Best Friends (4 page)

“I think that’s the customary way to buy,” Lisa told her.

“She can’t afford them,” said Carole.

“They were on sale,” Lisa reminded her.

“But Stevie needs that money for her CI entry fee. She told me she couldn’t do both. I thought maybe she could borrow boots from someone.”

“Oh no!” Lisa exclaimed.

Carole glanced at her empty tray. “I’ve got to get to art class,” she said, standing up. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

Carole picked up her tray and headed for the door. She paused, then turned back. “Hey,” she said. “Don’t tell her I told you.”

“Sure,” Lisa agreed.

Lisa took a bite of her salad and recalled her conversation with Stevie. She’d seemed so pleased about the boots and she hadn’t said anything about the CI being a problem for her. Sure, she couldn’t compete in the boots that were too small, but now that she had the new ones, she might not be able to compete at all. Something had to be done, and fast! Lisa just didn’t know what.

S
TEVIE BROUGHT THE
wheelbarrow to the door of Barq’s open stall so that Carole could pitch a forkful of manure into it. The two of them were taking care of some barn chores while Max worked with Lisa on her pleasure class skills.

“Lisa’s practicing really hard,” Carole said, glancing out the stable door into the outdoor ring, where Lisa and Max were working with cavalletti. It was a difficult drill for both horse and rider.

“I think she always finds it easier to concentrate when she’s upset,” said Stevie.

“She’s upset?” Carole asked.

“Oh, I think I hurt her feelings today, even though she said I didn’t,” Stevie said. “I kept going on and on about me and my brothers at the mall last night, and then I realized I was being just a touch insensitive to someone whose family is breaking up.”

Carole picked up another forkful of soiled straw and aimed it at the wheelbarrow.

“I think Lisa knows the difference between your family and hers,” said Carole.

“That’s what she told me,” Stevie said. “She also told me that you and I should keep treating her exactly the same as we always have.”

“It’s not easy when everything’s changing for her.”

“Just what she said,” Stevie said. “She’s a good sport, you know?”

“I know,” said Carole.

“You don’t know
how
good,” Stevie said.

“What do you mean?” Carole asked suspiciously.

“Well, since you asked …,” Stevie began, recalling Lisa’s rationale for sharing information with her earlier that day.

“I asked,” Carole said firmly.

“She told me she’s really worried about her mom and dad in lots of ways, and one of them is money. Like, all of a sudden, there are two households and a lot of new expenses. Her mom is working extra hours. She told me she didn’t think she’d be able to ask them to pay for the CI.”

“You mean she might not go?”

“She might not be
able
to go,” Stevie corrected her. “But Christmas is coming. Maybe she’ll get some money from some of her aunts and uncles or something.”

“Right,” said Carole. “Christmas can be great that way.” She spread some fresh straw on the floor of the stall, her mind racing much faster than her pitchfork. Lisa was a relatively new rider, but she was good and she was learning very fast. A show like CI was just what she’d need to make it to the next level.

Carole looked out the door again: Lisa in the saddle, totally focused on the task at hand. That kind of work should be rewarded.

But how?

“G
OOD
, S
TEVIE
,
GOOD
. Keep it up, now. Stop moving your knees. Shorten the reins. Good, good, now to the right and pick up a trot.”

Lisa and Carole watched Max work with Stevie.

“She’s doing something right,” Lisa said excitedly.

“Unlike yesterday,” Carole agreed. They were both very relieved to see things going better today, though it would have been difficult for things to be any worse than they had been the day before.

“You did well with the cavalletti,” Carole said.

“I hate those drills,” said Lisa.

Max had laid the cavalletti—which were long poles—on the ground at specific distances to control the length of
Prancer’s stride. After fifteen minutes of that, Prancer’s gaits were smoother and Lisa’s control was greater. “It’s just boring.”

“Yeah, but it works,” Carole said, pleased with the fact that both Lisa and Stevie were doing much better at their show skills.

When it was her turn, Carole was much more successful at jumping than she had been the day before.

“Nice, Carole,” Max said.

Carole beamed.

When they’d finished their special show lesson, Max asked the girls to cool down their horses, groom them, and water them. “Then come to my office,” he said. “There are a lot of details we have to discuss.”

Carole’s feeling of well-being disappeared. There were a lot of details about any show, but in the case of this particular show, it seemed there was only one detail that mattered: She had no idea how she was going to pay for it. As Stevie had pointed out, though, perhaps the answer would appear under the Christmas tree. She sighed. It was going to take a lot more loving relatives than she had to solve this problem.

The girls settled into chairs in Max’s office, waiting while he shuffled through papers. Like Carole, Max was totally organized when it came to horses but sometimes a little bit
less than organized in other respects, like with paperwork. He moved one big pile, grimaced when he saw what was under it, and quickly replaced it.

Fortunately, Mrs. Reg appeared in the doorway, ready to lend a hand. She was Max’s mother, widow of the former owner of the stable. She was the stable manager and, clearly, the organized one in the family.

“Looking for this?” she asked, handing him a file folder neatly labeled
CI
.

“I was wondering where you’d put it,” Max said sternly, taking it from Mrs. Reg. The girls stifled giggles. He was trying to sound annoyed, but everyone there knew he was relieved by his mother’s organizational skills.

“Okay, here’s what’s going to happen,” he said. “I’m giving a couple of clinics at the CI grounds two days after Christmas, but the competition doesn’t begin until two days after that. Deborah and I will leave the day after Christmas and fly down with Maxi.” Deborah was his wife, and Maxi was their daughter. “Mrs. Reg will stay here, and she’ll be in charge while I’m gone.

“We’ve got four riders and horses coming to the CI,” he continued, consulting the file. “You girls will ride down with Red in the trailer. It’s a long ride, and it’ll only tire everyone out if you try to do it in less than two days. I’ve called a friend in North Carolina who will let
you stay in his barn overnight, so plan to bring sleeping bags.”

“Food?” Stevie asked.

“Of course, we’ll take all the grain and hay we need for the show. It’s a good idea to have the horses remain on familiar food when they’re competing hard.”

Carole nodded in obvious agreement.

“Not for the
horses
,” Stevie said. “For us!”

“Bring everything as if you were going camping,” said Mrs. Reg.

“It’s not like this travel stuff is the hardest part,” Carole said.

“Well, it’s often the most complicated,” Mrs. Reg said. “Competing is usually the easiest part of a show.”

“Maybe,” said Carole.

Lisa cringed when she heard Carole say that. Mrs. Reg had no way of knowing what was really on Carole’s mind, and it wasn’t Lisa’s place to tell her.

“None of this is made easier by the fact that it’s the middle of winter,” said Max.

“But that’s why it’s an indoor competition,” said Stevie.

“And it should be warmer in South Carolina than it is here,” said Lisa.

“Oh, don’t worry, any of you,” Mrs. Reg said. “It’s all
going to work out. And the good news is that the show takes over the grounds of a school, so you can all stay in the dorms for no charge.”

“Dorms?”

Stevie didn’t have to turn around to see who had asked that question. The voice was all too familiar. Only Veronica diAngelo could utter a word with such complete disdain.

“Yes, dorms,” said Mrs. Reg. “They offer housing to all competitors and participants, including grooms and equipment managers.”

“That’s nothing, Veronica,” Stevie said. “We’re going to get to sleep in a barn on our way there.”

“That’s what you think,” said Veronica. “Do you really think I intend to sleep with animals?” She looked around at Stevie, Lisa, and Carole, making it obvious that she considered them animals as well. Stevie couldn’t help glaring at Veronica.

“I think the Four Seasons is fully booked,” Max said, teasing her.

For an instant Veronica looked horrified. Then she relaxed.

“It’s not, actually. Daddy’s secretary made reservations for my mother and me there. It’s about ten miles from the show, but we’re renting a car anyway, so it’ll be easy to get
back and forth. We’re flying there the day after Christmas, so I’ll be acclimated.”

“You’re expecting jet lag on a one-hour plane trip?” Lisa asked.

“In the same time zone?” Stevie added.

Veronica did not dignify their questions with an answer.

“So the only thing left is to be sure that Danny will arrive on time—and in good condition.” She spoke the last words heavily.

“I’m sure you can count on your friends to see to that,” Max said, looking at The Saddle Club.

“I’d never let anything bad happen to a horse,” Carole said. It was true and everyone knew it. No matter how much Carole disliked Veronica—and on a scale of one to ten, it was an eleven—she’d never take that out on her horse.

Veronica was apparently counting on that. “I’m sure,” she said. “Well, then, it’s settled. Now I need an equipment manager. Max, can you recommend anyone?”

The girls cringed. Max expected his riders to look after their own equipment during a show. He couldn’t stop a rider from hiring an equipment manager, but he liked to think that his students were capable of looking after all aspects of their own horses at all times. He also knew that
they were all capable of pitching in and helping one another—all of them except perhaps Veronica.

“I’m sure you’ll manage fine on your own,” Max said.

“Well, I’ll tell you it’s going to be a lot harder to focus on winning ribbons if I have to spend all my time worrying about whether my saddle is properly polished.”

Max ignored her last comment and excused the riders from his office. He told Veronica he’d meet her in the ring in five minutes for her lesson, so she’d better hurry and get Danny tacked up. She left his office, calling, “Red!” Red, of course, was the one who was going to have to hurry and get Danny tacked up.

Stevie, Carole, and Lisa filed out of the office. Carole hadn’t finished putting away her tack before they’d started their meeting, and her friends followed her to Starlight’s stall, where she’d left her bridle and saddle on a sawhorse.

Veronica stood in the aisle nearby, watching Red tack up Danny.

“Funny thing,” said Stevie.

“What’s that?” Lisa asked.

“I never realized Veronica could be concerned about whether her saddle was polished. It never seems to bother her here.”

“Maybe it’s the jet lag,” said Lisa. “Brings on that kind of
worry.” The girls stifled giggles, aware that Veronica was trying to ignore them.

“Come on,” said Carole. “Let’s get out of here.” She picked up her tack and turned to leave.

“Nice bridle!” said Veronica.

The words surprised Carole.

“What?” she asked.

“I said, that’s a nice bridle.” She pointed to the one that Carole was holding—the new one. “But I miss the old one. It was so colorful and sparkly. What was that, duct tape?”

Carole could feel her cheeks redden. It was so like Veronica to be unaware that horses cost money and that not everybody had as much of it as Veronica’s parents did.

“It was a good bridle,” Carole said defensively.

“It must have been,” Veronica told her sweetly. “Otherwise, why would you have kept on using it way past its natural lifetime?”

That was as much as Carole wanted to take.

“I’ve kept it, you know,” Carole said.

“Whatever for?” Veronica asked.

“As a reminder of how lucky I am to have this new one, and of how good the new one is,” Carole said.

Veronica was clearly working on a retort when Red came to everyone’s rescue.

“He’s ready,” he said, leading Danny out of the stall. “And I think you’d better hurry because Max is ready, too.” He pointed to the ring, where Max was waiting impatiently.

Veronica left them without further comment.

“Thanks,” said Carole.

Red shrugged. “Veronica’s Veronica,” he said.

The girls finished up the last of their chores and then escaped to the hayloft for a quick Saddle Club meeting. The hayloft was one of their favorite places. It was filled with the sounds and smells of the stable but was above the hubbub of activities.

They settled on bales of hay.

“The show’s going to be so much fun,” said Lisa.

“Yeah, it’ll be great watching Veronica get beaten in every class,” Stevie said. “We’re going to have to leave early.” Getting up in the morning was not her favorite thing.