Headed for the Win (Nadia and Winny Book 1)

by Rachael Eliker

  “I guess so, mister. How’s the first year post-high school treating you?”

  “It’s alright,” Mike said. “I’m thinking of college in a year or two when my younger brothers are old enough to help my parents run the farm.”

  “Well, hey. I'm headed home now but do you want to catch a movie with me and some of my friends this weekend? They've been asking how you've been doing.”

  Mike pulled his hat off and scratched the crown of his head.

  “Don't answer now. I'll call you Friday afternoon and make plans.”

  I tried to ignore the two and continued to unlatch leather straps, gently pulling off Isis' saddle. She was steamy from her workout and a brushing surely would feel like a welcomed massage.

  “Walk me out to my car, would you Mike?” Gretchen crooned.

  “Uh, sure. See you, Nadia.”

  Every time he said my name, my cheeked glowed a bright pink. I was positive it gave me away. I peeked under Isis' neck and bid him farewell. “Bye.”

  A slightly sour look crossed Gretchen's face, disappearing as fast as it appeared. “Oh, and Nadia, before you go, Isis pooped in her stall again. Could you be a doll and clean that up too?”

  Chapter Four

  Though Danika was a demanding instructor, I relished each hour I had with her, trying to soak up as much knowledge as I could. At times it was disappointing, how complex the English riding discipline could be but praise from Danika seemed to overshadow any personal doubts that crept into my mind.

  My muscles ached between rides but I didn’t care. “Good girl. There we go,” Danika lauded me as I posted the trot down the long side. “Remember to keep Calypso bent around your leg.”

  Calypso, Danika's retired show horse, was as motherly as any horse I'd been on. While Serenity, ironically was a hotheaded Thoroughbred and had dumped me on my very first lesson, Calypso was patient and steady, responding to even my lightest cue. I urged her on with a squeeze of my calf and felt her muscular sides relax.

  “Excellent,” Danika called to us. “Come to this line of verticals. They’re just little gymnastics that will help Calypso work on her footing and you work on your timing, coordination and control.”

  I oriented myself and found the three fences. They were only a foot or so high but it might as well have been a six-foot brick wall. Emphasizing the bend in her figure, I guided Calypso around the corner and pointed her straight to the first. A few trot steps away, I brought my hind end out of the saddle and ignored my pounding heart and shaking knees. Calypso gatherer herself and propelled beautifully over the pole, landed, cantered two strides and leapt again. Each time she flew over the jumps, I kept my hands from interfering by sliding them along the crest of her neck, towards her ears. Though the verticals were tiny, I could feel Calypso’s power with each bascule.

  There was no space for a stride between the second and third obstacles. Just as the mare landed she took off again. By either sheer luck or some talent I truly hoped I possessed, the gymnastic exercise was executed flawlessly. I flexed my inner thigh muscles and closed my fingers around the reins. Obediently, Calypso planted her feet and stood motionless.

  “Marvelous. Absolutely marvelous,” Danika whispered, as if speaking more to herself than to me. I leaned forward and rubbed Calypso's gleaming shoulder. We'd both gotten quite the workout, Calypso breathing deeply through her expanded nostrils, my abs shrieking in agony as I learned earlier in the lesson to sit the trot on a very buoyant horse.

  Wiping off the last piece of leather before returning the tack to the locker, Danika came into the lounge area and placed her hand on her side. The checkered breeches she wore emphasized the subtle blue of her eyes. She stared at me thoughtfully for a long moment, making me feel self-conscious. About to ask if something was wrong, Danika opened her mouth.

  “In all my years of teaching, I have not come across anyone quite like you.” Her voice was monotone, emotionless.

  My back was rigid and I folded my hands in my lap, unsure of where she was going. Again, silence. “Is that a good or a bad thing?” I asked lightly, trying to dump in some humor.

  “It’s good. It’s a very good thing,” Danika mused. She took two steps backward and twirled around as graceful as a dancer. Running her finger along the frame of her atop the Welsh pony, she continued, “You remind me of me.”

  My face grew hot. Smoothing my frazzled stray hairs back into place, I thanked her. I was sure she didn't extend the compliment to just anyone.

  “What I am trying to say is…” she trailed off, placing her fist under her chin. She began pacing the floor. “We need to find you a horse.”

  Sitting in a stunned silence, I tried to comprehend the words that had come from her mouth. Stars popped through my field of vision and my head felt light and swirling, like someone had filled it with helium.

  “A horse. For me? I don't understand.”

  * * *

  “Out of the question.”

  “But Mom!” I whined as annoyingly as I could. “Danika's the one that suggested it. She thinks I have talent!”

  “I know you have talent. That's not the question.” My mother stood at the kitchen stove, dumping a package of spaghetti into a pot steaming with a rolling boil. “You know that we don't have the money for it.”

  I hung my head, somewhat ashamed of the fact that I was being so selfish. I also tried to hide the hot tears that were streaming down my cheeks.

  “It's not just finding money to buy the horse. What about tack and board and the vet? And the guy that trims their hooves?”

  “The farrier.”

  “Yeah, him. That's not even including paying for lessons from Danika. I don't know what she's thinking, suggesting such a thing to you.”

  “It's not Danika's fault. She just knows what it's like to be in my shoes.” I grabbed a serrated knife and vigorously took my frustrations out on a loaf of French bread. The pieces I cut were mangled and smashed, looking inedible.

  My mom placed a hand on my shoulder and took the knife from me, carefully placing it on the table. “I'm sorry it's so disappointing, honey. Sometimes life just goes differently than we hope.”

  The next day, I took my time cleaning the stalls and stocking them with hay and grain before I brought the animals in from the pasture. Shuffling my feet slowly around, I couldn't help but mope at my misfortune. I contemplated what Danika had said and I wondered if it ever really would be possible. A horse of my own? I'd planned for it in my future, but that was generally after I'd married a rich man and convinced him to invest all of his money into horses. If that was even an option, it was still a good five years away, at least. I wanted a horse now.

  “Nadia?” Danika approached me from behind. “Is everything alright? You're usually done with your chores by now.”

  I flicked some shavings into Calypso's vacant stall. “Yeah. It's just that I, uh, talked with my mom and she's pretty sure that we won't be able to afford a horse. Like, ever.”

  Danika's expression morphed from concerned to understanding. “Horses are an expensive hobby, especially if you allow them to become an addiction.” She wrapped her arm around me in a motherly fashion and gave a little squeeze. “Don't worry, my dear. I have a feeling that things will work out. Now, why don't you go get Serenity and let's have a lesson. That always puts you in a better mood. Serenity needs to burn off some of that energy too.”

  Sheepishly, I smiled and conceded. Just because I didn't have my own horse certainly did not mean that I was going to pass up an opportunity to ride.

  Serenity was jittery in the cross ties as I quickly groomed and tacked her up. Fashioning my helmet securely on my head, I sprung up into the saddle and began briskly walking with Serenity around the ring.

  “Calm down, girlie,” I crooned as she tossed her head impatiently. Urging her on gently, Serenity immediately picked up a working trot and I fell into a rhythm with her. Danika was in the lounge talking to an elderly looking woman with slick, snow white hair
pulled into a bun. Both of them had their eyes fixed on me and as Danika spoke, the other woman nodded her head knowingly.

  Trying to ignore my audience, I snaked around the arena, keeping Serenity in a steady gait. She passively followed my lead and performed circles and serpentines without argument. I could tell she was enjoying her workout. I chuckled at the thought that if she were a person, she'd be the kind that never missed a day at the gym. Must have been the Thoroughbred blood.

  Danika walked to the center of the arena and I circled her, breaking our canter into an easy trot. At the walk, I continued to circle Danika, waiting for her to tell me why she had such a sly smile on her face.

  “Let's get on with the lesson. That was beautiful start. These horses are athletes and need to warm up, just like any other competitor,” she reminded me. I nodded in agreement.

  We reviewed the basics that I'd been learning over the last several weeks and began working on half passes. I sweated profusely as I persuaded Serenity that half passes weren't all that bad. We'd trot quietly down the centerline and Danika would instruct me to shift my weight slightly in the direction I intended on going while pushing gently with my opposing leg, all while keeping Serenity in a comfortable bend. I heaved a huge sigh, trying to get my bearings.

  “You're doing wonderfully, Nadia. One more and we will be finished.”

  I prefaced our trek down the centerline with a ten meter circle and got my body and extremities in place. Rather than Serenity stiffening into a board, I could feel the forward-sideways action of the half pass. I couldn’t stop a grin. It felt like Serenity and I were gracefully dancing. I halted and turned in the saddle to hear Danika's take.

  A faint smile curved the corners of her thin lips but there was no hiding the satisfaction in her eyes.

  “Good?” I asked.

  “Yes. Good,” she repeated.

  As I straightened up in the saddle, I noticed a familiar set of faces. Mike stood next to Gretchen at the arena entrance. Mike applauded me with a huge grin on his face. Gretchen was simmering and sour. I smiled, nonetheless, happy to see Mike, happy to know I'd shown Gretchen I was not some humble barn cleaner. Well, that wasn't all I was. Gretchen flipped her hair behind her shoulder and stormed off to the pasture, halter in hand.

  “Nice,” Mike congratulated me. I didn't know how much he actually knew about horses, but I didn't care. I wasn't about to dispute a compliment from him.

  “Thank you,” I sheepishly stammered. Mike looked even better than the last time I'd seen him. He'd gotten a bit of a tan and his lean muscles were emphasized by the trim shirt he wore.

  After I hosed down Serenity's chestnut coat, I toweled her off and led her to her stall. Her jitters were all gone and I could tell that she was pleased with the exercise. Letting Serenity loose from her leather halter, she nibbled at her hay before taking a long drink out of the automatic waterer.

  “Nadia, there's someone I'd like you to meet,” Danika announced. Walking alongside Danika was the white-haired lady. She must have been in her seventies but appeared as spry and agile as someone half her age. “This is Ms. Diederich. She was my riding instructor when I first began.”

  Pulling my glove off, I extended my hand and took hers. “It's so nice to meet you, Ms. Diederich.”

  “As it is to meet you,” she said with a thick German accent. I tried not to wince as she squeezed my hand with her powerful grip.

  Danika's face took on a serious expression. It made me squirm a bit, seeing the twinkle fade from her blue eyes as she concentrated. “Nadia, I've told you how I began my riding career, haven't I?”

  “Yes. You began working at a stable in exchange for lessons when you were twelve.”

  Danika nodded as she bent down to scratch Greg behind the ears. He'd heard her voice and wandered down from his favorite napping spot in the loft. “It was at Ms. Diederich's farm in Pennsylvania that I started working. She was the one that gave me lessons on Robbie, that little Welsh pony from the picture.” I visualized Danika in the black and white photo, sitting atop Robbie, holding up her first of many ribbons. “I quickly outgrew him and moved on to some of the more advanced mounts that Ms. Diederich had.”

  Ms. Diederich interjected, “Danika was very talented. I do not like wasting time with my students.” She pronounced her W's with a sharp Vvvv.

  “Ms. Diederich bought a very inexpensive horse she found that was about to be put down because he had problems with colic. Turns out he was just allergic to some mold in an old grain bin up above his loft. Anyway, he turned out to be a spectacular animal. In return, I became sort of her protégé, studying under her guidance.” Danika threw her hands in the air. “The rest is history!”

  I nodded slowly, looking both women in the face. It must have been obvious that I wasn't understanding what was being implied.

  Ms. Diederich broke the silence. “I wish to buy you a horse and that you continue to train with Danika.”

  The same light-headed, spinning sensation I got when Danika told me I should get a horse returned. A complete stranger wants to buy me a horse? No matter how many times I repeated it, it wouldn't sink into my brain.

  “What?” I shook my head, placing my palm flat on my forehead to try and orient myself.

  “Nadia, Ms. Diederich is very well off and enjoys investing her wealth in up and coming young riders who would otherwise not have the chance to be involved with horses. She loves to see talent go to good use.”

  “And you have talent,” Ms. Diederich pointed at me like I was being accused of stealing money from her purse.

  The spinning sensation grew stronger with each passing moment. I leaned against Isis' cherry wood stall door and braced myself. My knees shook uncontrollably and my breathing became slight and rapid.

  Danika put a hand on my trembling shoulder. “Are you alright, my dear?”

  “A horse of my own?” I repeated.

  “Yes,” laughed Danika. “That's what we're trying to get at.”

  “A horse of my own,” I whispered again. My vision went black and I lost consciousness.

  Chapter Five

  “Nadia,” a gentle voice called. “Nadia? Are you alright?”

  Before I opened my eyes, I tried to get my bearings. Underneath me, I felt the familiar crunch of fresh hay. My nose was assaulted with the sharp scent of clean pine shavings with just a hint of ammonia. I knew where I was. I'd fainted in Isis' stall.

  Mike's warm hand was under my neck, cradling my head from resting completely in the wood shavings. “She's fine,” Mike announced as I started to rustle. “Nadia. You passed out.”

  “I know,” I moaned. Feeling too weak to be embarrassed, I put my hand on my forehead and tried to massage away my headache.

  “You may have hit your head,” Ms. Diederich said without feeling. If this was not the first time she had ‘invested’ in a student, I wondered if this was the first time she'd seen someone pass out from shock.

  Danika, looking less comfortable than Ms. Diederich, bent over to pat my knee. “Try sitting up.”

  Mike kept his hand behind my neck and braced my right elbow with his other. As the blood rushed from my throbbing head to the rest of my body, it left a dull ache in its wake. I glanced at Mike and noticed a tiny, jagged ring of grassy-green next to his pupils. It looked like the wisps of stalks and leaves in his bachelor button irises.

  After a few moments, I rose and pulled some hay from the base of my ponytail. I kept quiet, unsure if what I had heard from Ms. Diederich and Danika was true or just a figment of my imagination while laying listless in Isis' stall.

  “So, what do you think?” Ms. Diederich pressed. I got wide-eyed again. I wasn't imagining it.

  “I think…” Mike steadied my arm as I wobbled. “I think I need to clear this with my mom.”

  Danika waved her hand. Her giant wedding ring caught a glint of light and sent shards of tiny rainbows throughout the barn. “My dear, I've already talked with her. She was just as awestruck as you are
now. There are some wonderful people in the world who like to see others succeed. Ms. Diederich is one of them.”

  Ms. Diederich stepped towards me and pushed her wrinkled face close to mine. It hadn't registered how short she was compared to me. Her athleticism and sternness made up for any lack of height. “Tomorrow, we go in search of your horse.”

  * * *

  I was wide-eyed and bushy-tailed the next morning, even though I hadn't slept a wink. If the world was ending, I wouldn't have cared as long as I got a horse first. Any horse. It could have been a three-legged, one-eyed, colicky horse and it would have made no difference as long as it was mine.

  The sun had not yet come up by the time I stepped into the barn. Bluish shadows cast an eerie feel to the stables, but it was an illusion. Dodger nickered, alerting the other horses to my arrival. I grinned. I always felt completely at home among the companionship of horses.

  Impatiently, I checked my watch, hoping to speed time up by staring at it. I was told to meet Danika and Ms. Diederich at six o'clock sharp for an all-day road trip to visit several other notable barns in the state. Ms. Diederich had connections everywhere she went and was certain we'd be able to find a suitable mount for me.

  Five thirty-seven. I could feel my heart pick up the pace, knowing I was only a few hours away from destiny. I'd been wishing for a horse every Christmas and birthday since I'd been aware of their existence. And now, an almost complete stranger was dangling it right in front of me. All I had to do was reach out and take it.

  I flipped the lights on. They hummed quietly, waking up from the long night of rest. Major, an old racehorse that was living his retirement in sheer luxury, startled at the crescendoing brightness. “There, there old boy,” I reassured him. “Just me.” He reached his noble head out and I scratched my nails down his long, crooked blaze. I never had met his owners but Danika told me they were longtime friends of hers. Major had shattered his leg a few years earlier and was no longer suitable for riding but his owners could not bear to part with him. I couldn't blame them. Though cranky with some of the younger horses, he never was cross with any human.