Chapter 4

Not One, But Four

AS SOON AS THE CAR was parked, all three sisters jumped out and hurried to find their father. He was in their bird aviary, fixing a hole a rabbit had dug under the fence. Vicki opened the door, careful not to let any birds escape like she’d accidentally done in the past.

The aviary was almost as big as their house, with an arch of huge volcanic boulders in the centre. Underneath the rocks their pet rabbits had made tunnels to play in, and on hot days the guinea pigs lazed in the shade. Overhead, birds of every size and colour squawked: doves, finches, canaries, rosellas and budgies.

While she watched her dad work, Vicki told him about the plan she’d come up with. Her dad put down his tools. “Your mum will be so pleased — she’s often talked about getting another horse, without knowing how to make it happen. This is a great idea!”

“Since I’m so clever, can I pretty please get the chestnut, Dad? I just know he’ll be a champion one day,” Vicki said, cheekily.

She watched her dad’s face grow thoughtful, then break into a grin. “The chestnut it is,” he said. “No daughter of mine is going to be stopped from living her dreams.”

“Really, Dad?” said Vicki, clasping her hand over her mouth in delight.

“Yes. I’ll ring and we’ll arrange a time to round them up.”

Unable to contain her excitement, Vicki grabbed her dad’s hand and dragged him back to the house. As soon as she burst through the door she shouted, “He said yes!”

She watched as her mum’s eyes grew wide. Kelly and Amanda rushed into the house and started jumping up and down, asking their mum which of the wild horses she would choose.

“It’ll have to be the grey,” she said. “She’s one of the few big enough for me to ride, and I’ll rest better at night knowing she’ll have good grass this winter.”

Dad glanced around at his girls, then said very seriously, “I really liked the palomino stallion. Do you think you can pick enough grass for three wild horses?”

With a screech Kelly ran to him, holding out her arms. “You’re not serious, Dad?” she shrieked. “He’s my favourite!”

With a laugh, he tossed her in the air and caught her again. “I happen to know a thing or two about horses. You can help me tame him, Kelly, but he won’t be with us forever. We’ll sell him to help pay the the extra costs of having two new ponies to care for.”

Nodding her head frantically, Kelly grinned in agreement. “That’s OK, Dad. I love Twinkle too much to want another pony, and besides, I’d be too scared to ride a wild stallion.”

Setting her back down on the ground, her dad smiled. “You never know, Kelly — one day you’ll be big and brave enough to tame one.”

Stamping her foot in agitation, Amanda tugged on her mum’s arm.

“What about me? I want to help tame a wild horse too!” she cried. Glancing down at the four-year-old, who was on the verge of throwing a tantrum, her mum fought to stop a smile from escaping. “I think you need to grow up a little before you get a wild pony.”

“Yeah,” said Vicki. “You’re too small. The horses might trample you by mistake.”

Furious, Amanda turned on her sister. “I am not small!”

“Amanda, I’m sure you can help all of us,” Dad said, with a warning glance at Vicki.

Reaching for the phone, he dialled the number of the lady who owned the ponies. There was a sudden hush as they listened to him talk. At one point his face took on a worried expression and he left the room. The rest of the family waited nervously for him to return.

“Apparently the grey mare’s foal is too young to wean,” he said as he stepped back into the room which was the parents’ bedroom, dining room and kitchen all rolled into one.

With a sigh, the girls’ mother put on a brave face. “Maybe it’s just not meant to be,” she said.

Shaking his head, their father grinned as if he was struggling to keep a secret. “We are the proud owners of four wild ponies!” he announced. Looking at Amanda, he added, “How do you feel about helping us tame that golden filly? Think you’re up to it?”

Looking overwhelmed, Amanda glanced around the room. “Maybe I’d be too scared,” she whispered.

Mum tugged her onto her lap. “Don’t you worry, Amanda — foals are too little to do much training. Mostly they just eat and grow. Dad and I can help get her haltered and you just have to feed her grass and talk to her lots until she’s your best friend.” Turning to her husband, she drew her daughters closer. “How are we going to afford this?” she asked in a worried tone.

“The owner agreed to $175 including the foal, so it’ll use up most of our savings,” he said. “I guess it’ll come down to how well we train them, because we’ll have to sell both the palominos at some point. Hopefully they bring in enough money to cover the costs of having extra ponies on the property.”