Free Secret Horse by Bonnie Bryant Page B

truck. “Say,” he said curiously, “who’s going to ride him in the show?”
    Lisa turned her head aside, modestly allowing Carole to answer. The fall had erased all her hopes of receiving that honor.
    “Max will have to make the final decision, of course,” Carole said, “but it certainly won’t be me.”
    Lisa caught her breath. Had she heard right?
    “I’m committed to Starlight,” Carole went on. “I think we have a good chance of doing well, and I couldn’t let him down now.”
    “I’ll second that,” said Mr. Grover. He gave a wave and threw the truck into gear, leaving Carole, Lisa, and Samson standing there.
    “So what do you say, Lisa?” Carole asked. “Are you up for it?”
    Lisa stared. “But—But I fell off today!” she said, her voice trembling. “How could I ride him in the Macrae after that?”
    Carole raised her eyebrows at her friend. “Since when does taking a spill have anything to do with getting back on and riding in a horse show?”
    Lisa half smiled. “But I—I just assumed—”
    “You assumed wrong. If you want to ride Samson, I’m all for it,” Carole said as they headed down the driveway.
    Lisa felt a rush of gratitude toward her friend. “Oh, Carole, I do! I do want to ride him—more than anything!”
    “Great,” said Carole as if what Lisa said was no big deal. “You might have to fight Stevie for it, but I doubt it. She’s so busy competing with Veronica, I don’t think she’ll care about
actually
competing. So talk to her, and when the time comes, we’ll try to convince Max.”
    Lisa felt dazed. After her days of worry, Carole had just handed her the opportunity on a silver platter. “You’re not sad because of Cobalt—and—and everything?” Lisa asked.
    Carole didn’t say anything for a moment. Then she said quietly, “I thought about that. And you know, even if I rode Samson in the Macrae, it wouldn’t bring his sire back.”
    Lisa nodded. Instinctively she understood that this was as important a moment for Carole as it was for her.The girls walked a few paces in silence, Samson ambling along between them. When Carole finally spoke, it was in a totally different tone. “Besides,” she said, “I’ve got Starlight to think of. And you know what? I miss him already!”

S TEVIE WOKE TO sunlight streaming through her bedroom window. Another gorgeous summer day. She sat up happily. Without school and homework, she didn’t even mind getting up early. She swung her legs over the side of the bed. Then she remembered where she had to go. All at once it seemed as if several dark clouds had covered the sun. She lay back down and pulled the covers over her head. Unfortunately, that didn’t change the fact that she was due at Veronica diAngelo’s in an hour.
    “Why me?” Stevie groaned, putting on normal clothes instead of riding clothes for the first time that week.
    With a scowl on her face, Stevie sat stonily through breakfast, barely hearing her brother Chad’s comment about getting up on the wrong side of the bed.
    “How would
you
feel if you had to go to the diAngelos’ for the day?” Stevie snapped.
    “Veronica diAngelo’s?” Chad said. “I thought you couldn’t stand her.”
    “I can’t!” Stevie wailed. “That’s why I have to hang out with her today!”
    Chad looked at Stevie’s twin, Alex, his eyebrows raised. “Girls,” Alex said succinctly.
    Stevie gave them a withering glance. “This is a very complex situation involving high-level espionage,” she retorted. But then her scowl grew deeper. “And I have to miss a day at the barn because of it!” she whined.
    Chad shrugged. “Maybe it won’t be as bad as you think.”
    “Yeah, you can hang out in that huge pool!” said Michael, Stevie’s youngest brother. “They have a slide and two diving boards.”
    “And I’ll bet they have good snacks,” Alex pointed out. “With their private cook and everything.”
    Stevie sniffed. “That’s true,” she said. Maybe her