precaution, and nowCarole found their light, dim though it was, reassuring. As she glanced forward, she saw that the light across from Starlight’s stall was off.
The bulb must have burned out
, she thought. But her heart was beginning to pound. She walked forward and looked into Starlight’s stall. It was empty. Suddenly twin flashes of red light pierced the darkness at the end of the aisle. With a wild neigh, Starlight plunged forward toward her, his hooves flashing and a look of evil in his red, red eyes …
Carole awoke with a start to see Stevie’s anxious face peering down into her own.
“Carole! What is it?” Stevie exclaimed.
“Wh-What?” Carole murmured, trying to clear her head. Where was she? She knew she’d been asleep, but instead of feeling her warm, soft bed under her, she felt scratchy hay …
The hayloft. She and her friends were having a sleepover, and she’d had the nightmare again. Two of them, in fact.
“Are you all right?” Suddenly Lisa’s face came into view beside Stevie’s. “Your screaming woke us up. Were you having a bad dream?”
Carole sat up and looked around, reassuring herself that she was really awake this time. She could hear the gentle creaking of the floorboards below as horses shifted their weight, and the pungent scent of hay filled her nostrils. She knew it was no use hiding the truth from her friends anymore.Taking a deep breath, she started to tell them all about the nightmares.
When she was finished, Lisa put an arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen when you told us about that first one,” she said. “I didn’t realize how scared you really were. I guess I was kind of insensitive.”
“That goes double for me,” Stevie added, joining in the hug. “I was so busy thinking about the mystery that I guess I didn’t really pay much attention to what you were saying.”
“Can you forgive us?” Lisa asked.
Carole nodded and hugged them back. “Of course,” she said. “It’s not totally your fault, anyway. After that first day I wasn’t sure whether I really wanted to talk about the dreams. I thought I was being silly.”
“Don’t be silly,” said Stevie, and that made them all laugh.
As the moon rose and flooded the hayloft with silvery light, the girls talked about the nightmares a little more. Stevie and Lisa racked their brains, but they had no more idea than Carole did about how to stop them. But at least Carole felt better for having shared the problem with her friends.
Finally Carole started to yawn. “Believe it or not, I think I want to go to sleep now,” she said, stretching and then snuggling down into her sleeping bag. She closed her eyes and smiled as she heard one of the horses just below nickeringto its neighbors. She wasn’t sure, but she thought it might be Barq. “I hope I don’t wake you up again. But for once I think I’m actually too tired to dream.”
And she was right.
T HE NEXT DAY the girls were up early. There was a lot to do before Horse Wise, even without Stevie’s pilferer-catching plan to worry about.
Carole felt more cheerful than she had in a week as she walked toward Starlight’s stall to check on him. She knew her almost full night’s sleep probably had a lot to do with it, but she was sure that talking to her friends had helped, too. If The Saddle Club couldn’t come up with a way to get rid of the nightmares, no one could.
But as soon as Carole saw her horse, most of her nervousness came rushing back. When he tossed his head in greeting, all she could see was the vision of him tossing his head in fury just before he came at her in the dream. That eager, happy feeling she had always had around horses, especially around Starlight, and which she had always taken for granted, was gone. Would she ever get it back?
As they worked, The Saddle Club girls were distracted. All three were worried about Carole’s dreams and looking forward to Phil’s bar mitzvah. Besides that, Stevie
The bulb must have burned out
, she thought. But her heart was beginning to pound. She walked forward and looked into Starlight’s stall. It was empty. Suddenly twin flashes of red light pierced the darkness at the end of the aisle. With a wild neigh, Starlight plunged forward toward her, his hooves flashing and a look of evil in his red, red eyes …
Carole awoke with a start to see Stevie’s anxious face peering down into her own.
“Carole! What is it?” Stevie exclaimed.
“Wh-What?” Carole murmured, trying to clear her head. Where was she? She knew she’d been asleep, but instead of feeling her warm, soft bed under her, she felt scratchy hay …
The hayloft. She and her friends were having a sleepover, and she’d had the nightmare again. Two of them, in fact.
“Are you all right?” Suddenly Lisa’s face came into view beside Stevie’s. “Your screaming woke us up. Were you having a bad dream?”
Carole sat up and looked around, reassuring herself that she was really awake this time. She could hear the gentle creaking of the floorboards below as horses shifted their weight, and the pungent scent of hay filled her nostrils. She knew it was no use hiding the truth from her friends anymore.Taking a deep breath, she started to tell them all about the nightmares.
When she was finished, Lisa put an arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen when you told us about that first one,” she said. “I didn’t realize how scared you really were. I guess I was kind of insensitive.”
“That goes double for me,” Stevie added, joining in the hug. “I was so busy thinking about the mystery that I guess I didn’t really pay much attention to what you were saying.”
“Can you forgive us?” Lisa asked.
Carole nodded and hugged them back. “Of course,” she said. “It’s not totally your fault, anyway. After that first day I wasn’t sure whether I really wanted to talk about the dreams. I thought I was being silly.”
“Don’t be silly,” said Stevie, and that made them all laugh.
As the moon rose and flooded the hayloft with silvery light, the girls talked about the nightmares a little more. Stevie and Lisa racked their brains, but they had no more idea than Carole did about how to stop them. But at least Carole felt better for having shared the problem with her friends.
Finally Carole started to yawn. “Believe it or not, I think I want to go to sleep now,” she said, stretching and then snuggling down into her sleeping bag. She closed her eyes and smiled as she heard one of the horses just below nickeringto its neighbors. She wasn’t sure, but she thought it might be Barq. “I hope I don’t wake you up again. But for once I think I’m actually too tired to dream.”
And she was right.
T HE NEXT DAY the girls were up early. There was a lot to do before Horse Wise, even without Stevie’s pilferer-catching plan to worry about.
Carole felt more cheerful than she had in a week as she walked toward Starlight’s stall to check on him. She knew her almost full night’s sleep probably had a lot to do with it, but she was sure that talking to her friends had helped, too. If The Saddle Club couldn’t come up with a way to get rid of the nightmares, no one could.
But as soon as Carole saw her horse, most of her nervousness came rushing back. When he tossed his head in greeting, all she could see was the vision of him tossing his head in fury just before he came at her in the dream. That eager, happy feeling she had always had around horses, especially around Starlight, and which she had always taken for granted, was gone. Would she ever get it back?
As they worked, The Saddle Club girls were distracted. All three were worried about Carole’s dreams and looking forward to Phil’s bar mitzvah. Besides that, Stevie
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