Crown Prince Challenged (4 page)

Sarah couldn't move right away, as she struggled to catch her breath and find her strength. Before she could move, she heard more hoofbeats. It had to be Chancellor, and from the sound, he was trotting fast. On a curve in the trail, Rita and her horse probably wouldn't see her lying there until it was too late! It took a gigantic effort, but Sarah willed herself to move and began to inch toward the underbrush on the side of the trail. Just as Chancellor and Rita came upon her, she rolled over, narrowly avoiding the horse's hooves. Her movement caught Rita's eye, and when she saw Sarah lying on the ground, Rita pulled Chancellor up as quickly as she could and looked back. “Sarah, are you all right?” she called out.

Sarah managed to get to a sitting position, and then tried to stand up. “I got the wind knocked out of me, I guess,” she said with a gasp. “But I've got to get Prince! He's loose, running back on the trail. I've got to catch him before he gets hurt!”

“If you think you're okay, I'll go ahead,” Rita said firmly. Sarah nodded and Rita asked Chancellor for his big ground-eating trot. Soon they were out of sight.

Sarah staggered to her feet, and with adrenalin pumping, she began running as fast as she could in pursuit of Crown Prince. She felt shaky, but concern for her horse propelled her forward. She ran her fastest until she was out of breath and was forced to slow down. After walking a short distance, her chest heaving, she was off again, running faster than before, not easy in her paddock boots that slipped on the pine needles.

Soon Sarah came to the downed log. Prince must have jumped it—what about the reins, which would have been hanging loose? Perhaps he'd gotten his front legs tangled up in them! She scrambled over the log and ran on, the blood hammering in her chest.

Sarah ran until it seemed her lungs would burst, all the while imagining coming upon Prince brought down by with any number of tragic injuries. Maybe she would find him sprawled across the trail! At one point she tripped over a large root and hit the ground hard. With tears streaming down her face, she picked herself up and ran again. It seemed like she had run forever when finally she saw a glimpse of the parking lot ahead.

BURSTING OUT OF THE WOODS,
Sarah scanned the area, desperately searching for her horse. She caught sight of him near a side door to the barn. Judson was trying to lead him in a circle while Mrs. DeWitt and Rita, still astride Chancellor, watched. Prince was animated, prancing in place. Sarah ran toward them. “Is he okay?” she called out, gasping for breath. As she got closer, she could see her horse was completely sweated up, with white lather on his neck and flanks. The whites of his eyes showed prominently, and his nostrils were dilated as he took quick breaths.

“Are you all right, Miss?” Judson called to her as she got closer. “We were worried you'd come to grief out there.”

Mrs. DeWitt hurried to Sarah and gave her a hug. “Look at you,” she said. “From the dirt on your jeans and T-shirt, I can tell you hit the ground. Are you sure you're all right?” When Sarah nodded, still breathing fast, Mrs. DeWitt said, “When Crown Prince came galloping across the parking area, my first thought was that something terrible might have happened to you. I was about to summon Jack and Gus when Rita arrived on the scene. She told us that you had a fall but were okay.”

Sarah frantically scanned her horse for any sign of injury. “Do you know if Prince hurt himself?” she asked.

“He appears to be walking sound,” Mrs. DeWitt said, “but one of your reins is broken.”

“Maybe that happened when he jumped the tree that's down across the trail,” Sarah said, running a hand down her horse's neck.

Rita's lips drew back in a thin smile. “Chancellor might have tried to take off, too, when those turkeys flew out of the grass by the trail, but he's too well trained.” She turned to Sarah with a look that was more gleeful than sympathetic. Her green eyes below thick, dark brows twinkled in amusement. “Do horses you ride always try to run off with you?” she asked.

“Prince was racing down the trail where it takes that sharp turn by the grove of pine trees. I was shortening my reins to use the pulley rein when a branch scraped me off. The wind got knocked out of me when I hit the ground.” Sarah looked to Judson and Mrs. DeWitt. “Did you have any trouble catching him?”

“I was about to bring Medina out of her stall to groom her when I heard the sound of galloping hooves approaching the barn,” Mrs. DeWitt said. “I ran out here just as Prince was coming toward the side door. I think he was headed for his stall. I was able to grab his reins without any trouble. Judson was a saint! He rushed over to help.”

Just then the burly and slightly bent frame of Gus Kelso, the barn manager, came out of the door leading to his apartment over the barn, his disheveled gray hair topped by his ever-present red baseball cap. He took one look at Crown Prince and then glared at Sarah. “What have you been doing with this horse?” he demanded. “Don't you know better than ride a horse crazy-like and bring him back to the barn all lathered up?”

Mrs. DeWitt came to Sarah's defense. “Sarah didn't ride her horse hard, Gus. A flock of wild turkeys spooked him out on the trail, and she was thrown,” she said calmly. “Prince ran back to the barn, that's all. He seems to be all right.”

Gus paused to take this in, still scowling. “Well, she needs to take care of him proper. He needs to be hosed down and then walked dry. And she better be ready to feed the horses on time!” With that he strode into the barn, grumbling under his breath.

Sarah hung her head. Just when she thought she was on better terms with Gus, the grumpy man was on her case again. She had no choice but to work for him if she was going to continue to board Prince at Brookmeade—that was part of the deal the DeWitts had offered her months before—but right from the beginning Gus had been difficult. He'd never had a girl work for him, and he was still having a hard time getting used to the idea.

Sarah took Prince's reins from Judson. They had been buckled together, but now the reins were in two distinct pieces, one far shorter than the other. “It's okay, Prince, it's okay,” she said, reaching up to stroke his neck again.

“It's time for me to take off,” Rita said, dismounting. She turned to Judson and handed him her reins. “Untack him and get him ready for loading,” she instructed the hired man as she ran up her irons. Judson obediently walked Chancellor toward the Pyramid Farm van, but Rita stopped when she saw Paige and Tim emerge from the woods trail.

As they got closer, Paige and Tim noticed that Prince was sweated up and prancing. They picked up trot to hurry over. “What happened?” Tim asked, obviously concerned. Sarah continued walking Prince in a circle while she told them the whole story.

“Wow!” Paige exclaimed. “You didn't get hurt?”

Sarah reached down to feel the place on her hip where she'd hit the ground. It was sore, and from the looks of some scratches on her arm, a branch must have whipped against her when she went off. Only now did she notice her arm was stinging. Her helmet had stayed secure, thank goodness.

“I'm fine, except for freaking out about what might have happened to Prince.”

“Well,” Tim said, “let's take a look.” Both riders dismounted, and Paige held their horses as Tim bent down to inspect Prince's legs. “Here's something,” he said, maneuvering to get a better look at Prince's left front leg. “There's a lot of dirt and gunk on there, so it's hard to tell, but it looks like he's bleeding on the inside of his left front.”

Mrs. DeWitt and Sarah got closer to check out the injury. “I'd better hose him down now,” Sarah said. She raised an eyebrow. “So much for our first trail ride.” She led Prince into the barn and down the aisle to his stall to remove his tack. She checked her watch.
His lesson will be over soon, and Jack will want to hear about the ride,
she thought. She didn't look forward to that conversation one bit.
He'll probably be disappointed I fell off. At least when Gray Fox ran away with me, I managed to stay on! And stop him.

Prince seemed glad to be back in his stall. As soon as Sarah had swapped his bridle for his halter, he went immediately to his water bucket. She let him drink a few swallows before removing it from the stall. He was still too hot to drink all he wanted. Prince had calmed down after his frantic run through the woods, and even though he was covered with sweat and in need of a bath, Sarah hugged his head and held him close. “Good boy,” she said softly as she caressed his white star and tugged his ears gently. “You had some bad luck. Birds, big birds….” His large dark eyes softened, and he lowered his head as she stroked him gently.

All at once the seriousness of what had happened hit her. She envisioned Prince running wildly down the woods trail, riderless with his reins hanging loose. The story could have had a tragic ending. He could have gotten his legs tangled in the reins and taken a devastating fall. What if he had broken a leg and had to be put down? She pressed her face against his neck as the tears flowed freely.

Finally Sarah raised her head. She needed to get it together and get her horse cleaned up so they could get a good look at the injured leg. This was Prince's first injury since she had gotten him, and she was worried. What if it got infected?

Sarah was unbuckling the girth on her saddle when Mrs. DeWitt came around the corner with Spin and Cameo. She was carrying a stable bandage, a quilted cotton wrap, a jar of antibiotic ointment, and a box of large gauze pads. “Sarah, I don't suppose you have these in your collection of horsey things, and I suspect you're going to need them. See what Jack says.”

“Oh, wow,” Sarah said, coming out of the stall. “And thanks so much for catching Prince.” She couldn't resist leaning down to stroke the two small dogs as they jumped up on her in their eagerness to be petted. The terriers never failed to cheer her up. Cameo was not-quite-four-months old, but she was fast catching up to Spin in size.

“Horse people always stick together, my dear,” Mrs. DeWitt said, with her usual warm smile. She put the items beside Sarah's grooming caddy. “I've included a salve that prevents infection and really helps healing. It does wonders.” She saw the look of worry on Sarah's face. “This appears to be a minor injury, Sarah. Your horse isn't lame, and I suspect you'll be riding him again in no time. But let me know if Jack thinks Prince needs the veterinarian. And now Medina and I are going to take these little beasts for the trail ride I promised them.” She started back to her mare's stall with the dogs trotting behind.

Sarah removed the saddle and led Crown Prince to the wash stall. Once he was clipped to the cross-ties, she turned on the hose and adjusted the water temperature. After letting cool water run over the dirty, bloody area on his leg, she took a closer look at the wound. It wasn't bleeding much, which was a relief, but the surrounding area was already swollen. She was letting the water cascade over his neck, back, and down his legs when Jack appeared at the door of the stall. He looked tense.

“I just spoke with Mrs. DeWitt. She tells me your trail ride to the orchard was rather exciting. And how would you be feeling after your fall?”

“I'm fine, but Prince cut himself. It's on his left front.” She turned off the hose, and Jack immediately went to look at the leg. “I thought you'd want me to hose it clean,” she said.

Jack didn't reply right away. Prince flinched when he pressed his hand near the injury. He examined the other front leg, and then leaned down to check the horse's hind legs. Finally he stood up. “He must have interfered from behind when he was running. It looks like he has just the one cut, though, with some bruising. There's already heat there, but I don't think the injury is severe enough to warrant a visit from Dr. Reynolds. Just keep the area clean so it doesn't get infected. Cold water will help keep the swelling down, so try to hose that leg for twenty minutes as often as you can.”

“Mrs. DeWitt thought I'd need to wrap his leg, but she wanted me to check with you.”

“Yes,” Jack said, “'Tis not an infection you'll be wanting. After you've cooled him out, you should apply some antibiotic ointment, and wrap the leg. Then we'll see how it looks tomorrow.”

“Mrs. DeWitt lent me the things I'll need, but I've never bandaged a horse before. Will you have time to show me how?”

Jack nodded. He paused and seemed to be deep in thought. His next comment made her stiffen. “Your folks, Sarah. They will have to be told.”

Of course. She should have thought of that right away. Her mother had voiced concerns for her safety right from the start. She remembered the conversation with her parents the night she had turned down Hank Bolton's incredible offer to “buy back” Prince. Her mother's words were: “Unless Crown Prince proves to be a reliable and safe horse for you to ride, he will go back to the racetrack faster than you can snap your fingers!” Sarah began to feel a knot in the pit of her stomach.

“I know your horse's trial period is over,” Jack said, “but in the beginning I made a commitment to your parents that I wouldn't let you be in harm's way.” He crossed one arm and stroked his chin with the other while deep in thought. “Perhaps I should have gone along on the hack riding another horse. It was Price's first time on the trails. Perhaps I should have ridden him myself.”

Then he shook his head. “No, for your horse to bond with you as his partner, you must be the one in the saddle. You must be the one he learns to trust and respect. I'd not be helping you if I took over on the important milestones.”

“But what happened today was, like, totally weird,” Sarah said. “There were lots of turkeys, big ones, and they were in tall grass close to the trail when they took off. What are the chances of that happening again?”