“It’s a vine,” Ben pointed out. “It’s between her front legs.” He tried to reach for it, but Starbuck pulled away. She shifted, straining against the prickly vine. Her eyes flashed with fear as she realized she was still trapped. Ben stepped back. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Willa promised, holding on to the pony’s halter. “We’ll figure it out,” she repeated, but she had no idea how.
Chapter 10
NEITHER WILLA NOR BEN WANTED to leave Starbuck. Even though morning sunlight was now filtering through the trees, they couldn’t see a clear path. They didn’t know where they were. It seemed like Starbuck had gone to a lot of trouble to end up in the middle of nowhere.
“We should stick together,” Willa said, still gripping Starbuck’s halter. Ben nodded. He now stood at Starbuck’s side, using two fingers to rub her neck in tiny circles. The motion seemed to calm her, and it made him feel better too.
Willa was the one who had remembered that Ben had his walkie-talkie, and it came in very handy. Ben buzzed Chipper, who had his walkie-talkie right at his bedside, like a loyal best friend would. Chipper had his dad call Grandma Edna and Grandpa Reed right away.
So all Willa and Ben had to do was wait, and soothe Starbuck, and hope that this wasn’t the last straw—the reason that Grandma Edna would insist she needed to find a new home for the pony.
Willa crossed her fingers for luck. She crossed only one set because Lena had told her that two would cancel each other out. They couldn’t have that. They needed all the help they could get. They needed to make sure Starbuck was not leaving Miller Farm.
The two siblings didn’t dare talk about punishment, but Ben and Willa were both thinking about it. There had never been a rule against going outside in the tiny hours of the morning and trekking through the woods without telling anyone, but it was kind of obvious that kids shouldn’t do that. They were pretty sure they’d get in trouble.
“Willa! Ben! Amos! Starbuck!”
Amos was the first to return Grandma Edna and Grandpa Reed’s calls. He did so with three snappy barks.
“We’re over here.” Willa’s call was much softer. She didn’t want to startle Starbuck, who had finally settled down.
“Hold tight.” Grandpa’s voice was gruff and muffled.
“On our way!” Grandma’s rang out like a dinner bell.
Ben held his breath as their grandparents appeared through the thick green of the late-summer plants. Their faces were flushed pink. Tiny beads of sweat glistened on their noses.
“Thank goodness,” Grandma said when she got a good look at them. “Everyone okay? Anyone hurt?” She set her veterinarian kit on the damp ground and began to make her rounds. She glanced at Ben and offered a reassuring smile, and then she put her hands on either side of Willa’s face and gave her a good stare.
“We’re fine,” Willa said, “but Starbuck is caught. We can’t get her loose.”
The vet moved her hand to the pony’s neck and then down to her leg. “That’s a girl,” she murmured as she ducked under the mare’s belly to figure out just how tangled the pony and the vine had become.
“Could’ve been a whole lot worse,” she announced, straightening up. “Reed, I think this is a job for you and your pocketknife. Kids, you keep Starbuck calm. She needs to be absolutely still.”
Grandpa Reed rummaged around and pulled out a knife with a maroon case and lots of slots for blades. Ben scowled when Grandpa unfolded one that was shaped like a small spear. It looked so sharp. Was it safe to use so close to Starbuck?
Grandpa got right to work. “Didn’t think I’d be pruning vines at this hour,” he said, all hunched over. His arm made short sawing motions. Willa concentrated on petting Starbuck’s muzzle. The pony lowered her head, resting it on Willa’s shoulder. Willa could feel the warmth of her, and hear the peaceful rhythm of her breath.
After a while Grandpa got down on his knees to go after the piece that was wrapped around Starbuck’s hoof. “That just about does it,” he announced a few minutes later, pushing himself up with a grunt. “Now, how do we get this pony home?”
“That’s just what I was trying to figure out,” Grandma Edna replied. “We’ve got ourselves a rare situation.”
Willa felt her heart clench. She had been dreading this moment. She looked over at Ben. His eyes were pinched with worry. They couldn’t listen, not if Grandma was going to send Starbuck away.
“It isn’t safe to take the trail back to the farm. I’m not sure how that pony made it this far without getting hurt, not to mention the two of you in the dark.” Willa and Ben forced themselves to meet their grandma’s gaze. Her blue eyes could sometimes appear overly serious, but not now. Now they were soft and sincere.
“We’re relieved everyone is all right,” Grandpa mumbled in agreement.
“But I think we need to talk about Starbuck getting loose. That’s two times now. And we should probably ask ourselves why.”
This is it, Willa thought. She bit her lip, preparing herself for bad news.
“I’m not so sure this pony was running away from home,” Grandma Edna continued, “as much as she was running to one.”
Willa and Ben looked at each other, confused.
Grandma Edna spoke again, deliberately. “I think Starbuck is trying to tell us something. I think she’s ready for her new home.” What was Grandma saying? It was like she was speaking in code. Willa dropped her gaze and studied her boots. They were caked in mud, like Ben’s, and her bare feet were sweaty inside. She couldn’t believe that they’d tracked Starbuck all the way here and Grandma still wanted to send her to another home.
“But we really love her,” Ben said. “We think she’s the greatest.” Willa nodded in agreement.
“And she feels the same about you,” Grandma Edna said.
Hearing this, Willa thought her heart would explode. Why was life so hard? She wrapped her arms around Starbuck’s warm neck and let the tears stream down her cheeks.
When she heard a repeated clicking, she looked up. Ugh. Why was Grandma Edna typing on her phone at a time like this? Then she heard a door slam shut. That was odd. Willa had thought they were in the middle of nowhere.
“Willa? Ben?” That was Mom’s voice. It was faint, but Willa knew it was her mother.
“What’s Mom doing all the way out here?” she asked Grandma.
Grandma’s eyes danced when she smiled. “You kids don’t know where we are, do you?”
They both shook their heads.
“You don’t think Starbuck would go to all this trouble just to lead you to a dead end, do you?” Grandma joined Willa and Ben, right up close to Starbuck’s head. “They underestimated you, girl. Didn’t they? They haven’t figured it out yet. When they do, they’ll be mighty impressed.” Starbuck twitched her ears toward Grandma Edna and gave a quick snort in response.
“So where are we?” Ben asked, looking around the thick brush.
“It’s like I told you. Starbuck wasn’t running away from home, but running to it. Look through those leaves. What do you see?”
Willa squinted where Grandma was pointing. It was hard to see anything against the rising sun.
“Just the sky,” Ben answered. “And maybe something white.”
“Yes, something white,” Grandma agreed. “Let’s go.”
Grandpa had been busy clearing a path in that very direction. “Watch for those thorny bushes,” he warned. “Someone really needs to clean out these overgrown weeds.”
As they walked, Willa felt something pricking at her skin. Goose bumps. She gripped Starbuck’s halter more tightly, and the pony followed close behind. Ben kept glancing back at them. The plants began to thin, and something came into view. It was a barn. It was red. It looked like any old red barn. But just past the barn was a tall white house, and in front of the house were Mom and Dad.
Willa felt her tears return. How could Starbuck have possibly known where they lived? She couldn’t. It was as
plain as that. But here they were.
When Willa realized that Mom and Dad were in their nicest pajamas, she realized that Misty Inn had guests. The visiting couple had come out on the porch. Willa was certain they were admiring Starbuck. The Chincoteague pony lifted her head high, looking noble and wise.
The family all met and there were hugs for everyone. Dad knelt down to give Amos a pet. Mom brushed the hair from Willa’s face and smiled. Ben went back to rubbing Starbuck’s neck. No one really said anything, and Willa still felt confused and a little afraid. She was grateful when Ben finally spoke up.
“Is this real?” he asked.
The adults all laughed. “Yes,” Mom said. Dad’s arm was wrapped around her. “It only seems fitting for Misty Inn to have its very own Chincoteague pony.”
“Starbuck just insisted on hurrying things up,” Grandma explained.
“And that troublemaker Fancy was all too willing to help,” Grandpa added. “Those two were in cahoots from the start.”
Willa and Ben shared expressions of disbelief. It seemed impossible.
Grandma tickled the whiskers on Starbuck’s lip as she spoke. “It’s true. Fancy had a history of opening gates at her old home, but I doubt she’ll be opening any more. I think she made her point.”
So the adults assumed that Starbuck had been plotting to come live at Misty Inn all along? And that Fancy, the expert lock picker, had been in on the plan? It sounded so far-fetched. Had the adults really convinced themselves it was true? They acted as if the kids should have known that Starbuck would soon live there, that Starbuck would soon be their own.
Willa knew her friends would never believe it. She told herself it didn’t matter. Somehow, they were all safe. And they were home.
Standing with everyone in a circle in the driveway, Willa felt the warmth of being surrounded by family. She smiled at Ben and felt the comfort of being understood. She placed her hand on Starbuck’s face and felt the happiness of belonging, because they all belonged to one another. They were meant to be together, even when it wasn’t that easy.
Willa promised herself she would remember this moment. She recalled how Dad had said that in real life, nothing was perfect. Willa suspected that Dad was right, but, deep in her heart, she knew that this was pretty darn close.
KRISTIN EARHART grew up in Worthington, Ohio, where she spent countless waking and sleeping hours dreaming about horses and ponies. Eventually she took riding lessons and had her own pony . . . then her own horse. They were two of the best friends a girl could have. These days she lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and son, who are also her good friends. She has a sweet and surly cat—but no horse, at least for now.
Marguerite Henry’s Misty Inn is inspired by the award-winning books by MARGUERITE HENRY, the beloved author of such classic horse stories as King of the Wind; Misty of Chincoteague; Justin Morgan Had a Horse; Stormy, Misty’s Foal; Misty’s Twilight; and Album of Horses, among many other titles.
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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First Aladdin hardcover edition September 2015
Text copyright © 2015 by Estate of Marguerite Henry
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Designed by Laura Lyn DiSiena
The text of this book was set in Century Expanded.
Library of Congress Control Number 2015945444
ISBN 978-1-4814-1420-3 (hc)
ISBN 978-1-4814-1419-7 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-4814-1421-0 (eBook)
Runaway Pony Page 4
