Free Broken Horse by Bonnie Bryant Page B

David’s band, but Carole was quicker.
    “Actually, there is one new horse there right now,” she told Chad, shooting a look at Stevie. Alex looked so upset about what was happening between Paige and David that Carole felt a little sorry for him. She was glad Chad had decided to change the subject, and she was more than willing to help. “She’s a gray mare we found who had been abused.” She went on to tell them all about the sick mare.
    For the rest of the meal the group discussed the mare,Pine Hollow, and other topics. Stevie and her friends noticed that Alex kept shooting Paige sullen looks. They also noticed that Paige was ignoring the looks—if she noticed them at all. The only thing she was definitely noticing at the moment was David.
    All in all, as Stevie told her friends later, it had been a very interesting meal—even more interesting than she could have hoped.

“Y OU ’ LL NEVER GUESS what happened in school today,” Stevie exclaimed when she found her friends at the mare’s stall the next afternoon.
    “What?” Carole asked, sounding distracted. She and Lisa had been checking on the mare and discussing the fact that she didn’t look any better.
    But Stevie had barely noticed the mare yet. She was too eager to share her news. “It’s Alex and Paige,” she announced. “They’re Splitsville!”
    “Oh, that’s too bad,” Lisa said, leaning against the pitchfork she had brought to muck out the mare’s stall.
    “Too bad, nothing,” Stevie said. “This is great. It’s exactly what Alex deserves for being such an annoying sap about the whole thing.”
    Carole didn’t think that was a very nice thing for Stevie to say, but she decided not to mention it right then. Stevie had that look on her face that meant she was already dreaming up new ways to torture her brother. “What happened?” she asked instead.
    “Paige dumped him like a load of old bricks,” Stevie said gleefully. “She was so impressed with Chad’s friend David last night that she’s skipping the dance tomorrow so she can go to the Rotting Meat show at the bowling alley.”
    “Oh, poor Alex,” Lisa said softly. “He was looking forward to it so much.”
    “Well, I guess he should have found a girlfriend who doesn’t have a thing for older men,” Stevie said.
    “How is he taking it?” Carole asked.
    “Let me put it to you this way,” Stevie said. “I ran into him outside of school today when I was getting ready to come over here, and I offered to let him come with me. You know, I thought he might find someone to replace Paige at Pine Hollow. After all, Penny is pretty cute, and everyone knows Delilah is a real beauty, and then there’s Prancer—athletic yet feminine.”
    Carole rolled her eyes. Penny, Delilah, and Prancer were all Pine Hollow mares. “Very funny,” she commented.
    “Well, I guess Alex didn’t get the joke,” Stevie said. “I don’t think he even heard me talk about the mares. Because I would swear he was about to accept my offer and come here with me. Can you believe that?”
    Her friends had to admit that that was more than a little bit strange. They knew that Pine Hollow was the last place any of Stevie’s brothers would want to go.
    “That just shows how upset he is,” Lisa said.
    “I know,” Stevie said with a grin. “Can you believe it? Who would have thought my very own twin would turn out to be such a fool for love?”
    Finally Stevie seemed to realize where they were. She glanced in at the mare. “Oh. How is she?”
    “Not so good,” Carole admitted. “I don’t see much difference in her condition, although she did look at us when we arrived today. I think she recognizes us, even if she doesn’t always show it.”
    “That’s a good sign,” Lisa said. She looked at the mare and sighed. The mare wasn’t looking back at them now. “But it’s a small one. She still doesn’t seem to care much whether we’re around or not.”
    “I already checked on Starlight, so