High Hurdles (6 page)

That evening the girls took their flier to the copy shop and ran off five hundred copies.

“Guess we’re in business, partner.” Amy stuck out her hand.

“Yup.” They shook and grinned at each other. This one would be a winner.

DJ fell asleep that night with twenty-dollar bills flitting through her mind.

Her birthday dawned with gray skies but brightened considerably when James’ nanny called to say he wouldn’t be at the Academy that day. DJ rushed through her work, cleaning stalls at top speed and grooming horses like a robot set on super fast.

“DJ, can you come here a minute?” Bridget called as DJ finished snapping her last horses on the hot walker.

“Sure.” DJ trotted across the dusty parking lot and into the office.

“Surprise!” All the kids who worked at the Academy yelled in unison. A chocolate frosted cake with the words
Happy Birthday, DJ
took up half the desk.

Bridget finished lighting the candles. “All right, everyone. Let us sing! ‘Happy birthday to you!’ ” The song filled the room and traveled down the aisle.

DJ looked from face to face, sure that her grin mirrored those of her friends. Amy stood right beside the cake, singing the loudest.

“Okay, make a wish and blow out the candles.”

DJ crossed the room and bent over. Panic squeezed her throat shut. She couldn’t blow.

Chapter
•
7

For a horrible moment, all DJ could see was flickering fire. Her heart pounded louder than any drum. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from the burning candles in front of her.

DJ licked her lips. They were so dry.

One hand curled around the scarred palm of the other to protect it. She remembered the sensation of the fire searing her hand, remembered thinking she would never escape it. She was lost again in the terror of that day.

“DJ! DJ!”

DJ heard a voice. Someone was shaking her.
Bridget!

“The fire.” Her words croaked past a throat burning from smoke. DJ shook her head. It was a birthday party. Just a cake. She was to blow out the candles. She looked down. Only tiny spirals of smoke rose from the green candles.

Happy Birthday, DJ.
The letters were green, too. A brown horse jumped a fence below the words.

DJ forced her eyes to blink. To look at her friends. Amy had tears running down her face. Bridget’s face was mercifully expressionless. The others were as embarrassed to look at her as she was at them.

“I . . . I’m sorry, DJ, I forgot. I’m so sorry.”

DJ could hear Amy’s wail, but it seemed far off. As if it were coming from the end of a long tunnel.

Only Bridget’s arm around her shaking shoulders kept DJ in place. “No problem. We wanted to surprise you. I guess we did just that.” Bridget squeezed again. “Hilary, you cut the cake. Daniel, you serve the ice cream.” While the others bustled around, looking relieved at having something to do, Bridget leaned closer. “Are you all right now?”

DJ nodded. “It’s never been that bad before.”

“You’ve never had so many candles.” Amy clung to DJ’s left arm. “I’m sorry, DJ. I should have thought.”

“Has it always been like this?” Bridget spoke for DJ’s ears alone.

“When I was real little, I was somehow caught in a fire and burned.” She held up her hand and showed the scar in the palm. “I’ve been afraid of fire ever since.” DJ looked up. “Dumb, isn’t it?”

“No, not dumb.” Bridget relaxed her arm. “Here, take my chair, the place of honor. You think you can eat your cake and ice cream now?”

DJ nodded. “Sure.” But she felt like crawling under the chair rather than sitting in it. Under the chair, then under the desk, and out the door. At least James wasn’t there.

“I just wanted to celebrate your birthday,” Amy said later, after the others had left and they’d cleaned up the trash. The expression on her face would have made a Basset hound look happy.

“Thanks, Ames. It isn’t your fault I’m such a geek about fires. Even little ones like birthday candles.” DJ studied the half-burned green stems of wax. “How could I have freaked like that?”

“Do you have nightmares about the accident?” Bridget asked, elbows on her desk.

“I used to. But I haven’t for a long time.” DJ straightened a stack of papers on the corner. While her heart rate had returned to normal, the tips of her fingers still trembled.

“Thank you both for surprising me like this. And for the cake and everything. I’m glad I have friends like you.”

“Now we’re getting mushy.” Amy grinned and punched DJ’s shoulder. “Let’s hit the bikes. We’re supposed to hand out fliers this afternoon, remember?”

DJ groaned. “How could I forget?”

“You two be careful now, you hear?” Bridget called after them as they left the building.

Putting a flier on every door in the neighborhood sounded easy but took plenty of time. Amy’s two brothers helped, but even so, by the time five o’clock rolled around, they hadn’t finished.

DJ eyed the stack she still carried. The sweat from her arm had wrinkled the bottom one. She tossed it in the trash and collapsed on the front steps of her house, along with Amy and her older brother John. Twelve-year-old Dan hadn’t returned yet.

“How’d you guys do?”

Identical groans answered her.

“One old man yelled at me,” Amy said without opening her eyes. “He accused me of not being able to read.”

“Read what?” John asked.

“His ‘no solicitors’ sign.”

“Did you tell him you’re in the honors program at school?” John propped himself up on his elbows.

“No, the sign was hidden by a bush. How was I supposed to see it?”

“So, did you give him a flier?” John winked at DJ.

“Yeah, right.” She glared up at him on the step above her. “Besides, he was too old to have little kids.”

“Maybe he has grandchildren.” John tweaked her braid.

“Nah, he’s too mean.”

“Hey, guys. I have a number for a lady who wants you to call her.” Dan pedaled up the street and let his bike drop on the grass.

“DJ, telephone,” Gran announced through the screen door.

Within the hour, they had three bookings. DJ and Amy rushed to the door as soon as they heard Lindy’s car. “Mom, guess what?”

“You’re ready to go for pizza. Please, I need some time off first.” Lindy shut off the engine and started to open the door.

“No—well, yes—but even better. We have three parties to give! And we just gave out the fliers today.”

“And we’re not even finished.” Amy waved the paper they’d written all the information on.

“We had to turn a Saturday party down because of our horse show, so the woman said they’d have the party Sunday after church instead. Cool, huh?”

“Cool is right. How about pouring me some cool iced tea. My air-conditioner is on the blink.” She brushed her hair off her forehead.

An hour later, Lindy, Gran, and the two girls climbed into Gran’s minivan and headed for the Pizza House.

When Lindy asked how the day had been, DJ sank back into her chair. Amy gave her a poke in the ribs.

“Oh, they gave me a birthday cake at the Academy. I freaked at the candles. No big deal.” DJ threw in a shruggy laugh and looked up at the faces of her mother and Gran. “Really, it was nothing.”

Gran looked at Amy.

Amy looked from DJ to Gran and then to Lindy. “It
was
a big deal. She scared us all half to bits. She freaked. It was as if she weren’t even there.” She grimaced at DJ and shook her head. “I have to be honest.” She looked back at Gran. “She froze.”

“Thanks a lot, buddy.” The tone said the name meant anything but.

“I thought you’d outgrown your fear of fire.” Lindy spoke softly, her comment a question.

“I did, too. So I guess I haven’t.”

The restaurant loudspeaker crackled. “Number 43.”

“That’s us.” DJ leaped to her feet, nearly toppling her bench at the rush.

When the cupcake came and the waiters and waitresses gathered around to help sing, there was no candle burning bright. DJ didn’t know whether to be glad or sad. She caught a wink from Gran. She knew they’d be talking about this later.

“Open that one first.” Lindy pointed to a big square box.

DJ tossed Amy the ribbon and tore off the paper. Nested in a crinkle of tissue paper lay a red cowboy hat with white lacing around the edge. “Thanks, Mom.” DJ handed it to Amy. “We’re in business now.”

“Now this one.” Lindy handed her daughter a flat box that looked as though it held clothes.

“Wow!” DJ held up a starched white shirt. “And jodhpurs.” She caressed the tan twill fabric. “They’re perfect.”

“I hope they fit. Your others were looking pretty shabby.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Well, I figured when you start jumping, new duds would help.” She handed DJ another box. “This one’s from both Gran and me together.” A black hunt coat with a store-bought label lay folded in front of her.

DJ looked up at both her mother and Gran. “You guys didn’t have to do this. It must have cost a bundle.”
And with Diablo gone, I won’t even get to show
. When she looked at Amy, she could read the same thought on her face. “Thanks, Mom, Gran. Now you don’t have to spend your time sewing me a new one.”

“A labor of love, my dear. But now that you’re so grown up, you deserve a professionally tailored coat.”

Amy handed DJ a package wrapped in paper covered with jumping horses. “Here, I know you needed these.”

The box contained a new set of charcoal pencils and two thick pads of drawing paper.

“You’re right. Thanks, now I don’t have to raid my horse fund.” DJ closed all the boxes and piled them at the end of the table. “What a super, fantastic, wonderful birthday.”

“If we’re going to see a movie, we better hustle.” Lindy picked up the check. “Come on.”

DJ tucked all the boxes under her arm. The next thing she’d need would be boots. Hers were beginning to pinch in the toe. If only she’d quit growing!

She tuned back into the conversation between her mother and Gran.

“But I don’t really care to meet anyone,” Gran was saying.

“Now, Mother, Joe Crowder is one of the nicest men I’ve ever met. I think the two of you will get along famously.” Lindy held the door open for all of them. “Besides, I invited him over for dinner a week from Sunday. And I know you’ll like him, too, Darla Jean. He’s head of the horse patrol in San Francisco.”

“He’s a policeman?” DJ spun around to stare at her mother.

“And a good one. His wife died two years ago. I’ve known him for a long time, and I can tell he’s lonely.”

“You invited a policeman to our house? The whole neighborhood will think we’re being arrested!” DJ couldn’t resist the smart remark.

“He won’t come in a squad car, silly.” Lindy slid into the front seat of the minivan. “Besides, how would I meet any men outside a police force?”

For some reason, DJ had a bad feeling in her stomach.

Chapter
•
8

“Okay, riders up.” DJ checked her students one more time.

“Oh, wait, I forgot my drink.” Angie withdrew her foot from the stirrup. “I’ll be right back.”

While she was gone, DJ and Amy checked everyone’s cinches for the third time. “All the rest of you sure you have everything?” At their chorus of
yes
’s, DJ signaled Amy to mount while she led Megs and Angie’s horse to the front of the barn. She crossed to the gate of the trail to Briones State Park and opened it, signaling them through. While she waited, she checked her saddlebags again to make sure she had the beesting kit. Angie had asthma and was violently allergic to beestings.

Angie rushed up as the last horse trailed through the gate. “Thanks, DJ. My mom says to give you an extra thanks from her. She’s looking forward to a day off.”

“You’re welcome. Up you go now.” After leading Megs through, DJ closed the gate, making sure the latch fell into place. One time the gate had accidentally been left open, and a horse had run away.

With DJ in front and Amy bringing up the rear, the group headed single file up the hill. Oak trees dotted the steep hillsides where the trail led along the flank of another rounded hump, then down to the staging area and parking lot for the Reliez Valley entrance to Briones Park. Beef cow and calf pairs roamed the pastureland, along with young steers. One calf with a white face and black body ran off, tail in the air at the sight of the trail horses. Several others followed.

“Watch your horses.” DJ kept a secure hand on her reins. “They could spook easily.”

Once on the shady trail that followed the creek up into the park, the kids could ride side by side. A stellar jay scolded them from one of the branches, flitting along as if trying to convince them to go back. The curious calves plodded behind, making the girls giggle.

“We’re supposed to
herd
cattle rather than lead them,” Krissie called. “DJ, you ever tried cutting cows from a herd?”

“No way. Besides, Ames here rides Western, not me.”

Once they reached the high meadow, the girls voted to ride up to the Briones Crest Trail. From there they could see the Carquinez Straits and up the Sacramento River to the north. The oil refineries below looked like a toy Erector set with their towers and round storage tanks.

“What are those boxes on the fence?” Krissie asked.

“Bluebird nests. Since so many of their natural nesting spots are gone, people have put these up to encourage them to stick around.”

“How do you know so much?”

DJ and Amy swapped grins. “When we rode up here with Hilary, we asked the same question and she gave us the answer. Maybe someday you’ll be doing the same for other kids.”

“Can we peek in one?”

“If a mother is nesting, you might frighten her off the nest. Would you like that?”

All the girls shook their heads.

“Oh, look!” Sam pointed into the air. A hawk dove straight down, then lifted off again with something dangling from its talons.

“He killed something.”

“Yuk.”

“No fair.” The girls voiced their disapproval.

“Probably a ground squirrel or mouse. That’s the way of life. You want him to starve to death?”

“It could be he’s taking it home to his family.” Amy shaded her eyes with her hand. “He is so beautiful.”

After lunch the girls flopped back on the ground.

“I want to come up here every week.” Krissie rolled over on her stomach, clenching her lead rope in one hand. They’d removed their horses’ bridles and snapped lead lines to the halters. “If we lived in olden times, we could hobble our horses and spend the night.”

“The older kids get to take a pack trip up in the Sierra Mountains every summer. You have that to look forward to.” Amy tucked her gear back in her saddlebag.

“You ever done that?”

“Nope. Not yet, maybe next summer.”

DJ shook her head, too. You had to have your own horse for that trip. And she knew Amy had waited because DJ couldn’t go. Maybe by next summer she’d have a horse of her own. Not maybe. When.

“I want to go on the overnight.”

“Well, think positive, and you’ll make it.” DJ wasn’t sure if she was talking to herself or to her students.

She breathed a sigh of relief when they rode back into the academy parking lot. They’d had a great time—not a single bee in sight.

“How did it go?” Bridget asked when DJ and Amy stopped in at her office.

“Fine.”

“Great.”

“Good, because the girls were bubbling over. Oh, DJ, your grandmother called. Said for you to hurry right home.”

“Is she all right?” DJ started for the door.

“She’s fine. She was laughing, said the phone has not stopped ringing. I think you two are going to be mighty busy young women. Just make sure you keep up with your chores around here.”

“We will.” DJ pushed Amy out the door ahead of her. Visions of a horse of her own jumped through her mind.

Saturday morning DJ and Amy arrived at the Academy before six to help load horses in the trailers to take them to the show. The first event would be at nine.

“Your mom and dad coming later?” DJ asked.

“Uh-huh. The boys, too. I have four events today.” Amy yawned. “Dad’s coming to help trailer Josh. Says he’s sure glad we don’t own a truck and trailer.”

At least you have a horse,
DJ wanted to say but didn’t. Sometimes the little green monster of jealousy got her by the throat.

If only Diablo were here! How can I stand by and watch all the others out in the ring?
She’d gone to sleep with that question and woke without an answer.

“Just keep real busy today,” Gran had whispered in her ear just before DJ went out the door. “I’ll be praying for you.”

“God, please help me.” DJ added a prayer of her own.
Oh, Diablo, I miss you so!

By the time the sixteen horses were loaded, DJ had sweat pouring down her face and back. Hilary, the oldest and most experienced of the working students and a skilled rider in dressage, had to drive home to retrieve the duffel bag she’d forgotten. One family overslept. Bridget wore that stern look that said she’d get everyone there on time even if it killed her—and them.

After one longing look at Diablo’s stall, DJ hadn’t had time to give him another thought. “How come James isn’t here to load his own horse?” she muttered as she passed Amy, who was heading back into the barn for another animal.

“Got me.” Amy brushed her bangs off her forehead. “Today’s gonna be a scorcher.”

DJ clucked to Gray Bar, James’ Arabian filly. “Easy, girl. You just keep calm and we’ll all have a better day.” They trotted across the parking lot, Gray Bar dancing along with DJ. But the filly sat back on her haunches as soon as she touched her front feet to the ramp.

“We would have one troublemaker.” Hilary’s father, better known to the academy kids as Dad, stood beside the trailer. He’d been assisting Hilary since she was seven, so knew a lot about loading horses.

“Come on, girl.” DJ tugged on the lead rope. The filly snorted, her eyes rolling white.

“Walk her around in a circle and bring her up again,” Dad said in a soft but commanding voice.

DJ did as he instructed, but again Gray Bar balked. When DJ tugged the rope, the filly flung her head in the air and backed up fast. The sliding rope burned through her palm. Repeating the sequence, she followed the horse, this time keeping a tight grip on the lead.

“Let’s leave her till last. Why don’t you just walk her around and let her calm down.”

“Would it be better to wait for her owner?” asked one of the newer fathers. Dad shook his head. “DJ can handle her better than James.”

DJ felt a warm glow tiptoe into her chest. Leave it to Dad to always make her feel good. But when she led Gray Bar around the truck, there sat James on the bumper. The look he gave her doused the warm feeling like water drenching a fire.

When DJ offered him the lead rope, James shook his head. “You’re so good, you do it.”

DJ shrugged and kept walking. When they brought Gray Bar back around a few minutes later, she walked right up the ramp as if there’d been no fiasco. But DJ knew there’d been a problem. Her hand still stung.

DJ kept so busy helping the younger kids, she hardly had time to miss not being in the arena. Lost hair ribbons, making sure the entry numbers were pinned on the right rider, catching a loose horse—it was all part of a show.

Amy won three blues, her best ever.

“Congratulations, Ames. You looked great out there.”

“All the hard work with Josh here is paying off.” Amy chugged a can of soda. “These chaps are killing me. One more class and I can change to shorts.”

“DJ, I can’t find my saddle pad.” A worried-looking student interrupted their conversation.

DJ turned to find it and caught a glimpse of James in the ring. His horse was refusing the gate in the trail-riding event. Just as she’d done at the loading, Gray Bar backed up fast—so fast she threw James up onto her neck. DJ felt her breath catch in her throat. She didn’t wish anyone, even James, a fall in the ring. How embarrassing!

A few minutes later he stormed past her. “If you hadn’t gotten her so excited this morning, I might be doing better out there.”

The words and their tone caught DJ smack in the middle. “James Corrigan, I . . .”

He gave her a rude gesture and slammed the door on his parents’ motorhome.

“I wish you’d fallen!” DJ felt like yanking open the door and pounding him into the carpet.

By the end of the day, the riders from the Academy had garnered a good fifty percent of the ribbons, many of them blue or red. Bridget congratulated everyone while they loaded horses and weary kids.

“Any of you who want to come up to the house for a pool party afterward are welcome. Mr. Yamamoto and Mr. Benson have volunteered to bring pizza.”

A cheer went up. DJ was too tired to care.

Maybe having a stable of her own one day wasn’t such a hot idea after all.

“Tomorrow we have our first pony party,” DJ groaned later as she and Amy lay beside the pool. Most of the other kids were still in the water.

“I know. But there are only supposed to be five kids at this one. That should be easy.”

“Oh, it should be, all right.” DJ shook her head. “But after today, who knows what could happen!”