Rumor Has It

Ch. 12 ~The Plan

Periwinkle's POV

Finally! I'm back where I belong.

With my herd.

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Lizzy's POV

I texted Roo and Alexis to see if they were coming out to the ranch today, and luckily, they both were!

I found them with their horses later that day, and I said hey to them. But I rushed through the small talk. I had more important things to discuss.

"Guys, I have to talk to you guys about something. But since Little Miss Assumer is here (Stella), can we go on the trail and talk about it?" I asked.

"Yeah, let's go," Alexis said, and the three of us racked up our horses, and hit the trails.

"So, what's up?" Roo asked.

"Well, my cousins' grandpa's friend, Mr. Buck, his mare got stolen. He doesn't know who could've stolen her, but I have my suspicions," I said.

"Ooh, is this like a crime show where we have to go find out who stole the horse?!" Alexis asked hopefully.

"No," I said bluntly. "I think the Rumor Horse stole her," I said.

"Um, Lizzy, that's crazy. The 'Rumor Horse' is exactly that-a rumor. It's not real Lizzy, there aren't mustangs around here," Roo said sensibly.

"Do you know for a rock solid fact that there aren't any mustangs around here?" I asked Roo. "Tell me that you know for a fact, written in stone, that there aren't mustangs in this area," I pressed,"and I will give up on this whole idea that I have."

"Well, not written in stone or rock solid, but don't you think that somebody would've found out about any mustangs?" Roo argued.

"No. Mustangs have their own hidden places. Why wouldn't they? If I were a mustang, I wouldn't be hanging out right where a bunch of buildings and people are," I stated. "Please, just listen to my plan."

"Fine," Roo said stubbornly.

"Okay, I say that we go to Mr. Buck's farm, and look at where Periwinkle was kept when she was stolen. Maybe there will be some type of clue that shows what happened," I suggested.

"Aren't the police there though?" Alexis asked.

"Maybe. That's why we go at night," I explained.

"It's a good idea, except I think you will be greatly disappointed by the outcomes. Besides, our, uh, families won't let us out at night!" Roo said. I'm thankful that she said families instead of parents.

"You're right. But I know we can figure out a way to do this," I said.

"I'm in," Alexis said.

"Roo?" I asked hopefully.

We halted our horses and she was quiet for a minute. "Alright," she spat.

"Yes! Thank you so much Roo! I know we wouldn't be able to pull this off without you," I said.

"Your welcome," she said and laughed. "But, there's most likely not going to be anything there," she said. "And, if we get in trouble, I don't know you," she joked.

I laughed. "Deal," I said, and we shook hands on it.

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It was exactly midnight when I was outside. I don't know how I did it, but somehow I was able to quietly creep out of the house without anyone knowing. I checked to make sure the paper was still in my pocket. Yup. The map that would get us to Mr. Buck's property.

I grabbed my bike and helmet, and pedaled off into the night. I had purposely left my bike outside so I could ride it to the bus stop, where we planned to meet.

When I arrived, only Alexis was there. "Have you seen Roo?" I asked.

"No, but if she isn't here in 10 minutes, we are gonna either have to go without her, or just not go," Alexis said. I only nodded. I did not just want to give up.

We waited 5 minutes, and Roo wasn't here. A few more minutes, and she still wasn't here! Just when we were about to decide whether to go without her or give up, Roo arrived.

"Finally!" I whisper shouted.

"Sorry! My dog almost gave me away with his loud bark! My parents came and saw me, so I lied and said I just needed a glass of water. Finally, they went back to bed and I was able to escape," Roo explained.

"Well it's good that you're here now, so let's go!" Alexis said, and we hopped on our bikes, and pedaled off to Mr. Buck's farm.

***

"This is it," I said as we arrived at Mr. Buck's farm. There was a small house, and a small 5 horse barn. Only 4 of the horses were out in their pastures, and I noted that the horses are out at night instead of day.

I saw where the police had put up yellow crime tape, and I motioned to it, and me, Alexis, and Roo, creeped over to it.

I took out my pocket flashlight, and turned it on. I looked around at the scene. There wasn't anything too clear, but I did see hoof prints. I looked even closer. "Call me crazy, but I swear I see 2 hoof prints," I said, and Roo and Alexis hurried over.

"Oh, my, gosh," Alexis said.

Roo just stood there, and shook her head. "It can't be the Rumor Horse! The thief was probably on horse back when he stole her," she said, but she didn't sound convinced.

"If that was true, there would be foot prints by the gate. I've noticed that the ground is a little bit wet still from the rain that came the other day, and there are clear hoof prints, so there would have to be foot prints if a human stole Periwinkle," I said. "This convinces me that it was the Rumor Horse."

"I hate to say it, but that's what I'm thinking too," Alexis said. "It might not have been the Rumor Horse though, it could've been some random mustang that isn't the Rumor Horse," she said.

"That's true," Roo said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but the rumor says that he's the 'last mustang ruler in Eastern Oregon'," I said. "But you're probably right. I just like to believe in the possibilities of things like this," I stated.

"Well, since we've proven that it was another horse, and not a human that stole Periwinkle, can we go home now?" Roo asked eagerly.

"Yeah, let's go," I said, but I still had one question nagging me.

How did she get out of the pasture?

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A/N: hey everyone! How do u think Periwinkle got out?? I have one thing that I would like to say. I see that I am getting some views, but only a couple of votes. Could you please vote for RHI? It would mean so much to me! Thanks guys random question: what do u like to do in ur free time? I like to write books, read, watch TV, and hang out with my friends and horse! Ok bye guys😎