Horse Spy by Bonnie Bryant

stretching and yawning.
    “It’s not late,” said Carole. “It’s seven-thirty.”
    “Yeah, but every day this week by this time, we’ve already been up for an hour and a half and at the stable for an hour,” Lisa reminded her.
    Carole stretched and yawned, too. “I feel soooooo lazy!” she declared.
    “That’s what Saturdays are for,” said Stevie.
    “Right—well, we’d better get moving or we’ll be late for Horse Wise,” Lisa said. Horse Wise was the name of their Pony Club, and it met every Saturday at Pine Hollow. Today was going to be an unmounted meeting; after that they usually had a riding class. Since Ellen and Lucy were at the stable that weekend, nobody was sure what was on the agenda, but the girls knew it would be something about horses, and that was good enough to get them up and out of bed.
    Forty-five minutes later, they were walking over to Pine Hollow, each carrying a brown bag with a sandwich, some cookies, and some fruit for lunch. One of the wonderful things about Saturdays was that it meant being at the stable and around horses almost all day.
    Today’s meeting turned out to be mostly about competitive riding. Lucy and Ellen were there with Max to talk about their experiences. Lucy talked about the precision required to be successful in dressage competitions, and Ellen spoke about how much she and Blue loved to jump together.
    “I know this sounds weird, but when we’re really working right together,” Ellen said, “it’s hard for me to tell where I end and where my horse begins. People say that a horse and rider look like one when it’s going well, but I can tell you that it doesn’t just look that way, it feels that way, too.”
    Lucy nodded. “It may even be truer in dressage,” she said.
    “Maybe,” said Ellen. “But maybe it’s true for you in dressage and true for me in jumping.”
    “I guess,” Lucy said.
    Once again Stevie felt the ever so slight edge of competition between the girls and understood that perhaps it was one of the things that made each so good at her own specialty. And then Stevie’s eyes moved over to the mothers. Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Hatfield were standing near each other at the side of the schooling ring. Mrs. Hatfield was staring intently at her own daughter, her lips in a stern, straight line. Mrs. Walker was glaring at Lucy, barely able to hide her contempt. It was a stark contrast to the relatively friendly manner between the girls.
    It made Stevie, and everybody else who noticed, quite uncomfortable,and nobody was really disappointed when Max adjourned the meeting early. He also canceled their riding class, explaining that he had to work with Lucy and Ellen. Red would conduct a flat class for any beginner students who wanted to participate.
    Lisa, Stevie, and Carole had another idea. They’d had a lot of lessons that week, and they were good and ready for a nice trail ride. They’d bring their sandwiches and have a horseback picnic—something they didn’t have anywhere near enough opportunities to do. In fact, any one of them would have acknowledged that if they’d been able to do it every single day, it wouldn’t have seemed like enough opportunities.
    “Meet you by the good-luck horseshoe in ten minutes,” Stevie said. She didn’t have to explain.
    Carole was tightening Starlight’s girth when Frieda appeared. Carole was a little surprised to see her. She hadn’t realized Frieda was around, and with both Max and Red busy with teaching duties, Frieda wouldn’t be able to have a lesson.
    “Are you taking the class?” Frieda asked.
    “Uh, no,” Carole said. “It’s for beginners—not that I can’t always use work on my basics, I mean. But Lisa, Stevie, and I are going on a trail ride.”
    “Trails? You mean not just in a circle?” Frieda asked, a smile coming across her face.
    “In the woods,” Carole said.
    Frieda hesitated. “Um, it sounds so wonderful,” she began. “Would it be okay if I came along? I mean,