Hide & Seek - Alyssa Brugman [44]
When Shelby reread the last line she took a deep breath. It hadn't occurred to her before she'd actually written it down that if she fought with Lindsey, she might need to find a new home for Blue. It wouldn't be a place that was convenient, or cheap. There wasn't any such place. Shelby had looked before.
She didn't want to pretend to be friends with Lindsey just so she could get agistment. That would be going over the line that her mother talked about.
Shelby didn't want to pretend anyway. She liked Lindsey – or at least she liked the old Lindsey, the poor, unprejudiced Lindsey. She still had qualities that Shelby admired; ones Shelby was sure were real. Lindsey was brave, reliable and tough under pressure. When Lindsey said she was going to do something she did it, and she told the truth.
Even if Shelby did leave – either for the trick riding troupe, or to stay at Aunty Jenny's – she didn't want to leave things this way with Lindsey. There was only one way she could clear it all up.
Shelby had to find out what truly happened with Diablo on Good Friday night.
28 Facing the Music
Sitting down for breakfast, Shelby stared out the window. It was a gorgeous, clear, autumnal day so she decided to ride her bike to work. Cycling meant her parents didn't have to organise their schedule around her. While she ate her cereal the rest of the family made plans for the day.
The boys were hoping for a day at the zoo, or the aquarium. Her father had heard there was a European car exhibition out in the western suburbs. His wife was trying to distract him with descriptions of a lavish picnic in the Botanic Gardens. None of those activities appealed to Shelby – except for the picnic food.
Cycling also meant she could dawdle. Shelby had worked out that if she arrived just after the first trail ride left she could clean some stables, make up some meals, and then be gone before Erin and Lindsey came back from the ride.
She might run into Hayley, but Mrs Crook was usually hanging around, and she didn't think Hayley would make a scene in front of her mother.
Shelby's mum refilled Shelby's glass with orange juice. 'So what have you decided?' she asked, referring to Shelby's list.
'Don't hassle me!' When she saw the look on her mother's face she quickly added, 'Please, beautiful mother, as I am already feeling stressed about it.' She drank the orange juice in one long gulp and plonked the glass on the table with a clunk.
Blake copied her. Luckily his drink was in a plastic tumbler. She waited for her dad to start the speech about setting a good example, but instead he scolded Blake.
'Actually, I have decided I really do need to know what happened with Diablo, so I'm going to ask Zeb about it today. I'm going to make them tell me. So when I get home could you help me finish the time-line, please?'
'No problem,' her mother smiled.
Shelby wheeled 'Misty', her old bike, out of the garage. The bike was much too small for her. She wondered whether she should ask for a new one for Christmas. December was a long way away. Maybe her parents would consider buying her a second-hand one? They would save money in petrol not driving her to the stables, and time too. She still didn't have a saddle, though, and that was a higher priority. There were so many things she needed. It made her tired just thinking about it.
Perhaps if Chad was her boyfriend he could give her a lift across the Gully on his motorbike? Shelby could feel the colour rise in her cheeks. She pedalled furiously around the corner and past the shops, enjoying the sensation of her muscles working and her blood pumping.
Her mother had suggested that Shelby invite Chad over for a barbecue. With everything going on she had forgotten all about it.
Shelby stopped at the tee-intersection, feeling the wind from the passing vehicles whoosh