Secrets in the Lowcountry--The River (32 page)

The woman blushed.

Pushing, Taylor
continued to stare hard at Ms. Lee.

“Mr. Thomson told me he’d call and arrange a meeting.”

“Between…?”

Her garish makeup made her red face even uglier.

“Between?”
Her voice hardened as did her eyes.

“Mr. Thomson, me, and your lawyers.” The words came slow
ly
and with great hesitation.

Her daughter
whipped around and
glared at her mother. “Yo
u told me we had an appointment
.”

Not wanting a fight, Taylor interrupted, “Let’s
put that aside for a moment and
get on the same page. Okay?”
She glanced from one to the other.

Reluctantly,
mother and daughter nodded.
Hannah’s facial expression re
tained an a
ngry
expression
, while her mother continued to block ‘eau de barn’
.

“Right now, neither set of lawyers is aware that you are at Harmony Barn.”

Ms. Lee
stared with malice at Taylor before bobbing
her head.

Taylor ignored the distorted expression.
“You decided o
n your own to come here.” She
fixed her gaze on the woman.

Another nod
, just as reluctant as the first
and her countenance remained
irritated
.

“Perhaps, we can find a solution.” Taylor hoped the Muellers and her father would forgive her for going around them, but she
intuitively
believed in her plan.

“Your da
ughter won’t qualify for Horseback Heroes
.”

The woman’s eyes flared open.
“She
’s
handicapped!”

Clenching her fists until her nails dented her palms, Taylor
replied in as even a tone as possible,
“Please let me finish. Her foot will heal…”

“Not sufficient for gymnastics!” the woman taunted.
“She might never walk normal again!”

Pushing hair that had escaped from her ponytail behind her ear,
Taylor took
what she hoped was
a
calming,
deep breath
.
Maybe I
should
let th
e lawyers settled this.
“
Ms. Lee, please. If you noticed
the young girl riding when you arrived
, you’d understand. These children and adults are
severely,
physically
handicapped.
Horseback
Heroes
encourages individuals to develop self-confidence and teaches them a skill impossible to do alone.
Ours is a very small operation. Unlike some of the therapeutic programs, we cater to only one or two niches. One day, if all goes well, we can expand our operation.
Check the internet and it will explain much, muc
h more
about us and other similar programs
. The special needs individuals
we help will always
require
support,
some more and some less. Your daughter can and will survive without constant supervision or assistance.
”

Ms. Lee’s mouth started to open
. H
er eyes flashed with annoyance
.
Taylor
held up her hand.
Looking directly at the girl and totally
blocking out her mother, she
asked,
“
Hannah, do you want to ride?”

“Of course she does.” Her mother strident voice shouted
the words. T
he sound bounced off
the walls
o
f the small, enclosed space.
Taylor hoped they hadn’t carried out the door to the ring
.

Maybe I am making a mistake,
but guilt stabbed
.
“
Ms. Lee, p
lease allow your daughter to answer me. Do you?”
From the straight back, to the hands clenched in her
lap, the girl’s body showed
tension and a drop of fear.
Taylor
always interviewed her potential riders and had gathered an instinct for possible trouble or problems.
She eyed the child, checking her facial utterances which often shouted what the person’s voice could not.

From the corner of her eyes, Hannah peeked at her mother. Ms. Lee perched on th
e edge of the thin, wooden seat,
glaring.
She had finally removed her finger. Taylor hid a smirk with hers.

“I guess so.” The timid voice scarcely reached Taylor’s ears.

Hoping to steady and
soothe the child plus
get her answer
and
not her
mother’s
, Taylor
forced her
voice
to
relax. “Riding’s hard work…”

“My daughter’s not afraid of working. Being a gymnast requires sacrifi
ce and constant effort every day.
”
Her belligerent tone scrapped on Taylor’s nerves.

Dear Heaven, I’m regretting I started
.
“Ms. Le
e, your daughter must answer my
questions, not you.
If you interrupt one more time, I’m leaving and so are you. Our lawyers will handle everything!

“Hannah, do you want to ride? Yes or no.”
Taylor hoped
s
he hadn’t shown her annoyance.

“I think so, but the horses are awfully big.” Her eyes widened and a
smidgen
of fe
ar returned
.

Bingo. She’
s afraid. I had seen it
.
“Yes, they are but they really like to please people.
Besides, w
e won’t put you up on the horse until you’ve
been around them for a while. Before riding, y
ou must learn about the saddle, the bridle, the cinch
,
lots
of other
important
things.
That would give her foot a chance to heal.
O
ther
vital details are
cleaning the stall, feeding the horse, walking them
, and talking to them
. People who wish to ride must understand taking care of a horse is the first step in a successful relationship with that animal.
Could you do all that?”

“I like animals. We had a cat, but a car ran over her. We don’t have any pets now.”
A touch of sadness showed in her tone.

Taylor patted Hannah on her hand
. “Losing a pet is very hard. I’ve
lost several over the years.
And each time I did, I hurt inside.
Animals love us and don’
t expect much in return t
hat’s why caring for them is so
important
.

“Would you like to come back one afternoon and wander around the stable before you make a decision?”

Her face lit up. “Yes.”

“Good. I’ll arrange a time with your mother.  Now, w
hy don’t you go out to the bench next to the ring and watch
Amanda and her helpers
. Your mother and I should talk.”

They watched the teen until she found a seat.

“Ms. Lee, I will take your d
aughter as a student, if Hannah wants to learn. If she says no, I won’t force her.” Taylor stared at her. “You can’t
compel
her either. Horses sense fear. When they do they can become undependable
and accidents can and do happen
.
”

“But…”

“
Please listen.
Either my assistant Jean
or I
will coach her. How well she fares is anyone
’s
guess. I can’t and I won’t promise she’ll succeed.” Keeping her eyes glued to the woman,
she said, “And neither can you.

“Give me a call next week. Now, I have students waiting.”
Without waiting for a response, Taylor left.

After a shower and lunch, Taylor headed for the pool. The day continued bright
,
clear
,
humid
and
very
warm
making a swim a necessity
as well as a pleasure
. She did a shallow dive and came up stroking. For the next fifteen minutes, Taylor allowed no thoughts to invade her mind. If one tried, she pushed the idea aside. She’d had enough thinking and worrying for today. Flipping over onto her back, she watched a few streaks of clouds drift by.
Such peace!

“Taylor.”

Leisurely turning on her side, she smiled. “Hi, Jeff. Care to join me?” She glanced at his tee shirt and shorts.

He surveyed his attire then smiled at her. “Didn’t bring my suit.”

“Ditch the shirt and come in. Nothing could hurt those old shorts,” she teased.

“Just because I get value from my clothes,” he defended himself.

“I bet you still have your Eagle Scout shirt,” she retorted.
He didn’t respond. “You do!”

“If and when I ever have children and if and when he grows up and becom
es an Eagle Scout, I’ll give the shirt to him,” his tone even,
not rising to Taylor’s joshing.
“Okay, that’s fair. But what about that old fishing jacket that once belonged to your father?” She enjoyed bantering with him.

“That’s an heirloom.”
A smile escaped.

“I give up!”
She waved her hands in submission.

With that, he peeled off his shirt
, toed off his sneakers,
and cannonballed into the pool, drenching an already soaking Taylor.

“Catch me if you can.” She dove underwater and headed for the far side of the pool. An instant later, in the middle of a kick, he grabbed her ankle and pulled her back toward him. Taylor came up and spit water in his face. He wiped the salty liquid off his face, but
his
other hand remained holding on to her
, as he bent close to her
.
They
came within inches of
each other.
For a moment, she wanted to kiss him on the lips. H
er conscience
tweaked
her. Instead, s
he brushed her lips against his cheek, before
easing away. His face flushed.

Breathlessly she said, “I forgot how much taller you are. Next time, I’ll ask for a lead of half the pool.” Her eyes avoided his. She sensed the water moving and chance
d
a quick peek. Jeff slid back a few feet.
Had the almost kiss affected him, too?

“How’s the barn? Many heroes today?” Jeff tread
ed
water, keeping his distance.

“A good group, but guess who came?”

“Who?”

“Guess.”

“Miss Mary.”

“Miss Mary’s allergies
, to dust and hay,
prevent her from getting near a
nywhere near the stables
.”

“I know, but I couldn’t think of anyone else.”

“Ms. Ella Mae Lee.”

“What?”
His eyes opened wide.

“And her daughter.”

“Why?”

“Ms. Lee
heard
about
Horseback
Heroes
. S
he decided her daughter fits into the category of ‘severely handicapped’.
M
s
. Lee had never seen our kids and adults. She didn’t even bother to check the website. In her mind,
because of
the accident,
her daughter is
disabled and
qualified to join.
”

Jeff shook his head as if in disbelief.

“After she created a scene at the ring, the three of us retreated to my office.”

“A little tight for everyone,” he stated.

“Definitely, but
a positive in this case.
I had the chair. S
he
and her daughter
sat on old
folding one
s
that have seen better days
.”

He stared at her in disbelief.
“You
don’t
still have those old metal chairs my mother gave you
, do you
?”