Stable Groom Read online

  Without warning, the grain room door swung open. The Saddle Club immediately dropped all talk of the Bath when they saw the person standing in the doorway: It was Max’s fiancée, Deborah Hale. She was dressed in breeches and boots and had her long red hair pulled back in a ponytail. When she saw The Saddle Club, she smiled. “Have you guys been eating the sweet feed again?” she kidded.

  “Deborah!” the three of them fairly yelled.

  “We haven’t seen you in so long,” Carole said, giving the woman a hug. It was great to see her, especially since she was dressed in riding clothes. When she had first come to Pine Hollow, Deborah hadn’t known anything about horses. She wouldn’t have known a few months ago that sweet feed is a mixture of pellets, oats, corn, and molasses, let alone been able to make a joke about it.

  “I’ve been so busy at the newspaper that I haven’t been able to get out here anywhere near as often as I would like. Poor Max usually ends up driving into D.C. to see me,” Deborah explained. As a top investigative reporter for The Washington Times, Deborah was a busy career woman. In fact, it was through her job that she had met Max. She had been investigating a drug ring at the racetrack and had been given Max’s name as someone to consult for background information on horses.

  “But, judging from the clothes you’re in, I’ll bet you’re here to ride today,” Lisa said.

  Deborah glanced behind her. Lowering her voice to a near whisper, she said, “Don’t tell anyone, but Red has given me the best wedding present I could imagine. He knows how much I want to share Max’s love of horses. To make a long story short, he offered to give me riding lessons. Things have slowed down a little at the paper, so I’ll be coming out a few afternoons a week.”

  The girls were delighted with Deborah’s news. “That’s a fantastic idea!” Carole breathed. “Max will be so happy.”

  “Red sure knows how to pick the perfect gift,” Lisa added.

  “Just remember, the lessons are a surprise for Max. He doesn’t even know I want to learn to ride,” Deborah told them.

  The Saddle Club swore to secrecy.

  “How are you going to keep Max from finding out,though?” Stevie asked. A person on a horse wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to keep hidden.

  “Red has it all worked out. He’s going to try to teach me while Max is busy teaching other lessons, and we’re going to have our lessons in the old schooling ring out back. I’ve told Max that I want to come out to Pine Hollow more often in the next few weeks. He assumes it’s just to see him and hang out. But,” Deborah added, “I was hoping that if we need to distract Max, you three might be able to concoct something.”

  “You mean you’re kind of—well, asking us to play tricks on Max?” Stevie whispered, her eyes sparkling at the very thought.

  Deborah nodded. Then, with a glance at Stevie’s avid expression, she added a warning. “Of course, you wouldn’t have to do anything too drastic. I do want to marry this man!” In her previous visits to Pine Hollow, Deborah had had plenty of opportunity to witness the mad confusion that The Saddle Club was capable of creating.

  With a pointed look at Stevie, Carole and Lisa quickly assured her that nothing would get out of hand. “Great. Then I guess I’ll see you on horseback,” Deborah said excitedly. She went off to find Red, leaving the three girls to discuss this latest development.

  “Now I’m more sure than ever that we were right about the wedding being on the twenty-seventh,” Stevie said triumphantly. “And do you realize what this means?”

  “Yes. It means that Deborah is even more in love with Max and more perfect for him than we realized,” Carole said. To Carole, whose life revolved around her love for horses, learning to ride was the best present a woman could give her future, horsey husband.

  “It also means that Red is even smarter and nicer than we realized,” Lisa put in. “He saw that Deborah wanted to learn to ride and so he volunteered to teach her.”

  “Okay, okay—Red’s great, Deborah’s great, they’re all great,” Stevie said. “But the incredible thing about Deborah’s riding lessons is that with the Groom’s Bath and Red’s certification”—she paused dramatically—“I now have three secrets to keep!”

  CAROLE STEPPED BACK from Starlight to survey her grooming. She always liked to do an extra good job for mounted Horse Wise meetings, and today was no different. Starlight’s bay coat shone with good health, good care, and, Carole had realized after last week’s talk, good feeding.

  “You’ve got that horse so shiny, I need my sunglasses,” a cheerful voice commented. Carole turned eagerly to greet Denise, who had come up behind her and was looking at Starlight with admiration.

  “Thanks! I was just thinking that it’s the food Starlight eats that helps give him that healthy glow,” Carole said.

  “You’ve got that right,” Denise agreed. She gave the bay gelding a pat on the shoulder. “Are you coming to the Horse Wise meeting in Max’s office?”

  “Oh, that’s right—I was having so much fun grooming Starlight that I forgot we’re supposed to meet there first,” Carole said.

  “Here, let me help you put him away,” Denise volunteered.

  “Great.” Carole gathered up her brushes while Denise led Starlight back to his stall.

  As they walked to Max’s office, Denise observed, “You really like all aspects of horsemanship, don’t you?”

  Carole nodded eagerly. “I just love anything to do with horses. I don’t even mind mucking out.”

  “That’s the way I was, growing up, too,” Denise said as they entered Max’s office. “Still am actually,” she added.

  Glowing with pride, Carole went to sit with Lisa and Stevie. It wasn’t as if Denise had praised her outright, but to Carole, hearing that she was like Denise was as good as any compliment Denise could give her.

  Max had called everyone together to talk about the summer camp program. “It’s going to be the same as it always is,” he announced after quieting the group down. “Two weeks of intensive lessons.”

  Stevie raised her hand. She couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease Max just a little. “Are you sure it’s going to be exactly the same, Max?” she asked, elbowing Lisa and Carole.

  Max looked at her oddly. “Well, every year varies slightly, and of course there’s the exhibition to think of, but basically, yes. Anyway, I want to make sure we have the name of everyone who is coming to camp as well as the horse you’ll be riding, so I’m sending around this sign-up sheet.”

  Stevie took advantage of the pause to needle Max again. “The exhibition is always the second week of camp, isn’t it, Max?” she asked pointedly.

  Max nodded, raising an eyebrow. “You know that, Stevie. It’s always the last day, Saturday.”

  Stevie smiled knowingly. “It’s too bad that everybody won’t be able to make it this year,” she said. She was surprised she hadn’t gotten a rise out of Max yet. She had thought she might be able to get him to admit that he and Deborah had set a date, but so far he had kept a perfect poker face.

  “Can’t your parents come?” Max asked.

  “Oh, yes. They’ll be there, but some other people might be away,” Stevie persisted suggestively.

  To her disappointment, Max simply shrugged and continued the meeting. “The important announcement I have to make is that I have a new cocounselor for the camp program. I’m sure you all can guess that it’s Denise. She’s going to participate in the upcoming Horse Wise meetings to get to know the riders and horses, and I’m very pleased to have her joining us.”

  When Max paused, the Pony Clubbers broke into spontaneous applause. Denise was fast becoming a favorite around the stables. Having her as a camp instructor would be a treat.

  “What fabulous news!” Veronica gushed.

  Denise stood up, motioning for everyone to stop clapping. “Thanks for the applause. You may want to withhold it when you find out how hard you’ll be working during camp,” she kidded.

  “Do you really think she’ll get V
eronica to work?” Stevie murmured under her breath.

  “If anyone can, it’s Denise,” Lisa whispered back.

  “Anyway,” Denise continued, “I have a few specific goals for the two weeks. One is that we all cooperate and work together to keep up the high Pine Hollow standards. I expect everyone to pitch in, and I won’t be afraid to remind anyone who isn’t …”

  “Is it my imagination, or is she looking right at a certain someone?” Carole whispered. All three of them glanced at Veronica, who was squirming slightly in her seat.

  “I’ll also want to talk to each of you about your individual riding goals for the summer. So, I guess that’s about it. I’m really looking forward to being at Pine Hollow full-time,” Denise concluded.

  When she had finished, everyone cheered again. Finally Max broke in, reminding them to bring in their signed parental permission forms.

  As The Saddle Club left the office to go tack up, Stevie couldn’t resist one more chance to see if Max would rise to her bait. “Camp should be really fun,” she said casually, “although not as much fun as—say—taking a long sea voyage.” She glanced at Max to see how he would respond.

  Max looked up from the camp sign-up list, a worried expression on his face. “Stevie, I have to say, you are talking more nonsense than usual today. Is anything bothering you?” he asked.

  Stevie beamed at him. “Why, no, Max, nothing’s bothering me,” she said. She slipped quickly through the door to join Carole and Lisa in the tack room, where they were gathering up their saddles, bridles, and hard hats.

  “Can you believe it? He wouldn’t admit a thing,” Stevie whispered.

  “I know,” Lisa whispered back. “I didn’t know he could keep a secret like that.”

  “What do you think about Denise teaching at camp?” Carole asked. “I’m so excited.”

  “I think it’s great!” Stevie said. “It will make even less work for Max to worry about before he goes off on his romantic honeymoon cruise.”

  “I don’t know,” Lisa said worriedly. “I feel bad for Red.”

  “Red?” Carole repeated.

  Lisa nodded. “Yes. It just shows that Max believes what Veronica’s been saying about him. Why else would he hire Denise?”

  “You mean you think Max doesn’t trust Red to run things while he’s gone? Because of Veronica?” Carole asked, horrified.

  “If he did, why wouldn’t he have made the usual announcement he makes—that Red is going to be his cocounselor?” Lisa said. “He didn’t even mention Red.”

  A dark look crossed Stevie’s face. “But that’s totally unfair! I mean, Denise is great, but how could Max do that to Red?”

  “I don’t know, but I think we should have a Saddle Club meeting at lunch,” Lisa said.

  The girls agreed to meet at the knoll for lunch. Then they hustled to get to class on time.

  “PHEW! WHAT A workout!” Carole exclaimed an hour and a half later. She sat down beside Lisa and Stevie and got out her bag lunch.

  “That was fantastic,” Lisa agreed. The lesson had focused on jumping, and Denise and Max had set up a stiff course that would really challenge the class. “I’m so happy that Prancer and I could keep up with the class,” Lisa added. In the past it had been frustrating for her and Prancer to jump with the more experienced riders, since both of them were green over fences. But now that she felt more confident, Lisa loved to jump.

  “I’ll say you kept up—you were the only ones who did the in-and-out in one stride,” Carole said appreciatively.

  “Really?” Lisa asked.

  Carole nodded. An in-and-out was a two-jump combination. Max and Denise had set the two jumps fairly far apart to challenge the horses to stretch the stride in between. But a lot of the horses had simply put in two short strides.

  After a minute, Lisa asked, “Didn’t you like the lesson, Stevie? Belle did so well, too.” Stevie had been noticeably silent as they walked out to the knoll.

  “Oh, yes—I loved it, too,” Stevie replied. She paused, lost in thought. Finally she explained. “It’s just that I kept thinking about what you said about Max picking Denise over Red, and I felt like I was betraying Red by enjoying the lesson.” She stared glumly at her peanut butter and jelly on white.

  “I know what you mean,” Lisa replied. “I kept wondering why Max would start having doubts about someone who’s worked for him for so long. All I could think is that maybe Max is worried that the diAngelos will try to get Red fired or something. You never know, with them. If they’ve been complaining about Red, too, and then Max went away, leaving him in charge, they would probably throw a fit.”

  “The more I think about it, the more I think maybe Max is beginning to look down on Red,” Stevie said. “All those complaints from Veronica could be getting to him finally. He doesn’t have time to go check up on Red, and Red never defends himself to Max.”

  “And Max is too preoccupied with his wedding to have a talk with Red,” Carole added.

  “At least we know that we’ve done the right thing by writing to the Equestrian Center,” Lisa said with a sigh.

  Carole looked thoughtful. “You know, it’s funny. Here we thought we were doing something to help make Red’s life with Veronica easier. Now it turns out that this may be a critically important thing to restore Red’s reputation with Max.”

  On that somber note they packed up their trash and headed in. As they passed behind the stables, they caught a glimpse of a solitary rider working in the schooling ring. The red hair revealed her identity. “Red must have given up his lunch hour to teach Deborah,” Lisa guessed, touched by the generosity of Red’s wedding present.

  “Let’s go see how she’s doing,” Carole suggested.

  Moving slowly so as not to disturb the lesson, the three of them walked over and leaned against the rail of the ring. Red had Deborah riding Delilah, the quiet palomino that a number of Max’s students had learned on. She was trotting down the long side of the ring, practicing her posting.

  “That’s right: up, down, up, down. Think about the rhythm of the trot,” Red said. His voice was full of patience and encouragement.

  When Deborah turned the corner, she saw The Saddle Club and flashed them a smile. Red waved a hello, then went back to concentrating on his pupil. “Good job. You’ve almost got it,” he said.

  “I can’t believe she’s trotting by herself already,” said Carole. “I think this is only her second lesson.”

  “If anyone can bring her along in time for the wedding, it’s Red,” Lisa said.

  “I only wish Max could be here to see this,” Stevie said, frowning.

  “I know. It’s too bad this is the one thing we can’t tell him. If Max knew how Red is giving up his personal time to work with Deborah, and if he saw what a great teacher Red is, I’m sure he wouldn’t have any more doubts,” Carole remarked.

  They watched as Red had Deborah ride through the center of the ring, changing directions—and diagonals. One of the basic things riders had to learn was diagonals. When Deborah posted, she had to make sure she rose in the saddle as Delilah’s outside foreleg was coming forward. If she rose as Delilah’s inside foreleg was coming forward, she would be on the wrong diagonal. Every time they switched direction in the ring, Deborah had to sit a beat, so that she’d be on the right diagonal.

  When Deborah had a problem or forgot something, Red spoke to her gently. Deborah looked thrilled to be trotting. She had a huge smile on her face. It was a look The Saddle Club knew well: It came from clipping along on a horse that you liked and feeling that the two of you could do anything.

  When Deborah pulled up at the end of the lesson, Stevie, Lisa, and Carole walked into the ring.

  “So, you’re in on the big secret, huh?” Red asked.

  “We are, and we think it’s the best wedding present imaginable,” Carole replied.

  Red smiled, then turned to Delilah to take her in.

  “Oh, Red, let me do that. I’m sure you have other jobs to
do. I’ll cool her off and bring her in,” Deborah protested.

  Red shook his head. “Horses are my job, Deborah. Besides, you’ve got to get back to D.C. to your job.” Before she could argue, he led Delilah out of the ring with a friendly wave for The Saddle Club.

  “He is one of the most considerate people I have ever met,” Deborah said when Red was out of earshot.

  “We think so, too,” Stevie said emphatically. After a pause, she added, “I’m sure Max would agree?” Her voice rose in a question at the end of the sentence.

  “I’m sure of it,” Deborah replied. “How could anyone not like Red?”

  “Well—” Stevie began. Then she stopped herself. It was way too complicated a situation to go into with Max’s fiancée. And if she said anything, she’d have to explain how she happened to know Max was going to be away the second week of camp. “Well, that’s a good question,” she concluded lamely. The relieved looks on Carole’s and Lisa’s faces showed that they thought she had made the right choice not to say anything.

  Deborah had left her car parked behind the stable so that there would be less chance of Max’s noticing it. She walked back to it with The Saddle Club. “I had such a good lesson that I’m bubbling over,” she confided. “I’ll have to watch out at work. Supposedly I’m out here investigating a horse-switching scam.”

  “There’s a horse-switching scam going on?” Lisa asked. Having worked for a local newspaper herself, she was fascinated with Deborah’s reporter job.

  “I guess you could say that. A couple of days ago I rode Barq, but today Red switched me to Delilah,” Deborah joked.

  Stevie looked at Deborah with newfound respect. Somehow Deborah’s sneaking out to Pine Hollow to take riding lessons sounded a lot like skipping class to do extracurricular activities. She hadn’t realized that adults were capable of such intelligent planning.

  THE FOLLOWING SUNDAY afternoon, the threesome decided to take a trail ride. The mood around Pine Hollow was tense. They could sense that there were a lot of secrets in the air, and not all of them were good. There were rumors flying—about Max and Deborah, about camp, about Veronica and Red. Judging from the whispered conversations in the tack room and indoor ring, The Saddle Club weren’t the only ones wondering why Red wasn’t going to be instructing at camp.