SANDY LANE STABLES, BOOK 5 - DREAM PONY

CHAPTER 15 NIGHTMARE!

The day of the Ash Hill Show dawned bright and clear. The sunshine should have brought with it a sense of optimism, but Jess felt tired and gloomy as she cycled towards Rychester shortly after 7 o'clock. She had lain awake all night, churning things over in her mind - the things she had read in the paper, her conversation with Amy, Jasper's insistence on winning, the miserable faces of her team-mates... Jess's legs felt like jelly as she cycled the final yards towards the stables. She knew what she had to do. As she turned into the stables, she slowed down to take in the scene. The ponies were already gathered, ready for loading into the horse boxes, and the riders all groomed Skylark, and she stood among them, calm and serene. And then there was Jasper, standing in the middle of it all, glancing anxiously around, as though

looking for someone. Jess paused and at that moment he caught sight of her. "Jess!" he cried, pointing to his watch. "Where have you been? I hope you haven't been getting last minute nerves!" "I'm not nervous," Jess said as she took a deep breath, "because I'm not going to ride for you today. You can win your trophies without me." "What are you talking about?" Jasper voice was calm, dangerous even. The others all stared at Jess in amazement. "Is this some kind of bad joke, Jess?" Jasper continued. "Because this really isn't the time." "No, it's not a joke." Jess looked at Camilla and Lucy and Samantha and Allison and suddenly she felt very certain. "I can't ride for Rychester," she said clearly. "I don't belong with you. Skylark doesn't belong with you. You're involved with things I'm ashamed of." Jasper laughed scornfully. "You don't believe all that rubbish in the papers do you? Come on now Jess." "Yes," Jess said firmly. "Yes, I do believe it, so I'm not riding today. I'm not riding for Rychester ever." "But we won't be able to win the team event without you, Jess." Camilla interrupted incredulously. "We need five riders." Her voice became wheedling. "And Skylark - she looks fantastic. She's such an asset to Rychester. All the other stables will be really envious that we've got such a good pony." "But you haven't got her, Camilla." Jess was quietly confident. "She's my pony. Not Rychester's." Camilla's voice changed instantly, and now she spat out her words furiously. "I always thought you were a bit of a wimp, Jess. And you're not exactly the world's

greatest rider, are you? You never deserved a place on our team anyway." Jess shrugged her shoulders and turned away. Camilla was a selfish, spoilt, girl. But then how could she help be anything but, with a father like Jasper Carlisle. Camilla's words, designed to cut, meant nothing to Jess. "I warn you, Jess," Jasper continued. "If you leave us now, you're out of Rychester for good." Jess walked over to her pony and put a hand on her neck. "Rychester doesn't need us, Skylark," she murmured. "So we're not going to stable you, but we'll come up with something." "Now just hang on a minute, Jess," Jasper's voice was cold and controlled as he took a step towards her. "Rychester may not need you, but it's certainly going to keep hold of Skylark. Do you think I wasted my time and money buying an expensive show pony just so you could whisk her off right from under my nose?" Jess froze. What was Jasper talking about? "You can go where you want, Jess," Jasper said now. "But Skylark belongs to Rychester, and here she still stay." "But..." Jess was confused. She wasn't sure how to stand up to Jasper's cold aggression. Suddenly she felt very small and alone. Any boldness she might have felt before evaporated slowly. "But Skylark's mine," she said. "I won her." "Legally Skylark is still Rychester's," Jasper said. "For the year stabled here anyway. It was part of the competition rules... you can't have read the small print properly. Now, if you'll excuse me we've got a 

show to win... Mel!" Jasper called loudly as the stable girl appeared. "Let's get these horses into the box. You'll be riding Skylark for Rychester today." Could it be true? Jess didn't know what to say. She stood rooted to the spot, looking helplessly on as Skylark was led up the ramp of the box. There was nothing she could do to stop her pony being taken away. As the box roared out of the stable yard, she could only stare after it. What had she done? If only she had kept her mouth shut and stuck with Rychester, she wouldn't be in this position now and Skylark would still be hers. In a flash Jess knew what she had to do next and, grabbing her bike, she flew out of the Rychester yard without a backward glance. Pedalling furiously along the country lanes, she didn't stop for breath until she arrived, twenty minutes later, at Sandy Lane Stables. The familiar homely yards was bustling with activity as riders and horses prepared for the Ash Hill Show. Suddenly shy, Jess pedalled up the drive. A puzzled Rosie looked up from where she was plaiting Pepper's mane and stared straight at Jess. Then her face broke into a beaming smile and rushed over to her friend. "Jess, what are you doing here? I thought we'd be seeing you at Ash Hill. We're just getting ready to go. Where's Skylark?" "Jess!" Charlie cried. "Where have you been hiding?" "Hello Jess," Tom smiled at her. "Been jumping any more death traps recently?" It was too much. The sound of her friends' voices, alongside her anxiety about Skylark caused something 

inside Jess to snap, and suddenly she could hold the tears back no longer... "Jess... Jess. What is it?" Nick appeared and his face showed only concern as he tried to console the girl. "Take a deep breath and start at the beginning," he started, leading her off to the cottage. Jess managed to take control of herself, telling Nick everything that had happened - the story in the paper, her decision not to ride at Ash Hill, how she had gone about telling Jasper, and finally about Skylark not really being hers. Nick sighed heavily and shook his head. "What a story, Jess," he said seriously. "Jasper Carlisle sounds like a nasty piece of work. But I'm proud of you. For what it's worth, I think you've made the right decision." "I thought I had too," Jess squeaked miserably. "But what about Skylark? It looks as though I've lost her." Nick fiddled with some pens on the table and glanced out of the window at the others getting ready for Ash Hill in the stable yard. He seemed to be weighing things up in his mind and it was a few minutes before he spoke again. When he did, his voice was measured. "Look, I don't know all the fine details bout this competition," he said slowly. "But I'll go and talk to Jasper this evening. I'll think things through at the show, but right now, we have to be on our way. Make sure you're here at 6 o'clock this evening and we'll drive over to Rychester." Jess's heart leapt hopefully, but she was still upset. "Can't I come with you to the Ash Hill Show?" she pleaded. "I know it's difficult, Jess," Nick shook his head. 

"But it's probably best of you stay away from the show today. It might be awkward if Jasper sees you there, and I don't want any scenes. Let's wait and tackle him tonight. Trust me on this one, OK?" Nick put a comforting hand on Jess's shoulder. Jess was desperate to go to Ash Hill, frantic to see Skylark, but Nick had asked her to trust him and she would. As she followed Nick out of the tack room into the stable yard, Rosie raised her eyebrows enquiringly, but Jess had no time to talk to her because Nick had taken charge. "Come on everybody," he called now. "Let's get these horses loaded or we'll be late." And for the second time that morning, Jess was left standing on her own in a stable yard, watching as a horse box drove away to Ash Hill. As this one disappeared out of sight, Jess looked downcast and kicked her heels in the gravelled earth. It was going to be a long day. She'd told her parents she hadn't been picked to ride at Ash Hill, but they still thought she was going along to watch. She could hardly just turn up at home - that would mean explaining everything. And she didn't want to tell then all that yet. She knew they would only worry about what she was going to do with Skylark. No, she'd just have to busy herself around Sandy Lane. Jess wandered over to the cottage and found Nick's wife, Sarah, tucked away in the cosy kitchen of the cottage. "Jess!" Sarah looked surprised to see her . "What are you doing here?" "It's a bit of a long story," Jess answered wearily. "Well, sit down and tell me everything." Sarah

beckoned to the table. "Have you had breakfast yet?" "No." Jess shook her head, suddenly realizing that she was very hungry. "Good, well there's a basket of croissants that need eating up before Ebony slobbers all over them." Sarah smiled. "And then I was planning to lunge Storm Cloud. I could do with some help..." "Count me in." Jess beamed broadly.