For Sale or Swap - Alyssa Brugman [60]
'You're a complete nutcase – you know that?' shouted Hayley, still bracing herself against the bars.
'I'm sorry,' whispered Shelby.
'It doesn't matter,' said Erin. 'It will be over soon.' Even as she spoke the carriage swung down to the bottom. The attendant rushed over, unfastened the lock and yanked the gate open.
'What the hell were you doing!' he shouted.
'Just mucking around,' replied Erin, before the others had a chance to say anything.
'Get out!' he roared at them. 'You're banned – all of you. Get out and don't come back!'
'Yeah, yeah. Keep your knickers on,' replied Kim, shifting along the seat towards the gate.
Hayley climbed out first, marching away from them with her arms folded.
Shelby tumbled out next and dragged at Monica's arm. 'Show me. Show me where you saw him. Come on! Hurry!' The two of them set off at a jog, through the crowd.
Erin and Kim climbed out last. Erin poked her tongue out at the Ferris wheel attendant and then ran to catch up with the others. Kim ran alongside Hayley and grabbed at her elbow, but Hayley shrugged it off. 'She almost killed us!' she said.
'Oh, she did not, Hales,' replied Erin. 'Don't be such a stick-in-the-mud. We're all safe now.'
Hayley folded her arms and kept on marching. Erin and Kim left her and ran after Shelby and Monica.
They raced around the side of the showground, away from the crowd, and along the gravel driveway. As they got to the floats and horse trucks they slowed down, so as not to frighten the horses.
Shelby could see the blue gooseneck float in the distance. 'Is that it?'
Monica nodded.
Shelby tried hard not to break into a run.
The four girls rounded the side of the blue gooseneck and stopped still. Monica pointed. 'There. That was the float, wasn't it, Kimmy?'
Kim nodded.
There was a small, white, two-horse float coupled to an old station wagon. The tailgate was closed and locked tight. There was no Blue, just a lead rope and, at the bottom of it, a black halter, unbuckled and splayed open, hanging against the float's side.
30 A Police Matter
'Well, he was here before,' Monica said.
Shelby put her hands over her face.
'Don't panic. The float's still here, so that means that Blue's here somewhere. We've just got to find him,' Erin said.
Shelby nodded, trying hard to stop herself from crying again.
'Let's try the exercise arena,' Monica suggested. They moved off again, all four of them scanning the jumble of floats, trucks and horses around them.
Shelby's heart was hammering in her chest. Blue was here, somewhere. She couldn't explain it, but she could feel it. As they walked past a tall maroon ute, Shelby caught sight of a paint hide and her heart leapt into her throat, but as she took another step she could see it was a much taller horse. They walked around the last parked truck and the exercise arena was directly in front of them.
There were so many horses of all shapes and sizes that they almost blended into each other. Some were going over jumps. Some were standing together in loose circles, with their riders by their sides chatting, while others were practising workouts, or warming up for the sporting events.
Erin grabbed her shoulder and let out a little squeak. She waggled her finger, and Shelby whipped around, trying to focus on where Erin's finger was pointing. Erin jumped up and down on the spot.
'It's him, Shel, it's really him!'
Shelby frowned and shaded her eyes with her hand. There were so many horses, all she could see was a mishmash of rumps and legs and faces and then. . .
There was Blue standing patiently near the fence at the very edge of the exercise arena. He had his neck flat, horizontal, and his eyes closed – his donkey dozing pose. He stamped his leg to shake off a fly.
There was a little girl, maybe five or six years old, standing in front of him and clutching onto his reins. She reached towards him and he