The Saddle Creek Series 5-Book Bundle. Shelley Peterson

her away. “Get away from me you imbecile! You assaulted me, and that’s something I’ll not forget!” He was standing up as he spoke, holding his cane in one hand and dusting himself off with the other.

      “I’m sorry,” said Abby fearfully. “Can I do anything to help?”

      “Yes, you can.” Owens seemed suddenly pleasant. Then his face darkened, and he screamed, “You can remove yourself from my sight! Permanently!” He lifted his cane to hit her, then thought better of it and, shaking with rage, carefully lowered it to the ground.

      Something in his manner struck Abby as suspicious. Owens was guarding his cane. He glanced at it, nervously, then glanced back at Abby.

      Abby took a good look at the metal cane. With horrifying clarity, Abby sensed that Samuel Owens’ cane was something more than a cane. The elaborate detail might hide a small trigger under the handle, and it looked like there were two view-finders down the shaft. His cane could very well be a cleverly adapted gun.

      Why was Owens hiding behind the call-board?

      Abby’s mind raced. She backed away from the angry man, not wanting to risk being shot. She glanced over her shoulder.

      Hilary and Dancer were trotting out of the ring. Abby knew by Dancer’s posture and Hilary’s relieved smile that they’d done well. There was only one more contestant.

      Pete Pierson would know what to do. And he was standing with Hilary James and Dancer in the warm-up ring. With a last glance at the furious Owens, Abby turned tail and fled.

      “Mr. Pierson!” she shouted.

      The wonderful old man looked at her. “Abby!” His hand dropped from patting Dancer’s neck. He strode toward her, limping from his arthritic hip. “What’s wrong?”

      Abby was panting, her chest constricted with fear. “Samuel Owens is behind the call-board with a cane that’s probably a rifle. Cody brought me over there while Hilary was riding, and I bumped into him by mistake and knocked him over. He’s furious, and I don’t know what to do.”

      Pete stared into Abby’s eyes, trying to make sense of all she said. He knew Samuel Owens too well. He trusted Abby. He’d seen Cody in action. He had no doubts that what she said was true. They had no time to lose.

      Pete spoke sharply to Hilary. “Take Dancer away from here. Keep lots of people around you. Don’t ask questions.” Hilary’s smile dropped.

      Taking Abby by the arm and leaving Hilary astounded, Pete walked quickly toward the public telephone beside the registration office. Pete hurried into the office and told the woman, “Get security! There’s been a disturbance behind the call-board in the warm-up ring. An older man with a weapon.”

      Reaching the phone, he dialed 9-1-1. He called for the police to come, with a special request for the chief, Mack Jones. Abby saw five security men run toward the call-board.

      Call completed, Pete and Abby watched as Samuel Owens was taken by force to the security building. Even from a distance, they could see that he was livid.

      “It’ll buy us some time until the police get here,” said Pete. “Go tell Hilary that she can come back to the warm-up ring. They’ll be awarding prizes within minutes. I’ll head over to security to keep an eye on things.”

      Abby ran, looking for Dancer. She raced through the stalls, but he wasn’t there. She tore around the practice field and didn’t see him. Finally she spotted Hilary holding the tall, elegant stallion’s reins behind the row of women’s lavatories.

      “Good thinking!” Abby called. “He’ll never look here.”

      Hilary’s face wore a shocked expression. “Who’ll never look here? What’s going on, Abby?”

      “It’s all right now. Bring him back to the warm-up ring. Security has Owens with them, so it’s safe to come out of hiding. It looks like he might have tried to shoot Dancer with his cane.”

      “With his what?”

      Abby snorted. “I’m not sure, but I think his cane is really a gun.”

      “Are you sure?” asked Hilary.

      “No, but with Owens I don’t want to assume innocence.”

      Hilary shuddered. “You’re right.”

      They got to the warm-up ring just as the competitors were being called in. Abby gave Hilary a leg up. Hilary looked down at Abby and said, “This puts it all in perspective, doesn’t it?”

      Abby knew what she meant. She stood and watched the four horses with their riders walk away. Whether Dancer won the trophy wasn’t important any more. He was alive.

      The horses lined up. The judges walked out into the middle of the show ring. One woman carried colourful ribbons. The other had a wool cooler over her arm. The man carried a large silver trophy that flashed and shone in the sunlight.

      The male judge held a microphone. Shifting the trophy to his left hip, he announced, “Thank you for coming out today. As you know, all proceeds go to support the Canadian Olympic effort. Now, I have the honour of presenting the results.”

      “The sixth-place ribbon belongs to Lisa Carlsen riding Thatcher.” Lisa calmly rode up to the judges and graciously smiled to the crowd as they applauded. “Fifth place goes to Ainsley Vince on Colour Blind.” Ainsley’s mare kicked out at Thatcher as she passed,but didn’t connect.“Fourth place goes to Mario DesLaurier on Nightingale.” The crowd continued clapping as Mario rode up. The woman judge clipped the yellow ribbon on his bridle and he walked back to the line, nodding and waving to the crowd.

      “Third place goes to Beth Underhill on Monopoly.” Horse and rider trotted to the judge with the ribbons. The judge attempted to clip it on, but Monopoly shied away. Laughing, Beth reached out and accepted the white ribbon in her hand. The applause continued.

      “Second place goes to Kim Kirton on Sandstorm.” The applause got stronger as Kim and her fiery mount collected their blue second-place ribbon.

      “The winners of the Grand Invitational are Hilary James and Dancer!” The crowd rose to their feet. The entire audience stood in thunderous applause.

      Dancer, the ultimate showman, walked on his hind legs, bellowing his victorious return. He landed lightly, then wedged his muzzle into the middle of the trophy. He lifted the silver vase high in the air, and proceeded to parade around the ring, trophy firmly encasing his upturned nose.

      People could not believe their eyes. Hilary laughed so hard she was in danger of losing her balance. Dancer had created another story for people to recount for years to come.

      The playful stallion returned to the judges, and very carefully placed the trophy back in the male judge’s outstretched hands. He allowed one woman to clip on his red ribbon. The other judge draped the cooler over his rump. It was deep blue with gold letters reading, “The Grand Invitational.”

      Abby’s hands hurt from clapping so loudly and for so long. Her face ached from smiling. She was surprised when Hilary dismounted and took the microphone from the startled judge.

      “Thank you very much.” Hilary spoke clearly and slowly so that everyone could hear. Her voice echoed throughout the stands. “Dancer will keep the ribbon and the cooler, but I’m sure you’ll all agree that the trophy and the prize money belong to Abby Malone, the rider who had already won the Grand Invitational before the jump-off!”

      The crowd rose to their feet again, noisily approving of Hilary’s generous gesture. Beth, Mario, Lisa, Ainsley, and Kim dropped their reins and clapped until their horses needed controlling. The riders came into the ring, applauding, and forcefully escorted an embarrassed Abby Malone with them.

      Abby walked into the middle of the show ring in Hilary’s ill-fitting shoes. She felt proud.

      The male judge handed her the trophy, understanding that he had no choice but to go with the crowd. He shook her