For Sale Or Swap (11 page)

The plan didn't eventuate the way the girls had
expected. First, Hayley backed out. Shelby thought
she might. There was too much risk for her. Erin
started off enthusiastically, and had come up with
most of the plan herself, but in the end it was Lindsey
who had been the most practical.

Monica rang Mr Morgan because she sounded the
oldest. Her slightly clipped accent gave a business-like
impression. Erin kept giggling in the background, and
that put Monica off, but she still managed to set the
trap, because a few days later Mr Morgan turned up
at the stables in his truck.

Shelby watched through a crack in the wall of
Erin's tack room.

'That's him!' she whispered.

Erin grabbed Shelby's shoulder, making her jump.
'Get down!'

'He can't see me,' Shelby replied, frowning.

'Let me look,' Erin said, bouncing up and down.

'You can look through the door. He hasn't seen
you before.'

Erin crouched down and peered around the corner,
as though she was a private detective on a case.

The man wandered over to where Lindsey was
working near the feed shed. She shaded her eyes with
her hand, and pointed towards the Crooks' yards.
After he had turned away, she gave a surreptitious
thumbs-up in Shelby's direction.

Mr Morgan turned his head left and right, appraising
the horses in the yards as he walked.

'He thinks it's a smorgasbord,' muttered Shelby,
her eyes narrowing. Then he disappeared from view.
She pushed Erin's shoulder. 'Go out and tell me what
you see.'

Erin stepped halfway out the door. 'He's at
Hayley's yard now,' she whispered. 'He's leaning on
the fence. Mrs Crook has come out of the tack room.
She's got her hands on her hips. She's shaking her
head. He's talking again now. Now she's pointing up
here!' Erin dove back into the tack room sniggering.

'Erin! Now you look suspicious.'

'He didn't see me. Do you think he saw me? What
should I do? Should I go back out there?' Erin's eyes
were wide.

Shelby pushed Erin back out the door, and on the
way Erin grabbed her broom. She stood in the yard
sweeping the dirt, as if it was the most normal thing in
the world. Erin started whistling. Shelby groaned. Erin
was the most conspicuous girl in the world.

'Excuse me. I'm looking for a Mrs Wong,' said a
man's voice.

The name was Kim's idea. They'd laughed for ages
when she first said it.

Mrs Wong . . . first name, You-Done-Me.

Mr Morgan hadn't asked for a first name, and
lucky too, or Monica might not have been able to
keep from laughing.

It had seemed funny when they had talked about
the plan in Hayley's rumpus room, and it was exciting
when Monica had rung the man, but now that he was
actually here and it was all really happening, Shelby
was nervous. Too many things could go wrong.

Shelby peeked through the crack in the wall again.
Mr Morgan aka Mr Hall was standing at the gate to
Erin's yard. He was smiling at Erin the way he'd smiled
at Shelby that terrible day – friendly and confident.

'I can't think of any Wongs,' replied Erin. 'But I
don't know everybody here. Perhaps you should look
around the other stables? I'm sure nobody would
mind. People come and go all the time. There are so
many horses at this place, and they all have different
owners. Floats and trucks come in and out all day
long. Nobody really pays that much attention.'

Shelby silently begged Erin to stop talking as she'd
said enough, but Erin didn't.

'Except after dark. It's pretty much deserted then.
Some horse transport trucks come in at night, but
nobody checks them. It's a security nightmare, really. I
keep my part padlocked when I'm not here. That lady
you were talking to does too. And so do those two
across there.' Erin pointed to Monica and Kim's yards.
'But none of the rest do.'

Shut up, Erin.

All the girls expected that the man would come
back at night to steal one of the horses. They were
counting on it. Once he stole a horse for real it would
be a police matter. Erin was just trying to make sure it
wasn't Bandit, or one of her friends' horses.

'Take that one there, for example,' said Erin,
pointing to a grey gelding a few yards away. 'They paid
eleven thousand for him, and guess what? No lock.
Nothing. They're asking to lose him, aren't they?'

Erin finally stopped to take a breath. She swept the
yard again and when she turned in profile Shelby
could see that her face was as red as a tomato. If
Mr Morgan didn't pick it for a trap then he was
stupid. Shelby didn't think he was stupid at all.

'Thanks for your help,' he said, and to Shelby's
surprise he walked up the passageway between the
stables to get a better look at the eleven thousand
dollar horse. Along the way he spoke to a few more
people, but most of them shook their heads.

Erin kept on whistling and sweeping away until
Mr Morgan had made his way to the end of the row
of stables and back.

'Thanks again,' he said, smiling and putting his
index finger to his forehead, as if to tip his hat if he'd
been wearing one.

'No probs,' said Erin.

Shelby stood at the door, and as Mr Morgan
drove back down the driveway, Lindsey raced over to
Erin's yard.

'What did he say?' she asked.

'You first,' said Erin.

'He just wanted to know if I knew a Mrs Wong. I
told him to ask Hayley's mum. I didn't know she'd
send him up to you. I thought she'd just tell him to
get lost.'

'I told him heaps of stuff!' Erin grinned.

'Too much,' said Shelby, frowning.

'It worked though, didn't it? Didn't you see him
checking out the gelding? He was almost drooling on
the ground! He'll be back.'

'We'll see,' said Shelby.

'You did what?' Lindsey's mum was standing at the
back screen door, half in and half out. Shelby could see
inside, and Lindsey's place was furnished with hotchpotch
old couches and armchairs like her own house.

'You brought a man, who you know to be a horse
thief, onto our property? I can't believe you would do
that, Lindsey. This place is our livelihood. People trust
us with their animals. We can't afford to lose customers.
And now you want to stay out there in the
stables overnight? What about rats? Did you think
about that? How do you know this man isn't dangerous?
This is the silliest thing you've ever done.'

Lindsey looked down and scuffed her feet on the
doormat. Hayley cleared her throat. 'I think I'll go
home now. See you guys later.'

Shelby nodded. She knew that Hayley would back
out, and why wouldn't she? Hayley had nothing to
gain from their plan.

'What should we do?' mumbled Erin.

'You can go home too, if you like.' Shelby shrugged.

Erin backed down the stairs. 'Okies. Ring me in
the morning.'

Shelby was disappointed. Erin had been the one
most excited about the plan, but only when it was fun.
Now that they were getting in trouble she was bailing.

Lindsey looked over her shoulder. 'You're going to
stay, aren't you, Shel?'

Shelby could see that Lindsey wanted her to stay.
Her mum wouldn't go off so much if Shelby was
there. 'Is that OK?' she asked.

Lindsey's mum rubbed her forehead. 'You're not
staying in the stables. You can stay in the house where
I can see you. Ring your mother and ask permission.
And tell her everything. I don't want her thinking I
had anything to do with it. Lin, give me this fellow's
number plate and I'll call the police to let them know.'

The girls looked at each other. 'Did you get it?'
Shelby asked.

Lindsey shook her head. 'Maybe Erin did?'

'No,' said Shelby. 'Erin was with me the whole
time.'

Lindsey's mum shook her head. 'You didn't get his
number plate.'

'We meant to,' explained Shelby. 'It was part of the
plan, but I guess we forgot.'

Lindsey's mum stared at them both for a long time.
'Well, you'd better hope he doesn't turn up. I'll lock the
front gate tonight.' She tut-tutted. 'Fifteen years I've
been here, and I've never had to lock the front gate.'

Shelby went into their office, where Lindsey's mum
ran the business for the stables and the riding school,
and rang home. While she was waiting she thought
about how Erin had said too much to the man, and that
sounded suspicious. She decided not to tell her mother
everything, especially not after the way Lindsey's mum
had reacted. Her mum might make them stop, and it
was too late for that now.

'Can I stay at Lindsey's tonight?' she asked.

'Of course, Miss Muffet. Do you want me to fetch
you in the morning?'

'Thanks,' Shelby replied. She bit her lip. 'Oh, and
I think I saw that man today – the one who took Blue.
I didn't see properly, because I was in Erin's tack shed,
and by the time I came out he had gone away.'

That was sort of true.

'Oh dear! What did he want?'

'Dunno,' she said. 'He wasn't here long. Lindsey's
mum doesn't think he'll come back, but she's locking
the gate just in case.'

'Hmm. Well, let's hope it was a different man. It
would be terrible for someone else to lose their horse
and go through what we've been through.'

Shelby's face flushed. 'Yes, but if he did steal one
then they could call the police, and the police would
have to do something, because it wouldn't be a civil
matter.'

When she didn't answer, Shelby wondered if her
mother suspected that she wasn't telling the whole truth.

'See you in the morning,' Shelby said, eager to get
off the phone.

Afterwards, Shelby sat with Lindsey on the back
step.

'We really needed that number plate,' Lindsey said.
'If he does steal a horse tonight, we won't be able to
track him.'

'We'll just have to stay up all night, and if he does
turn up, we can get it then.'

Lindsey nodded. She wiped her knuckles across her
eyes. 'I'm really sorry, Shel. I forgot all about it. When
he was standing right there, looking exactly the way
you described him, it was scary.'

Shelby put her arm around Lindsey's shoulder. 'We
all forgot. It's not really turning out like we expected,
is it?'

Lindsey stared out across the paddock.

'I'm sorry you got in trouble from your mum.
Thanks for sticking with it anyway,' Shelby added.

'That's OK. I had a feeling that Hayley and Erin
would back out.'

'Me too.' Shelby drew her knees up under her chin
and wrapped her arms around them. 'I understand,
though. It's not their problem.'

Lindsey shook her head. 'That's not true. Friends
help each other out. That's what friends are supposed
to do.'

Shelby wasn't so sure. She thought you should help
your friend when they needed you, but what if your
friend was about to do something really stupid and
dangerous? Shouldn't you try to stop them?

Shelby sat cross-legged on Lindsey's veranda. She
could hear insects chirruping in the lawn, and there
was a streetlight directly opposite the house, which lit
the front paddock. She could see the riding school
horses cropping grass, or lying with their feet tucked
under them.

They'd had a subdued night. Lindsey's mum was
still cranky, and the two girls had gone to bed early.
They had decided to take it in turns to keep watch,
but after midnight Shelby left Lindsey asleep, and
crept outside. Lindsey had done enough already.
Besides, Mr Morgan probably wouldn't turn up
anyway.

It had been several hours and she was feeling really
sleepy. Every now and then she rested her eyes,
leaning her head against the wall of the house, and
then she would jerk awake, wondering how much
time had passed.

Only three cars had driven by the whole time.
Shelby had watched their headlights rounding the
gentle curve, momentarily illuminating the letterbox
and the padlocked gate before they disappeared out
of view.

Shelby had just closed her eyes again when she
heard a vehicle approaching. She could tell it was a
truck because the engine grumbled. As it came around
the curve the lights turned off, the engine cut out,
and it rolled to a stop a few metres further down the
street.

Shelby sat up straight, wide awake now. She heard
a door open and shut, and she crouched near the
veranda railing so that she could get a better view.

Mr Morgan appeared from around the back of the
truck and stood at the gate for a moment inspecting
the padlock. He plucked the wire of the fence next to
the gate. Most of the paddocks at Lindsey's place were
bordered by post and rail – strong timber fencing –
but on either side of the front gate there were star
pickets run with three strands of wire.

Shelby breathed in and held it as she realised what
he was thinking. It didn't matter if the gate was
padlocked. He could cut the wire and make a gate of
his own.

Mr Morgan climbed through the fence and then
stood still, listening. He started up the driveway,
walking along the grassy kerb. When he was level
with the house, Shelby held her breath again and
stayed perfectly still. She was in shadow, and as long
as she didn't move, he shouldn't be able to see her.

Mr Morgan continued up the drive towards the
stables. Shelby thought about what to do. He hadn't
cut the fence yet. If he was going to take a horse now,
he would have done that first. It would be difficult to
hold a horse and cut the fence at the same time, and
he would need a tool to do it. Maybe he wanted to see
how easy it would be before he tried it for real?

She considered waking Lindsey, but dismissed it.
By the time she had gone inside, Mr Morgan might be
on his way back. The best thing would be to run
down, memorise the number plate, and run back again
while he was still at the stables.

She slipped over the edge of the veranda and made
her way down the driveway, keeping to the shadows.
She slid through the wire, as Mr Morgan had done,
and ducked behind the truck.

It looked like the same truck he had used to take
Blue. She stood back and took a moment to memorise
some detail about it.

It was white – plain white with no markings, not
even a make, although there were drilled holes on the
side of the cab where a badge would once have been.
There were four rectangular sliding windows running
along the sides at the top.

She moved around to the front. The number plate
had thick mud on it and she could only make out two
of the letters – NX. She walked to the back of the
truck and saw the same thing – all the digits were
caked except the first two. He must have made them
muddy on purpose. She knelt down and put her hand
on the plate to see if she could make out the letters
and numbers by feeling their shapes. They were so
muddy that it was too hard to tell. The next letter
might have been P but it could have been R as well.

There had to be some way to identify the man. She
walked back to the driver's door and peeked in the
window, holding her hands to the side of her face to
cut out the glare from the streetlight.

The cab had a bench seat, and the keys dangled
from the ignition. There were a few lolly wrappers and
empty soft drink bottles on the floor. Behind the driver's
seat was a narrow space. There was no legroom, but
there was enough of a gap for the driver to crawl in,
stretch out, and have a sleep on a long journey. It
looked like it was lined with a thin mattress for this
purpose, and there was a chequered blanket and a few
crumpled items of clothing. There were also pieces of
paper, A4 in size. They might be letters, and if they
were, they might have a name and address on them.

When Shelby opened the door the cab interior light
came on. She gasped, and shut it again, pressing the
door gently until the latch fastened. She squatted
down and crawled around the front of the truck,
peering up the driveway. If he had seen the light then
she might need to run. She waited for a moment, but
she couldn't see Mr Morgan, or hear his footsteps.

Shelby closed her eyes and thought hard. If she
went back to the house now then he would get away
again, and they still wouldn't have any idea who he
was. She could wake up Lindsey's mum and ask her to
follow him in the car, but Shelby doubted that she
would do it, given how cross she'd been earlier.

If she climbed into the cab, grabbed the papers and
jumped back out again, they would at least have a
clue to work with. If she was going to do that, she
needed to do it fast. He might be on the way back
right now.

Shelby stood up again and put her hand on the
driver's door. She licked her lips. Her face felt hot and
she breathed heavily.

She counted to three and opened the door. The
light came on again and Shelby leaned inside the cab.
There was no way that she could reach into the back
from where she was standing. The cab was too high
off the ground. She climbed up so she could put her
knees on the driver's seat and the door swung closed
behind her, hitting the soles of her feet. The interior
light turned off, and Shelby groped in the dark where
she knew the papers to be. Her fingers touched the
papers and she snatched them. Shelby pushed the door
with her heel, but it had caught. She twisted around
trying to feel for the internal door handle.

Just then, the interior of the cab became much
brighter. Out the passenger window she could see
the arena lights come on inside Lindsey's property.
The lights were high in the air on long poles and
pointed down to the sandy arena, shining very brightly
like lights at a football field.

Next she heard footsteps – running footsteps along
the road. They were heading this way. Shelby dived
through the gap to the place behind the driver's seat,
and as she did she could feel the truck rock from side
to side. She lay down flat and pulled the blanket over
her body. She managed to get it over her head and
shoulders when the driver's door opened and Mr
Morgan jumped inside. He started the truck, thrust it
into gear and it moved away down the street.

Shelby lay still, her heart beating so fast that she
thought Mr Morgan would be able to hear it, even
over the noise of the engine.

This was not part of the plan. This was not
anything like the plan, and nobody – not even Lindsey
– knew where she was.