Free Sundancer by Shelley Peterson Page A

tar out of him .
    He’s had some bad experiences .
    So have we all. Be careful, Bird .
    Interesting, thought Bird. Straight from the horse’s mouth. There was truth in what Jeremy said. Lots of horses were ill treated, but not all posed a danger to humans. Lots of horses had bad experiences, but most learned to trust when treated well. So what was different about this horse? Bird vowed to find out. After their ride, as soon as she put Jeremy away, she’d get on Sundancer’s back again.
    Just then, Pastor reached forward and took a bite out of Jeremy’s rump. Jeremy kicked out in retaliation, and Kimberly let out a scream.
    â€œYour horse kicked at me!” Kimberly yelled. “Keep him under control.”
    Bird looked back at Pastor. Why did you bite Jeremy?
    Because I felt like it .
    Is it out of your system, Pastor? Feel better now?
    Actually, I do .
    Good. Don’t do it again .
    Jeremy piped in; No big deal. He bit, I kicked; we’re even .
    â€œYou should hit him!” continued Kimberly. “He’s got to learn not to kick!”
    Too late, now, thought Bird. No wonder horses get messed up. By the time people get around to hitting them, the horses have forgotten the whole thing.
    Once out of the woods the six horses walked single file down the gravel road until they reached another path. This one led into the riding club where a good cross-country course was kept in safe condition.
    â€œCan we do some jumps?” called Melanie.
    â€œI want to practise the drop,” chimed Jo.
    â€œAnd I want to get Zachary over the barrels,” added Peter.
    â€œNot today,” answered Hannah. The kids all groaned. “The horses were at a show yesterday, and we’ve done enough jumping today already. Let’s head back now.”
    â€œHannah?” Kimberly had to yell to be heard. “My mom could wait, right? She said she would.”
    Bird could hear the anxiety in Kimberly’s tone, and wondered if Lavinia had left. Moms did that sometimes; that much Bird knew for sure. Fortunately, she needn’t have been concerned. Lavinia’s Suburban was parked at the barn in full sight when they came around the corner.
    The kids dismounted and amused each other with horse horror stories. The time a loose horse had jumped into a field of cows and led the herd back to his barn, surprising the horse owner no end. Another time a horse spooked on the road and landed on the front bumper of a car. The stories kept coming as they untacked their horses and sponged them off amid gales of laughter.
    Bird thought of the stories she could tell about Sundancer. How he thought he was better than all the other horses, and smarter than all the humans. How sometimes he got so scared he couldn’t think. How … She stopped herself. They’d think she was crazy if she said those things out loud. Maybe she was.

    Dr. Paul Daniels arrived and walked up to Hannah as she untacked Charlie. Finished with her own grooming, Bird quietly walked over and sat on a bale of hay near where her aunt and Dr. Daniels stood. She chewed silently on a piece of hay and listened.
    â€œHave a good ride?” asked the vet. “Wonderful. It’s a beautiful day.”
    â€œLess humid, for sure. I came to check up on the new gelding.” Hannah turned to face her vet, saddle over one arm, bridle in the other. She looked him in the eye. “He’s an outlaw. I tried to gentle him this morning. He didn’t respond normally. At all.”
    Paul took the saddle from her and they walked to the tack room. Bird thought about following but decided against it. She was in the perfect position. She could hear them talking but they couldn’t see her. She’d wait until she had all the information she needed, and then she’d slip away. She had some business with Sundancer.
    â€œI need to know who owns Sundancer, Paul. Liability, and all that.”
    â€œI hear you. It’s not