For Sale or Swap - Alyssa Brugman [45]
22 Winging It
The truck wove along the empty streets. Shelby tried to remember each turn they made, but every time the truck swung to the left, the top of her head banged against the cabin's vinyl side, and she couldn't tell whether they were joining a new street or just going around a bend in the road. She tucked her chin to her chest, closed her eyes and thought about her mum.
The blanket was scratchy. It smelt like off milk and dog. Shelby was itchy all over, and she had a horrible idea that it might be covered in fleas. She wanted to move and scratch, but she was sure that even the tiniest movement would give her away.
Mr Morgan cleared his throat, the seat creaked, and then the radio came on. He flipped through the channels. The speaker was right behind her ears. She touched the speaker's wire mesh and could feel it vibrate against her palm.
The sour-milk smell was making her stomach churn. Shelby pulled the blanket down from the top half of her face and took a breath of the relatively fresh air. Mr Morgan's clothes carried the scent of lucerne hay. He didn't smell like a bad man. He smelt like horses.
Shelby wondered what she would do if Blue was wherever they were headed. She didn't have a halter, a bridle, or even a rope. If they were in the bush she could ride him bareback, hold onto his mane and steer him with her legs. She'd done it before in the paddock hundreds of times, but along the road was different – especially after what had happened with Brat. Poppy – she had to start remembering her with that name.
What if Blue was different now? What if this man had been cruel to him and he'd lost his trust in people? Shelby bit her lip hard.
Then a worse idea crossed her mind. What would she do if Blue wasn't there?
On television kids caught villains all the time, and while the music was scary, they hardly ever stopped to think about their mums. When the baddies caught them they never cried. They were always brave and used their brains to get out of trouble, but Shelby was finding it hard to think because her heart was still beating really fast, her muscles felt sore from lying at a funny angle and there was a ringing in her ears that could have been from the loudness of the speaker but might also be because she had been so scared for such a long time.
The truck hit another pothole and she could feel pins and needles streak up her arm. The papers she'd grabbed were in her fist. She couldn't look at them yet. He might hear her. She hoped the truck would stop soon.
Out the window Shelby glimpsed streaks of orange between the branches of the highest trees. It would be light before too much longer, and she was sure that her hiding place would be discovered.
Lindsey was probably awake by now. She always got up early to feed the horses. Shelby wondered if she would get in even more trouble from her mother when they found Shelby was missing. She wondered if Lindsey had seen Mr Morgan when the arena lights came on. Maybe they had called the police already?
She wished Lindsey was with her. She wasn't all that much fun at a party, but when there was a problem Lindsey always seemed to make calm and sensible suggestions. She was also very strong with all the lifting and carrying she had to do around the stables. Shelby would have liked to have someone tough with her. She'd feel a lot braver then.
Mr Morgan slowed the truck down and took a sharp turn. Suddenly the road was much rougher. The engine grunted as it crawled along. Shelby could hear the crunching sound of the wheels over gravel, and the 'tink' noise of pebbles hitting the underside of the vehicle. The branches of the trees overhead scraped along the roof.
They stopped and the front door squeaked as Mr Morgan opened it. He left the engine running. Shelby tipped her head back to risk a peek out of the side window. She saw him opening a heavy metal gate.
Beyond the gate she saw a cream-coloured weatherboard house. Even from here she could see that the paint was flaking. There was a small garden at the front of the house that might have