Free Cutting Horse by Bonnie Bryant

leave. In fact, it would be good for him to
stay
—and see how awful Prize was. Even though the guy might be a more experienced rider than Skye, he couldn’t be so much of a miracle worker that he wouldn’t have trouble with Prize, too. Even Carole hadn’t been able to get very far with the horse, and chances were, the stuntman wasn’t as good as Carole. Maybe he wouldn’t be able to do any better than Skye. Then the director would have to see how unfair hewas being. “Forget what I said: Make yourself at home. Watch all you want,” Stevie said sweetly.
    “Thank you, I will,” the man replied.
    Now that Stevie had had her important realization, she decided she might even be able to scare the double off if she hammed it up about how terrible Prize was. “You know this horse is barely trained?” she said.
    “Yup, so I’ve heard through the grapevine.”
    “And he’s scared of cattle.”
    “I heard that, too.”
    “I mean really scared. He tries to run when he sees them.”
    “Uh-huh.” The man reached down and picked a blade of grass to chew on. He looked utterly unperturbed.
    Stevie was so confused that she gave up beating around the bush. “Aren’t you even the tiniest bit worried about being able to make him look like a championship cutting horse?”
    The man shook his head. “Nah,” he said calmly. “If Skye Ransom can have a double, I think it’s safe to assume that Skye Ransom’s horse can, too.”
    Stevie clapped her hand to her mouth in astonishment. Then she cried, “I’ve got it!”

“I S EVERYBODY HERE ? Whoever’s not here, speak up now!” Stevie joked.
    “We’re all here, Stevie,” Carole said shortly. It had been a long, frustrating day, and she wasn’t in the mood for Stevie’s attempts at humor. All evening Stevie had been giddy with excitement. Nobody could figure out why, and Stevie had refused to explain until The Saddle Club meeting she had planned for that night in the bunkhouse. Now they were all assembled in a circle on the floor, and Carole wished Stevie would hurry up andget to the point. After the disappointing lesson with Skye, she was tired—very, very tired. Kate and Lisa looked exhausted, too.
    “Knock, knock. Can I come in?”
    Stevie stood up and swung open the door to see who on earth would be visiting them at such a strange hour. “Christine!” she cried. Shrieking with delight, she embraced their old friend, Christine Lonetree, and ushered her inside.
    “Hi, everybody,” Christine said. “A little bird told me that I might find you here.”
    “Christine, we haven’t seen you around. Where have you been?” Lisa asked.
    Christine Lonetree was an American Indian girl who lived near the Devines and was a friend of The Saddle Club. Usually she took early-morning rides on her horse, Arrow, but the girls hadn’t seen her yet this trip. They’d been so busy that they’d forgotten to ask for her. Like Kate, Christine was an out-of-town Saddle Club member. She had taught the girls a lot about American Indian culture.
    “To be honest,” Christine said, “I’ve been avoiding the place. John told me that it had been invaded. I didn’t want to spook Arrow, especially since the reason we takethe dawn rides is that it’s usually peaceful and we can both relax. But,” she added, “I had to come see you guys. Kate called me and told me about the meeting tonight.”
    “Guilty as charged,” Kate said happily. “Christine’s bunking with us tonight.”
    “We’re glad you could make it,” Lisa said. She scooted closer to Carole to make room for Christine. Christine plunked down on the floor.
    “Actually, your showing up is the best thing that’s happened all day,” Carole said.
    Taking turns, the girls filled Christine in on the events of the past few days.
    “Boy, I heard Hollywood was ruthless, but it sounds like the director has really gone too far, telling Skye he can’t ride,” Christine remarked. “What are you going to do to stop