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Thirty-Three

Zena scanned the long row of parking spots along the barn. Pointing to the end of the row, she said, "Percy there's only one spot left, down there."

"What's going on out here?" Lacey asked.

"I forgot. The beginners are in the ring. There's a bunch of them and their parents are probably watching. We won't bother them, they're probably in the other barn, over there." Terry pointed to another building painted white with black accents. It had a sign with a horse silhouette and the words, Rogan's Riding Academy.

"We're going to nip in to where the horses are stabled and let you meet ours and then leave. We'll head out to the picnic area by Hope pond to eat our lunch. It's getting pretty late, and I'm getting hungry." Percy added. "Come on, follow me."

He led them through the wide open double doors around the corner right by their car. "Wait a second. Terry, do you have the treats?"

"Got them right here. Take an apple, Lace, and you too, Zee." He handed them each one, giving Percy a couple of carrots. "We'll show you how to give it to them in a minute."

Along the wide center aisle, half a dozen horses on one side pushed their heads over the latched doors of box stalls. The grey closest to the door tossed his head flicking the silver shock of his mane up as Percy stopped to stroke his neck.

"He's gorgeous!" Zee exclaimed. "Is he yours?"

"I'm lucky. Mom has a great job, and she helped me buy him. I saved my birthday money, everything from any odd jobs I did, and prizes I won in riding competitions. She surprised me on my birthday a couple of years ago and bought him. I bought my tack with what I saved." Percy pulled the carrots he was hiding out from behind his back.

"What's his name?" Zee asked. Watching as Terry introduced Lace to a tall black horse with an elegantly arched neck. She whipped her head around when she heard Percy's deep rumble as he talked to his horse.

"Come on, Smoke. You know the rules. You can't have a treat until you count to three."

The big stallion neighed shaking his head.

"Not the right answer."

Zee swore she could hear the horse grumbling as he nodded his head three times, dipping on the last one to nip the carrots Percy extended upward. She giggled as Smoke rolled his eyes and crunched the sweet vegetable between his back teeth.

"He's really smart."

"And he probably smells the apple you have in your kangaroo pouch. Step back here." Percy moved away so Smoke couldn't reach them. "Give me the apple, I'll show you how to hold it."

Zee pulled the shiny red fruit out and handed it to him.

"Okay, hold your hand really flat, even arch your fingers a little toward the floor."

Zee did as he instructed. Percy balanced the apple on her palm.

"Now walk forward and extend your hand. He'll use his lips to take it."

Smoke eyed her from inside his box and extended his neck over the gate. Zee held her breath and he brought his head down and took the treat from her.

"He's so gentle. I never even knew my mother rode horses. She never told me. And Dad used to ride too. I guess it's a painful memory in some ways. I hope we can get our stables cleaned out and ready to use soon." She turned her back on Smoke to face Percy and felt a nudge in the middle of her back. Zee took a quick step forward into Percy's arms and he pulled her with him as he took another step to end up in the middle of the aisle.

"He approves of you."

"Really? He just scared the shit out of me."

"Smoke has a sense of humor. He thinks we belong together. He's never done that with anyone else out here." Percy said.

Zee looked over her shoulder at the grey horse. "I wouldn't want him mad at me. Is that a horse's version of a smile?"

"I like to think so." Percy went to his horse and the grey lowered his head over his shoulder.

Zee wondered if the horse loved him as much as she did. She listened as Percy talked to Smoke. She could hear soft words down the way between Lace and Terry too. The odors in the barn weren't as bad as she thought they might be. A faint waft of manure, and something else she figured was the smell of a horse, mixed with the crisp scent of clean air. There was even a quiet undertone of leather. It had to be from the saddles sitting on supports she could see through a door halfway down the barn.

"Give me a break Smoke. We'll be back tomorrow. It's our regular practice session." The horse shook his head, shoving his muzzle against Percy's chest. "No, she won't be with me, yes you will see her again." The horse nodded his head.

"Are you two, ready to go?" Percy raised his voice as he gave Smoke a final pat on his neck.

"Coming. Ebony isn't very happy I didn't take him out for a ride." Terry stopped to pat Smoke.

"I told Smoke we'd be out to practice tomorrow." Percy said with a quiet laugh.

"Let's get going then. I'm getting hungry too, and it's about an hour to the picnic grounds," Lacey urged. "I'm going to see if Mom and Dad will let me take a few riding lessons. I won't ever be as good as you and Terry are, but I want to be able to ride the trails around here and the mansion. I love Ebony, he's just gorgeous."

"Riding is pretty easy as long as you aren't into competitions," Terry said. "Percy and I met in a class like the one in the riding barn right now. But we got serious about riding to music a few years ago."

They piled into the car, buckling their seat belts as they talked, making plans for riding lessons.

Zena's phone beeped as they turned back down the hill, and she pulled it out of her pocket, automatically checking for email and messages.

Where are you?

It was from her dad. Why did he want to know?

Why? We just left the horses.

There was a leak under your car where it was parked in the garage. You need to come home now. Papa Juan thinks it was brake fluid.

"Oh My God," Zee whispered in horror.

"What's wrong," Percy said as his face went white. "Oh man, we're in trouble. Something's wrong with the brakes."

Zena watched as he pumped the pedal. They weren't slowing down.

"Tighten down your seat belts," Percy said. His voice was grim, and he took one hand off the steering wheel to yank on his shoulder belt to to tighten it. "I think I can get us stopped but it might be a little rough."

The lane down the hill from Rogan's Riding Academy was barely wide enough for two cars. It sloped down gradually toward the valley bottom with a stop sign at the tee intersection. They couldn't see much in either direction, with thick autumn foliage still clinging to the trees.

"I'm going left. There's more room that way. Brace yourselves because I'm going to use the emergency brake to spin us out." Percy said as he yanked the handle and spun the wheel to the left. The Lexus squealed its tires as he hit the asphalt and they slid violently in a tight donut. The crash as the back end hit a giant oak just off the shoulder jerked them all toward the right side of the sporty SUV.

The airbags boomed and Zee heard Lace scream as white powder puffed into the air around her. She heard glass breaking behind her and the high pitched squeal of metal tearing, then silence as they came to a rocking stop. The engine was still running, and she pushed the smelly airbag out of her face. Reaching over, she tried to find Percy's hand, and he grabbed hers as she slid it along his thigh.

"Are you all okay?" She croaked. She started coughing and tried the door. At least she wasn't trapped. She tried again, "Is everyone okay?" Three squeezes from Percy brought tears. Nothing from the back seat.