Free No Horse Wanted by LLC Melange Books Page B

computer lab so I could do my letter. Halfway there, Vicky
pushed me into the restroom. “Get out your cell and call Dr.
Larry.”
    “What? If I’m caught, I’ll get
detention.”
    “And when Weaver checks up with him, you’ll
be off cross-country for the season and in I.S.S. until Christmas.
I’ll stand guard. You call.”
    “Then why did you say I was doing it with
him?”
    “Hello, weren’t you listening Saturday night?
He believes you walk on water. You need to use that. Why do you
think Rocky agreed to let me do my internship at her barn? She
likes me and says I’m a good rider and trainer.”
    “Plus you can clean fourteen stalls faster
than anyone else on the planet.” I checked the restroom. It was
empty so I pulled out my phone and called Equine Nation. Of course,
it wasn’t open yet, but I left Dr. Larry a message about doing the
internship with him. I’d check back with him during lunch when
students were allowed to use their cell phones.
    In the lab, Vicky opened her binder. It was
totally organized by class. She took out the rubric for the
assignment and a copy of her letter. “Okay, here’s my flash drive.
We’ll adjust the wording so it works for you helping the
veterinarian on his large animal calls.”
    When I rolled my eyes, she elbowed me. “Ouch.
That hurt,” I complained. “What’s your problem?”
    “Will you get serious? You don’t want to
spend every day in the clinic shoveling puppy or kitty poop. You
want to go places with Dr. Larry and learn what he does in the
field.”
    “When you put it that way, it makes a lot
more sense.” I logged on to the computer and clicked on the word
processing program. Actually, I was lucky to have her on my side
even if I hassled her about it.
    * * * *
    Monday, September
16 th , 2:20 p.m.
     
    I finished my letter and turned it into Mrs.
Weaver at the end of the school day. She skimmed through it. “All
right. I’ll give this back to you tomorrow with my corrections, and
you can do a final draft.”
    “Come again?” I stared at her. “I thought
this was all you wanted.”
    “Did you even read the project requirements?”
Mrs. Weaver put my paper on her desk. She folded her arms and
narrowed her eyes. “I’m still waiting for your brainstorm.”
    “My what?”
    “Your outline for the letter.”
    “Who outlines a letter? That’s the stupidest
thing I’ve ever heard.”
    She heaved a sigh like I was the dumbest
student she’d seen in a long time. “You typed this, so I know you
kept a copy on your flash drive. You can amplify the second and
third paragraphs. Ask your older brother to help you outline the
letter.”
    “No way. If I ask Jack for help, he’ll come
up with some rotten chore I have to do in exchange. I might have to
muck out his room. I already have to feed the horses and pigs to
share the chore money. It sucked last night.”
    “That sounds like a personal problem.” Mrs.
Weaver looked at the clock. “You’d better go if you don’t want to
be late for track practice.”
    “Cross-country,” I corrected. “Track’s in the
spring.”
    I headed for the door, then stopped when I
heard a weird sound. I glanced back over my shoulder. Was she
laughing? Apparently so. Who knew that was even possible? Okay, if
I didn’t make it to State this year, I could always try to be a
comedian.
    I was one of the last girls to reach the
locker room, but it didn’t take long to change to my shorts and
T-shirt. I tied my sweatshirt around my waist and jogged out to the
track. I started stretching. No cramps for me. I glanced at Gwen
and Porter, two of the other girls on the team. “Has he said where
we’re running yet?”
    Gwen shook her head and kept doing side
bends. “Something about a park.”
    “Downtown,” Porter said.
    I grimaced. Running through Marysville meant
lots of sidewalks and maybe a bit in the local park, but that
didn’t get me ready for the track meet outside of Arlington. Coach
Norris waved to us and we