For Sale or Swap - Alyssa Brugman [10]
'Here, Connor, you can eat the sausage,' said her mother. 'That hasn't got too much sauce on it.'
'Has too,' he whined.
'When I came home this afternoon I thought I would inquire about it.'
Just when she thought it was hopeless, it seemed her mum was listening after all.
'I've already told you that you can't have another horse,' her mother said. 'You have to think about selling Blue if you want another one.'
'That's what I'm saying,' replied Shelby. 'The ad said for sale or swap.'
Shelby's mother moved sideways and the back of her arm knocked the sauce bottle over. It rolled off the side of the table and smashed on the floor, spreading red blobs over the tiles.
'Oooh,' said Blake.
'Stay where you are, boys,' said her mother.
'I decided to ring the number in the ad – just to inquire,' Shelby continued.
Connor slid down from his chair onto the tiles.
'Didn't your mother just tell you to stay in your chair?' her dad said, lifting Connor by his underarms. 'You'll cut your feet.'
'So I talked to the man about it, and he said that . . .'
Her mother looked up for a moment. 'Honey, this isn't the best time.'
Shelby tried to tell them, but something else kept getting in the way.
5 Brat
Shelby wasn't quite sure what time the man thought was 'first thing', so she arrived at Blue's paddock at around six, which was her 'first thing'. Before she left the house she took a whole loaf of bread, eating it fresh and giving the leftovers to Blue.
While she was waiting she decided to teach Blue some tricks. She would teach him to count by getting him to paw at the ground when she gave a signal. At first he looked at her blankly – not understanding why she wasn't just giving him a treat like she normally did – and then he got bored and grumpy. She gave up and sat on the ground, where she could watch the street, passing Blue slices of bread over her shoulder.
The man arrived in a big white horse truck at half past six. He hopped down from the cab, looking left and right as he strode over to where she was standing. He was a thickset man with dark hair, and bushy eyebrows set wide apart. He grinned at her, and straight away she knew he wasn't going to be one of those adults who would talk to her as though she was a little kid.
'This is your little fellow, is it?' he asked.
Shelby nodded.
'Hello there,' he said, scratching Blue behind the ears. 'Where are your mum and dad?'
'They're at home, round the corner,' she explained, pointing.
'Well, I'd like to see you on him, if you don't mind.'
Shelby vaulted onto Blue's back. She grabbed a handful of mane and drummed his sides with her heels. Blue cantered to the end of the paddock and back again, stopping square in front of the man.
The man blinked. 'Fair enough,' he said. He bent down to lift up Blue's lip, peering into his mouth. 'How old did you say?'
'Sixteen,' said Shelby. 'I think.'
'Hmm.'
Shelby couldn't tell whether his 'hmm' was good or bad. The man stood up straight and wiped his hand on his jeans. 'Do you want to have a look at this little pony then?' he asked.
'You mean you brought it here? Today?'
The man nodded. 'She's on the truck. Shall I get her out for you? You can have a ride if you like. You might need some gear though, she's not as quiet as your little fellow.'
Shelby went to her tin shed in the corner of the paddock to get her saddle and bridle while the man unloaded the pony from the truck. As she hauled the saddle over her arm she was embarrassed about the state it was in. It wasn't exactly 'royal quality' equipment.
Back outside the shed she stopped and stared. The pony that the man was holding was perfect. She was slighter than Blue, with a small neat head and large doe eyes. Shelby's gaze followed the curve of her neck and across her back to a rounded rump. Her legs were delicate and straight. She looked like something out of one of Erin's magazines.
As Shelby drew closer she frowned. The pony was an odd colour. She was brown all over – no facial markings or socks, but she did have striking white eyelashes and a fawn nose.
'Is