Gymkhana Hijinks by Soraya Nicholas

Author:Soraya Nicholas
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781760143022
Publisher: Penguin Random House Australia
Published: 2016-02-26T00:00:00+00:00

‘Do you have any idea how lucky we are that Joe isn’t being put down right now?’ Aunt Sophie fumed.

Uncle Mark turned and frowned, shaking his head. ‘He’s fine, Sophie. We all need to calm down.’ Poppy felt awful for Joe and Milly. Her friend was sobbing, tears streaming down her cheeks as she held Joe’s lead rope. From where Poppy was standing, she could see that his knee was swollen and he had a cut on his leg from when he’d been scrambling to stand up. But otherwise, Poppy was relieved to see that he was remarkably okay.

Sophie looked up and Poppy couldn’t hold her gaze. Sophie was so angry with them, but they hadn’t done anything wrong! Poppy stared down at her boots and reached out to find Katie’s hand. The two girls were standing so close that their shoulders were touching. Poppy found Katie’s fingers and squeezed her hand as she heard Katie start to cry, too.

Poppy was holding it together, but only because she was so angry. She figured she’d shed enough tears to last her a lifetime when her dad had died.

‘He needs a few days of rest. We’ll keep icing that knee, and watch it closely, but otherwise he’s fine,’ Uncle Mark said, running a hand down Joe’s shoulder and patting him. ‘This is a very good lesson in why it’s so important to secure the leg straps first before ever doing the front of the cover up.’

‘But Milly knows that,’ Poppy said, sticking up for her friend. ‘None of us would ever make a mistake that stupid.’ She couldn’t just stand there and not say anything.

‘Then how do you explain the fact that the back straps were still clipped to the rug?’ Aunt Sophie asked, arms crossed angrily over her chest. ‘If they’d just come undone, they would be hanging down, or broken from him catching them on something.’

They all stayed silent. Poppy knew who’d done this, and she couldn’t believe that even someone mean like Jessica could be so cruel.

‘I promise, Mrs D,’ Milly said in a voice so low and quiet it didn’t sound a bit like her. ‘I know I secured the straps. I love Joe so much, and I’m so careful with him.’

Aunt Sophie turned to Mark. ‘I don’t know what to do. But, girls,’ she said, looking back at them, ‘unless you stop making silly mistakes and change your attitude toward Jessica, then none of you will be attending Pony Club or going to the gymkhana.’ Uncle Mark slung an arm around Aunt Sophie

and walked her away a few steps. Poppy was numb all over, and she hated to think how Milly must feel right now. She was still holding Katie’s hand so she dragged her over to Milly and they both threw their arms around her.

‘You know I didn’t do this, don’t you?’ Milly gasped, tears streaming again.

‘I know,’ Poppy said quickly. ‘She did this, it’s the only explanation. She’s got it in for you.’

‘You know what this means,’ Katie said, stroking Joe’s neck and staring at Poppy.

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