Free Hayride by Bonnie Bryant Page A

tried to cause problems for you and Phil, but—”
    “Cause problems! She tried to get him to dump me!”
    “—and that’s terrible, but she
is
a good rider.” Carole paused, letting her words sink in. Then she added, “And I can’t think of anyone at her level who won’t be able to ride her own horse for two weeks. It seems like the best solution.”
    It was true. Carole couldn’t ride at all. Veronica couldn’t ride Garnet. And no matter how despicable Veronica was when it came to people, she
did
ride well. Even so, Stevie could barely bring herself to admit that Carole was right. She was still fuming inside over thephone call. “I guess it would be okay, but I’d think it over first,” she said.
    “I have, and it’s the only sensible thing to do. I’ll bet Lisa would think so, too,” Carole said.
    Stevie agreed that Lisa would like the logic of the situation. The horseless rider riding the riderless horse: It would work perfectly. “I guess so,” she said.
    Trying to cheer her up, Carole reminded Stevie that Starlight’s well-being was at stake, and that that was all they should care about. Then she had to go—she wanted to soak her ankle before dinner. They finished the conversation and hung up.
    Stevie knew that Carole’s plan was the horsemanlike thing to do. Still, it filled her with disgust to think about The Saddle Club
again
doing something nice for Veronica. She would just have to keep her mind on her own plan—the plan of revenge!
    C AROLE HAD BARELY got her Ace bandage off and her foot into the basin of warm water when the phone rang again. Colonel Hanson stretched the cord over to the kitchen table where Carole was sitting. Then he mumbled some excuse about having to do some desk work and left. Carole said hello eagerly, realizing it must be Cam. Her father would never excuse himself if one of her girlfriends called.
    She was right: Cam’s deep voice greeted her. Knowingshe could no longer keep her ankle a secret, she told him all about the trip to the hospital, ending with her plan to have Veronica ride Starlight. “What do you think?”
    “Sounds fine,” Cam muttered. Carole was puzzled. It was an unusual response for him. Normally he would be as eager as she was to weigh the pros and cons. Tonight he was answering everything she said in a monotone. He sounded distant and upset.
    Carole decided to change the subject. Maybe he had had a bad day with Duffy and didn’t want to talk horses. “So the party’s still on, at least, and I think it’ll be really fun.”
    There was a pause. “I guess you’re inviting a lot of boys, huh?” Cam asked.
    “I sure am,” Carole said. “I want it to be as evenly numbered as possible.”
    “I hope I’m not ruining the ratio,” Cam said.
    “You?” Carole asked. What was that supposed to mean?
    “Because if I am, I don’t have to be there.”
    Carole was even more confused. Was this Cam’s idea of a joke? He seemed to be asking her if she actually wanted him to come. “Cam, I want you there,” she insisted.
    When he didn’t respond, she wondered if she’d said the right thing. Maybe
he
was the one who didn’t want to come. Carole sighed. Why did people have to be soimpossible to understand? Horses were so much simpler. She always knew what was bothering Starlight. She decided to drop the subject of the party and try yet another subject.
    “Hey, did I tell you about what Veronica tried to do to Stevie and Phil?” she asked. She related the phone-call incident. “That’s why Stevie doesn’t want me to let Veronica ride Starlight. Can you believe Veronica would do something so awful? If Phil hadn’t known better, she might have convinced him Stevie liked someone else.”
    Cam let out a long breath of air. “That’s crazy,” he said, sounding so relieved, he almost laughed. He warmed to the conversation right away. “From what I saw of her at the know-down, that sounds just like Veronica—dishonest and nasty. But I still