Mr Vega passed Leo over to the older stable hand.
Ivy felt even worse. The adults didn’t need anything to add to their pile of disagreements.
‘I’ll leave you to it and head home now,’ he said to Ivy and Olivia. ‘Are you sure you’re going to be OK?’
No! No, I’m not! Just take me home. That’s what Ivy wanted to say, but there was no way she could drag Olivia away from the farm when she was so clearly loving everything about it. Plus, Rebecca was her mom’s twin. She would force herself to stick it out for the one night.
He hugged them both goodbye and nodded to Rebecca. ‘I’ll pick them up tomorrow at six. Keep them safe.’
‘You don’t have anything to worry about,’ Rebecca said, smiling tightly. Ivy could see how tense her aunt’s body was.
They waved as Mr Vega drove away in a cloud of dust.
Ivy kept watching until the car was a dot on the horizon. Then she turned back to the chaos of chickens, goats, dogs and horses. One fat brown hen pecked its way over to her, and Ivy swore it was clucking its disapproval.
‘Are you OK to look at the rest of the horses?’ Rebecca said. ‘There’s one in particular I want you to meet.’
Olivia put her hand on Ivy’s arm, to ask the question silently.
Ivy wasn’t sure. She didn’t want to scare them or humiliate herself again.
‘Your mom’s favourite horse is the old patriarch of the stable now. I’ve started to think he was sticking around to meet you both.’
Ivy’s eyes met Olivia’s. Their mother’s favourite horse!
‘Your mom helped birth Lucky,’ Rebecca explained, wrestling playfully with the two energetic Labs. ‘It was a close call, too. Lucky’s legs were in the wrong position and he was in danger of not making it. Your mom wouldn’t give up, though, and he survived.’
Ivy was a little afraid to do it, but she had to meet the horse that meant so much to her mother. ‘Yes, I want to meet Lucky,’ she blurted.
‘Me too,’ Olivia whispered.
They walked through the stable to the back. Lucky was munching on some feed in the last stall. He was beautiful – all white, including his mane. His big black eyes, full of grace and dignity, seemed to take everything in.
‘He was a jumping champion in his youth,’ Rebecca said, pointing to several framed photos outside his stall.
Ivy caught her breath. In each picture, their mom was standing next to Lucky, as a girl not much older than Ivy was now. She was always holding up trophies or flower bouquets, except for one photo where it was simply Susannah hugging Lucky.
The horse snorted gently as Rebecca spoke to him and stroked his muzzle. ‘Hello, lovely Lucky,’ she said. ‘Look who I’ve brought you.’ Lucky nudged Rebecca with her nose. ‘This is Olivia and Ivy – Susannah’s girls.’
‘Hi, Lucky,’ Olivia said.
‘Hello,’ Ivy whispered, not wanting to ruin the moment. Lucky swung his head over to them and blinked.
Not exactly an excited welcome, Ivy thought, but at least he isn’t trying to run away.
‘He would always jump higher and ride better for your mom. It was like Lucky thought Susannah was his mom.’
Olivia gasped. ‘That practically makes him our brother!’
Lucky snorted, and Ivy couldn’t tell if that meant he was agreeing or thought it was a ridiculous idea.
‘I don’t ride Lucky too much nowadays. He’s very old and a bit frail. He needs a dose of medicine every day, and loves his creature comforts!’ Rebecca said. ‘But how about if we take out a couple of the younger horses for a little trot?’
‘Yes, please!’ Olivia said.
‘I’ll just watch for now,’ Ivy replied. ‘One horse not attempting to flee is a victory for me. I don’t want to push my luck.’
‘Ha ha,’ said Olivia at the pun.
Ivy sat on a bench, swinging her feet, as Olivia and Rebecca ‘tacked up’ their two horses. Bits, pommels and cruppers – it all sounded like Romanian to her, but Olivia seemed to be picking it up easily.
While Rebecca led Coco and Olivia took Honey, a light-golden horse, into the yard for a ride, Ivy perched on the fence and watched as they laughed and chatted. The wind rustled through the woods behind them and picked up little flurries of dust wherever the horses stepped. Ivy was a long way from her bedroom coffin.
‘Looking at you riding, here on the ranch …’ Rebecca called to Olivia. ‘You remind me so much of your mother. It’s like I’m looking at a thirteen-year-old version of Susannah.’
Olivia beamed and Ivy couldn’t help it; she felt a pang of jealousy. Don’t I remind her of our mother, too?
‘Ivy, watch!’ Olivia called and urged Honey into a canter.
Ivy gave a little wave. Olivia was a natural and looked like she was having the time of her life. Normally Ivy would be happy sitting on the sidelines – especially at something as bunny-ish as a farm – but this was her mom’s favourite place.
I want at least some part of this to make sense to me. Ivy looked at the pigs rolling around in the mud, snorting gleefully. The leaves of the big weeping willow tree were so long that they made a tent around the trunk. Ivy wandered over to sit underneath the tree. She could still see the riders but it was through a curtain of green.
The main riff from Phantom of the Opera intoned from her messenger bag and she pulled out her phone. She already knew it was Brendan.
‘How ya doin’, cowgirl?’ Brendan said in a fake drawl.
She sighed. Rebecca and Olivia were lost in their own equine world and couldn’t hear her conversation, so she could be honest. ‘Like a cow without its spots, or a chicken without its feathers – utterly out of place.’
‘Uh-oh,’ Brendan said. ‘That doesn’t sound good.’
Ivy turned away from the riders, holding back tears. ‘I should have known I wouldn’t fit in, but this kind of bites.’ She took a breath.
‘I’m coming,’ Brendan declared, his voice serious now. ‘Where are you?’
‘You can’t; I’m miles away.’ Ivy sniffled.
‘There is this incredible invention called the wheel – and I am the proud owner of two.’
Ivy smiled. Brendan could always cheer her up.
‘In fact, these two wheels have a chain and pedals that take me wherever I want to go. Now,’ he instructed, ‘tell me where you are.’