No Horse Wanted (19 page)

Dad didn’t answer for a moment. Then, he
said, “You may want to rethink going out with Dr. Larry. You’ll see
sad things with him.”

“Yes, but there’s a big difference, Daddy.” I
blew my nose and took a deep breath. “The people who call the vet
when their animals are sick honestly care what happens to the horse
or the cow or whoever’s ill. They don’t deliberately try to cause
harm, not when there will be a big bill to pay.”

“I’m glad you can see that, Robbie.”

“And I’ll make sure that Twaziem doesn’t hurt
Jack,” I went on. “I’ll learn everything I can from Rocky and
Sierra, so I can teach Twaz that all guys aren’t mean.”

At home, I changed my clothes and then headed
for the barn with a brief pause in the back porch to grab my groom
bucket and the garden to pull up some carrots. I’d halter up
Twaziem and take him out to the indoor arena to brush him. If I
kept him out there for the rest of the afternoon, it would be safe
for Jack to clean the stall.

I grabbed the training halter off the hook by
the door, and then went into the stall to catch Twaz. He dropped
his head so I could slide on the noseband, then take the rope
behind his ears and tie a knot in the loop. I gave him a carrot as
a reward. “You’re so good, and soon you’ll know the difference
between us and the Bartletts. I promise.”

I attached the lead line to the loop by his
chin. He walked beside me out of the stall, down the aisle to the
arena, with just a pinned back glare for Nitro when the other horse
stuck out his head. “Don’t worry.” I petted Twaziem’s brown neck.
“I won’t let him hurt you.”

In the arena, I laid the rope over his back.
I gave him another carrot. I grabbed my currycomb from the bucket
and started to work on his left side. While I curried, I told him
about my day. I didn’t mention the visit to the Bartlett place. It
still stressed and hurt me so I didn’t want to put those emotions
on him. I just talked about Vicky and the cross-country team and
the way Lew puked halfway up Golf Course Hill.

“Hi, Freckle-face,” Bill called from the
hallway. “How’s the Incredible Bulk? After the way he’s been
eating, he should start looking like a real horse.”

“Stop being mean about my horse.” I looked at
Twaziem’s ears. He hadn’t pinned them back against his neck. He
wasn’t stamping his hooves. Instead, he’d turned his attention
toward the gate where Bill stood and gave a low nicker. “You like
him? Twaz, he’s a jerk.”

“Hey, I heard that.” Bill leaned on the gate,
grinning at me, mischief lighting his chocolate brown eyes. Then,
he came into the ring and gave Twaziem a piece of apple. “Your
horse has good taste. He could tell you that I’m a great guy.”

“He doesn’t lie.” I couldn’t help but smile
back at Bill, especially when he stood there and fed quarters of a
Red Delicious to my horse. “So, why are you here? Did you come with
Jack?”

“Yes. I told Coach I’d help with chores so
Jack doesn’t overdo it. Coach was threatening your horse with
violence if Jack can’t run the ball on Friday night until I showed
him the pic on my phone. This guy’s suffered enough.”

Twaziem nudged Bill for more apples, and he
gave my horse the last one. “So, you’re sixteen now.”

“Yeah, and you’re so bright. Did you just
figure that out?”

“I can’t help it, Freckle-face. I’m a guy,
and everybody knows ball players aren’t that smart.”

“I don’t know that. Jack gets better grades
than I do, and he’s done sports forever.” I watched Bill scratch
behind Twaz’s ears. My horse leaned into the caress. Nice, I
thought, but I didn’t say so. “And stop calling me Freckle-face. I
haven’t had any since Felicia taught me to use makeup.”

“You still have them,” Bill told me, “even if
they’re invisible.” He winked at me. “And you know what they say
about freckles.”

“No, what?”

“One freckle for each boyfriend you’ll
have.”

I felt heat flood into my face. I was so
dumb. Why hadn’t I realized that he liked me? I mean, Bill really
liked me. Why hadn’t I seen him before? Really seen him? He was
tall, red-haired and nice looking in faded blue jeans and a hooded
Lincoln High sweatshirt. I stood like a rock and stared at him
while he kept petting Twaziem. Dimly, I heard whistling and knew
Jack had come into the barn.

“Bill, where are you? I thought you were
going to start mucking.”

“In here,” I called out. “Take your friend
away and tell him to quit picking on me.”

Jack paused outside the gate. “Come on, you
wolf. We have stalls to clean. Leave my little sister and her
man-eating horse alone.”

“But, I like picking on your sister,” Bill
said, giving Twaz one last scratch. “All I have is an older
brother, and he always hassles me.”

“Good for him.” I hoped I sounded cool,
nonchalant, not like I was weirded out because Bill looked at me in
a new way. Or maybe it was just new to me. “And if you tell me that
he still punches you, I’ll laugh.”

“No, you won’t. Under that cynical attitude
and smart mouth, you have a butter soft heart and you like me. You
kicked my brother in the shins when you thought he made me
cry.”

“I was four.” But, he was gone, so I turned
back to Twaziem who was looking after him and flicking his ears.
“Really. I was four and he played me.” I gave my horse a carrot so
he wouldn’t miss Bill and the apples. “Okay, so he was barely six,
but he was still a player. You should know that a guy who brings
you apples the second time he sees you is up to no good.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Tuesday, September 24
^th
, 5:45 p.m.

Twaziem’s ribs still stuck out and so did his
hips, but after ten days of solid eating, I could definitely see a
difference. I knew Dr. Larry said Twaz had only gained thirty
pounds but it looked like more to me. I finished brushing out his
tail. Now, all that was left were those four hooves, and he didn’t
like holding up his legs for me to clean them. Luckily, Mom was in
the barn untacking Singer from her trail ride, so I went and asked
for help. Even if he’d been great with Bill, I didn’t want to push
my luck and have the guy bitten by my monster horse.

Mom came into the arena and gave Twaziem a
carrot. Then, she ran a hand down his left front leg to check out
the hoof. “He’s going to need to see the shoer for a trim next
week. Look how ragged the edges are.”

I nodded. I’d seen the cracks, splits, and
missing pieces before. “I’ve been putting hoof dressing on them,
but he won’t eat his grain if there’s biotin or anything else in
it.”

“Let’s try adding in some carrots and apples
first,” Mom said. “Maybe, we can disguise the supplements.”

“Okay, it’s worth a try.” I petted Twaziem’s
neck, and then I passed the lead to Mom. I took my hoof pick. “When
is the appointment with the shoer? Can I hold him for Beth?”

“During school breaks,” Mom said. “She comes
when you’re at school, and you can’t miss a day of class. Don’t
worry about your horse. I’ll make sure Beth is gentle with
him.”

“She’s gentle all the time.” I finished
scraping out the dirt, put down the foot and gave Twaz a piece of
carrot. I moved to his left rear and ran my hand down from his hip
to his ankle. While I cleaned the hoof, I asked, “What happens if
he doesn’t get this done all the time?”

“He can get thrush or grease heel or some
other hoof infection,” Mom said. “A horse is only as good as his
feet. You can buy new tires for that car you want, but you can’t
buy new hooves or legs for Twaziem.”

“Have I ever mentioned that I hate cleaning
his feet?” I put down the hoof and stepped up to give him another
piece of carrot. Third foot. Third carrot and finally I was
finished. Yippee! It was over for another day.

While I fed Twaziem carrots, Mom hung around.
“So, what did you find out about him when you and your dad went to
see Mrs. Bartlett?”

I shuddered and kept my attention on the
horse. “Could you talk to Dad about it? I don’t want to think about
all the mean things they did to Twaz when he was a baby.”

“Sure.” Mom put her arms around me and rocked
me close to her. “Honey, you saved him. He’s going to have a good
life here. When you start to think about what he suffered, remember
that, too. Okay?”

I buried my face against her shoulder so she
couldn’t see me cry. I felt Twaziem nuzzle my hair. Did he think it
was hay, or was he just hunting for more carrots?

* * * *

Saturday, September
28
^th
, 6:45 a.m.

The rest of the week zoomed by between
school, cross-country practice, the meet on Thursday, which we won,
Mom leaving with Singer on Friday and Jack’s football game that
night. Surprisingly, Vicky’s dad showed up to take the kids, and
she didn’t have any trouble making the game. She was spending the
night with Sierra and that meant no problems with her
internship.

Saturday morning, I rolled out early. Jack
and I did chores together, then I headed for the house to get ready
to leave with Dani. Her parents would pick me up on the way to the
fairgrounds in Monroe. They’d also drop me off tonight on the way
home. It wasn’t the first time I’d gone to the fair. I went every
August with friends, and most of the local rodeos were held in the
huge arena there.

“I don’t even know what she’s going to do
today.” I talked to Salt who sat on the vanity in the bathroom
while I put on my makeup. He mewed back, and I knew he wanted
breakfast. He really didn’t care about anything but his cat meat.
“I just hope I’m a big help to her.”

Wearing jeans, a bright blue turtleneck under
my western blouse, and my boots, I looked good, almost like one of
the models in a horse magazine. I fed the kittens, then took the
money Dad offered. “You’re the best. Thanks.”

“Call if you need a ride,” Dad told me.
“We’ll be in Snohomish today, and it’s not that far from
Monroe.”

“No worries,” I said, taking the lunch bag he
held out. “This is going to be fun. I’ll tell you guys all about it
tonight.”

“Sounds good.” Dad dropped a kiss on top of
my hair. “I’m leaving all our cell numbers with Zeke so he can call
if Twaziem has a problem, but since he’ll spend the day eating, I
think your horse will be fine by himself.”

The doorbell rang and I hurried to answer it.
Dani stood on the front porch.

“Hi,” I said. “Let me grab my coat and I’m
ready to go.”

“We have ten minutes. Let’s go look at your
horse.”

I hesitated. “He still doesn’t look that
great even if he’s gained almost forty pounds.”

“Stop worrying so much,” Dani told me. “I’m
not going to give you heartburn because you have a rescue horse.
I’ll bet he’s a lot further along than you think.”

“Okay. Well, let me introduce my dad to your
folks,” I said. “Mom’s gone to an endurance ride in Eastern
Washington.”

Once the parents were talking to each other,
Dani and I headed down to the indoor arena. I spotted Jack in with
Nitro, grooming him before they left with Dad. I waved at him, but
took her to see Twaziem. “Well, this is him.” I held out a carrot.
“Come on.”

He glanced at us, then his attention returned
to the bale of alfalfa-grass hay in his manger. “Everything comes
second to food,” I said.

“That’s okay for now,” Dani said. “Robin, he
looks almost exactly like Lady. He’s the same shade of bay. He even
has ankle socks like she does, but she has a baby star in the
middle of her forehead while he has a blaze. When you start showing
him, he’ll really catch the judge’s eye.”

“I’ve never been to a show before,” I said.
“I don’t know if Twaz and I will be able to do it or not.”

“Sure you can.” Dani wiggled a carrot at
Twaziem. “I’ll help you and so will Rocky. She and Sierra are
wonderful.”

“It’ll still take months before Twaz can be
ridden.” I glanced at my watch. “Come on. We need to go.” I took
her carrot and mine, then I broke them into pieces and put those in
his grain bucket. He’d find them and eat them later. It’d be a good
lesson for him since I wanted him to start eating supplements.

We arrived at the fairgrounds almost an hour
before the show started. Dani’s mom sounded like a general when she
took charge. “Robin, you and my husband can groom Lady again for
her first class. It’s halter. She won’t need a saddle. Remember to
rub cornstarch into her white socks. And use hair spray on her mane
so it stays in place.”

“She needs to be shaved again.” Dani pulled a
garment bag and a suitcase from the back of the super cab. “Dad,
you’d better do that. Robin won’t know how. And Lady needs her
hooves shined.”

“We can handle it.” Mr. Wilkerson smiled at
me as the two blondes bustled away in the direction of the indoor
arena and the bathroom. He was tall and sandy-haired. “Is this your
first show?”

“Yes. My brother games. My dad ropes and my
mom does endurance. We have a shower stall in our arena, but mostly
we use brushes to groom our horses, and we only fly-wipe during the
summer.”

“Well, Lady is a pro.” Mr. Wilkerson strolled
toward the back of the trailer. “She behaves perfectly when we
bathe, clip, or haul her. Sometimes I’m sure that we need to drop
in coins to make her go like one of those rides at the
grocery.”

I couldn’t help smiling as he opened the
doors. He eased into the trailer, then backed out the mare. He
passed me the lead. “Hold onto her for me.”

I did and he climbed back inside only to
return with a large tack trunk. “So, do you want to carry this
crate? Or lead the horse?”

“I’ll lead her,” I said. “We know each other.
I ride her son, Charming.”

Lady was a reddish brown bay with a gold cast
to her hide, just like Twaziem. Her mane and tail were long,
lustrous, and black. She had four tiny white ankle socks. Of
course, there were differences. She was twelve, not two. She was a
mare, not a gelding, and she had to weigh at least seven hundred
pounds more than my horse. Dani’s mom might say she needed to be
groomed, but Lady’s coat gleamed. She must have had a bath last
week.