Stable Hearts Read Online Free Page B

handed Penny over to Jasmine. Jasmine mounted, and Penny took off with Jasmine across the field.
    Next Penny took off with Corey and then with May. By then the entire game was in an uproar. Jasmine was in tears because she was furious. Jessica Adler, a little girl on another team, was in tears because she loved Penny. Worse yet, all of the Cross County riders were laughing.
    Stevie was riding Dime, who seemed upset by Penny’s antics. He was refusing to obey any of Stevie’s directions. When Stevie told Dime to turn left, he tried to turn right. Stevie had ridden the pony many times before, and she had never known him to be quarrelsome.
    “This is a disaster,” Lisa moaned.
    “Tell me about it,” Stevie said, gritting her teeth. She pushed Dime across the finish line and held him while Lisa mounted. Just then Max called for a time-out.
    “Let’s stop and get reorganized,” Max said. He held the side of Penny’s bridle with one hand, andwith the other he patted Jasmine’s shoulder. “Carole, could you come here?”
    Carole went to Max’s side.
    “Take Penny out in that field and teach her a lesson,” Max said quietly. “Make her walk, make her trot, and then make her canter until she wants to trot. Make her listen to you. She’s got to start behaving before she hurts one of these kids.”
    “Of course, Max,” Carole said. She adjusted Penny’s stirrups so that they would fit her longer legs. She felt proud that Max had chosen her. Of course, he was too big to ride Penny, or he probably would have schooled her himself. But Carole knew how important it was that Penny not get away with her bad behavior. Every pony had a bad day once in a while, but usually Penny was very good-natured, so Carole felt sure she would get over her problem soon.
    Carole mounted and gathered up the reins. She made Penny walk slowly until they were well away from the playing field and could no longer bother the other horses. She made her walk in two tight circles, one in each direction. She made her walk a slow circuit of the open field.
    She could feel Penny’s resistance—the mare still didn’t want to be good. Carole pushed herinto a trot. She would trot and then canter, just as Max had said.
    Penny had other ideas. As soon as Carole told her to go forward, she took off like a miniature rocket. Carole pulled hard on the reins, but the bit Penny wore was mild and she ignored it entirely. Penny galloped for the far side of the field as fast as she could, and when she got there she spun around and galloped back. Carole nearly fell off when Penny wheeled. She grabbed a handful of Penny’s mane and fought to keep her balance. Suddenly they were almost back at the playing field! Carole knew she couldn’t let Penny rush across it once more. She pulled on the left rein with all her might, and Penny turned and galloped across the field again.
    They went back and forth like a bumper car out of control. Carole fought to keep her balance and to slow Penny. In the end, when Penny dropped to a walk, Carole was so out of breath she was almost dizzy. Her arms hurt from trying to control the stupid pony.
    “Make her canter again,” Max commanded.
    “I can’t,” Carole whispered to herself, but she had never said that to Max, not once, and she had vowed she never would. She turned Pennyand grimly cantered her the length of the field. Penny stretched out her nose, grabbed the bit in her teeth, and tried to run again. Carole hauled her back.
    When she returned to the playing field, everyone except Lisa, Stevie, and Max looked ready to burst from smothered laughter.
    “That’s some feisty pony,” one of the Cross County riders said, and the whole Cross County club exploded with laughter.
    Even Jasmine was giggling. “Thank you, Carole,” she said. “I don’t feel so bad about not being able to ride her if
you
can’t.”
    Carole’s face was flushed and her eyes were dark with anger and shame. Stevie could imagine how humiliated Carole