The Midnight Horse

  First published in 1997 by Usborne Publishing Ltd, Usborne House,

  83-85 Saffron Hill, London EC1N 8RT, England.

  www.usborne.com

  Copyright © 2012, 2009, 2003, 1997 Usborne Publishing Ltd.

  The name Usborne and the devices are the Trade Marks of Usborne Publishing Ltd.

  All rights reserved. This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or used in any way except as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or loaned or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

  Epub ISBN 9781409554998

  Kindle ISBN 9781409555001

  Batch no. 01485-02

  CONTENTS

  Maps

  1. Izzy

  2. Kate

  3. A hasty decision

  4. A new arrival

  5. The midnight horse

  6. Another competitor

  7. Settling in

  8. Rivals

  9. Panic-stricken

  10. A change of heart

  11. An unexpected reaction

  12. Hawthorn

  13. Showjumping

  14. Cross-country

  15. Midnight to stay

  More Sandy Lane Stables books

  Maps to print out

  You can print out copies of the Sandy Lane Stables maps at the Usborne Quicklinks Website. Go to www.usborne-quicklinks.com and enter the keywords 'Sandy Lane Stables'.

  1

  IZZY

  The horse cantered gracefully around the paddock in long, easy strides, his tail held high, the crest of his neck arched. His jet-black coat contrasted sharply with the white frost, his hooves hardly seemed to touch the ground as he danced forwards. On his back sat a girl, light and balanced, coaxing the reins through her fingers. Effortlessly they perfected a figure of eight. The horse’s ears were pricked as they drew to a halt. It was dusk, and the light was fading. Shivering, the rider swung herself out of the saddle and jumped to the ground.

  “That’s enough for tonight, Midnight,” she said rubbing her hands together for warmth. “Or we won’t be able to see a thing.” Gently, she pushed the horse’s nose away as his head cradled forward for a titbit.

  “I haven’t got anything for you right now,” she smiled, leading him off through the fields by the reins. The horse snorted, as if in response, his breath spiralling into the winter air like smoke.

  Anyone who chanced to pass by would have thought there was little out of the ordinary about the pair. The girl could have been any one of a number of riders exercising her horse in the evening hours after school. Colcott and the surrounding countryside were horsy territory. But things were a little different for Izzy Paterson and Midnight. He wasn’t hers to begin with and in just over a week’s time he was due to be sold...

  “A new start for us all,” that was what Izzy’s father had said the summer before last, when he’d given up his job as a journalist to move to the country and write his first book. And when the idea had first been announced, Izzy had hardly been able to contain herself – a move to the country spelled out one thing to her – more horses.

  Izzy had been horse-mad for as long as she could remember. But living in London meant that Izzy had to content herself with the weekly riding lesson. Being in the country would change all that. Or so she thought. They’d been in Colcott about six months when Izzy had realized it wasn’t going to be as simple as all that. The horse her parents had fleetingly promised her hadn’t materialised and yet again Izzy found herself spending her Saturdays at just another riding stables – and not a very friendly one at that. The Elm Park Riding Stables was full of snooty girls as far as Izzy was concerned.

  “When we see an improvement in your marks at school, then maybe you can have a horse, Izzy,” her father had said.

  But try as she might, Izzy didn’t seem to be able to improve her schoolwork and she didn’t know how much longer she would be able to go on pretending to her old friends that her dream horse was on its way. Even her best friend from London, Alice, had given up asking about him in her letters.

  And then one day back in January, all of Izzy’s problems seemed to be solved. Izzy could remember the day so clearly...as if it was ingrained on her memory. The school bus had dropped her at the usual spot outside the post office and she’d happened to glance in the window. The neat writing on the postcard had jumped out at her:

  Would you like to exercise a horse for free?

  Rider needed

  Phone Mrs. Charlwood on Colcott 6783

  Izzy had hardly been able to believe her eyes. Surely no one...no one would simply let someone ride their horse for free. Izzy had gone home and phoned the number immediately, sure there had to be some sort of mistake. But the offer had turned out to be genuine enough.

  “My daughter, Jane, has got married,” Mrs. Charlwood had explained. “Moved to Australia... Midnight’s a beautiful horse. I couldn’t bear to sell him. Come and try him out if you like. I live on the right-hand side of the green as you come into Colcott – Harewood Hall.”

  Izzy hadn’t needed a second invitation. Without hesitating, she had turned up for a try-out and almost immediately been offered the job of looking after the beautiful, part-thoroughbred horse. Well-proportioned, with graceful, sloping shoulders, Midnight was altogether in a different league from the riding school ponies Izzy was used to.

  “We’ll see how it goes,” her mother had said when Izzy had first told her the exciting news. “I suppose at least you can give him back when you get bored of him.”

  Bored! As if. For nearly six months Izzy’s life had seemed complete – weekends of riding, a summer filled with horse shows. Until one day in June, Mrs. Charlwood had dropped the bombshell and announced she was emigrating to Australia at Christmas.

  Izzy had been devastated. Her whole world was collapsing before her eyes. Mrs. Charlwood had tried to make things all right – she’d even offered to give Midnight to Izzy, but Izzy’s parents simply wouldn’t hear of it.

  “Who do you think would end up looking after him?” her mother had said. “Your father and I just can’t take on that sort of responsibility at the moment. Maybe next year we’ll get you your own horse, but right now it’s completely out of the question.”

  But next year seemed a lifetime away for Izzy. A lifetime without Midnight. And now that she knew him, she didn’t want just any other horse. Her parents didn’t understand. In fact, Mrs. Charlwood was the only one who really understood how she felt. The picture faded and Izzy found herself standing in the middle of the yard.

  “Oh Midnight,” she sighed, turning now to face the horse. “Whatever am I going to do without you?” She took a deep breath. She really had to pull herself together. It wasn’t the end of the world.

  But it was the end of the world...her world. Christmas was only a week away now, and by then Mrs. Charlwood would have gone to Australia, Harewood Hall would have new owners and Midnight would have been sold. Nothing would ever be the same again.

  “Come on, we ought to put you away for the night,” Izzy sighed, the light fading around her into night. “I mustn’t spoil our last few days together.”

  Midnight tossed his head impatiently as Izzy led him
off to the yard. Rounding the corner of the rambling pink house, she saw Mrs. Charlwood waving from the kitchen window. Izzy smiled weakly as they clattered across the cobbles. Leading Midnight into his stable, she started to groom him, brushing his dark coat in swift circular movements.

  “That’s you all done,” she said, rubbing the horse’s velvety nose as she turned to put away the grooming kit.

  Midnight’s head nodded contentedly as Izzy gave him his evening haynet. With one last pat, she closed the stable door behind her and bolted the black horse in for the night. Izzy’s face was strangely luminous as she went to leave, the twilight casting an unnatural hue around her. Midnight didn’t take his eyes off her. He lifted his head high over the stable door and snickered softly. Izzy felt a lump rising in her throat, almost choking her as she tried to tear her gaze away from him. She didn’t think she’d ever seen a horse quite so beautiful.

  “You’ll be all right Midnight. You’ll soon have a new home to go to. You’ll forget about me,” she said, her eyes brimming with tears as she turned her bike out of the yard. “But I’ll never forget about you,” she said quietly to herself.

  2

  KATE

  “Come on Kate! It’s ten to eight! Get out of bed. You said you wanted to be at the stables early.”

  Kate Hardy groaned at the sound of her mother’s wake-up call and hauled herself out of bed. It was the first day of the Christmas holidays and she had things to do.

  Yawning, she drew back the curtains and wandered across the room. Pulling a comb through her knotty blonde hair, Kate looked critically at the pale face that stared back at her from the mirror. Dark shadows ringed her slate-grey eyes. She was tired – a consequence of the late nights she’d spent staying up to finish her end of term history assignment. Still, at least she’d got it done. And now she didn’t intend to think about it any more. For the next two weeks, the only thing she wanted to think about was her riding.

  Kate and her brother, Alex, had been helping out at Sandy Lane Stables for nearly three years now. Three years of riding, grooming, mucking out and whatever else came along. It was hard work, but they didn’t mind that too much, not when it brought them nearer horses. Besides, Nick and Sarah Brooks, the owners of the stables, really appreciated all the extra work their regular riders put in.

  And this year Kate’s hard work had really paid off, for she alone had been chosen to ride Sandy Lane’s star horse, Feather, in the junior section at the Hawthorn Horse Trials – now just three weeks away. Made up of dressage, showjumping and cross-country, the trials were the winter event of the area and the chance Kate had been waiting for. Everyone else at the stables had excelled at some point in the past...now it was her turn. This was the chance to prove herself. Kate gritted her teeth. She was determined to do well. She really wanted to win.

  Kate smiled as she thought back to Nick’s parting words last night. I think you’re in with a real chance, he had said. She wasn’t a conceited girl. She knew that any one of the regular Sandy Lane riders would be competing had they been young enough to enter. Tom, Jess, Charlie, Rosie, even her brother Alex – all of them were better riders than she was. But they were all too old and so, Sandy Lane’s hopes were riding on her.

  Kate looked out of the window of the old mill her parents had converted into their home. The morning light cast a warm glow over the white garden. It had snowed heavily last night and little icicles hung precariously from the ivy-covered walls. Kate felt pleased as she gazed outside. With snow on the ground, they’d be in the all-weather outdoor school, which spelled out one thing for Kate – more time to be spent on dressage, her favourite discipline.

  Quickly she glanced at her bedside clock. Five to eight. She’d been daydreaming again. She’d better get a move on. She was going to be late, she’d said she’d be at the stables for eight to help Nick feed the horses. Struggling into her jodhpurs, she grabbed her riding hat and hurried down the stairs. Alex was already up, hunched over a bowl of cereal in the kitchen.

  “Mum, would you be able to give us a lift to Sandy Lane?” Kate called, pushing some bread into the toaster. “Ple-e-ase? Just this once. It is snowing and I’m going to be late otherwise.”

  Mrs. Hardy groaned. “Didn’t I say at half-term that I wouldn’t run a taxi service for you and Alex? What’s wrong with the bus?”

  “Oh but it’ll take ages Mum. Please,” Kate begged.

  Mrs. Hardy looked long and hard. “Well, just this once then, Kate. But this is the last, absolutely the last time,” she said quickly. “You’ll have to be up earlier if you want to be at the stables on time. You can’t rely on me for everything.”

  “Thanks Mum,” Kate said, scrambling about in the larder for the marmalade.

  “Have you got all your Christmas presents sorted out?” Mrs. Hardy asked.

  “Yes,” Kate answered through a mouthful of toast, mentally ticking off a check-list of the presents she had put under the tree. She smiled as she thought of the riding crop she’d bought Alex. It was beautiful – tanned leather with a shiny handle and had cost her three weeks’ pocket money. When she thought about how they quarrelled, she wasn’t sure he deserved it.

  “Are you coming Alex?” she asked, grabbing the remains of her breakfast.

  “In a minute,” Alex answered.

  “Well hurry up then,” she said urgently. “In case you didn’t hear, Mum said she’ll give us a lift. And I want to be there as soon as possible. You might not have things to do but–”

  “OK, OK. Keep your hair on,” Alex interrupted. “I’m just coming. I need to phone Tom first though.”

  “But you’ll see him at the stables!” Kate cried. “Come on. We’re wasting precious time.”

  “Oh all right.” Alex reached for his jacket and headed for the door. “Let’s go.”

  Alex and Kate hurried out of the house and crunched across the snow to the car, impatiently waiting for their mother to put the burglar alarm on.

  “Here, Kate!”

  Before Kate could stop him, Alex had bent down and scooped up a handful of snow.

  “Come on you two. I thought you were in a hurry. Get in the car and stop mucking about,” Mrs. Hardy called over.

  Alex and Kate brushed the snow off themselves and jumped into the car. In no time at all, Mrs. Hardy had driven them the five miles from Wakeham to the stables and dropped Kate and Alex in Sandy Lane. As they hurried up the drive, Kate noticed that the pond on the corner was frozen solid. She shivered and drew her collar up as she looked at her watch. Twenty five past eight. They were late. Passing the line of conifers that enclosed the outdoor school, they walked on into the yard.

  Kate could see Charlie filling water buckets by the trough in the corner of the yard and Rosie and Jess were deep in conversation by the barn. She hoped her late arrival hadn’t been noticed as she hurried to collect some grooming kit. But it hadn’t escaped Charlie and he called over to Kate as she dived into the tack room.

  “Overslept did you?” he called. “Nick’s been looking everywhere for you.”

  Kate pretended she hadn’t heard him. She liked Charlie but she wasn’t in the mood for any of his digs this morning. Hurrying over to Feather’s stable, she drew back the bolt. The Arab mare snickered softly as Kate set to work on grooming her coat.

  When she’d finished, Kate stood back to admire her handiwork. She was a perfectionist, but even she couldn’t fault Feather’s appearance. It was just at that moment that Nick Brooks chanced to pass by.

  “What happened to you this morning, Kate?” he asked.

  “Sorry Nick, I overslept,” Kate answered.

  “Well not to worry,” Nick said. “At least you’ve done a pretty good job on Feather. You must have used some elbow grease to get her gleaming like that. I don’t think we’ll risk going out over the cross-country course in this weather,” he went on. “So I’ll look at your dressage test in the outdoor school instead.”

  “Brilliant,” Kate answered quickly. It was
as she’d hoped.

  “I’ll meet you down there in five minutes then,” Nick went on.

  “OK.” Kate tacked Feather up and led the horse out of her stable. Springing neatly into the saddle, she headed off down the drive. Feather’s ears were pricked, alert and attentive, as she sniffed the air.

  “All ready?” Nick grinned broadly, stamping his feet to ward off the cold as he opened the gate to let her into the school. “Can you remember it all?” he called.

  “I think so,” Kate said, casting her mind back over her dressage test. In truth, she knew it like the back of her hand. She even dreamt about it in her sleep.

  “Right, trot Feather around the school to warm up and then we’ll begin,” Nick said. “We’ve got a lot of work to put in before Hawthorn,” he said.

  “You don’t need to remind me,” Kate laughed, nudging Feather on into a trot.

  “Shall I start now?” she called. Nick nodded.

  Tentatively, she gave the obligatory salute to the imaginary judges, feeling embarrassed that no one was there. Then she urged Feather on to make her way down the long side of the white railings at a trot. Feather didn’t even falter as Kate nudged her forward and they swept across the diagonal, slicing through the centre of the ring.

  Kate sat deep into the saddle, feeling at ease as she brought Feather to a walk. One, two, three. Kate counted the numbers in her head before pushing Feather on into a canter. So far so good. Now just once around the railings on a free rein.

  “Circle, change the rein, same on the other leg,” she muttered to herself as she squeezed Feather on into a trot. Taking care not to hurry the last section, she came down the centre line and halted in the middle of the school before reining back. One, two, three steps...stop. They had made it through the test easily. Riding Feather was like dancing with the perfect partner and no matter what Nick thought, Kate had enjoyed herself. She looked up expectantly.

  Nick clapped loudly. “Excellent,” he said. “But what have you forgotten?”