(Warning: Contains many spelling and grammar errors. I wrote this in 2018-2019 not written well at all!)
Kiley Tyler, now eighteen, is your typical horse loving teenager. She planned on attending Sorrel Hill, the country's best horse camp, only f...
It's not the Mountain to conquer, but ourselves - Sir Edmund Hillary
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~Way Of The Ranch~
Alarm clocks yelled at us left and right urging us out of bed. I groaned hearing a thud turning over I found Hannah on the floor scratching her head. I chuckled sitting up in my comfortable queen bed. Samantha still had her pink eye mask on she didn't want anyone to see her teary eyes last night, so she resorted to that. Emily was already up and dressed applying makeup. She wore all English clothes her hair combed and straightened. I smiled at her trying to make a good impression. I glanced down at my phone buzzing at a text. Picking up the phone I rubbed the sleep from my eyes.
Wear old clothes and jeans, no helmets and western boots only! No English horses either, I've got a few tacked up for some of your friends. - Jessie
I sent back an okay, hopping out of bed and getting dressed. Hannah crawled to the closet claiming her legs were broken. It took us all thirty minutes to get ready, I had texted the boys at least twenty minutes ago but they never replied. We caught a ride with Linda, she drove us to the boy's guest house. I rolled my eyes hearing ridiculously loud music blaring from inside. Linda smiled, "I'll get Jessie and Nathan have fun with them." She drove off leaving the four of us to get the boys in order. I turned the door knob opening the door to see four stupid people doing four stupid things. Luke was lip syncing to Warriors from Imagine Dragons, only his mic was a hair brush. Ben was on his knees lip syncing into a broom, the brussels scraping the ground as he held the handle closer to him. Xavier had two pans doing the sprinkler with them.... Will was in mid-air diving for the bed, but a loud clang from Xavier's pans sent Will face first on the hardwood floor. Before I knew it Jessie and Nathan barged inside, "Is everyone okay?" Jessie panicked having heard the loud clash of Xavier's pans. Samantha unplugged the music twirling the cord between her fingers. The boys were still in their pj's which consisted of loose shorts and shirts. The boys dropped everyone thing wide eyed at our arrival. "Umm... Hannah you look nice," Luke grinned sheepishly at the glares she sent him. "I know, you don't hurry up and get ready." She commanded her hands on her hips. He picked up the brush and began brushing his hair not once breaking eye contact with Hannah. She rolled her eyes glancing around the messy room. "Ben for real? Steve Rodgers would not approve," Emily scolded tapping her foot. Ben looked like a lost puppy, he bowed his head shamefully picking up the broom and setting it against the wall. "Boys hurry up for Pete's sake!!!!" I complained groaning. They all immediately began moving running about the room. Samantha's eyes had a tint of red from her crying she kept her head low out of sight. I took a brief glance at Nathan who scanned her, obviously noticing her eyes but his face remained blank. Jessie looked half awake his hair pointing every which way. The girls and I waited outside for the six of them to finish getting ready. In all honestly Nathan was already ready, but he didn't want to wait with us. I swear they took longer than us and we're girls!! Honestly, they only have to get dressed us girls have to get dressed, brush our hair, and do our makeup! About forty-five minutes later all six of them came out of the house dressed and ready. Breakfast was early today since everyone raced yesterday. We all ate breakfast but from the looks of everyone not including my friends I could tell today wasn't going to be normal either. "Mount up," Jessie called already astride Cash Out, I gave him a look. "What? He likes to herd cows," Jessie defended. "Uh-huh, I thought you said no English horses." He smirked, "Exactly Cash isn't all English, he's a western gentlemen." "Unlike you," I coughed into my sleeve. Jessie rolled his eyes patting Cash Out. I had Atlantic Black, Xavier had Charmer, Luke had Sugar, but the others rode Quarter pintos. Will however rode a golden palomino, a beautiful one at that. She had the longest mane her coat shimmered with the early sun. After having a thirty minute session on riding western for those of us who aren't as used to it, we rode over a ways into the vast plains. Apparently we were invited to a cattle drive including Acre Academy, Hanoverian Hill, Sorrel Hill, and Runaway Coast. All of which were horse camps, we rode over to a mod of riders astride horses. Everyone wore different shirts depending on their camp. All plaid of course but assigned by color. I spotted Lylla gossiping with a few riders astride her pinto. I also found Eliza mounted on ChainBreaker talking with some of her friends. Jessie began to explain a little about the annual cattle drive. Basically the camps gathered a few riders ever year to come out to Recovery Ranch and herd the two hundred head of cattle to the other pasture. Atlantic Black was beyond excited seeing all the cows. I smiled patting his broad shoulder. Linda and John were also here chatting with May from Sorrel Hill, Lisa from Hanoverian Hill, Ryan from Runaway Coast, and Jax from Acre Academy. All of which were the owners of the camps. I scanned the many, many people my jaw dropping. For the first time in all my life I spotted an Akhal Teke, a rare, graceful, glamorous breed. I was shocked to see a kid astride him. The kid looked no older than sixteen. I couldn't believe a horse like that was trusted to a kid! I peered at the kid's jacket reading Runaway Coast. I smiled widely looking at Hannah who was checking a stallion out. "Hey Kiley," Will called. "Haven't we seen that horse before?" I looked over at a black blue eyed stallion, with a white star in the center of his face. The ends of his mane went from a striking black to a barely noticeable red. I studied the massive horse. He looked so familiar yet I couldn't place him. Nathan rode Crow over to me, "I think we've seen him before." I gave Nathan a weird look never in my one year and a half of knowing him had I heard him say a full sentence. He shook off my perplexed look squinting at the stallion. His eyes widened but only slightly, "He's the horse from the woods. The black one that showed up when you got lost in the forest, and when that cougar showed up." I processed his words thinking back to those mortifying memories. When Nathan and I were without our horses, I remembered the panic attack talk. I sighed, still not knowing what his were about or if mine would ever come back. The horse looked over at us seeming to stare down Nathan and I. "You think he remembers?" I found myself asking. Nathan glanced at me for a moment I thought I saw him smile, but he masked his face all too quickly for me to be sure. "I don't know, what's with the kids getting the cool horses?" I looked at the rider on the stallion, he was indeed just a boy fifteen I'd say. I shrugged still not completely grasping I was having an actual friendly conversation with Nathan instead of the usual yelling and insults. I looked over at him, he seemed to be engulfed in thought. His eyes showed confusion as he peered over at the horse's rider. "What is it?" I asked, curiosity kills the cat. "I think I've seen that kid before," He leaned forward in his saddle. The boy glanced over at us curious to what his horse was interested in. As soon as his eyes landed on Nathan his head shot back around, he fiddled with his slender fingers nervously. Nathan nodded to himself seeming to place the kid in where he knew him from. He smirked looking over at me, "That's Peter Trent." I raised my eyebrow wanting to know more, luckily he picked up on this, "I saw him at a foster group home when my parents and I delivered cookies for them. He was like four and I was seven at the time. We played together for a little bit." I couldn't help but smile, this was the first time Nathan had ever talked to me willingly much less tell me a story from his childhood. Maybe I judged him too quickly when we first met, after all I still had no idea who he really was. "Why was he at a foster home?" Nathan rested his arms on the saddle horn watching the kid. "The school he went to noticed how there were bruises or something on his and his brother's arm. They were both taken to foster care, but to different homes." I nodded sorrow filled me for the kid, I couldn't imagine what he's been through. I looked over at Nathan who was also looking at me. "What?" If I didn't know any better I'd say he was trying to hold back a smile, "You're not so bad." My face heated up, "You're not so bad yourself." I replied. After a few minutes we were separated into groups with different campers. I was paired with Will, Ben, and a kid named Foster. To my luck the kid was the very same kid which owned the Akhal Teke!! My grin widened vastly! The horse was absolutely stunning!! He was a sooty buckskin, he had four white socks, and a skinny blaze going all the way under his bottom lip. "Wow sick horse!" Ben complemented trotting his pinto beside the Akhal Teke. The boy nodded, "Thanks you're too." I snorted yeah cause a pinto Quarter looks better than an Akhal Teke I mean come on it's a freaking Akhal Teke!!! Ben nodded back patting his black piebald. "What's his name?" I asked unable to keep my mouth shut. "Zero, he's nine." I nodded taking a quick picture of his horse. Will shook his head at me in amusement, "What does he do?" Foster looked over at Will, "Harnesslink." Will's eyebrows creased, "I've never heard of an Akhal Teke doing harnesslink..." Foster gave a nervous laugh, "Yeah, he has a lot of experience with it." Ben raised an eyebrow, "Whatcha mean?" Foster scratched the back of his neck glancing over at all the cows. Before he could answer a black haired girl trotted over on a bay leopard Appaloosa. Her eyes were almost as blue as Emily's. "How's everything going over here?" She smiled winking at Foster. She looked to be in her mid-twenties. We smiled back at her. "So far so good," Will replied. "I'm Cassandra but y'all can call me Cass." We nodded introducing ourselves. She talked for a minute before heading back over to the group she was in, leaving us four back to our jobs. Will trotted his palomino next to me scanning over the cattle, "There's a lot of people here." I smiled, "Yeah, I still can't believe that ChainBreaker is here!" Fangirling? Check! He nodded smirking at the big black horse. We had to of been walking the horses all day finally settling camp at sunset, it was now midnight and I still couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned on my sleeping back, but nothing worked! I sat up glancing at Atlantic Black who was laying down sleeping like a foal. I giggled looking over only to notice the black stallion galloping over a hill. Where was he going? I stood up creeping out of the tent, everyone was asleep, everyone except Peter who walked lazily after the horse. My mind exploded with questions.... only one thing to do. Follow him.
