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  “Well, I could tell that,” said Mrs. Johnson. “And there’s no reason why you should. You know me as a rider, and that’s the way I know you, too. You didn’t know I was a writer as well, nor did I know that you were one of my readers—until I got your wonderful letter.”

  Stevie gulped. She’d expected an answer—but not in person! She had about fourteen questions she wanted to ask, but at the moment she was so stunned that she couldn’t speak. It was a very unusual circumstance for Stevie Lake to be speechless!

  “Anyway, I did love your letter. I was so excited that you’d found that rock. That rock was my whole inspiration for the book.”

  “It was Hallie’s?” Stevie asked.

  Mrs. Johnson shook her head. “No, it was mine. I’ve been walking and riding through these woods for years and I’ve always known that rock. The cave is so cozy—”

  Lisa and Carole looked at one another. They’d been totally lost, but now they realized that they knew the rock, too, and they knew exactly what Stevie and Mrs. Johnson were talking about.

  “—and that mark looks just like an arrow. Well, Stevie, it just suggested the whole story to me.”

  “But what about Hallie’s diary?” Stevie asked. “Isn’t that real?”

  “Oh, sure,” said Mrs. Johnson. “There is a diary by an escaped slave named Hallie, but it doesn’t say anything about the rock. It’s very sketchy, in fact. She only mentions in passing that she’d escaped to Canada on the Underground Railroad. Everything in the book, except the name of the woman and the fact of her escape, was made up by me.”

  “Everything?”

  “It’s a novel, Stevie,” Mrs. Johnson explained. “The whole thing is fiction, a made-up story.”

  “But it seemed so real,” said Stevie. “Like I was there.”

  Mrs. Johnson smiled. “That’s what I loved about your letter to me, when you said that. If I make a story feel real to you, then I’ve done my job.”

  “You did,” said Stevie.

  “Really well,” Carole added.

  “Absolutely,” said Lisa.

  “You girls read the book, too?” asked Mrs. Johnson.

  “Well, Stevie kept talking about it,” said Carole. “We just had to. Oh, and incidentally, if you get another letter suggesting that the rock is real and is in Willow Creek, Virginia, you don’t have to answer it,” she added shyly. “I mean, I think you’ve already answered it.”

  “Um, make that three,” Lisa said. Carole and Stevie both looked at her, and then the three of them burst into laughter. Mrs. Johnson joined them.

  “This feels like the beginning of a fan club!” said Mrs. Johnson. “I guess I’d better write another book now!”

  “Please do!” Stevie said.

  “And we promise to write you about it!” Lisa added. Mrs. Johnson thanked them all and then left the stable.

  They were still laughing together when they finished their grooming. Carole dropped her polishing rag into her bucket.

  “This boy’s going back to his stall for a snack, and then I think it’s time for the three of us to go over to TD’s for a treat. Anybody here want to have a Saddle Club meeting?”

  “Last one there is a rotten egg!” Stevie declared.

  The race was on.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Bonnie Bryant is the author of nearly a hundred books about horses, including The Saddle Club series, Saddle Club Super Editions, and the Pony Tails series. She has also written novels and movie novelizations under her married name, B. B. Hiller.

  Ms. Bryant began writing The Saddle Club in 1986. Although she had done some riding before that, she intensified her studies then and found herself learning right along with her characters Stevie, Carole, and Lisa. She claims that they are all much better riders than she is.

  Ms. Bryant was born and raised in New York City. She still lives there, in Greenwich Village, with her two sons.

  Don’t miss Bonnis Bryant’s next exciting Saddle Club Adventure …

  HORSE TALK

  The Saddle Club #71

  When Willow Creek Junior High School gets its own radio station, The Saddle Club goes on the air! Hosting a call-in show, however, is a lot more difficult than the three friends ever imagined. At first nobody calls. Then Stevie’s brother Chad gets his friends to phone in with silly questions. The Saddle Club tries to fight back by flooding the phone lines with their own calls, but Chad seems to be winning.

  Then a caller tells them about a horse in trouble, and The Saddle Club has to decide whether the call is for real. A horse may be in danger, or Chad may be playing his tricks again. It’s up to The Saddle Club to find out and try to save a horse before it’s too late!