Some People Change (Currently Editing)

Chapter Twenty

Amy thankfully let me come on Tuesday. Again, Emma didn’t go, and neither did Freddy. She said she needed a little time away from the stables.

I got to the stables that day, and Ed was there, waiting for me. I gave him a smile, but he didn’t smile back. I knew I had to practically beg him to train Zaltana, and I guess he wasn’t too happy that I had convinced him to do so.

“Hey, Ed,” I said as I jumped out of Amy’s truck.

“Hi,” he answered. “You ready?”

“ I guess.”

“Are you sure that you really want to do this? Because once we start, we can’t go back.”

“I want to do this,” I said.

“All right. Go get your horse. I’ll get the lunge line.”

I went to Zaltana’s stall and slipped on her halter. Ed was waiting for me at the small lunging pen near the arena I normally rode in. 

Ed told me to take the lead rope off of Zaltana’s halter, and then attach the lunge line. I did that, and then Zaltana looked at me curiously.

“You’ll be fine,” I told her.

Zaltana whinnied and then tried to come closer to me, but I had to push her away towards the center of the arena. But Zaltana didn’t understand, and she spooked. She started to run around wildly, and I tried to hold on to her.

“Kayla, let her go,” Ed ordered. I quickly unhooked the lunge line. “Good. Now just stay there and let Zaltana run some of her energy out. Don’t even pay any attention to her.”

Zaltana just ran around and around and around. I stood there as Ed told me to do, and then Zaltana began to jog, well more or less trot,  around me. But she was looking at me as she did so. I ignored her, and then sort of looked at Ed. He suddenly smiled at me.

“What is it?” I mouthed.

“Turn around,” Ed replied softly.

I looked over my shoulder, and then turned all the way around. Zaltana was standing right behind me. 

“Hi.”

“Good. Now put the lunge line back on and push her out again.”

I attached the lunge line, and then I pushed Zaltana to the center once again. This time she did it without spooking, and then she began to walk around me in a circle like she was supposed to.

“Gob job, Zaltana,” I said.

“Lots of praise. Now just make her walk for a little bit, and don’t let her come to you.”

“Okay,” I replied.

Zaltana nickered as if she understood, too. It seemed like she did because she didn’t come to me once. She just walked a nice circle around me for a few minutes.

“Let’s she if she knows how to trot on command. I don‘t think she has a jog.” Ed said. “Just cluck to her.”

I clucked my tongue, and Zaltana didn’t seem to know what I was doing because she stopped. 

“What do I do now?”

“I’m not sure,” Ed answered somewhat sarcastically. 

I knew he knew exactly what to next. He just wanted me to figure it out.

“Trot,” I said, and then I clucked my tongue. 

Zaltana thankfully began to trot, then. It was fast, really fast.