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    Midnight and the Racehorse
    Midnight and the Racehorse
    Midnight and the Racehorse
    Ebook162 pages2 hours

    Midnight and the Racehorse

    By Connie Peck

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    About this ebook

    Desert Wind Farm has a problem. Ever since their old pony passed away, the race horses have not been running well. But worse than that, the champion stallion, Govad, has turned vicious. Are these high strung horses simply missing their old friend, or is something more sinister afoot?
    Annie can sense the terror and pain of the stallion through her magical telepathic connection with the black pony, Midnight, and she suspects animal abuse. Can she unravel this mystery in time for Govad to run his big race, or will the stallion's mean streak force his owners to destroy him?

    Book Two of the Black Pony Adventures carries you into the exciting world of horse racing at beautiful Turf Paradise of Phoenix, and includes a fun gymkhana in Apache Junction. Connie Peck grew up in the shadow of the Superstition Mountains and rode her pony in gymkhanas and trail rides all around Apache Junction. She is a retired teacher living in central Texas.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherConnie Peck
    Release dateOct 7, 2013
    ISBN9781301734504
    Midnight and the Racehorse
    Author

    Connie Peck

    Connie was born in Arizona, on an air force base in Tucson, but she grew up traveling the entire USA, spending years not only in Arizona, but also in Washington, Texas, Georgia and everywhere in between including Alaska. She started riding and training horses at the tender age of eight and has competed in all types of Western events.As an adult, she raised her children, obtained a teaching degree in science, and continued to ride, write, and do just about everything else. For now she calls planet Earth her home and is currently camping in a pasture in Texas.

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      Book preview

      Midnight and the Racehorse - Connie Peck

      The Black Pony Adventures

      Midnight and the Race Horse

      by

      Connie Peck

      Copyright © 2013 Connie Peck Grudzinski

      All rights reserved.

      Mrs. Piddles Publishing

      Smashwords Edition

      ISBN:

      The Black Pony is based on the compilation of the many horses I have known in my life. The fictional story takes place at a real race track, Turf Paradise of Phoenix, Arizona. Apache Junction is a real place and the Superstition Mountains are very real. However this is where the real stuff stops. The characters and horses, even the races mentioned in this book are purely fiction, so if you think you see yourself in one of these stories, then you must love horses as much as I do.

      Discover other titles by Connie Peck at

      Mrs Piddles

      http://mrspiddles.weebly.com

      DEDICATION

      To my children.

      Cindy, my bridge builder

      Tracie, my planner

      Will, my sportsman

      Together you have taught me more about life, love, and keeping it together than any class or workshop or church could ever do. My ‘winner’s circle’ is you, together

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      Thank you to so very many people; it truly takes a village to raise a book. The writing process is complex beginning with an idea, the writing takes time, tons of it, for the time allowed I thank my husband John Grudzinski. Your patience is inspiring. Writing skill is a learned behavior, and even with a degree, it seems that my ‘behavior’ is sometimes as poor as a wild horse. To keep me on track and running straight, I thank my critique readers: Kathleen Ruth, Shirley Amador, and Jackie Hook, your rod and spurs really do give me comfort. Finally I must thank my hard working editor, who I know must have wanted to pull out his hair, or mine, when I continually made the same blunder, Andy Sherrod.

      Thank you Lord, Jesus, for the grace to look into tomorrow with hope. Thank you to my teachers over the entire USA who had to work overtime to make sure I graduated. Thank you to the soldiers who protect my freedom. And Thank you, to an old cowboy who would not take any guff from a wild natured kid and made me slow down and listen,

      Bill Booth of Mesa, Arizona

      Thank you one and all.

      Contents

      1. Midnight’s New Home

      2. Annie’s New Plan

      3. Desert Winds Racehorse Farm

      4. Stallions

      5. Govad

      6. Beautiful Horses

      7. Turf Paradise

      8. Savannah

      9. Dangerous Ride

      10. Disappointments

      11. Stay Busy, Move On

      12. Playday

      13. Joyful Running

      14. Sandstorm

      15. Training Riders

      16. Savannah’s Thank You

      17. The Arizona Stakes

      Preview of Superstition Gold

      Midnight and the Race Horse

      1. Midnight’s New Home

      Who’s there? Mouse, is that you? The black pony, Midnight, jumped and snorted into the darkness. I don’t like it here! he whinnied as loud as he could.

      Whoo! What’s your problem? Owl turned his head all the way around and looked down at Midnight.

      My rider, Annie, brought me here just before dark and she just left me here and I don’t know where she is! I don’t know this place and I’m scared, Midnight nickered. "Owl, please stay and keep me company?"

      I cannot stay with you, Owl huffed. I’m hunting and you’re scaring away all the mice. Will you please be a little quieter? Then he spread his wings and floated silently away.

      Midnight rolled a raspberry snort from deep in the back of his nose and watched the spooky shadow disappear. Oh will this night ever end? He whinnied again.

      The back door finally opened just a bit. Annie Beck rushed out to the new barn in her back yard. She eased her slender frame through the fence rails and threw her arms around Midnight’s neck. Shhh, it’s okay pretty boy, she crooned.

      Thank goodness, Annie, you’re here! I’m not sure if you meant to leave me here all night. Midnight nickered impatiently and pawed the ground with his front hoof.

      Annie rubbed the worried pony’s neck. You silly thing, you come here nearly every day. We talked about this for weeks. This is your new home, right next to my house. See that window? That’s where I sleep.

      I wish you had opened that window and spoken to me. I thought I was lost. I thought you forgot about me. Midnight nuzzled Annie lovingly. Annie heard his words in her mind more than in her ears, but only when she touched Midnight; a rare miracle of communication that few in this world believed in and even fewer ever experienced. The resonant tones reminded her of her grandfather’s wise voice, but it sounded like her little brother’s boyish voice at the same time. Annie lay over Midnight’s back to relax and watch the sun come up over the majestic Superstition Mountains.

      You poor thing, you didn’t get a minute of sleep last night, did you? And you have to work all day at Mr. Weston’s horse farm. We have to figure out why the racehorses won’t run.

      I will work very hard. And I’m a pony, I can sleep standing up. If I am tired I will just take a nap. I will be very happy if only you don’t leave me alone again.

      I’m sorry. I should have come out earlier. I cleaned up my room really good. Mom is going to faint when she sees it. From now on I promise to keep it perfect. But sometimes I don’t have time and I don’t want to clean my room. So, you can remind me about it whenever I clean your corral.

      Of course I will, what’s a room? Midnight whickered happily.

      It’s like my own little stall, and the house is like the barn. I never cleaned my room like that before. I even dug stuff out from under my bed and I found the dishes that Mom said went missing.

      Dishes; that’s for food, isn’t it? Is it time for oats yet? Midnight tossed his head and lipped at her unruly blond hair.

      That’s not hay! But I guess it sorta looks like it. Here you go, Annie tossed a flake of alfalfa into his trough. I have some freshly cut, sweet hay for you, much better than hair. Annie poured a can of oats over the hay and smiled as the black pony dug into his breakfast. You know, you’re just the best early birthday present I could ever hope for. She sighed and retrieved a brush to clean Midnight’s coat.

      I’m sorry I only have this one brush for you. You’re still shedding so much that I better get a curry comb quick. I promise to get the best brushes I can find when I earn a little more money. But I also have to buy your hay and oats, Daddy only promised to pay for half of your feed, nothing else, Annie crooned as she brushed Midnight.

      The soft brush is fine. It feels good on my back and it doesn’t scratch my belly or my legs, Midnight whickered softly.

      I’m glad we have the job at the horse farm. I’ll have a little extra money to get you nice brushes. But we also get to work with all those fine horses and I will learn how to train them. Annie scowled trying to remember all the stories her grandfather used to tell her about training spoiled horses. I sure wish I lived closer to Grandpa. He could help me figure this out. But, he won’t talk on the phone and he doesn’t like to write letters.

      The black pony snorted and chomped his hay. I will talk with all the horses at the farm. Together we will solve this.

      Annie finished brushing the silky black coat of her pony and dropped the old scrub brush-turned-finishing-brush into a three pound sized coffee can which also held an old bent screw driver which doubled as a hoof pick, and a wide toothed comb she used as a mane and tail comb. She pushed down the lid of the small galvanized trash can that held her first bag of oats, and made sure the new bale of hay was wired up so that it would not blow apart in the breeze.

      Then she surveyed the shed, looking so new in her dusty Arizona back yard. A simple stall, open to the corral for Midnight, and an open tack room just large enough to hold the few things she would need to care for her pony. She felt proud because she had helped her father build it, and already it felt like home. And maybe if I move things around I can bring out a cot and blankets so I can sleep here and keep you company, She said as she reset her headband to control her sun-bleached hair. If you carry on every night like you did last night, we’ll both be in trouble. We don’t have any close neighbors way out here in the country, but if you wake up baby Ella, or my little brother, Sam, that will be really bad. Mom will skin both of us, Annie scolded Midnight lovingly.

      The only tack she had so far was the bridle that came with Midnight; it hung on a bent nail just above the oat can. Annie didn’t even have a halter and lead rope just yet, nor did she have a saddle, but none of that concerned her. She had all she needed, and more. Her hand moved as if drawn by a magnet to the pony’s neck and she once again experienced the magical way of communication she had discovered with this pony.

      Midnight grunted as he chewed on his hay. Maybe this new barn won’t be so scary if you always come out this early.

      You will learn to love it here, I promise. Finished with her tasks, Annie leaned across Midnight’s back. Now I can see you every day, we can go riding more, too"

      I am worried about my herd mates, Jake and Hammer, alone in my other corral. I’m afraid they miss me. They don’t like the mice that sneak out to steal hay and oats, you know. And when Owl glides past, poor Jake is startled.

      Oh, I know you miss them, too. It’s hard to move sometimes, especially when you have to leave your old friends. But this is just your first night here, you’ll get used to it in no time at all. You can make new friends, and we will go back and visit Jake and Hammer every chance we get. They’re just down the road. Remember, we’re still going to practice for playdays with them.

      Annie laid her head against Midnight’s thick black mane and thought about the many times her family moved around the country. I remember the first time I moved. I was real little. My best friend lived next door. We used to play together every day. Our favorite toys were tiny plastic farm animals and little horses. I cried for so long when we moved away and I didn’t understand why we had to leave. I never heard from my friend after we left. I still miss her.

      I have known many other places in my life. Sometimes there were other ponies or horses, sometimes not. I miss some of my friends. It’s difficult for me to learn to live alone. Ponies do prefer to be with other ponies, we are herd animals.

      Oh, Midnight, Annie hugged the pony’s neck tenderly, I understand exactly why you whinnied half the night, but I’m going to keep you so busy you won’t have time to miss Jake and Hammer at all.

      Midnight kept crunching his hay and listened carefully to the girl that he could understand. He, too, felt the joy and love of finding such a connection after so many years of trying different ways to teach young children the fine skills of riding.

      And besides that, Midnight, we start our new job today. You get to go be friends with some of the best race horses in the world. You have an important job to do, helping Mr. Weston’s young stallion to not be afraid to race. And I will become one of the best horse trainers in the world. She closed her eyes and envisioned herself training race horses, and having the ‘gift’ with horses that her grandfather always talked about. I wonder which one of the horses I get to train, She sighed.

      The back door swung open and Annie’s mother called to her. "Annie! I hope you weren’t out there all night. It looks like some stranger has been in your room. Come in here so I can see if

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