Blind Fury by Linda I. Shands Page A

midnight.
    â€œYou’ll have to go home afterward and get Patches,” she told Tia as they headed for the lockers. “I promised Ryan we would ride.”
    It was Tia’s turn to groan. “Aiiya! Major pain!”
    Kara grinned. “Come on, be a sport. Maybe Ry will turn out to be a good partner for calf roping.”
    â€œIn my worst nightmare!” Tia squealed.
    The first bell echoed through the hallway. Kara grabbed her History notebook and headed to her least favorite class of the day.
    The bus ride home seemed to take forever. By the time she changed clothes, brushed down the horses, and gave Ryan a lesson in saddling Star, it was after five o’clock. The light was fading from the western sky.
    â€œHurry, Kara. It’s getting dark already!”
    â€œDon’t worry,” she said, “we’ve still got a good half hour.” Please , she prayed silently. She gave Ryan a leg up, then mounted Lily. Tia and Patches were already loping around the perimeter of the pasture. “Ground’s soft,” Tia yelled as she rode by.
    Wakara urged Lily forward at a gentle walk, Star right on their heels. He was a trail horse in the summer and used to riding nose to tail. Kara could tell right away that Lily wasn’t pleased with that arrangement. The mare nickered and danced, then kicked out.
    Ryan yelled, “Hey! Cut it out. You’re gonna hurt my horse.”
    She had no idea what happened next. She had just turned Lily’s nose so they could ride side by side when Star jumped like he’d been stung by a bee and took off across the pasture.
    â€œHang on!” Kara screamed, but Ryan was already bent over the pony’s neck and hanging on for dear life.
    Cows scattered everywhere as the frightened pony tore across the pasture. Kara had never seen him move that fast. She kicked Lily and sent her into a dead run. Tia and Patches were riding hard from the opposite direction. If they could get Star between them, he would probably calm down.
    But the pony evaded capture by spinning around and heading the other direction at breakneck speed. Kara couldn’t believe Ryan was still hanging on. His face, as the pony raced past them, was white as a sheet.
    Lily and Patches spun in unison, split one to each side, and herded Star toward the round pen by the barn.
    They almost made it.
    Lily’s gait changed as they reached the softer, muck-covered ground. “Ryan, bale out!” Kara yelled, but she knew he never would. She hadn’t taught him yet how to jump, tuck his head, and roll away from the horse.
    The soft, hoof-sucking mud must have been too much for Star. The pony never even slowed. He just stopped. Kara watched in horror as her little brother flew out of the saddle, over the horse’s head, and landed with a sloshing sound in a mound of manure-soaked muck.
    She didn’t remember what happened next. But Tia was more than happy to spread the news to everyone in the county.
    â€œWakara lost it, I swear!” she told Colin and Anne later. “Lily would have stopped, but Wakara bailed out anyway and rolled right up next to Ryan. When he saw her, he started kicking and screaming at her to leave him alone, and she, like, picked up this whole handful of horse poop and, splat, dumped it right on top of his head.”
    Kara didn’t remember doing that, but it must have worked, because Ryan quit fighting her, jumped up, and ran for the barn. She hadn’t heard the truck pull in either, but she caught up with Ry just as Colin came rushing in from the other direction. He grabbed Ryan’s shoulders and held him still while they checked for sprains or broken bones.
    â€œHe’s all right,” she said when he finally quieted down.
    Colin released Ryan, then looked at her and started laughing. “Well, Miss Kara, looks like you take first prize.”
    She peeled off her filthy jacket and tossed it, along with her gloves, into a bucket by