flinched and crouched back behind the wall. She checked the upstairs window of the house; no lights went on, no one stirred.
“Leon must have put Midnight Lady in a stall for the night,” Lisa whispered. “That way he can back the trailer right into the barn and get an early start in the morning.”
A shudder ran through Kirstie. “Looks like it. You know something, we don’t know where Leon and the other two sleep!” It bothered her that she couldn’t identify exactly where they were.
“They must be in a bunkhouse somewhere. Maybe behind the ranch house?” Lisa shrugged. “We can’t worry about that right now. Come on!” Still crouching, she turned and slid around the corner into the yard.
Kirstie followed. From this position they could be seen from the house, so they had to scurry fast toward the barn door. She held her breath until they were inside, then stood upright in the pitch dark to recover.
“Do you have the flashlight?” Lisa’s voice was thin and quavery.
“Right here.” Kirstie flicked the switch. A yellow beam picked out the row of wooden stalls, then the stack of hay bales at the far end of the barn. Her hand shook and the beam wobbled up to the rafters, across the roof.
“Hold it steady!” Lisa was venturing forward, listening for movements. If there was a horse in here, she would soon grow uneasy at the noises made by intruders. They would hear her stamp and snort.
“Last time we came, Midnight Lady was in the stall past the haystack!” Kirstie decided to venture farther in. “There’s a door down there that must lead straight out into the meadow. Leon could have brought her in that way.”
As she walked with the flashlight past the empty stalls, she grew more convinced she was right. The muggy barn felt like it contained a living creature, almost like there was breath in here, and warmth from a body. She swept the light up the stack of hay and down again, turned the corner, and shone it carefully into the final stall.
The beam fell first on the straw-covered floor. It lit hooves and slender legs, cast just enough light to pick out the shoulders and curved back, the arched neck, and long, straight face of Midnight Lady.
The horse stared out of the darkness without moving.
“Easy!” Kirstie whispered, keeping the beam out of her eyes, hoping that Midnight Lady would recognise her voice. “It’s me, remember!”
The mare dipped her head and snorted, kept her gaze steadily on Kirstie as Lisa appeared at her friend’s side.
“You didn’t think we’d forgotten about you, did you?” Kirstie handed the light to Lisa then took a step nearer, noticing the tether tying the horse to a metal ring on the wall. She reached out to undo the knot. Her words seemed to have a calming effect, so she murmured as she moved in, saying, “Easy, we’ll soon have you out of here. Hold steady while Lisa finds out how to unbolt this door … Hear that? That’s the door swinging. Now you can feel that fresh air blowing off the plain … Yeah, nice and easy!”
Lisa’s fingers had worked at the stiff bolts and slid them back. The hinges had creaked as the door opened. Midnight Lady smelt the cool grass and a thousand nighttime scents. She followed Kirstie’s gentle lead toward the open air.
Outside, the seven horses bunched tensely in a far corner of the meadow. They watched and waited as Kirstie brought the gray mare out of her dark prison into the moonlight.
“OK, now comes the hard part!” Lisa looked along the fence from end to end. The meadow dipped to a stream at one end, but there was another strong fence on the far bank. Now she was certain there was only one gate, and it led into the yard by the house. That meant they had to lead Midnight Lady right under the nose of her sleeping owner.
“We’ll do it!” Kirstie set her course toward the gate. “You know why?” she told the horse. “We’ve got this plan to help you escape. It’s an emergency. No time to do anything
“Leon must have put Midnight Lady in a stall for the night,” Lisa whispered. “That way he can back the trailer right into the barn and get an early start in the morning.”
A shudder ran through Kirstie. “Looks like it. You know something, we don’t know where Leon and the other two sleep!” It bothered her that she couldn’t identify exactly where they were.
“They must be in a bunkhouse somewhere. Maybe behind the ranch house?” Lisa shrugged. “We can’t worry about that right now. Come on!” Still crouching, she turned and slid around the corner into the yard.
Kirstie followed. From this position they could be seen from the house, so they had to scurry fast toward the barn door. She held her breath until they were inside, then stood upright in the pitch dark to recover.
“Do you have the flashlight?” Lisa’s voice was thin and quavery.
“Right here.” Kirstie flicked the switch. A yellow beam picked out the row of wooden stalls, then the stack of hay bales at the far end of the barn. Her hand shook and the beam wobbled up to the rafters, across the roof.
“Hold it steady!” Lisa was venturing forward, listening for movements. If there was a horse in here, she would soon grow uneasy at the noises made by intruders. They would hear her stamp and snort.
“Last time we came, Midnight Lady was in the stall past the haystack!” Kirstie decided to venture farther in. “There’s a door down there that must lead straight out into the meadow. Leon could have brought her in that way.”
As she walked with the flashlight past the empty stalls, she grew more convinced she was right. The muggy barn felt like it contained a living creature, almost like there was breath in here, and warmth from a body. She swept the light up the stack of hay and down again, turned the corner, and shone it carefully into the final stall.
The beam fell first on the straw-covered floor. It lit hooves and slender legs, cast just enough light to pick out the shoulders and curved back, the arched neck, and long, straight face of Midnight Lady.
The horse stared out of the darkness without moving.
“Easy!” Kirstie whispered, keeping the beam out of her eyes, hoping that Midnight Lady would recognise her voice. “It’s me, remember!”
The mare dipped her head and snorted, kept her gaze steadily on Kirstie as Lisa appeared at her friend’s side.
“You didn’t think we’d forgotten about you, did you?” Kirstie handed the light to Lisa then took a step nearer, noticing the tether tying the horse to a metal ring on the wall. She reached out to undo the knot. Her words seemed to have a calming effect, so she murmured as she moved in, saying, “Easy, we’ll soon have you out of here. Hold steady while Lisa finds out how to unbolt this door … Hear that? That’s the door swinging. Now you can feel that fresh air blowing off the plain … Yeah, nice and easy!”
Lisa’s fingers had worked at the stiff bolts and slid them back. The hinges had creaked as the door opened. Midnight Lady smelt the cool grass and a thousand nighttime scents. She followed Kirstie’s gentle lead toward the open air.
Outside, the seven horses bunched tensely in a far corner of the meadow. They watched and waited as Kirstie brought the gray mare out of her dark prison into the moonlight.
“OK, now comes the hard part!” Lisa looked along the fence from end to end. The meadow dipped to a stream at one end, but there was another strong fence on the far bank. Now she was certain there was only one gate, and it led into the yard by the house. That meant they had to lead Midnight Lady right under the nose of her sleeping owner.
“We’ll do it!” Kirstie set her course toward the gate. “You know why?” she told the horse. “We’ve got this plan to help you escape. It’s an emergency. No time to do anything
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