Chapter 3

If Wishes Were Horses …

THAT NIGHT, WHEN VICKI’S PARENTS came to tuck her into bed, in the small room she shared with her sisters, all she could talk about was the wild mountain ponies. “It would be a dream to tame the chestnut stallion. You know how hard it is to find nice ponies that we can afford — they’re always too old, or too young, or injured, or difficult. I never thought owning a pony that beautiful would be possible.”

“There’s a very good reason they’re so cheap,” her dad cautioned. “Taming wild horses is much more difficult than it sounds in the books you read.”

“Especially the chestnut. It’s in his nature to fight — didn’t you see the way he was baiting his brother?” her mum added. “What about the palomino? He looks much easier.”

But Vicki was adamant. The chestnut stallion was the right pony for her. “Please, Mum and Dad — you know I’m good with naughty ponies. I really think I can tame him.”

“I believe you, kiddo,” her dad said. “Now convince your mum while I go say goodnight to Amanda and Kelly.”

“We just don’t want to see you get hurt,” Vicki’s mum said. “I know you did a great job retraining Charlie when you first got him, and helping Kelly with Twinkle, but that’s nothing compared to the challenges you’ll face working with a wild horse.”

“You’ve ridden ever since you were a little girl,” Vicki argued. “I’m sure you can teach me everything I need to know.”

Laughing, her mum replied, “I rode farm horses and stroppy thoroughbreds off the racetrack — I don’t think they’re quite the same thing. Besides, I’ve barely ridden since you kids got your own ponies. I’m out of practice.”

Tugging on her mum’s arm, Vicki leant forward. “Don’t you miss it? I’d be so sad if I couldn’t ride — it’s my favourite thing in the world.”

With a wistful smile, her mum gave her a hug good night. “Sometimes, but there’s not enough money for all our dreams to come true,” she whispered in her daughter’s ear as she leant forward to hug her.

Unable to sleep, Vicki mulled over her mum’s last words, convinced they had a hidden meaning. Did her mum want to ride again? If so, was it only money that stopped her?

After a restless sleep, Vicki dragged herself out of bed the next morning and ran down the hallway of their tiny house.

“Mum, why don’t you ride anymore?” Vicki demanded.

Surprised, her mum glanced up from the clothes she was mending. When she saw her daughter’s determined face she put down the needle and thread. “It’s not my passion anymore. You and your sisters are what’s most important to me now.”

“But if we had enough money, would you have your own horse again?”

“But we don’t,” her mum said with a sigh. “Sometimes there’s no point imagining what might be. I get more than enough pleasure watching you and your sisters ride.”

“Mum, we budgeted two hundred dollars for a new pony and the wild ones are only fifty dollars each. Couldn’t we both get one? The skinny grey mare would be big enough for you to ride.”

Shaking her head, her mum replied, “If we take one of the wild ponies it will cost a fortune to feed for the first few months. The cost of hay alone will chip away at the last of our savings. And since we don’t have high enough fences to keep a horse like that contained, we’d have to keep them at the neighbours’.”

Vicki sighed and her shoulders drooped. She turned to the kitchen to make her breakfast.

As she sat at the table she glanced outside, where Kelly and Amanda were feeding Twinkle and Charlie. She felt a pang of envy that her sisters still had ponies to look after. Vicki felt sure her mum wanted to ride again, and although she had her heart set on the chestnut stallion, she felt bad that her mum had to miss out.

“Mum, what if you spend the money on one of the wild ponies for yourself? I can wait until we save up again, or maybe a lease pony will become available,” she said.

“Honey, I’ve had a whole lifetime with horses. I’m not going to let you miss out on having your own pony. If it’s a wild stallion you want, we’ll make it happen. I want you to grow up having all your dreams come true.”

Glancing at her mother hopefully, Vicki whispered, “The chestnut one?”

“Let me talk to your dad,” her mum replied. “In the meantime, go round up Kelly and get ready for school. Education is even more important than riding, and there’s no way you’re going to be late!”

That afternoon, when her mum picked them up from school, Vicki had a smile a mile wide. She’d spent the whole day brainstorming the pony problem, and she hadn’t focused on anything her teacher had been saying.

“I have the perfect plan, Mum,” she said excitedly. “Like I said, we should get two wild horses — one for you and one for me — then we can train them together!”

Her mum shook her head. “We already talked about this — there’s no grass in the yards and the cost of hay is too high. We can’t afford to feed two ponies, and it’s not fair for them to lose even more condition. You saw how thin the grey mare was.”

“But what if they don’t need hay?” said Vicki. “What if we cut grass from the roadsides and fill up wheelbarrows to feed them with? I already asked Kelly and she said she’d be happy to help.” She looked back at her two little sisters sitting in the back seat of the car. “You’ll help too, right, Amanda?” Amanda grinned and nodded.

Vicki’s mum was speechless, but then she had to admit it was a great idea.

“You’re a clever one, Vicki. I’ll talk to your dad and see if he thinks it could work.”

With a grin, Vicki settled into her seat and did up her seatbelt. She couldn’t wait to get home and ask Dad.