Free Lucky Horse by Bonnie Bryant

matter.”
    Lisa put a chicken leg in Stevie’s hand and grabbed another for herself. In a few minutes most of the chicken was gone, along with the chips and the pecan pie. A few minutes after that, everybody at Pine Hollow, including the guests in the hayloft, was sound asleep and dreaming of the day to come.

“T HAT WAS A great dinner, Carole.” Colonel Hanson stretched in the camping armchair. “The food totally refreshed me, and I don’t even feel tired anymore. Must be the magic of home cooking.”
    “Whatever you say, Dad.” Carole smiled. She knew the hot dogs hadn’t really tasted that good, but he was nice to say so.
    Colonel Hanson looked at her. “Do you still want to go stargazing tonight?”
    “Sure,” Carole replied eagerly. “I could go stargazing every night. There’s so much to see.”
    “Okay. Let me check my barometer to make sure a front’s not coming through.” Colonel Hanson dug the little electronic barometer out of his pocket and held it close to the fire. “Everything looks okay,” he reported,grinning at Carole. “No bad weather coming, but why don’t you grab our jackets while I get the telescope? It gets chilly on top of that mountain.”
    “Okay.” Carole hurried to the tent and got her father’s leather flight jacket and the old red quilted coat that she usually wore to the barn.
    They doused Carole’s small cooking fire with water, and Colonel Hanson hoisted the telescope over his shoulder. Though the path to the top of Mount Stringfellow was somewhat more familiar to them, Carole, leading, shined her flashlight to guide them.
    “Gosh, Dad, by the time we get there, the stars will already be out.”
    “I know. It should be perfect for stargazing.” Colonel Hanson looked up at the sky. “Maybe tonight we’ll be able to see the Perseid meteor showers.”
    Carole smiled up at the few dim stars that were already twinkling through the trees. Of all the things they’d done on this trip, looking at the stars was her favorite. Never had the heavens shone more brightly for her and her dad.
    By the time they reached the top of Mount Stringfellow, the sky was black velvet spangled with a million diamonds. Over their heads a wide band of even brighter stars stretched across the sky. Carole gasped. “Is that the Milky Way?”
    Her father looked up and smiled. “That’s what it is. Pretty impressive, huh?”
    “It’s amazing. I’ve never seen it so clearly before.”
    “Well, it’s so clear tonight that you can see the whole thing.”
    Carole stared up at the band of brilliant stars while her father set up the telescope. A brisk breeze skimmed the top of the mountain, and both of them slipped into their jackets.
    “Okay,” her father called, his head bent over the eyepiece. “Here’s our old pal Saturn, still surrounded by rings.” He stood up straight and looked at Carole. “Want to come have a look?”
    “Sure.” She hurried over to the telescope. Saturn looked just as beautiful as it had the night before—an icy yellow ball suspended in a black sky. The rings looked like giant flat roads racing around the planet.
    “Let’s see if we can find Mars next,” her father suggested.
    They found the red planet and tried to count the canals, then tried to focus on Venus—but the stars suddenly seemed to glow less brightly. When her father began to search for Mercury, Carole began to yawn. As wonderful as looking at the stars was, she felt as if she’d been up forever.
    “Hey, Dad, I think I’m going to lie down while you look for Mercury,” she said, snuggling down on the ground in her quilted jacket.
    Colonel Hanson smiled. “Take a snooze if you wantto. I’ll wake you up when I find something spectacular.”
    “Thanks.” She folded her arms behind her head, but not before she felt a funny lump in the left pocket of her jacket. She reached inside it and smiled—she’d left one of Starlight’s leg wraps coiled up in a soft ball. She’d have to remember