Loving Spirit (5 page)

‘What are you doing?’ Luke demanded.

‘Barney and Milly have got out!’

She raced to help. The two ponies were dodging out of the way of Stuart and Helen. Barney trotted round, tail and head held high. Milly cantered to a patch of grass and began to grab at it.

‘Here, boy,’ said Helen, approaching Barney with her hand outstretched. But he just shook his head and trotted away, while Milly let Stuart get within a few metres and then shied and trotted after Barney. Ellie tried to head her off, but she plunged away, stopping only to investigate an empty bucket on its side. As she did so, she stepped through the metal handle. Giving a snort, she jumped back with it caught round her hoof. She ran backwards in alarm, stopping only when she reached the fence and then stamping until it came off. Ellie stood helplessly, not
knowing what to do. From behind her she could hear Len swearing loudly. He had heard the noise and come out of the ring with Joe to see what the commotion was about.

‘What the flamin’ heck’s going on? Who let that ruddy pony out?’ he bellowed. ‘And why are you all standing round like gormless halfwits? Someone get hold of them NOW!’

Stuart had disappeared into the barn and was coming out with a feedbucket and two leadropes. He rattled the pony nuts. ‘Here, Barney lad. Come on. Here you go.’ Barney stopped trotting round and pricked his ears. With a greedy whinny, he cantered over and thrust his head into the bucket. Stuart quickly threw the rope round his neck and Helen ran over to grab hold of him, while Stuart went to tempt Milly.

‘Got you,’ he said as Milly put her head in the bucket too.

‘I’ll take her,’ Ellie offered.

‘Oh, no,’ Len said, pointing his finger at her. ‘You’re going nowhere, miss. I want to know exactly how that pony got out of his stable.’

Ellie met her uncle’s furious gaze. ‘Um … I … well …’

‘It wasn’t Ellie’s fault,’ Joe jumped in. ‘Don’t blame her, Dad. I didn’t warn her about Barney and the locks.’

Ellie looked at him swiftly.

Len’s eyes narrowed. ‘How could you be so daft? You should have told her. You know no one works in that barn without knowing about the locks. Imagine if the ponies had got out on the road. As it is, the mare’s probably lamed herself. Haven’t you got a brain cell in that useless head of yours? Thick as two bloody planks you are. Flamin’ –’

Ellie was unable to bear Joe being shouted at because of her for a second longer. ‘It wasn’t Joe’s fault!’ she burst out. ‘He did tell me. I forgot.’

She saw Joe give a quick desperate shake of his head. The next second she realized why. Len’s anger instantly turned to fury. ‘You lied to me?’ he said, staring at Joe. ‘Of all the …’ Stepping forward, he grabbed Joe’s shirt and brought his face right up into Joe’s, his eyes blazing. ‘Don’t you ever,
ever
lie to me!’ he thundered. He shoved Joe away from him with such violence that his son fell down on the stony ground with a smack.

Ellie held in the whimper that would have escaped from her if she hadn’t been terrified it would make everything worse.

Joe gingerly pulled himself up to a sitting position, but wouldn’t meet anyone’s eye.

Turning away, Len marched over to where Stuart was examining Milly’s leg. ‘What’s the damage?’ he said curtly.

‘A small cut. Bit of swelling starting. I’ll hose her down, boss.’

Len nodded and then walked towards the house, shaking his head in disgust.

For a moment there was silence. Helen led Barney into the stable block, one hand on his nose, the other holding the leadrope tight. Sasha took the others down to the yard, looking subdued.

‘Well, that helped,’ Luke said drily to Ellie as she ran over to try and help Joe up. But Joe shook his head at her quickly and stood up himself.

Ellie swallowed, still reeling from seeing Len lash out at Joe like that. It was all her fault.

‘Leave it out, Luke,’ Joe muttered, his face red.

Luke shrugged his shoulders and walked away.

Ellie looked at Joe. ‘Joe … I’m … I’m sorry.’

He took a breath. ‘Don’t worry. I’ve had worse.’

‘I just wanted to stop him.’

‘Look, forget it,’ Joe said. ‘Just don’t leave the lock off Barney’s door again, OK?’

‘Never,’ Ellie promised, still feeling awful.

Joe managed a smile. ‘Don’t look like that. It’s fine. I’d better go and untack Picasso before he puts a foot through his reins. God knows what would happen then. Why don’t you go and see if Stuart needs a hand with Milly?’

He walked away, leaving Ellie standing on the slope, overwhelmed by a mixture of emotions –
misery, guilt, hatred of her uncle and the urge to run, it didn’t matter where, she just wanted to get far, far away. Across the wintery fields, she could see the bare peaks. The desolate grey sky pressed down with just a single bird flying across it. She wished with all her heart that she could be somewhere – anywhere – else.

Chapter Four

Over the next month Ellie gradually got used to living at High Peak Stables. She tried not to think about her parents and the numbness settled back over her, sealing around her in a protective layer. She worked hard, hiding her unhappiness as best she could, avoiding Len and Luke. Len had his hands full with the horses and the clients he taught, and Luke was far too busy to take much notice of her, flirting with Sasha and the female livery owners who kept their horses at the yard, taking phone calls and working with the horses. He strode around the yard in the day, exuding a relentless energy, with Pip scampering at his heels, before going off on his motorbike into town in the evenings. It didn’t seem to matter how late Luke stayed out, he was still up and on the yard by seven the next morning before doing a full day’s work. But despite all the girls who seemed to fall for his charms, the only person or animal Ellie ever saw him show real affection for was Pip.

It was a busy yard, particularly in the afternoons when the livery owners came to ride their horses. There was Eliza Peterson and her friend Carey Moss who were in their twenties, a lady called Veronica Armstrong whose ten-year-old son and four-year-old daughter rode ponies Len produced, and then there were the owners who never rode but just liked to own show horses. Ellie generally kept out of the clients’ way, preferring to spend time with the horses and Joe. And she had started school – a modern comprehensive in the nearby town where Joe was in the year above her. Everyone in her year had friends already, but that was OK. She just kept her head down and avoided trouble, wanting to get to the end of the school day as quickly as possible so she could get back on the yard.

The horses and Joe were the only good things in her new life at High Peak Stables. No matter how bleak she felt, the horses always helped. Their presence comforted her, and seeing to their needs took her out of her own head for a little while. A part of her wished she hadn’t decided to make the stand she had. It was hard being around them and never riding. But there was no way she was going to back down and it was enough that she was around horses. Joe helped her too. Sensitive, friendly and responsible, he was the complete opposite of Luke, and the more she got to know him, the more she liked him. When
there were quiet moments, they would retreat to the barn, play with Sweep the kitten, talk about the horses and music, and tease each other. During those times, Ellie felt almost normal again.

‘If you had to be a dog or a cat, which would you be?’ Ellie said one Saturday lunchtime as they sat together in the barn on top of the hay bales.

As Joe considered the question, she thought how lucky she was that he just seemed to get her and she almost never had to explain what she meant.

‘I’d be a dog,’ Joe decided. ‘A Labrador.’ He grinned. ‘And you, you’d be one of those little white poodles with hair all tied up.’

Ellie shoved him. ‘I so wouldn’t!’ She knew Joe was teasing her. ‘Go on, what would I be?’ she challenged him.

‘You’d be a …’ Joe looked at her thoughtfully. ‘A dog like Pip. Interested in everything, full of energy and loyal.’

‘Totally wrong, actually. I wouldn’t be any type of dog, I’d be a cat,’ said Ellie, running a piece of straw along the bale for Sweep to chase. The kitten pounced and she scooped him up, lying back with him. ‘I’d be just like you, Sweep.’

‘Yeah, with a wonky head!’ Joe grinned.

Ellie frowned. ‘Sweep’s head isn’t that wonky now.’ She kissed the kitten’s nose. ‘You take no notice of him, Sweep. You’re beautiful.’ She put Sweep down
and watched him bound away. ‘I like it up here,’ she said, glancing up at the roof of the barn. The beams were hung with years of cobwebs and dust, but it had a warm, safe feel.

‘You’d better make the most of it. In another month or two there’ll be shows every weekend, some in the week too. We won’t get a second to sit around like this.’

There was a note in Joe’s voice that suggested he wasn’t looking forward to it. ‘Don’t you like shows?’ Ellie asked curiously.

Joe shrugged. ‘They’re OK, I suppose, but I’d far rather be working with the horses on the yard.’

‘What will you do when you leave school?’ Ellie had heard Joe talking of leaving school after his GCSE exams in the summer.

‘Work here I guess, though –’ Joe broke off.

‘What?’

‘What I’d really like to do is go and work on a different yard. Not a showing one. One where they treat difficult horses, maybe, and help them.’

‘That would be brilliant,’ enthused Ellie. She could just see Joe doing it. ‘You must.’

‘Can you really imagine Dad letting me?’

Ellie frowned. ‘If you want to do it, you shouldn’t let him stop you.’

‘Easy to say.’ Joe shot her a sideways look. ‘Though, actually, if it were you, you probably would just go
ahead and do it anyway.’ He smiled suddenly. ‘I think it’s cool what you’re doing, Ellie. Dad’s mad that you still aren’t riding the ponies but what can he do? And you work hard so he can’t complain.’

Ellie didn’t say anything. She was beginning to find it harder and harder to be on the yard so much and yet not ride. But there was no way she would give in. A bit of her knew that it was goading her uncle and she felt a secret, silent pleasure in that. She didn’t think she’d ever met anyone she liked less than her Uncle Len. He might be good with the horses, but everything she’d seen in the first day had been confirmed – with people he was badgering and domineering, expecting them to do exactly what he said.

She sighed. ‘I’m so glad
you’re
here,’ she said to Joe. ‘It would be an awful place without you.’

Joe looked pleased. ‘I’m glad you’re here too. It’s much better than when it was just me, Dad and Luke.’

Ellie rolled her eyes. ‘Luke is
so
annoying!’

Joe chuckled. ‘He’s not that bad. He didn’t have an easy time when he was younger. His parents aren’t great and he hated boarding school. And having him here keeps Dad off my back a bit.’

Ellie studied him. She knew Joe’s own life hadn’t been easy either. He had told her that he had really missed his mum when she left. He still saw her sometimes, just not often because she lived a long distance
away in Devon and he was usually kept too busy on the yard to go and visit her.

‘You know, you have to be the only girl under the sun to think Luke’s annoying,’ Joe went on with a certain satisfaction. ‘Normally, girls all fancy him like mad.’

Ellie pulled a face. ‘Ugh. No way. He’s so arrogant.’

‘Did you have a boyfriend in New Zealand?’ Joe asked her curiously.

‘Not when I left.’ Ellie had been out with a few boys, but the longest she’d been out with anyone was six weeks, and since her parents had died, going out with someone had been the last thing on her mind. Her face shadowed over instantly at the thought and she had to fight back the bleakness that swelled up inside her. She stared at the bale of hay, counting to ten in her head, concentrating on the numbers as she pushed the grief back down. It was always like that. She would feel OK for a little while, not thinking about what had happened, but then something would bring it all flooding back. When she reached ten, she cleared her throat, back in control enough to speak. ‘We’d better get going. Your dad will be out on the yard soon.’

Joe looked troubled. Ellie had a feeling he was about to ask her how she was and she didn’t want that. She didn’t want to talk about it. She climbed quickly down from the bales. ‘Come on!’

But Joe wasn’t to be put off. ‘Are you happy here?’ he said as he jumped down on to the thick layer of hay and straw that covered the barn floor.

Ellie turned back and stared at him.
Happy
. The word felt strange in her mind, as if it was a foreign language she didn’t quite understand. What could she say? There were times when she felt all right, usually when she was with Joe or busy with the horses, but she never felt really and truly happy. Every night she still cried as she thought about everything she had lost. But she wasn’t going to tell anyone else that, not even Joe.

‘Well?’ Joe pushed when she didn’t reply.

‘Um …’ She saw his concerned look. ‘Y-yeah. Kind of,’ she stammered. ‘Come on!’

She hurried off, leaving Joe watching after her, a frown on his face.

On Thursday morning Ellie was just getting ready for school when there was a knock on her bedroom door. She looked round in surprise. No one ever came up to her room. ‘Who is it?’

‘Me. Joe.’

Ellie opened the door. Joe grinned at her. ‘I think we should have some fun today.’

She wondered what he had in mind. ‘Doing what?’

‘Let’s bunk off school.’

‘Bunk off?’ Ellie echoed uncertainly. She still
struggled with a few of the unfamiliar English phrases. ‘You mean not go to school?’

Joe nodded. ‘Dad’s out for the day looking at some horses. We can miss the bus and take fake notes in to say we were sick when we go back to school after half term, a week on Monday.’

Ellie stared at him, astonished. Joe was normally so conscientious and responsible, not the type of person ever to get into trouble or break rules. ‘What will we do?’

‘There’s a horse sale on in Barrowton. We could go over there, just look at the horses, hang out for a while. I know Stuart’ll take us if we ask. He’s got to go into the tack shop there anyway. He won’t mind going to the pub for lunch while we look round.’