On the Victory Trail (4 page)

“Yes!”

“Here we go,” Mr. Chambers said. He stepped to the left side of Stormy and clicked his tongue.

“Ride 'em cowgirl!” Mrs. Chambers yelled.

“Hey, Sooze, the dishes are waiting!” Morgan joked.

“Good-bye, carnival ponies. Hello, Stormy!” Skye added.

Sooze's face glowed with delight as the trio circled the corral. Skye couldn't remember seeing her friend so happy in all the time they'd known each other.

Skye sat in the dining room with Morgan and the Chambers during lunch break. Like a beaver chewing a log, Skye ate a row of corn on the cob then asked: “Mrs. C., could we go to the mall one day this week? I've got my eye on a new video game.”

“Oh,” Mrs. Chambers replied, “I thought you said last week you needed new shoes for church and special occasions.”

“Nah, the shoes can wait. I've got to have this game. Can we go?”

Mr. Chambers swallowed a bite of his sandwich. “Now, Skye, don't you think you should budget some of your allowance for important things — like a pair of shoes? I just realized that lately we haven't discussed giving to the Lord. Have you been tithing? You haven't for-gotten about giving that ten percent, have you?”

I know God is real, but I'm sure he doesn't need my
measly couple of bucks!
A faint smile disguised Skye's thoughts.

“No, I didn't forget,” she murmured.

“Good,” Mrs. Chambers said. “Don't leave the Lord out of any part of your life, Honey.”

“I remember how hard it was for me to get into the habit of giving my tithe at first,” Morgan said as she munched a potato chip. “But when I learned how God uses what we give to help others, I finally got into it. It's so cool to see how my money can be used to help ­missionaries or families in need. I get as much out of giving as those getting the help. And God promises special blessings to those who tithe. I read about it in the book of Malachi, in the Bible. You'll see.”

Want to bet?
Skye thought. “Whatever,” she mumbled.

Mr. Chambers finished his glass of water and wiped his mustache. “Hey, where did Sooze go? She's been gone quite awhile, and she hasn't finished her lunch.”

“She said she had to use the bathroom,” Mrs. Chambers said. “Skye, would you mind checking on her?”

“No problem.”

Skye pushed back her chair and headed down the hallway, knocking on the bathroom door. There was no answer, so Skye knocked again. Finally, she peeked in. The bathroom was empty, and the window was wide open!

“Mrs. C!” Skye yelled. “Sooze isn't in the bathroom, and the window's open!” Skye called out, running back into the dining room.

Morgan had just pivoted her chair to glance out the sliding glass doors. “Hey — how did Stormy get out into the big field?”

Everyone turned to the window in time to see Sooze trying to mount from the far side.

Mr. and Mrs. Chambers jumped up from the table so fast they almost toppled their chairs as they ran for the door. Skye was right behind them.

“And no hard hat!” Mr. Chambers bellowed. He opened the door in one swift move and charged out. “Sooze, don't get on that horse!”

“She'll kill herself!” Mrs. Chambers said.

Skye ran toward the field with Morgan motoring along behind her.

As Mr. Chambers raced across the lawn, Stormy pranced in tight circles with Sooze already on his back.

“Watch me now!” she yelled. “I'll show you I can ride!”

Mr. Chambers took one courageous leap toward the fence. “Sooze, stop!”

Stormy wheeled, and Sooze grabbed the horn with one hand and the reins with the other. She shoved her heels into the unsuspecting horse's belly. Hard.

“You idiot!” Skye screamed, running to the fence. “That's no play pony!”

“Sooze! Sooze!” Mrs. Chambers, out of breath at the fence, could not utter another word.

“Sooze!” Morgan yelled. “Stop!”

“Let's go, Stormy!” Sooze whooped. “Let's show 'em how it's done!”

chapter four

E
very muscle in Stormy's powerful body tensed with the excitement of running like the wind. A kick that hard in such well-trained ribs meant only one thing: Go fast!

In a split second, Stormy broke into a fast gallop and tore along the fence with Sooze hanging on for dear life. Like a rag doll tied to the saddle, she bounced with every hoof beat that pounded the ground. Pulling back hard on the reins, she screamed, “Whoa! Whoa!”

As Sooze flew by, Mr. Chambers, balancing on the fence railings, reached out for her but just missed her. “Turn him in a circle!” he yelled as he cleared the fence and ran after Stormy.

“Sooze!” Skye and Morgan yelled together, eyes wide with alarm. “Turn him in a circle!”

Stormy rounded the corner, charging toward the bottom of the field. As he scraped against the fence on the turn, Sooze leaned over to her right and managed to wrap her arms around a fence post. Stormy continued racing down the field at full speed, leaving his rider dangling. Sooze dropped to the ground, badly shaken but unharmed.

Mr. Chambers joined Sooze, steadying her shoulders before looking into her eyes. “Are you all right?”

“What on earth were you trying to do?” Mrs. Chambers puffed as she and Skye approached.

“That was dumb!” Skye panted. “You could've killed yourself!”
And who else pulled a stupid stunt like that
on a horse not too long ago?
immediately popped into in Skye's mind.

“Stupid horse!” Sooze complained as she glared at Stormy, who was now munching grass down near the pond. “It wasn't my fault. Something spooked him.”

“Yeah, right,” Skye retorted. “I think the spook was on his back.”

For the rest of the afternoon at Keystone Stables, the mood was somber and tense. Sooze's disobedience put pleasure on the back burner, but the business of running a ranch took over. While Mr. Chambers cut hay on the lower fields, Mrs. Chambers and the girls blanched twenty dozen ears of corn, bagged them, and stored them in one of the basement freezers.

While Sooze sulked and complained about the work, Skye and Morgan tried to eat as much corn as they bagged. They told silly jokes, determined to change Mrs. Chambers' disgruntled mood.

“Man, is Mrs. C. ticked.” Skye whispered to Sooze over a boiling pot of corn. “You are going to get it. Big time!”

“Watch me!” was Sooze's smart reply.

The mood at supper was somewhat lighter, however. (If they had been practicing to eat politely before the Queen of England, everyone would have passed with flying colors.) Mr. Chambers reviewed the next week's activities, and Mrs. Chambers talked about a shopping trip. After supper, the family met in the living room for devotions and a family discussion.

“Just remember, girls,” Mr. Chambers said as he glanced up from his Bible, “you can't earn your way to heaven. In the book of Ephesians it says that eternal life is a result of God's grace — his undeserved favor. It's a gift you can't see but you can receive by faith. All you need to do is believe that Jesus Christ died and rose again for your sins and ask him to forgive you.”

Skye fixed her gaze on a vase of flowers on the end table beside Mr. Chambers.

“My life has never been the same since I did that many years ago,” Mrs. Chambers added. “Girls, God gives you a peace in your heart that's hard to understand.”

Morgan smiled and directed her words at Skye and Sooze. “I accepted Christ as my Savior after I moved in here, and it's so cool having the Lord as my best friend. He's always there to help me through tough times. Now I finally have my head screwed on straight instead of making stupid choices that get me in trouble.”

Skye stared at the floor and couldn't help but notice that Sooze was doing the same thing.

“The Lord does help us with our decisions, girls.” Mr. Chambers laid down his Bible. “Eileen and I pray daily that we will lead you girls down the right cow path,” he added with a smirk in a show of his returning humor. “Right now we need to discuss what happened earlier today with Stormy. Sooze, since you disobeyed in front of the whole family, everyone is included in this discussion. We value all of your opinions on decisions we must make. We want you to tell us how you see things.”

“It wasn't my fault,” Sooze snapped. “I told you I know how to ride.”

“She has been to riding camps a ­couple of times, Mr. C.,” Skye added in support.

“Skye,” Mrs. Chambers leaned forward on the sofa, “you know our horses are not like camp horses and ponies. We've warned you all well in advance how much training it takes to handle one of these show horses. It's a big deal. We're talking about your safety and the horse's safety, not to mention thousands of dollars.”

Mr. Chambers sat back rigidly in his chair with his elbows on the armrests, one finger absently stroking his mustache. “Sooze, I'm afraid you've broken the alltime record for the kid to get grounded the quickest after moving in. If it were a lesser offense, we might go a little easier. But we just cannot tolerate reckless behavior around the horses. Somebody could get killed.”

“But I told you it wasn't my fault!” Sooze whined, slumping in her chair.

You better cool it,
Skye thought,
or they'll tack on
another week for griping.
Skye caught Sooze's eye and shook her head in silent warning.

Mr. Chambers spelled out the sentence. “Young lady, you will be grounded for two weeks. No mall, no trips, no recreation room, no phone. You will still be expected to do your household chores and yard work, but the barn and the horses are off limits. The rest of us will cover your chores down there.

“Skye and Morgan may still visit you in your room each night for a half hour, and you will still go with us to church. Other than that, life will be crawling a little slowly for you. Now, you don't have to lock yourself up in your room. You are not in jail. We want you at every meal and in all the family devotions and discussions. But your other activities will have to wait.”

“That's so not fair!” Sooze griped. “You're not giving me a chance. I hate this place!”

“Sooze,” Morgan said, “why don't you give us a chance — and this place?”

“We love you and want you here with us,” Mrs. Chambers said. “But you have to cooperate.”

“All your rules are stupid,” Sooze said. “My mother doesn't make me do anything. I can do whatever I want!”

“Does that make you happy, Sooze?” Mrs. Chambers asked.

“When I get what I want — which is most of the time,” Sooze answered smartly.

“Can't you give her another chance?” Skye pleaded, turning to face Mr. Chambers.

“Oh, but we are,” Mr. Chambers reasoned. “She's getting the same chance as you and Morgan. We're trying to help you girls learn what's most important in life. Sooze, you'll get nowhere thinking everything that hap-pens to you is someone else's fault. We're praying that you accept this discipline and learn from it. You may go to your room. Morgan and Skye may visit you later for a while if they'd like. And remember,” he said, “we're doing this to help you, not to hurt you.”

“Yeah, right,” Sooze replied sarcastically.

Sooze hurried out of the room and ran down the hall. She slammed her bedroom door so hard it shook the whole house.

Uh, oh. I smell trouble
, Skye thought. Almost getting bucked from Stormy was going to be the least of Sooze's complaints.