Christmas Treasure

by Bonnie Bryant

  “Oh, my gosh!” she said, giggling with delight. She was holding the head of a donkey costume! It was brown felt with huge long ears that stood straight up. Stevie laughed until tears came to her eyes when she realized what was going to happen. Veronica, who had wanted this solo more than anything else in the world, so badly that she’d been willing to lie, cheat, and steal for it, was going to have to sing it dressed like a donkey!

  Quietly Stevie put the costume back in the box. She knew Veronica didn’t know about this—otherwise she would never have been so determined to get the part. Stevie wondered if Mr. Vance was going to break the news to her this afternoon. It would almost be worth hanging around to see the expression on the other girl’s face. But then Stevie remembered her father sitting outside waiting for her.

  “I guess I’d better go,” she whispered as she closed the box. She gathered her books again and walked to the backstage door. Even though it would be hard to tell her family that she hadn’t gotten the solo because she’d been mixed up on the time, at least she wouldn’t have to stand in front of Phil and all her friends to sing dressed like a donkey!

  “LISTEN!” CAROLE CRIED as she and her father walked up their front steps. “The phone’s ringing!” The Hansons had just come back from working at the toy warehouse, and the phone had begun to ring the moment they reached their front door.

  “Somebody must really want to talk to us.” Carole listened to the phone’s insistent ringing as her father unlocked the door.

  “Oh, it’s probably somebody selling something,” Colonel Hanson said. “Lightbulbs or carpet cleaning.”

  “I don’t know, Dad.” Carole frowned. “That phone’s got a funny ring to it.”

  “A funny ring?” Colonel Hanson shook his head as he opened the door. “Hurry on in, then. Maybe you can grab it before they hang up.”

  Carole dashed into the living room and down the hall. “Hello?” she gasped, grabbing the phone on its tenth ring.

  “Carole! Where have you been?” Stevie’s voice came over the receiver.

  “I’ve been helping my dad at the toy warehouse, Stevie. We worked there all afternoon and just walked in the door. I haven’t even taken off my coat.” Carole frowned again. Something in Stevie’s voice didn’t sound right. “Is something wrong?”

  “Yes, a lot’s wrong.” Stevie’s voice cracked. “Take off your coat and call me back. I need to tell you something important.”

  “Okay,” said Carole. “I’ll call you back in five minutes.”

  She hung the phone up and took off her coat. “That was Stevie on the phone, Dad.”

  “I guess you were right about that funny ring, then,” Colonel Hanson said from the kitchen, chuckling. “Go ahead and call her back if you want. I’m heating up some soup for supper. We’ll eat in about half an hour.”

  Carole hurried to her room and sat down on her bed. Uh-oh, she thought as she punched Stevie’s number. Stevie must have auditioned for the solo and not gotten the part. The phone only rang once before Stevie answered.

  “Carole, is that you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Just a minute,” Stevie said. “Let me click Lisa on and we can all talk together.”

  There were two clicks, and Lisa’s voice came on the line. “Hi, everybody.”

  “Hi, Lisa,” Carole replied.

  “Okay, you guys, listen up.” Stevie took command of the conversation. “You won’t believe what happened to me this afternoon.”

  “What?” Lisa and Carole asked together.

  “Remember yesterday, when Veronica called and told me that the audition had been changed to five instead of four?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, I sat through school all day today. Then I killed two hours in the library, just waiting for the rehearsal to begin. Finally it was time to go down to the auditorium. I got out my music, did my breathing exercises, and hurried down there, and guess what!”

  “What?” asked Lisa and Carole.

  “Veronica was standing in the middle of the stage, already singing my solo!” Stevie’s voice was shrill with anger.

  “How come?” Carole was shocked. She knew Stevie still wasn’t the greatest singer in the world, but she had thought that Mr. Vance would at least let her try out for the solo.

  “That’s exactly what I asked Mr. Vance. He said the audition had started at four, just like I’d thought it did. He said he waited until four-fifteen for me to show up, but then he had to go ahead and start the rehearsal, so he gave the part to Veronica.” Stevie sounded again as if she might cry.

  “Stevie, that’s awful!” said Lisa.

  “I know.” Stevie’s voice trembled. “All that practice and I never even got a chance to try out!”

  “Do you think Veronica called and got you confused on purpose?” asked Carole.

  Stevie didn’t answer for a long moment. “I don’t know,” she finally said. “I know Veronica’s awfully spoiled and mean, but I just can’t believe she would be that dishonest!”

  “If Veronica really did that, it would be worse than cheating on a final exam!” breathed Lisa.

  “I know,” Stevie said. “But I can’t prove it. It’s just my word against hers.”

  “But it does seem kind of funny that she managed to get there on time and you didn’t,” Carole pointed out.

  “Exactly,” agreed Stevie. “It seems a little too funny to be true, doesn’t it?”

  “Oh, Stevie!” Carole cried. “It’s about the lowest thing I’ve ever heard of anybody doing.”

  “I know.” Stevie took a deep breath, as if she was trying hard not to cry. “But let me tell you the rest of the story,” she added, suddenly sounding happier. “Mr. Vance said I could go out through the backstage door and meet my dad. While I was walking through all the props backstage I saw this box marked ‘Solo Costume.’ I looked inside, and guess what!”

  “What?” Again Carole and Lisa spoke together.

  “Veronica’s going to have to sing her solo dressed up like a donkey!”

  “No!” Lisa squealed with delight.

  “Yes!” cried Stevie. “It’s this awful-looking brown pajama thing that has four detachable hooves and a headpiece that covers everything but your face! Plus, it’s got these two huge ears! But the best part about it is that Veronica thinks she’s going to be singing in a really pretty dress. She has no idea she’s going to have to dress up like a donkey!”

  “Oh, Stevie,” Carole and Lisa said as they burst out laughing together. “That’s too good to be true!”

  “I know,” cackled Stevie. “I just wish I could have seen her face when Mr. Vance showed her what she was going to have to wear.”

  For a few minutes all the girls could do was laugh at the idea of Veronica singing in a donkey costume. Then, when everyone had calmed down, Stevie spoke again.

  “I don’t know if Veronica did this on purpose or not, but she sure looked guilty when I walked in the door.”

  “Really?” Carole could just imagine the look on Veronica’s face.

  “Yes, she did,” said Stevie. “I’ve been thinking about it all night, and I think Veronica deserves a major Pine Hollow revenge.”

  “What did you have in mind, Stevie?” Lisa had never heard such determination in Stevie’s voice.

  “I don’t know yet,” Stevie replied. “I’ll have to give something of this magnitude a lot of thought.”

  “Wait a minute, Stevie,” cautioned Carole. “Don’t you see the joke’s already on Veronica? She’s gone to all this trouble and maybe even cheated, only to have to spend her big moment wrapped up in a donkey costume. Everybody will be in hysterics! That’s poetic justice enough!”

  “Well, maybe,” Stevie admitted. “I would still like to plot something that would teach her the lesson of her life!”

  “I’ve got an idea,” said Lisa. “Why don’t we meet at Pine Hollow tomorrow after school and take a trail ride? Stevie, that’ll give you time to cool off. You can get a chance to
think about what you should do to Veronica, and I’ll get a chance to get out. I haven’t done anything since yesterday afternoon except go to school and clean house for our company!”

  “Well, maybe a ride in the country would make me feel a little better,” Stevie admitted.

  “I think that’s a great idea,” said Carole. “But I can’t take a long ride. My dad and I are scheduled to do some more inventory tomorrow evening.”

  “Then let’s meet at the stable and take the creek trail,” Lisa suggested. “It’s shorter, and I can see if Prancer’s calmed down about crossing water.”

  “Okay. Then I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” said Stevie.

  “Right. And, Stevie, don’t be too upset about this. Lisa and I heard you sing yesterday, and we thought you were great,” Carole said.

  “Yes, Stevie. You’ll get lots of other solos, for sure.”

  “Thanks, guys, for trying to make me feel better. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  THE NEXT AFTERNOON the girls met at Pine Hollow. The whole place was buzzing with activity. Mrs. Reg, Max’s mother, was telling Red O’Malley where to store some new saddle pads, while Deborah, Max’s wife, paced around with a cell phone glued to her ear. Max was trying to give an adult lesson in the indoor ring with baby Maxi riding on his shoulders.

  “Wow,” said Lisa as she and Carole walked toward their horses’ stalls. “This place is like a three-ring circus!”

  “I know.” Carole dodged out of Red’s way as he unpacked the new saddle pads. “It seems like everything gets busier at Christmas.”

  “It certainly does at my house,” replied Lisa. “I don’t think my mother’s turned the stove off in three days. We have so many Scottish pastries in the freezer we could probably open the Loch Ness Take-out.”

  Carole laughed. “Are Scottish pastries as good as Danish pastries?”

  “Who knows?” Lisa said. “My dad and I are too busy cleaning to try any.”

  The girls turned the corner. Stevie stood at Belle’s stall, brushing her silky forelock.

  “Hi, Stevie!” the girls called.

  “Hi, Carole.” Stevie gave them a thin smile. “Hi, Lisa.”

  “How was school today?” Carole asked as they came closer. She noticed that Stevie’s eyes looked puffy, as if she’d been crying. “Any apologies from you-know-who?”

  Stevie shook her head. “None at all. Today she strutted around like normal. Yesterday afternoon on the stage she really looked scared.”

  “She probably was scared, Stevie,” Lisa said. “She was probably terrified of what you were going to do to her.”

  “Well, she ought to just stay scared, as far as I’m concerned.” Stevie frowned as she rubbed behind Belle’s ear. “I haven’t decided yet what I’m going to do, but I guarantee it’ll make all my old revenges look like picnics in the park!”

  Carole and Lisa exchanged a worried glance. Once Stevie got started on a revenge, there was little chance of stopping her, and here it was, just before Christmas!

  “Don’t forget that it’s that ‘Peace on Earth, goodwill toward men’ time of year, Stevie,” Carole reminded her.

  “I have goodwill toward everybody,” said Stevie. “Everybody except Veronica, that is.”

  “Why don’t we tack up and go for our ride?” Lisa suggested. “Maybe getting out in the nice cold air will make us all feel better.”

  “Okay,” Stevie agreed. “Meet you at the horseshoe.”

  A few minutes later they were ready to go.

  “We’re doing the creek trail, aren’t we?” asked Carole as Starlight stamped his front foot in anticipation.

  “Right.” Lisa gave Prancer’s neck a pat. “I want to see if Prancer’s gotten any better at going over water. I’m hoping you were right, Carole. Maybe the other day she was just having a bad creek day.”

  “It’s worth a try.” Carole looked at Prancer. “Sometimes horses get silly for no good reason. Then they get better and behave normally.”

  “Let’s go,” Stevie said. “We won’t have much time before Carole has to go help her dad.”

  They rode around to the back of the stable, then trotted up the hill. The sun was a pale yellow ball in the western sky, barely glimmering behind the low, gray clouds. The horses’ breath came out in puffs of steam in the cold air, making them look like wild, rampaging chargers instead of the well-trained mounts they were.

  Carole took a deep breath of the damp December air. “It might not be the greatest weather to ride in, but it sure feels good to be outside. It seems like lately I’m either in school or helping my dad in that warehouse.”

  “How’s the toy campaign coming?” Lisa asked.

  “Wonderful,” Carole replied. “Dad and I have sorted about a thousand toys, and more stuff comes in every day. The Marines have done a terrific job. I bet every needy child in Willow Creek will have some toys from that warehouse.” Carole smiled as they rode along. It made her feel good to be doing something with her dad, but it made her feel even better to be helping people who weren’t as lucky as she was.

  “I’m really looking forward to helping you guys out.” Lisa ducked as Prancer trotted under a low-hanging limb.

  “We’ll probably need you two in about a week,” said Carole. “That’s when the really fun part will start—delivering the toys to people.”

  “Hey, what do you guys think of this?” called Stevie, who was riding behind the other two. “What if I greased Veronica’s new saddle right before the next mounted Horse Wise meeting? All she would be able to do then would be fall off.”

  Lisa frowned. “Well, Stevie, I think it would be really funny, but I think Veronica could get hurt and that would get you into a whole lot of trouble. Veronica’s father would probably have you arrested and put in jail. And who knows what Max would do?”

  “I don’t think Max would even notice,” said Stevie, urging Belle forward a little. “He’s too busy running the stable and helping Deborah with Maxi to notice much of anything these days.”

  “You know, he and Deborah really have been busy lately,” agreed Carole. “You never see them together just sitting down relaxing and having a good time.”

  “I guess that’s part of having two jobs and a baby,” Lisa said.

  “And two dozen horses and a chapter of the Pony Club and about a zillion riding lessons every week,” added Stevie.

  “Well, yeah.” Carole laughed. “I guess that would tire you out a little.” She looked over her shoulder and grinned at Stevie. “I was amazed at the last Horse Wise. Max was even too tired to get mad at us when we sneaked in late.”

  “We just got lucky,” said Stevie. “I thought he’d have me mucking out stalls for a week.”

  “Good thing for you guys he was thinking about Secret Santas,” Lisa said with a laugh.

  “Oh, please,” Stevie groaned. “Don’t remind me about Secret Santas. My Secret Santa situation has taken a definite turn for the worse.”

  “How about you, Lisa?” Carole asked. “Have you done your Secret Santa good deed?”

  “I’ve been too busy cleaning and baking at home,” replied Lisa. “Plus, I don’t have any idea what to do.”

  “Me neither,” said Carole. She looked at Lisa riding ahead of her and frowned. “This Secret Santa stuff is harder than it seems.”

  The girls crested the hill and began to follow the creek that crisscrossed Pine Hollow’s property and ultimately flowed through the town. The trail was well worn at the low places where horses had crossed the creek, and the usually soft ground had frozen hard and crusty.

  “Well, here goes nothing,” Lisa called as Prancer approached the first crossing.

  “Try keeping her at an even trot and she might go on over before she knows she’s done it,” said Carole.

  “And don’t tense up yourself,” Stevie reminded Lisa. “She’ll feel your fear and get scared herself.”

  “That’s a lot to remember,” called Lisa. “But I’ll try.” She maintained her posting t
rot, took a deep breath, and relaxed her hands a bit. Prancer’s ears flicked straight ahead as she trotted toward the creek. The water was coming closer and closer. Oh, good, thought Lisa as they neared the bank. She’s going over.

  But suddenly Prancer bobbed her head. She gave a little jump as if she might rear, took two steps sideways, then came to a dead stop.

  “Give her some leg,” called Carole. “Keep her moving!”

  Lisa dug her heels into Prancer behind her girth. It did no good. Prancer just stood in the middle of the trail, still as a statue.

  Carole and Stevie trotted up. “Let’s go on over,” said Stevie. “Her herd instinct might kick in and she might follow.”

  “Be my guest,” said Lisa helplessly.

  Stevie and Belle trotted across the wide, shallow creek, splashing as they went. Carole and Starlight followed. Both horses seemed to enjoy the cold water that bubbled around their feet. Prancer watched them cross with great interest, but she did not move from her spot.

  “So much for awakening her herd instinct,” said Lisa as Stevie and Carole turned and saw her still on the other side.

  “Walk her in a circle and try again,” suggested Carole. “Maybe when she sees us over here she’ll cross.”

  “Okay.” Lisa backed Prancer up, circled once, and approached the creek at a walk. She tried to remember to keep her hands loose and urge Prancer forward at the same time. Prancer walked forward willingly until she came to the creek. Though she saw Belle and Starlight waiting on the other side, she planted all four feet on the ground and refused to budge a step further.

  Lisa looked sadly at her friends across the creek. “Any other ideas?”

  “We could get off and push,” suggested Stevie.

  Carole laughed. “Gosh, Stevie. Prancer only outweighs all three of us by about a thousand pounds,” she said. “I don’t think we’d be able to push her anywhere.”

  “Well, we’re going nowhere fast like this.” Lisa sighed and dismounted. “I guess I’ll have to lead her across like before.”