No Time for Horses (16 page)

I picked up my vest and slung it over my arm.
I tucked my gloves into my helmet and headed for the old two-story
farmhouse across the yard. The collie lying on the porch gave a
warning bark, then a second and third one.

Sierra opened the front door. “Hey, Vicky.
It’s lunch time. You need to eat.”

“I would, but somebody beat me to my
lunch.”

“Really.” Sierra held the door wide. “You
better come join us. We’re having leftovers from Thanksgiving. Save
me from one more turkey sandwich.”

“Gladly.” I laughed and walked inside with
her.

Rocky sat at the kitchen table taking orders
from Autumn about her sandwich. The two of them looked at me as I
came in with Sierra. “What’s going on?” Rocky asked me. “You looked
like you were doing great with Aladdin.”

“He’s fine,” I said. “I put him in his stall
and fed him lunch. Mine’s gone walkabout from the fridge so I came
to bum a sandwich.”

“No worries,” Rocky said. “We have plenty. I
wonder what happened to your lunch.” She shrugged, “Oh well. It
doesn’t matter. When you move in once you turn eighteen, I can save
on wages if I provide room and board for you too.”

“That’s my mom,” Sierra said, “always
thinking of how to save a buck.”

“I have to do something. Between the two and
four-legged ones, I have fifty plus kids to look after.”

I piled my things on the floor near an empty
chair and went to wash up at the sink. I came back and sat down.
Rocky passed me the loaf of bread and pushed the platter of turkey
my way.

Autumn climbed up on the seat next to mine.
She waited until her mom went to the fridge for more mayonnaise. “I
know where your lunch went,” she whispered.

“Really?” I whispered back. “So do I.”

“Meredith ate some and threw away the rest.”
Autumn hissed. “I didn’t see her, but I know she did it.”

“Me too,” I said. “I was really hungry, so
that’s why I came over here.”

“I’m glad.” Autumn picked up her sandwich.
Before she took a bite, she asked, “Will you read me a story
tonight? From my
Album of Horse
book?”

“I love learning about the breeds of horses.
I hoped you’d ask me,” I said. “Thank you for sharing your book
with me.”

I got a big grin from her and a heavy sigh
from Sierra. “You do realize she won’t be content with just one
story. You’ll have to read at least three.”

“That’s okay,” I said. “It beats
Goodnight
Moon
.”

“I like that story,” Autumn told me.

“Me too,” I said, slathering mayo on my
bread. “I read it to my little sister Linda every night when we’re
both home.” I eyed Sierra. “Sometimes, I have to read it three more
times, once for Lance and for Chrissy and Cathy too. Kevin always
picks a different book then.”

“You have more patience than I do,” Sierra
told me.

“That wouldn’t be difficult.” Rocky sliced
turkey into smaller bite-sized pieces. “When you think someone’s a
waste of oxygen, you don’t hesitate to say so. After lunch, I want
you to pony Vicky on Aladdin before she tries going solo.”

“You got it,” Sierra said. “I know it seems
like you’re training him a lot today, but the hours and miles will
make a big difference. He’ll learn how to be a horse in spite of
himself.”

Rocky turned her attention to Autumn. “You
stay out of the round pen while the girls train. Aladdin tries to
stomp the dog whenever he gets the opportunity. I don’t want that
horse going after my baby.”

“I’m not a baby,” Autumn told her
indignantly. “I’m seven.”

“You’re the youngest,” Rocky said. “You’ll
always be my baby.”

“It’s Sierra’s turn to be the baby.”

“No, she was my baby for nine years. She gets
to be a big girl now.”

Sierra glanced at her mom. “Does that mean I
can buy a car in the spring?”

“You’re not that big of a girl,” Rocky said.
“When you can drive the bulldozer forward as well as you can
back-blade, then we’ll go car shopping.”

I focused on eating my sandwich before I lost
control and fell into hysterical laughter. I could just imagine
what my mother would say about a girl running a dozer. Still, it
sounded like fun. I wondered if I had to wait until I moved here
before I learned to operate heavy equipment. When we finished
eating, I helped clean up the kitchen. Sierra and I headed back to
the lower barn to bring out Aladdin and Summertime.

Okay, so I was acting paranoid. I went ahead
and unsaddled Aladdin. I ran a quick brush over him, checking his
blanket and pads. I tacked him up again. I removed his bridle, and
made sure it was in the same shape it had been earlier. I put it
back on him. He didn’t mind the fussing. It meant more carrots. I
added the halter and snapped on the lead, putting the rope up over
his neck.

“What’s up?” Sierra asked. “Did something
look goofy?”

“No,” I said. “I just wanted to be extra
careful after what happened when he didn’t get fed and my lunch
vanished. Not everybody is my best friend.”

“You’re thinking all the time, aren’t
you?”

“I try.” I slid my arms into my protective
vest, adjusting the fit on my shoulders before I buckled it above
my waist. Actually, I didn’t own the vest. It was an old one of
Sierra’s. There was nothing wrong with it. She’d just outgrown it.
I put on my helmet and drew on my leather gloves. “Okay, I’m
ready.”

Meredith bustled out of the tack room. “I
can’t believe you’re going to ride a hungry horse. Haven’t you
overworked him enough for one day?”

“I fed him when you didn’t.” I kept my tone
civil while I opened the stall door and gathered up the reins. “I
appreciate your concern. He’ll be fine. I know what I’m doing.”

I led him from the barn, and Sierra followed
with Summertime. When we hit the round pen, she held back so I
could maneuver Aladdin through the gate. She followed me with the
other horse. Once inside, I checked my stirrup leathers. I wouldn’t
let anyone distract me from what I was doing with this horse. He
trusted me to take care of him, and that was a major
improvement.

Sierra boosted me into the saddle. I slid my
feet into the stirrups, collecting up on the reins. “Ready,” I
said.

“Okay. Just wait for me.” She led Summertime
a couple steps away to the mounting block. “Aladdin’s doing
great.”

Famous last words. I heard two blasts from a
car horn. I saw a cluster of kids running toward me, screaming,
“Vicky, Vicky, Vicky!”

Aladdin didn’t wait to see what came next. He
tore off at a dead run around the corral. I sat down hard, pushed
on my feet, and pulled back on the reins. He almost stopped.
Another shout. He bucked twice. His left shoulder slanted lower. He
spun left.

I went right. I hit the ground rolling. Kids
screaming, dog barking, horn honking. The world went black!

Chapter
Sixteen

Saturday,
November 30th, 1:30 p.m.

As I started to come back, I felt as if I was
floating. Water dripped on my face. Had it started to rain?
Somehow, I heard Jack’s voice. Did I smell his spicy aftershave? I
drifted a bit and just listened.

“You’re all right, baby. I’ve got you. Baby,
it’s okay.”

I must be dreaming. He never gushed. I forced
open my eyes. He was really here, really with me. Not my crazy
imagination. He held me tight against him, carrying me. “I
fell.”

“Got thrown,” Jack corrected. He stopped
walking. “How do you feel?”

I saw tears on his cheeks. One slid down
splashing onto my face. My head spun. For a minute, I tasted my
turkey sandwich again. I gagged. “Put me down.”

“No.”

I managed to turn my head when I puked.
“Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He stepped around the puddle of
my sandwich and pumpkin pie. “Robin, go get her a bottle of water.
Then find the first aid kit.”

I closed my eyes. The next time I opened them
I was in the office, slumped in a chair. Kevin brought over the
wastebasket and put it next to me. “What’s this for?”

“Jack says if you hurl again, you won’t want
to make a mess.” Kevin wiped at his face and sniffled. “I’m sorry,
Vicky. Dad said to run and get you.”

“It was an accident.” I tried to touch him,
but my hand felt too heavy to lift. “Remember that you never run on
a horse farm or yell. Deal?”

“Yeah.” Kevin gulped back a sob. “I’m real
sorry. He said run when you didn’t come after he honked the horn.
I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” I said again. “You didn’t mean
it.”

He walked away, crying. I should go after
him, but I didn’t want to move. It seemed like too much
trouble.

Robin came with a bottle of water and knelt
by me. She twisted off the cap and held the bottle to my mouth.
“Sip. Swish. Spit.”

I did, rinsing my mouth. “The kids. Are they
okay?”

“Don’t worry about them. Autumn has four of
them, and she’s holding a ‘Shamrock Stable way’ meeting. Kevin’s
helping us with you.”

“Is Aladdin okay?”

“He’s fine. He’s having an intervention with
Rocky. She’s explaining the facts of horsy life here to him. This
is a kids’ barn. He’s going to have to deal with beginners and the
silly things they do for the next thirty years or he can go to
Canada and be meat.”

“It wasn’t all his fault,” I said.

“No, but nobody knows what people may do
around horses. He needs to wake up and smell the oats if he wants
to stay here,” Robin told me. “Only Rocky would feed him for two
years and wait for him to get it together. Anyone else would have
shipped him a long time ago.”

She had a point, but it seemed too hard to
tell her that. I closed my eyes again.

I opened them when Jack showed up with the
first-aid kit, tucking his phone into his pocket. “I called your
mom. She’s meeting us at the hospital. I’m taking off your helmet,
and we’re cleaning you up before the paramedics get here.”

“I don’t need them.”

“Baby, when you fall like that and lose
consciousness, I don’t care what you need. You’re going to the
hospital.”

I looked at Robin when she choked with
laughter. “What’s wrong?”

“Him. We have to drag him to the doctor when
he gets hurt. Mr. Macho is right, Vick. You need to get checked
out.”

“I don’t…” I lifted my chin so Jack could
unbuckle the strap. Everything spun like my head was on a
merry-go-round by itself while my body waited outside. My stomach
clenched. I choked and tasted water. I bent over. Kevin held up the
wastebasket. I hurled again.

Jack put my helmet on the table beside me. I
saw big cracks running through the plastic. “Oh crap. It’s toast.
I’m going to have to buy a new one.”

“Better the helmet than your head.” Robin
told me.

I leaned back and closed my eyes while Jack
wiped my face with a warm cloth. I didn’t wear much makeup to the
barn. I heard heavy clumping steps and opened my eyes to see two
firefighters, a guy and a gal, carrying a bunch of equipment. “I
don’t need you. I’m okay.”

“You look fine to me,” the man said. “What do
we have here?”

“Her horse spooked. She fell.” Robin took
over, describing the impact, how I passed out, and how many times I
threw up. She was going to be a great doctor, I thought dizzily.
Too much was going on here, and I leaned back, shutting my eyes.
That was better.

* * * *

Saturday, November 30th, 4:15 p.m.

At the hospital, the doctor, a young guy in
blue scrubs, fussed around me. He’d had me X-rayed and CT scanned
and ran a bunch of tests. I told him that I felt better now. Okay,
I was a bit stiff, but I’d been hurt worse at cheerleading. I was
super grateful that Rocky insisted on the protective vest and
equestrian helmet. My head ached, especially when Mom started
complaining about the cost of everything the doctor did.

He ignored her and studied the X-rays. “Okay,
let’s talk about you, Vicky. No broken bones or cracked ribs.
That’s good considering how far you fell and how hard you landed.
How tall is the horse?”

“Fifteen hands,” I said. “Barely a horse,
size-wise, and he’s doing really well. It wasn’t his fault. Any
horse could have spooked when a bunch of kids ran screaming at
him.”

“Typical of you horse-people,” the doctor
said. “Nothing is ever the horse’s fault. What are you going to do
with him?”

I heaved a sigh, and my head throbbed. “Start
over with more ground work which is a major pain in the tush. We’d
just gotten to where I could ride him.”

“You’re never riding there again,” Mom
interrupted. “I can’t afford to have you hurt. Do you know what
this is going to cost?”

“Not that much, only the copay,” I said. “You
have me on your insurance from work. Rick pays the insurance for
his kids. And really, you should go harass him. If he hadn’t sent
the five of them screaming at my horse, I wouldn’t have
fallen.”

“I had to take time off work to come here,”
Mom said. “This is a big weekend. I need to get back to the
casino.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I said. “Blah, blah,
blah. Could you just shut up? My head already aches. When can I
have an aspirin?”

The doctor turned back to the lighted screen,
his shoulders shaking in his blue scrub shirt. “Well, you’ve got
some clarity of thought. The concussion might not be as bad as I
thought. Mrs. Miller, who is going to take care of her if I let her
go home tonight?”

“What?” Mom asked. “You have to release her.
She needs to be at home to take care of the kids. I’ve got to get
back to work.”

“And who will take care of
this
kid?
I’m talking about Vicky. She has a concussion. No lifting, no
straining, no riding, no school, and no cheerleading until I see
her on Tuesday.”

“Now, if you say no vacuuming, no cooking, no
laundry, and no changing diapers, you’ll be my hero forever, just
like Jack,” I said. “No walking the kids to daycare in the rain or
picking them up at the elementary school to walk them home. No
pushing Chrissy in the stroller.”