the last day of the riding school they had held a Blackthorn Farm Ribbon Day, and it was Kelly-Anne who had stayed up late the night before helping Issie, Stella and Kate to make homemade rosettes for all the riders.

  There was a red rosette for first, blue for second and bright yellow for third place. Each rosette was made of ribbon with a round cardboard disc at the centre with Blackthorn farm Rising Club written on it in scripty handwriting.

  Issie, Stella and Kate were the judges for the Ribbon Day and they gave out prizes for loads of events. Kitty won most improved rider; Tina and Trisha won the prize on the palominos for the best dual jump. Sophie and Lucy had Molly and Pippen so shiny and well-plaited that they tied for first place in the best-groomed. George won the bending and Arthur won the flag race. Even Kelly-Anne joined in the competition in good spirits and won Best Rider over Hurdles, which she seemed to be completely thrilled about.

  An official prize-giving was held on horseback at the end of the day and the rosettes were tied on to the ponies’ bridles before all the riders did a victory lap together around the arena. Sophie was so thrilled with her yellow rosette that Issie noticed she was wearing it in her hair when she came to dinner that night.

  Before they sat down to eat their dinner, the kids all raced off into the living room and returned with a cardboard box. “We’ve made prizes for all of you too,” Sophie explained. From the box they produced a purple sash made out of crêpe paper for Kate that said Best Instructor. Stella got a homemade badge that said Most Fun Horsey Friend and Hester got one that said Favourite Holiday Organiser Ever.

  “Well, they wouldn’t give her one for her cooking, would they?” Stella whispered to Issie.

  “We’ve got one for you too, Isadora,” Kitty said. The kids gathered around the box and pulled out what looked like an old china teacup with a saucer underneath it. “It’s a cup,” Kitty said. “Well, I know it’s only a teacup, but we thought it could be, like, a cup for winning the Puissance–and we’ve had it engraved and everything.”

  Issie looked at the teacup. It was cracked and it had a chip out of the saucer. “We found it in a pile of rubbish down by the stables,” Kitty said. “It’s not actually for you to drink out of or anything. It’s to sit on your mantelpiece like a trophy.”

  “Thanks!” Issie smiled.

  “Look at the engraving!” Lucy said.

  Issie looked on the side of the teacup. The “engraving” was done in green felt tip. It said, The Champion’s Cup: awarded to Isadora Brown for Winning the Puissance and Loving Blackthorn farm.

  Issie grinned. “Thanks, everyone–it’s the best prize I’ve ever had.”

  The cup was placed alongside the other prizes in the centre of the table and Mrs Brown served up pizza and chips on to everyone’s plates.

  “I don’t believe that this is our last dinner together before you all go home,” Hester said. “It will be so quiet here when you are all gone. It’s been so loud and full of life for the past few weeks. There’s never been a quiet moment.”

  Actually, Issie thought, a quiet moment was exactly what she needed. A nice quiet moment when she could finally talk to Aidan about what had happened after Dan won the showjumping that day. She hadn’t been able to talk to him when they were at the Horse of the Year. And then she was in Avery’s truck sitting with her mum for the ride home. Since they’d been back at Blackthorn Farm it was just as Aunty Hess had said–there was never a quiet moment. It had been impossible to get some time alone with Aidan. Issie had finally resigned herself to the fact that she would never get a chance to tell Aidan how she felt. Maybe that’s a good thing, she thought. If Aidan was really meant to be her boyfriend then wouldn’t he have said something by now?

  On their very last morning at the farm, Issie set her alarm clock for 5 a.m. It had become her ritual now, that every time she left this place she woke up before dawn and spent some time alone, feeding the animals breakfast, saying her own quiet goodbyes to all the horses before the rest of the world woke up and joined her.

  When her alarm clock woke her up it was still pitch black outside, but by the time she was dressed and had pulled her farm boots on, the dawn light was already filtering through the trees on the horizon.

  Down at the stables, Issie unbolted the stall doors one by one and watched as the horses all stuck their heads out to see who was there. Diablo stuck his head out first, and then Paris and Stardust.

  “It’s me,” Issie whispered, moving down one side of the barn, feeding each of them in turn. “I’ve got carrots.” At the mention of the word “carrot” there was a nicker from the first stall and Comet stuck his head over.

  “Hey, boy,” Issie grinned at him. “I’m taking you home today. You’re coming to live with me. I can’t wait for you to meet Blaze and Storm.”

  “So you’re choosing him then?” Issie turned around to see Aidan standing behind her.

  “Aidan!”

  “I thought this was a competition between me and Dan,” Aidan grinned at her, “but I can see now that the only one who’s ever going to really win you over is Comet.”

  “No!” Issie felt her tummy somersaulting with nerves. “Aidan, that’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, about the bet, the one you made with Dan…”

  “It’s OK,” Aidan said, stepping closer to her. “I already know. I spoke to Dan and he told me what you said to him.”

  Issie was shocked. “You talked to Dan? When?”

  “At the Horse of the Year,” Aidan said. “I went to shake his hand and say congratulations on winning our bet and all that. He told me that the bet was off. He seemed to think that you wanted me to win…”

  “I did…I mean, I do…” Issie was trembling as Aidan moved closer to her. Before she could say anything more he had put his arms around her and…

  “Issie! There you are!” Avery’s voice boomed through the stable.

  Aidan jumped back at the sound of his voice, letting go of Issie. He tried to act casual. “I was, ummm, I was just feeding Comet a carrot…”

  Avery raised an eyebrow at him. “Come on, you two!” he said briskly. “Breakfast is ready and Hester asked me to come and get you. We don’t have much time. I want to be packed and out of here by 9 a.m. It’s a long drive back to Chevalier Point wit
h five horses in the truck.”

  Issie and Aidan both hesitated, hoping that Avery would walk on ahead and leave them alone again for a moment, but the instructor stood at the door waiting to escort them back to the manor.

  “Well? Come on? What are you waiting for?”

  The rest of the morning was much the same. “It’s a big farm,” Issie grumbled to Stella and Kate. “You’d think there’d be enough room for me to be alone with my boyfriend for five minutes.”

  “Boyfriend?” Stella’s ears pricked up. “Issie, is Aidan really, finally, your boyfriend?”

  Issie shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess so.”

  “I thought he was your business partner,” Kate grinned.

  “That too,” Issie grinned back.

  It was a departure on a grand scale that day. Aidan was driving Hester’s horse truck with all the kids in it to take them back to their homes now the camp was over. And Avery, Mrs Brown and the Chevalier Point gang were going home together in Avery’s truck at the same time.

  “That’s the last of it,” Issie said as she threw a sleeping bag into the storage box in the back of the horse truck. “You can bring the horses on now.”

  As Dan and Aidan walked Madonna and Max up the truck ramp, Issie, Stella and Kate went to get Toby, Coco and Comet.

  Issie looked around the stables longingly one last time. She had almost kissed Aidan here this morning. She had been hoping that she might see him here again and get the chance to say goodbye, but it looked like there was no hope.

  “Come on, Comet,” she said as she led the skewbald out of his stall. “It’s time for us to go home.”

  The horses were loaded, and so were the kids. Aunt Hester had handed everyone bundles of inedible jam scones to see them through the long drive through the Gisborne gorge, and they were all ready to go home.