Charm nosed my coat and nudged my pockets for a treat. “No way,” I said. “You have to behave to get a treat.”
I crossed my arms and watched the rest of my group lunge their horses. Charm kept inching closer to me, trying to make up for the lunging disaster, but I ignored him. I chewed on the inside of my cheek to keep from crying. I kept messing up—it wasn’t Charm’s fault. But I’d been taking it out on him.
“Sorry,” I whispered. I hugged him and leaned my head on his shoulder. “I’ll give you a treat later.”
Charm looked at me with his big brown eyes and he rubbed his head up and down on my arm. I smiled. That was my boy!
12
GET THE HORSES A CHAPERONE
AFTER CLASS, I LED CHARM AROUND THE YARD to cool him out. I had an idea. I halted him and pulled out my phone. Walking Charm outside. If ur not busy, bring Luna and walk w us.
My phone buzzed a few seconds later. On r way!
Charm and I waited for Eric and Luna. Charm gave a throaty nicker when he saw Luna coming over the hill.
“I’m glad you texted,” Eric said. “Luna needed to get out of her stall, but I didn’t have time to ride her today. A walk is better than nothing.”
“Definitely.” I patted Luna’s neck. “Hi, girl.”
“Hello, sir,” Eric said to Charm. He rubbed Charm’s shoulder.
“Want to walk over by the lake?” I asked.
“Sure.”
Our boots crunched over the dead grass and we fell into stride beside each other. Charm craned his neck to look at the turned out horses—bundled in quilted blankets—that grazed in the far pasture. The pasture’s dark brown fences seemed to stretch for miles.
“It’s like we’re the only people on campus,” Eric said.
“I love Canterwood like this,” I said. “Calm, quiet. It’s so peaceful.”
We walked past the closed tennis courts and the gym. We were allowed to walk the horses around campus if we kept them on the outer edge, off the sidewalks, and away from buildings.
It felt good to get away from the stable and the popular hangout spots for a while. Even though it was cold outside, the sun warmed my face and soaked warmth into my winter layers.
“How was the lesson?” Eric asked. “You’ve still got a cavesson on Charm.”
“Miss Cho had us lunge our horses. Charm bolted and almost galloped in the round pen.”
Eric glanced at me. “Did you drop the line?”
“No.”
“Slip and fall?”
“No…”
“Did Miss Cho throw you out of the pen?”
“No! None of that happened. Oh.” I smiled. “So, you’re trying to tell me whatever happened wasn’t that bad.”
“Exactly.”
“True, it could have been worse. But something is off. Charm bolted and, a while ago, he refused a jump. He doesn’t do that stuff. Why now?”
Eric adjusted his grip on Luna’s blue lead line. “Maybe because you’re both stressed. Plus, with the new students and different teachers, you probably both need an adjustment period.”
We reached the tiny lake on the far side of campus and stopped the horses. The thawed lake was clear. Water lapped the smooth rounded stones that lined the shoreline.
“When it gets hot out, I’m taking Charm wading,” I said.
Eric grinned. He pointed to low-hanging tree branch on an oak tree a few feet away. “Want to tie them there and walk out on the dock?”
“Sure.”
We tied Luna and Charm with slipknots and walked out on the wooden dock.
“The lake looks so pretty in the winter,” I said. I crouched down and sat on my heels. “I like it when the water’s clear and it doesn’t have any of that gross algae on top.”
Eric nodded and sat beside me. “It’s good to be away from everyone sometimes.”
My thoughts exactly.
“How’s Mr. Conner been—as a boss I mean?” I asked.
“He’s been great, actually,” Eric said. “I thought he’d make me do a lot of tough chores, but he has been letting me watch a ton of classes. I told him we’d studied the handbook together and he liked that.”
“Oooh! We’ll have to study again soon. I completely forgot with everything that’s been going on. I got lucky that Miss Cho didn’t ask us any questions today.”
Eric glanced behind us, checking on the horses. “Um, I think our horses need a chaperone.”
“What?” I turned and looked at Charm and Luna.
The horses had moved so they were muzzle to muzzle. Charm blew in Luna’s nostrils and their heads were together.
“That’s so cute!” I said.
Eric looked at me. “I think someone has a crush.”
“Charm’s in loooove with Luna.”
“Yeah,” Eric said after a second. “Charm and Luna.”
13
WITH US OR AGAINST US
I LOOKED OUT MY WINDOW AT THE PINK, purple, and orange–tinged sky. Sundown was minutes away.
I pulled on a brown hooded tweed coat over a ribbed pink ballet top and stepped into my favorite skinny jeans. For the finishing touch, I shoved my feet into a new pair of soft brown ankle boots. There. For once, the Belles wouldn’t see me in my stable slob clothes. I didn’t want to lie to Livvie about where I was going, so I sneaked past her office and eased open the dorm door.
I hunched against the cold as I left Winchester. The shadowy lawn looked eerie in the stark silence of the empty campus. I was relieved when I saw Julia already waiting under the arch. I took a breath and walked up to her. Julia rolled her eyes and looked straight ahead—away from me.
But I ignored the diss. I was glad for a chance to talk with no one else around. “Why are you guys acting like this?” I asked.
“Like what?” Julia asked innocently.
“Like I stole Eric from Callie.”
“Didn’t you?” she sneered.
“Who even told you that?” I asked. “Did Callie?”
Julia folded her arms. “So what if she did?”
“It’s not true!” I said. “I’m not with Eric. I keep telling her that and she doesn’t believe me. All I want is to get Jacob back.”
Julia tilted her head. “You want Jacob back?”
“Yes!”
“Whatever,” Julia said, shaking her head. “I don’t believe you. At least Callie and I understand each other. We both got burned—by you and Heather.”
I wanted to scream at her.
“Hi, Julia,” Callie said, coming over to us. She moved between Julia and me. We didn’t say anything else as we waited for Alison, Heather, and the Belles.
Alison and Heather showed up at almost the same time. We huddled under the arch, keeping our bodies away from the freezing stone.
“They should have been here by now,” Alison grumbled, hopping up and down for warmth. “It’s almost completely dark.”
The sky had lost its sherbet colors. The pink had turned to a deep purplish red and the blue was almost black. The temperature felt as though it was dropping by the minute, and the stone arch didn’t provide any warmth—only protection from the wind.
“It’s part of their game,” Heather said.
“What if a teacher catches us out here?” Julia whispered.
We could barely see one another’s faces in the dark. I was too nervous about being caught to use my cell as a flashlight.
We waited. And waited. Then guess what? More waiting!
Crack! Something crashed around us and clattered onto the stone under our feet.
“Ahh!” We screamed and grabbed each other’s arms. I held my breath—too scared to make a sound. We backed out of the archway.
“What…was that?” Callie asked, her voice shaking.
A light flashed on. Julia, clutching her cell, held it in front of us and the light spilled over the stone.
“There’s something on the ground.” I pointed to an object a few feet away.
Julia aimed
her cell in that direction. “Alison!” she yelled.
“What?” Alison asked. She peered where Julia pointed the light.
“Oh. Oops. Sorry.” Alison jogged under the arch and bent down. She picked up something and came back. “My mirror fell out of my pocket.”
We all groaned.
“That’s it,” Heather said. “Five more minutes and I’m out of here.”
“Me too,” I said. “This is ridiculous.”
A light wind started to blow. I shivered, moving back under the protection of the arch, and everyone stepped inside with me. Ivy, frostbitten by the cold, grew in tangled spirals out of the rock and looked as if it was trying to choke the stone.
“They’re not coming,” Heather said. “They just did this to—”
“To what?” asked a voice behind us.
We jumped and turned around. A flashlight clicked on and it lit ghostly shadows on Violet’s face. She held it under her chin. Two more flashlights flickered on, revealing Brianna and Georgia beside Violet. All three girls wore dark coats and pants.
“If you’re finished freaking out, you can follow us,” Violet said.
Heather mumbled something under her breath, but we bunched together and followed the girls through the stone archway. It was too dark to see the opening at the other end of the tunnel. The Belles stopped halfway through and Brianna aimed her flashlight at the wall.
I stepped closer to see what they were doing. More ivy grew along the inside wall. Georgia pushed it aside with a gloved hand and ran her fingers along the wall.
“What are you looking for?” Julia asked.
“Shhh!” Callie said. “Someone will hear us.”
Violet laughed. “Please. There’s no one out here. It’s just us.”
“More light,” Georgia said.
Brianna moved closer to the wall and pointed the flashlight at Georgia’s hands.
“Got it!” Georgia said with a grin. “Key, please?”
She kept one hand on the wall and held out her free hand to Violet.
Violet reached into her pocket and pulled a long, intricate key from her pocket. The silver key had loops and twists on the top and it was the length of Violet’s hand.
Georgia stuck the key into the keyhole and turned the brass doorknob. She pushed on the door and waved a hand at Brianna. “A little help?” she asked.
Brianna pushed her shoulder against the door. It opened into a black room.
Brianna, Georgia, and Violet stepped into the blackness. I looked at Callie. The fear in her eyes was visible. But she pushed back her shoulders and walked into the room. That was Callie—she never backed down from anything.
“C’mon!” Violet insisted. “I’d like to do this before midnight, if possible.”
Alison and Julia grabbed each other’s hands and walked through the doorway.
Together, Heather and I were the last ones to hurry through the doorway. The flashlights went off, the door slammed behind us and I stood in the dark listening to blood pump in my ears.
A few feet away, a tiny flame ignited. Violet held a match in her hand and reached up to light candles in fixtures mounted to the wall that staggered up to the ceiling. Georgia and Brianna struck matches and lit candles on a table in the center of the room. As light filled the space, I looked around. Two tapers flickered on a round table in the center of the room.
“What is this place?” Alison asked, releasing Julia’s hand.
“It used to be a meeting room for Canterwood officials,” Violet said. “They stopped using it fifty years ago when they built the new admissions building.”
“How’d you get a key?” Callie said.
Violet smiled. “Questions later. For now, let’s sit.”
We walked up to the table. Carvings of ivy spiraled up the table legs. I ran my finger along the table’s edge. Unlike most of the other dust-covered surfaces in the room, it had been wiped clean. The wooden chairs surrounding the table had been as well. The Belles must have come here before the meeting.
I pulled out a chair and the scraping of chair legs against the stone screeched in the small room. I took a seat next to Heather and Alison. Julia sat on Alison’s other side and Callie took a chair by her. I kept glancing at the door. Any second, a teacher could find us in here. We’d all be kicked out for sure.
Violet shifted the tapers out of the way so she could see our faces across the table.
“We asked you to come here tonight because we wanted to speak with you privately,” Violet said.
“We’ve already told you that we’re graduating to high school next year,” Brianna said. “We’ll still be Canterwood students, but we won’t represent the middle school riders. We need friends who can.”
“And do it well,” Georgia added. “We want all of Canterwood’s advanced teams to be fierce. Students should hear our school’s name and know we’re number one.”
A look passed among the Belles.
Violet folded her hands and looked at us. “Before you all start on Canterwood’s eighth-grade advanced team, we’ll have Initiation,” she said. “If you participate, as we did when we were in your place, we will advise you during your eighth-grade year. We’ll help you meet the right people and get invites to the coolest parties, and we’ll make sure you’re the best riders.”
Parties, people, and riding: good.
Initiation: bad.
Violet must have sensed nerves coming from our end of the table. “But don’t worry!” she said with a smile. “If you don’t want our help, then you’re free to leave. Right now. Get up and walk out the door.”
Silence.
No one moved. My stomach swirled and I knew I should get up and leave. I started to scoot back to shove my chair away from the table, but I saw Callie’s face. Her eyes narrowed and her mouth tightened. She wasn’t going anywhere. The last thing Callie wanted to do was look weak or scared in front of the older girls. If she was brave enough to do this, I was too.
“Good!” Violet clapped her hands. “Looks like you’re all in.”
“What will we have to do?” Heather asked, maintaining her half bored, half mildly interested tone.
“You’ll find out soon,” Violet said. “Tomorrow, we’ll send you a message telling you when and where to meet us next.”
We nodded. I just wanted to get out of here! The room was freezing and creepy and if one spider even dangled near me…
“Tomorrow then,” Georgia said. “You can leave now.”
Without a word, we shuffled out of the room and left the Belles inside. Callie pulled the door shut behind us and I swear I heard the Belles laughing.
14
MY NEW BFF
MR. CONNER’S CLINIC, DAY 5
DAYS WITH ZERO CONTACT FROM JACOB:
I STOPPED COUNTING.
TAP! TAP!
What was that? I raised my head off my pillow and looked at the clock. 5:55 a.m. on a Friday. No one would knock on my door at—
Bang!
I threw my feet over the side of the bed and hurried to the door. I pulled it open and saw Brianna. Even at this early hour, she looked perfectly put together in slouch boots, black tights, a cream and sage green checkered mini and a matching green sweater. She eyed my frog-wearing-a-tiara pajamas and smirked.
“Cute,” she said. “I should have worn my stars-and-moon pair.”
I blushed. “Did you want to come in?”
“No, thanks. I’ve got other stops to make. Here.” She handed me an ivory-colored envelope.
“But…?”
Brianna turned and walked off.
I ripped the envelope open and pulled out a card with plum-colored shiny lacquered edges. The text gleamed in foiled gold.
Please join Violet, Brianna, and Georgia in front of the stables at midnight on Wednesday. Do not show this to anyone.
—V, B, & G
I reread the card, but still couldn’t find any clues about initiation. Sigh. I could decide not to go, but then I’d be the
only one. Heather didn’t want to go either, I could tell, but she’d at least show up to save face. Now I had six days to worry about it.
I put the card on my desk and checked my riding schedule. I had a session with Mr. Bright in a couple of hours. He’d probably ask questions about the section of the handbook I’d forgotten to study last night.
I texted Eric. Going 2 the caf 2 study handbook 4 half an hr. Want 2 come?
He texted back right away. Time?
I desperately needed a shower first. 30 mins?
C u then.
Twenty-five minutes later, I emerged from Winchester smelling like my new dark chocolate body wash and vanilla shampoo. I tucked my handbook under my arm and got a bowl of Frosted Flakes. Most of the cafeteria was shut down since many of the students were home on break. It was weird to only see one lunch lady and dozens of empty tables.
I sat at a table in the center of the caf and started paging through my handbook. Eric came in a few seconds later. He piled his tray with cantaloupe, eggs, and a blueberry bagel before coming over and sitting across from me. His hair was messy and he yawned as he took his seat.
“I didn’t wake you up, did I?” I asked. “I forgot that it was so early.”
Eric smiled. “It’s okay. I needed to get up anyway.”
“I’m so sorry! I’ll make sure it’s semilight out before I text next time.”
He waved me away casually. “What’re we studying?”
I shifted the book so he could see. “Natural ways to calm horses.”
“Things I know so much about already,” Eric teased.
“Me too. Eat, then read?” I suggested.
“Sure.” We dug into our food and chatted while we ate. A couple of riders from other schools came in and spread out among the tables.
When we finished, Eric took our trays and I opened the handbook to chapter five. Eric grabbed a pen for notes and I started reading. We worked fast to make it to the end of the chapter and then took turns quizzing each other.
“Maybe we should light a few aromatherapy candles before a show,” Eric said.
The Canterwood Crest Stable of Books Page 38
