Maddie’s Dream (9 page)

“I know, I know.” Maddie had just finished filling the twins in on her plan. “It was a stupid idea. I just thought if the Richardsons saw her acting dangerously, they might not want to buy her anymore.”

Val kicked at a stone, looking thoughtful. “I don't know,” she said. “Cloudy was pretty bad when she got here. Your plan was worth a try.”

“Thanks,” Maddie said.

Vic was shaking her head. “Not really,” she argued
with her twin. “I mean, yeah, Cloudy was bad when she got here. That's the point, right?”

“What do you mean?” Maddie asked.

“I mean, the Richardsons have seen her at her worst,” Vic said. “They
owned
her at her worst. Nothing she does now is going to look all that bad to them, right?”

“I see what you mean.” Maddie sighed. “I guess I didn't think about it that way.”

“Never mind.” Val reached over and gave Maddie's shoulders a quick squeeze. “We'll help you figure out a new plan.”

“I don't know,” Maddie said sadly. “If the Richardsons want to buy Cloudy and Ms. E wants to sell her, there's nothing I can do.” Suddenly a thought struck her and her eyes widened. “Unless . . .”

CHAPTER

“UNLESS WHAT?” VIC DEMANDED. “DON'T
keep us in suspense, Maddie!”

Maddie realized she'd gone silent, staring across the paddock at Cloudy as her brand-new plan filled her head and made her forget everything else. She turned and grinned at the twins, who were staring at her with wide, curious eyes.

“I just realized there
is
something I can do,” Maddie told them. “I can buy Cloudy myself!”

The twins traded a look. “What?” Val said. “But the Richardsons already—”

“No, listen.” Maddie was talking fast, working out the details as she explained them. “Ms. E would probably
rather sell Cloudy to someone she knows will take good care of her, right? And who'd take better care of her than me?” She shrugged. “I mean, I'd want to board her right here at Solano Stables. So if I offer the same money or more than the Richardsons, Ms. E would probably be thrilled to sell her to me instead.”

Vic gasped. “You know, that actually kind of makes sense!”

“Does it?” Val looked more skeptical than her twin. “Where are you going to come up with that kind of money, Maddie?”

“I don't know. I'm not even sure how much money we're talking about.” Maddie drummed her fingers on the paddock fence. “I'll have to find out. In the meantime I can work on pulling together a down payment, and then figure out the rest from there.”

“Maybe you could just ask your parents for the money,” Vic suggested. “Maybe they'd buy you Cloudy as a late birthday gift or something.”

Maddie's fingers froze. Oh, right—her parents. She'd been so busy formulating her new plan that she'd sort
of forgotten about them. Including the part where she'd begged them to buy Cloudy for her past two birthdays and Christmases. And the answer had always been a firm no.

“I can't ask my parents,” she told the twins. “They say we can't afford to own a pony.”

“Oh.” Val looked worried. “So what are they going to say if you buy her behind their backs?”

“Maddie can worry about that when it happens.” Vic grinned. “Like I always say, sometimes it's better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission.”

“Yeah,” Maddie agreed. “And this is definitely one of those times.”

She felt a bit troubled by the idea of going behind her parents' backs. Still, what choice did she have? This could be the only way to save Cloudy from going back to the Richardsons. Not to mention saving herself from losing the best pony ever.

Maddie was distracted as she wandered into her bedroom a little while later. Tillie was over by her dresser, applying lip gloss.

“Dad's running late at work,” Tillie announced, smacking her lips together and then examining her face in the mirror from various angles. “But Nick's supposed to pick me up to go to the mall in like five minutes. Can you watch Ry and Ty until Dad gets home?”

“I guess.” Maddie kicked off her paddock boots. “Where are they?”

“In the den, playing video games.”

Maddie smirked. “In that case, they don't even need watching. They won't move until Dad gets home and takes a cattle prod to them.”

Tillie grinned. “Later.”

“Bye.” As her sister hurried out, Maddie flopped onto her bed and reached for her laptop. The twins had helped her brainstorm ways to earn money, but they hadn't come up with many useful ideas so far.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard, going through the familiar steps to log on to the Pony Post. Nina was super-creative, Brooke was crazy smart, and Haley was one of the most practical people Maddie knew. If anyone could help her come up some great moneymaking
ideas, it was the three of them. Of course, there was one problem—Maddie still hadn't told them about the Richardson Situation.

But mentioning that Cloudy might be sold—or even that Maddie wanted to buy her—would only bring a zillion questions, and Maddie didn't have time for that. Not when the Richardsons could make an official offer to buy Cloudy at any moment. She could fill her friends in later, once Cloudy was safely hers.

There were a few new posts from Nina and Brooke, but Maddie barely scanned them. She opened up a text box and typed fast.

[MADDIE]
Hi all! Anyone have ideas for ways for me to make some $$?

[MADDIE]
And don't say babysitting, lol. I need something that'll make me the big bucks fast.

After she sent the posts, Maddie sat back, staring at the screen without really seeing it. There had to be a way for her
to make some quick cash. But what? She was pretty sure her parents wouldn't let her sell any internal organs. . . .

She blinked as her computer chirped. A new post had already popped up on the screen below hers.

[HALEY]
Hi Maddie! Funny u should ask! My uncle just paid me to help him paint the barn. Not fun, lol, but I made enough to pay for another lesson w/my jumping coach.

Maddie glanced around her room, studying the walls. Painting a barn did sound hard, but maybe she could ask her parents if any of the rooms in their house needed repainting. That didn't sound too bad.

[MADDIE]
Thanks, great idea! Well, not the barn part, lol. Any other brainstorms?

[HALEY]
Maybe u could start a dog-walking business, or pet sitting? What do u need the money for, anyway?

Maddie's fingers hovered over the keys. What should she say? She didn't want to lie to one of her best friends. Maybe she could come up with something that was
sort of
true—just for now. . . .

[MADDIE]
Remember how the Snack & Swim ride is coming up this Sunday? I'm hoping to buy something special for it. That's why I'm in a hurry.

[HALEY]
Cool! You mean like new boots, or a new swimsuit or what?

“Mads? You in here?” Maddie's father poked his head into the room, still dressed in his scrubs.

Maddie sat up. “Oh! You're home.” She felt a flash of guilt as she remembered she was supposed to be watching her younger brothers. Still, her dad was smiling, which meant Ry and Ty probably hadn't managed to kill each other or burn the kitchen down.

She quickly typed one last post:

[MADDIE]
My dad just got home—gtg. Tx for the ideas!

She closed the computer. Her father stepped into the room.

“Did you hear the message from Coach Wu?” he asked.

“What message?”

“It's on the machine.”

Maddie shrugged. “I didn't check when I got home from the barn.”

“Oh. Well, she says the powers that be got their act together faster than expected, and the Cascade League tryouts are this Saturday afternoon.” Her father grinned. “So you'd better start warming up your kicking foot!”

“Saturday afternoon?” Maddie had nearly forgotten about the travel team. “But I can't do it then—I have my riding lesson.”

Her father's smile faded. “You can miss one lesson,” he said. “Maybe you can ride on Sunday this week instead.”

Maddie shook her head. “Sunday's the Snack and Swim.” At her father's perplexed look, she added, “It's this
big trail ride. I told you about it, and—never mind. Anyway, I don't want to miss my Saturday lesson, especially this week.”

“Why? What's so important about this week?”

Maddie hesitated. The Pony Post girls weren't the only ones who were still in the dark about the Richardson Situation. Maddie hadn't told her parents about it either. “I just don't want to miss it,” she said.

Her father didn't look impressed. “Listen, Maddie, I know you think riding is all you want to do these days. But don't be shortsighted. This soccer thing could be a big opportunity for you.”

Maddie could tell he was getting annoyed. She was a little annoyed herself. Why couldn't her parents understand that riding was important to her?

But she bit her tongue, not wanting to start an argument right now. It would only distract her from what was really important.

“Okay, maybe you're right,” she said. “I'll call Coach Wu back in a little while. But listen, have you noticed that the dining room is looking a little dingy lately?”

“The dining room?” He looked surprised by the sudden change of topic. “Not particularly. Why?”

“Well, it's just that I'd be willing to repaint it if you paid me,” Maddie said. “Or any other rooms you want. What about the boys' room? Of course, I might have to charge hazard pay for even setting foot in there. . . .”

“Oh, I see.” Her father sounded faintly amused. “Trying to earn a little spending cash, are you? Let me guess—seeing Tillie wave her new phone around is driving you crazy and now you want one of your very own?”

Maddie smiled weakly. “You know how it is. A girl needs her toys.”

“Hmm. Well, the dining room walls look fine to me,” her father said. “But if you're really willing to work for cash, I have another job for you. . . .”