Broken Horse

by Bonnie Bryant

  “He must have been outside for a long time,” Stevie said, scratching behind the puppy’s ears after they had gently set him down on a pile of old newspapers.

  Colonel Hanson nodded. “He’ll be lucky if he doesn’t come down with something. It’s pretty cold out tonight.”

  Carole and Lisa had turned around and were watching over the backs of their seats. “Do you think he got hit by a car?” Lisa asked.

  “Possibly, but I doubt it,” Colonel Hanson said grimly. “It looks more like he was beaten, or possibly kicked.”

  Lisa gasped, and her gaze involuntarily turned toward the house lighting up the other end of the driveway. “You mean you think that man owns this puppy, too?”

  “We shouldn’t jump to any conclusions,” Colonel Hanson said. “But if I had to take a guess, that would be it.” He glanced at the house. “Come on, we’d better get moving before someone notices us out here and comes to investigate.”

  The puppy was obviously excited about all the attention he was receiving, and he wriggled eagerly and tried to follow as Stevie started to crawl out of the car.

  “No, no,” she warned, shaking a finger at him. “You have to stay still. You don’t want to make your leg any worse than it is.”

  The puppy followed her finger with his head, trying to lick it. Stevie giggled.

  “Coming, Stevie?” Colonel Hanson prompted.

  “I think I’d better stay back here with the puppy,” Stevie said, peering out at Colonel Hanson. “I’ll keep him calm while we drive. Otherwise he’ll just wriggle around and hurt his leg even more.”

  Colonel Hanson hesitated, then nodded. “All right,” he said. “Just this once. Although I hate the thought that you won’t be wearing a seat belt. What would your parents say?”

  “Don’t worry,” Stevie assured him as she climbed in. “Just think of it as being like driving a horse trailer. The horses don’t wear seat belts, do they?”

  Colonel Hanson rolled his eyes, but he didn’t say another word. He closed the back door and walked around to the driver’s seat. Less than a minute later they were back on the road, heading for the highway.

  “I guess we should take that poor pup over to your friends at CARL,” Colonel Hanson said, once they had left the farm behind them.

  “Where else?” Carole replied. “I just hope they forgive us for breaking their rule about leaving the rescuing to the experts.”

  “They’ve got to,” Lisa said. “If we’d left him there, he would have frozen to death.”

  “I’m sure they won’t mind this time,” Colonel Hanson said. “But when we stop to call the police, we’d better give CARL a call, too, so they’ll know we’re coming.”

  It only took a few minutes to get to the gas station. After placing both calls, they got back on the road and didn’t stop again until they reached CARL.

  Nicholas was waiting for them when they pulled in. He hurried forward as Colonel Hanson and the girls got out of the car.

  “I hear you brought us a patient,” he said after introducing himself to Colonel Hanson.

  “That’s right,” Colonel Hanson replied, leading Nicholas to the back of the station wagon. With Stevie’s help, the two men soon had the dog out of the car and into CARL’s veterinary examining room.

  “I called Doc Tock,” Nicholas said. “She should be here soon.” The girls knew that he was referring to Dr. Takamura, a small-animal specialist who lived nearby. The Saddle Club had met her many times, partly because her daughter Corey rode at Pine Hollow and partly because she had taken care of their own cats and dogs. The girls knew that Judy could have cared for the injured puppy in a pinch, but she was primarily an equine vet. They were glad the puppy would have the care of a specialist.

  The vet arrived a few minutes later. She gave the puppy a quick look and then shooed everyone out of the examining room. “This doesn’t look too serious,” she said, “but I need some room to work. You can come back in and see him after his leg is set.”

  Nicholas led the girls and Colonel Hanson out into the reception area. “That puppy’s in good hands now,” he commented.

  Lisa nodded. “I’m glad he isn’t hurt too badly,” she said, thinking of the mare. “He’s lucky.”

  While they waited, the girls filled Nicholas in on the errand that had led them to find the puppy. “We asked the police to call us here when they caught the guy,” Carole said.

  “Good,” Nicholas said. “Maybe then we can go out to that farm and make sure there aren’t any other hurt animals there.”

  While they waited, The Saddle Club and Colonel Hanson went into the dog and cat rooms to visit the animals there. Seeing all the healthy, well-fed residents, Lisa felt both happy and sad. She was happy because it reminded her that groups like CARL managed to do a lot of good for a lot of animals, even if some, like Sal, didn’t make it. But it also made her sad to think that so many nice cats and dogs were still without good homes. She told her friends what she was thinking.

  “I know what you mean,” Carole said, poking her fingers into one of the pens to pet a friendly black cat. The cat reminded her a little of her own black cat, Snowball. “But that should make us feel even better about bringing the gray mare to Pine Hollow. It lets her know what a really good home is like.”

  Stevie agreed. “And remember, CARL puts a lot of effort into finding homes for all these guys, too.” She waved an arm to encompass all of the animals in the room.

  Just then Nicholas stuck his head in through the doorway. “The police are on the phone. Who wants to talk to them?”

  The girls raced for the phone. Lisa took the receiver Nicholas handed her and held it a little way from her ear so that her friends could listen, too. “Hello?” she said.

  The same sergeant was on the other end of the line. “Hi there,” he said. Lisa thought he sounded a little tired, and then she realized that he must have been on duty since she had first spoken to him early that morning. No wonder he kept talking about how short-staffed the department was.

  “Did you catch that guy?” Stevie called out, hoping the officer could hear her.

  “Uh, yes, we did,” he replied, sounding a little confused by the new voice. “A couple of officers went out there after your call, and they just got back here with him a few minutes ago. He confessed to the animal abuse, thanks to those photos you gave us.”

  “Really?” Lisa said. “I’m glad they helped. Do you know if he was the owner of the puppy we found, too?” They had told the police about the puppy earlier.

  “Is it a black-and-white shepherd mix?” the officer asked.

  “Yes, I think so,” Lisa said. “I mean, he’s black and white. And he’s got a lot of fur.”

  “That’d be the one,” the sergeant said. “But I haven’t even told you the best part yet.”

  “What’s that?” Lisa asked, and Carole and Stevie leaned in closer, not wanting to miss a word.

  “It turns out the guy has a record as long as Willow Creek,” the police officer said. “He was living under an assumed name out there at that farm, and that’s why we didn’t know it until now. But we ran his fingerprints through the computer and found out he’s wanted for burglary in North Carolina. So not only will he have to pay a hefty fine for the charges we have against him here, but chances are he’ll be serving some time in a North Carolina jail as well.”

  “That’s great,” Lisa said. Even though it didn’t really help the mare any, Lisa was glad the man had been caught. And she was even more glad that he was going to be sent away. She hoped the North Carolina police put him in jail for a long, long time.

  The girls thanked the officer and hung up. When they turned around, they noticed that Nicholas was pulling on his coat.

  “Are you leaving?” Stevie asked.

  “I’m going back out to that farm,” Nicholas said. “That guy told the police about a few other animals he had. There’s a goat, another dog, and a couple of chickens.”

  Two more CARL workers e
ntered and grabbed their coats from the closet near the door. Nicholas took a set of keys off a hook behind the reception desk. At the same moment Dr. Takamura came out of the examining room.

  “What’s up?” she asked immediately.

  “Rescue,” Nicholas replied. “The same farm where the puppy was picked up.”

  “I’ll come with you,” the vet said. “Let me get my bag.” She hurried back into the examining room and reappeared a few seconds later, carrying her leather medical bag.

  “How’s the puppy?” asked Carole.

  Dr. Takamura smiled at her. “He’ll be just fine. I gave him a shot so he’ll sleep, but you can go take a peek at him if you want. One of the volunteers is getting a pen ready for him.”

  Stevie knew better than to ask if they could go along on the rescue mission, but she watched enviously as the CARL volunteers, including Doc Tock, rushed out of the room. Then she turned and followed her friends and Colonel Hanson into the examining room.

  The puppy was sound asleep on the examining table, snoring softly. His broken leg had been set in a cast. Aside from that he looked happy and peaceful. The Saddle Club watched him sleep for a moment. Then, when a pair of CARL workers came in to move the puppy, the visitors tiptoed out.

  When they were back in the reception area, Colonel Hanson glanced at his watch. “Uh-oh, look at the time,” he exclaimed. “Your parents are going to think I kidnapped you. It’s time to go.”

  The three girls exchanged glances. They didn’t want to leave now—not in the midst of all the excitement. “Can’t we stay until they get back with the other animals?” Carole wheedled. “Please?”

  “Nope,” Colonel Hanson said in a no-nonsense voice. “It’s late, and you have school tomorrow. Besides, you wouldn’t want to fall asleep in the middle of that ballet you’re seeing, would you? What would the dancers think?”

  Reluctantly, the girls followed Colonel Hanson out to the car. As she climbed into the backseat, Lisa started yawning in spite of herself. She had to admit that all the work she’d done taking care of the mare had really worn her out. It would be nice to relax and enjoy The Nutcracker the next evening, although she hated the thought that she would have only a few minutes with the mare after school. But after that it would be the weekend, and then it wouldn’t be long until Christmas vacation started. Then she would be able to spend all her time with the mare.

  She smiled at the thought and settled back against the seat, closing her eyes as the car headed for home.

  LISA WAS WHISTLING one of the songs from The Nutcracker when she arrived at Pine Hollow the next afternoon. She was looking forward to the ballet. Besides that, for the first time in days she was actually feeling optimistic about things. She had called CARL that morning and found out that the puppy was fine, and that the other animals the rescuers had picked up were also in relatively good shape. None of them was nearly as bad off as the mare had been—aside from some malnutrition and a rash around the goat’s neck from being tied up with a dirty rope, there wasn’t much wrong with them. The CARL people thought the man probably hadn’t had the other animals as long as he’d had the mare.

  Now, with the owner of the farm on his way to jail, it somehow seemed more possible that the mare might recover to take part in a Starlight Ride—not this year, but someday.

  But when Lisa turned down the aisle toward the mare’s stall, she stopped whistling abruptly. Judy Barker’s black bag was sitting in the middle of the aisle in front of the mare’s stall, and pieces of equipment were spread all around it. Max and Red were both outside the stall, looking in.

  Lisa hurried up to them, her heart in her throat. “What’s going on?”

  Max turned to her, his face reassuring. “Don’t worry, Lisa. She had a rough night and took a turn for the worse. But Judy thinks it’s passed now. She’s just giving her some shots to make sure.”

  Lisa gasped. Just when she thought things were getting better, they were really getting worse. She knew there was no way she could enjoy herself at the ballet now. She had to find Carole and Stevie and tell them.

  “Excuse me,” she said to Max and Red. “I’ll be right back.” She raced away toward Belle’s stall.

  Stevie and Carole were both there. As soon as they saw their friend’s face, they knew something was wrong.

  “It’s the mare,” Lisa said before they could ask. “Judy’s with her now.” She told them what Max had told her.

  “That’s awful,” Carole said. “After she seemed to recognize us yesterday, I was hoping she was finally starting to recover.”

  “Me too,” Lisa said. “But now that this has happened, I—I don’t think I can go to the ballet tonight. I have to stay here with her. I don’t know if it will make any difference, but I have to try. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize,” Stevie said. “We understand.”

  Carole nodded. “I wish we could all stay,” she said. “But we’ll be with you in spirit.”

  “Saddle Club spirit,” Stevie added, reaching out to hug Lisa.

  Lisa just nodded and hugged her back, not sure she trusted her voice at the moment. It was wonderful to have such understanding friends. “I’ll pay your parents back for the ticket,” she said when she could speak again. “I promise.”

  “You probably won’t have to,” Stevie said. “This performance has been sold out for weeks, and I’ll bet people are still trying to get tickets. I’m sure we can sell your seat back to the box office.”

  Carole squeezed Lisa’s arm comfortingly. “I’ve got to go take care of Starlight now,” she said. “We’ll come say good-bye before we leave, just in case you change your mind about coming.”

  “I won’t,” Lisa said. “But thanks.” She hurried back toward the mare’s stall as Carole headed for the tack room and Stevie stayed with Belle.

  Judy was just emerging from the stall when Lisa got there. “Oh, hello, Lisa,” the vet said.

  “How is she?” Lisa asked, not even bothering to return Judy’s greeting.

  “Well, we had a few rough moments there, but I think she’s over it now,” Judy said, glancing at Max and Red. “We’ll want to keep a close eye on her for the next day or so, though.”

  “That’s what I’m here for,” Lisa said. “Just tell me what to do.”

  Judy nodded. “You’ve been doing a terrific job so far, Lisa,” she said. She smiled at Max and Red. “You, too, of course. Mostly you all just need to keep doing more of the same. I’m going to leave a little medicine to mix with her evening feed, and I’ll give her another shot in the morning. Other than that, you should just keep a close eye on her and call me if anything looks strange.”

  “Okay,” Lisa said. “Is that all?”

  “That’s all,” Judy said. “Oh, except to keep her company, of course. Let her know you’re pulling for her.” She winked at Lisa. “That’s not exactly the scientific method, but I’ve seen it work.”

  Lisa nodded. She was glad to see that Judy was smiling. Maybe that meant the mare wasn’t in such bad shape after all. Still, Lisa wasn’t taking any chances. She was going to spend every minute she could with the mare. “I’d better go call my parents and tell them I’ll be here until late tonight,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”

  WHEN CAROLE AND Stevie stopped by the stall half an hour later, Lisa was carefully applying ointment to the worst of the mare’s wounds.

  “How is she?” Carole asked.

  Lisa put the cap back on the ointment and leaned on the stall door to talk to them. “Judy thinks the worst is over.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to change your mind and come with us?” Stevie asked.

  “I’m sure,” Lisa replied. “I’ve got to stay here and keep an eye on her. Judy said the next day or so is critical.”

  Stevie and Carole nodded, understanding. They said good-bye to Lisa and the mare and then left.

  They arrived at Stevie’s house a few minutes later and explained the situation to Mr. and Mrs. Lake.
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br />   “Oh, that’s too bad,” Mrs. Lake said when she heard that Lisa wouldn’t be coming. “I know how much Lisa loves the ballet. But I’m sure we can get a refund on her ticket.”

  “Unless there’s anyone else you girls can think of who might be able to make it at the last minute,” Mr. Lake added. “What about Phil?”

  Stevie shook her head. “He’s out of town visiting relatives.”

  “Carole? What about your father? Think he’d be up for it?” Mr. Lake asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Carole said. “He mentioned that he had a lot of paperwork to catch up on tonight. Besides, he’s not exactly a big ballet fan.”

  Mr. Lake laughed. “Got it. Well, we don’t have to leave for an hour or so. If you think of anybody else let us know. We’ll be ready to eat in a few minutes. Why don’t you girls get changed?”

  “Okay, Dad,” Stevie said. She led the way up to her bedroom. Carole had brought a change of clothes, and soon both girls were dressed and ready. They arrived back downstairs just in time to sit down to a quick dinner.

  “You both look lovely,” Mrs. Lake said, passing Carole a bowl of rice.

  “Thanks,” Stevie said. She noticed that Alex was still wearing the jeans he’d worn to school that day. “Hey, is that what you’re wearing to the dance?”

  “I’m not going,” Alex replied.

  “What do you mean?” Stevie said. “Just because you’re not going with what’s-her-name doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go at all. A lot of kids go stag.”

  Alex shrugged. “What would be the point?” He stirred the food on his plate aimlessly, without eating any of it.

  “He’s been like this all day,” Chad told Stevie, sounding worried. “I told him he should go and have a good time. That would show her. But he won’t listen.”

  Stevie couldn’t really blame Alex for not wanting to go to the dance. She wouldn’t, either, in his shoes. That thought made her stop and think. What would she be feeling if she were the one with the broken heart? Even though she certainly wouldn’t have been as annoying and sappy as Alex had been, she was sure she’d be just as upset right now. For the first time she started to feel a little guilty about teasing him over the past two days. Before that, when he was still dating Paige, the teasing had been fun. But after they broke up, Stevie realized, it had been more than a little mean.