Calico Horses and the Patchwork Trail Read online

  “Aww,” Shannon said, hurrying outside. Luckily the bird was only dazed. It stumbled around on wobbly legs and then flew away. From the corner of her eye she saw something dart behind her mom’s car. Probably just one of the neighbor’s cats, she thought. She walked back inside, greeted by the smell of brewing coffee. She heard the bathroom door shut, the swoosh of the shower curtain pushed aside, and finally the full blast of steamy water. She returned to the kitchen table wondering what could be keeping her little brother. Kelsie scratched on the door from inside Brian’s room. The door opened, the dog came out, and “click,” the door was shut and locked.

  “He’s probably broken something of Daddy’s,” she said to Kelsie, who was eyeing her half-eaten toast. The coffee pot made the loud gurgling noise that signaled it had finished brewing. Like magic her mom reappeared wearing fresh clothes and a twisted towel on her head. Jodi poured herself coffee and sat down across from her daughter.

  “Ahhh,” they both said in unison. Shannon laughed and Jodi smiled as they always said this together after that first sip. This was the sign that kids were allowed to speak.

  “Brian’s locked himself in his room, Mom,” Shannon said. Jodi rolled her eyes and looked at the bowl of soggy cereal that Brian had not touched. “Now what?” she said, as she shuffled slowly down the hall sipping her coffee. “Brian Thomas Miller—open this door right now.”

  “You’ll punish me again,” came a muffled voice from under his hiding place.

  “I am not in the mood today, Brian. Come out and eat your breakfast before it gets all mushy.”

  “Click” went the door as he opened it and quickly ran past her into the kitchen. She walked into his bedroom and looked to see if anything was out of order. Toys were scattered everywhere, while blankets and pillows were piled high on his bed. It all seemed pretty normal.

  “Oh, man, Mommy’s gonna kill you!” Shannon squealed.

  “Be quiet,” replied Brian, feeding his sister’s toast to Kelsie.

  “Mo-om,” Shannon said in her tattletale voice. “Brian is feeding the…”

  “Oh my goodness, Brian!” Jodi cried. “What have you done to your hair?” Brian kept his head down, trying to conceal the huge patch he had cut from his hair. It looked as if he had a bare spot on top of his head.

  “I needed a haircut,” he said matter of factly.

  Shannon and Jodi looked at each other and burst into laughter. Brian ignored them and ate his cereal. “You look like you’ve been scalped,” Jodi said. “Kids are gonna laugh,” warned Shannon. Brian spread grape jelly on his toast, ignoring both of them.

  “Well,” Jodi said. “I guess you’ll be starting a new hair style craze. Maybe every little boy will want to have a chunk of hair missing from the top of his head, too. Hey, maybe Daddy will want to get a haircut just like you. I think that’s a great idea! I think I’ll let Daddy talk to you about haircuts, okay?” she said as she hugged him tightly

  “Sure,” Brian said, cheering up and smiling at Kelsie.

  Shannon got dressed and went outside to play. It was a beautiful sunny day and she stopped to watch some bees gathering pollen in the lilies her mom had planted. She loved the smell of the honeysuckle that crept along the fence. She and Brian would pull the long stems through the blooms and suck on the drops of honey just like her grandmother had taught them. She heard the bang of the front door and saw Brian wearing kneepads and a helmet walking toward her.

  “Wanna rollerblade with me?” he asked.

  “Sure.” Shannon hurried into the house to get her gear. Jodi was busy vacuuming and Kelsie was hiding from the whirring noise that always sent him scurrying under a bed.

  She ran back outside and sat down to put on her rollerblades. She pulled her elbow pads on and tightened the clasp on her helmet. Brian was at the end of their driveway, looking up. He motioned for her to come quickly. Brian was always pointing to stuff and asking her dumb questions, like, where does mud come from and how come snails have shells. She brushed off the sand from the back of her shorts and skated over to Brian.

  Suddenly, she felt as if she were in a bad dream. Brian was speaking but she couldn’t hear him. Her mouth went dry and she felt her whole body become stiff as if she couldn’t move. There on the pavement in big bright purple and pink sidewalk chalk was a message directed to her. SHANNON SMELLS LIKE PIG’S FEET. She didn’t dare look around as she thought whoever had written it must have been watching. She yanked on Brian’s sleeve to make him skate away with her, but he kept standing there. He was too little to read and asked her what the words spelled. Shannon stooped and smeared the chalk and, fighting back tears, skated to the front porch. She unbuckled her helmet, removed her skates, and ran to her mother sobbing. She tried to tell her what had happened but the words weren’t making much sense. She was frantic and pointing outside and her mom, fearing the worst, ran out the front door. Brian was covered in pink and purple dust as he was rolling on the sidewalk unaware of his mom as she hurried toward him.

  “Are you alright? What happened?” she asked as she brushed off the chalk and examined her son. “Stop crying and tell me what’s wrong, Shannon,” she said. Shannon, still sobbing, walked up pointing to the pavement. The words were no longer there—just a smear of faint pink and purple chalk remained.

  “What, Shannon? I don’t have time for this. What are you pointing at?”

  “Someone wrote something mean about me,” said Shannon, sniffling.

  “Oh, please,” Jodi said, as she rose and dusted herself off. “You must have misread it and besides, who would do something so cruel? Now, both of you go play and try not to get hurt. I have a million things to do today.”

  And just like that she was gone and Shannon was left standing there looking at the remnants of chalk dust.

  Sitting in her mom’s dentist’s waiting room was not one of Shannon’s favorite things to do. It was nothing like the one she and Brian went to. Their dentist, Dr. Richardson, had a special room called the Smile Zone that was filled with arcade-type games, colored wooden beads, 3D puzzles, and lots of other cool stuff. Brian was playing with his pocket-sized video game while Shannon was writing a letter to Carrie.

  Dear Carrie,

  I miss you so bad. I can’t wait to talk to you again and I’m gonna call you as soon as I’m allowed. I know that you said that Brian was the one who probably pulled my hair in the tree, but I don’t think so anymore. You can’t tell anyone this, but today I found a mean message on our driveway.

  Jodi walked back into the waiting room, pausing to speak with the lady at the little window. She signaled for Shannon to get her brother. Shannon closed her notebook. Brian made a fuss about leaving the toys and Shannon had to drag him, kicking and screaming, to the car.

  On the way home they stopped at the market where Brian talked Jodi into some treats. That’s how it always was, thought Shannon. She would point and ask for something and her mom would tell her it wasn’t nutritious. Brian would pout and cry and their mom would often give in. Shannon was still trying to find a way to convince Brian to point to something she wanted but so far she’d been unsuccessful.

  They pulled into their driveway and saw their dad’s truck parked in its usual spot. “Yay, Daddy’s home!” Shannon shouted as she hurried out of the truck. She looked at Brian. “See you in a few minutes,” she said, smiling to herself, knowing Brian was not in a hurry to show off his new haircut.

  Shannon raced into the house and threw herself in her father’s arms. He hugged her and then slowly held her away from him at shoulder length. “Hi,” he said, very seriously and without his usual smile.

  “What’s the matter?” she asked, sensing his tone.

  “I’m not sure what you were thinking or how you rode so far from home, but as I was coming down the highway just now, I spotted your bike thrown along the side of the road and I stopped and put it in the back of my truck.”

  He saw her look of confusion and relaxed, realizing she didn’t know what h
e was talking about. She hadn’t ridden along the highway, but someone did.

  “Is the bike okay?” Jodi asked. “We just got home from running errands and Shannon hasn’t been here since this morning. Who took her bike and how did it get there?” she asked as she put the groceries on the table.

  “The bike’s fine, but I think from now on we keep it locked in the garage when she’s not riding it. I’m sorry, honey. I thought you threw it by the road. It gave me quite a scare,” he said, leaning down to kiss his daughter. Shannon was frightened to learn that a bike thief was nearby.

  “Where’s Brian?” he asked.

  “He’s sitting out in the car trying to figure out how to tell you about his surprise,” Jodi said.

  “Why do I get the impression I’m not gonna like this surprise,” he said. Shannon went to her dad and hugged him tightly. She buried her head into his soft cotton shirt with the embroidery that read South Jersey Electric Company and just melted with emotions. He looked at his wife with raised eyebrows. She shook her head and walked away. “It’s been a long day in the Miller household,” she chuckled.

  Shannon’s dad sat down on his comfy chair and pulled Shannon onto his lap. He didn’t say a word but just held and rocked her gently. She knew somehow her dad would fix everything. That was his job. Every kid should have a father like her dad, she thought, allowing herself to savor and enjoy this moment without Brian pushing her aside. But some kids didn’t even have a dad—like some of the kids in her class—and then her heart gave a little flutter as she thought of Carrie.

  Chapter 27

  Sam plopped down, exhausted, onto her big leather chair. Her Bed & Breakfast had been turned into a task force station over the past six hours. Every guest had been out searching for Flannel. The police had been called and posters and flyers had been distributed throughout the surrounding area. Brenda and Carrie were still out looking for the missing collie. Carrie blamed Sam and her cat Max. The cat sat cleaning himself as if totally innocent; he stopped and stared at her as if to say, What did I do? Sam heard voices coming in the front door and jumped up and hurried into the lobby.

  “Well, folks,” said one of the Save Our Mustangs workers, “we’ll start again tomorrow morning at first light. Maybe we’ll get lucky and the pup will be attracted to one of the herds and we’ll find her.” The group said goodnight, yawning their way toward their rooms. Sam walked outside and stood in the moonlight looking at the empty space where Brenda’s car was usually parked. She felt horrible as she knew Brenda didn’t know her away around and was probably searching unfamiliar roads. It’s not like New Jersey, she thought. Most of these roads don’t have any streetlights. She heard a coyote off in the distance and shivered. That poor collie was out there wandering alone. Sam went back inside and decided to make a pot of coffee. It was going be a long night.

  A few hours later she was just about to go looking for Brenda when she heard a car pull in. She peered out the window and saw Brenda and Carrie getting out of their car. They walked slowly to the side door that led to the bungalow. Brenda was carrying a leash and a box of treats but Flannel was not with them. Sam’s heart sank as she watched the little girl refusing to go in, not wanting to give up the search. They stood outside arguing until finally Carrie gave in. Brenda promised to start again first thing in the morning as her daughter slammed the door, leaving her standing alone in the dark. Brenda covered her face and hung her head as Sam watched helplessly.

  Brenda came into Sam’s office and sat down. She ran her hands through her hair. How could everything have gone so wrong? she thought. The two women sat in silence until Brenda burst into tears. Sam got up and threw a blanket over her friend. The days were hot but the nights turned chilly and Brenda had been out searching for hours in a tank top. Sam went to fetch her a hot cup of coffee. Max approached and licked her hand. Startled, Brenda looked up, amazed as the cat licked her again and rubbed his head nuzzling her. She petted Max and he began purring as her tears began to fade. She was breathing more calmly now and the cat looked up at her as if to say, You’re welcome.

  The women sat up talking the night away. Brenda’s thoughts were racing ahead to a life with her daughter mourning the loss of her dog.“Hold on,” said Sam. “Don’t give up hope yet. You can’t let yourself get defeated like that.”

  “I have to prepare myself for the worst,” replied Brenda. “She’s angry with me over the breakup and the move to Nevada, and now with Flannel…”

  “Well, all I’m saying,” answered Sam, “is that you are surrounded by good people here. They may be horse people but that means they’re animal people, too. If anyone can help, they can.”

  “They have been so good to us,” said Brenda. “They shouldn’t be getting involved with this; it’s not what they came here to do. They have meetings and agendas with their own organization; they shouldn’t be bothering with all of this. What a mess. I feel horrible this has caused so much trouble.”

  “They wouldn’t be helping if they didn’t want to, Brenda. Don’t you get it? This is what they do. They drop everything to try and help horses. Heck, a lost collie is right up their alley, trust me.”

  “You think we’ll find her, Sam?” asked Brenda. “Be honest with me. I don’t know this area at all and I heard some of the people talking about snakes and mountain lions and coyotes.”

  “Don’t listen to any of that. There’s no use letting your mind go off in all directions. Focus on the positive and let others help you. We can’t control everything in our lives and sometimes we face some storms. But we always learn something from them. Worrying never solved anything—it just gives you wrinkles.” Brenda yawned and Sam nudged her and pointed to the clock. Brenda looked at it with drowsy eyes. They both stood and hugged goodnight.

  Dawn broke and the birds were singing outside Carrie’s window. She wanted to go out and call for Flannel but decided to wait until it got a little lighter. She slipped out of bed and wandered downstairs. The bungalow was quiet and all she could hear was the ticking of the clock in the kitchen. She stuck her head into the refrigerator, remembering that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast yesterday. Her stomach growled but nothing appealed to her so she shut the door. She sat down at the kitchen table with her chin propped in her hands, staring out at the mountains. They were just turning pink with hints of gold as the sun was slowly rising. She studied the way the light rippled across the range and thought how different it was from the flatlands back east. She heard her mom going into the bathroom. She quickly got up to get dressed so that she could be ready to search again. As she brushed against the chair she knocked something onto the floor. She picked up the paper. It was some kind of flyer for kids: “Hidden Valley Horse & Art Camp.” Too bad it wasn’t a dog and art camp, she thought, tossing it back on the table. She heard the shower running and knew her mom wouldn’t be ready as quickly as she had wanted. Slowly she climbed the steps back to her room.

  “You take the east side and we’ll head over to the west by Falcon Road. Call us if you spot anything and let’s plan on meeting up back here for lunch,” said the president of the Save Our Mustangs group, getting into a big truck with her team.

  Carrie opened the window and waved to them but they didn’t see her. Wow, she thought, I didn’t realize so many people are looking for my dog. She shoved some photos of Flannel into her backpack and headed down the stairs. Her mom was sitting in the kitchen tying her shoes. She looks awful, Carrie thought. Her eyes had dark circles and she appeared very frail. Brenda glanced up at Carrie and forced a smile. Carrie waited for her mom to grab her purse so they could get moving, but she just sat there slumped over in her chair. Brenda slowly got up and put the teakettle on. Carrie tapped her foot, unable to stand still, and tried to remain calm. They heard a knock on the door. Carrie opened it, nodded to Sam, and quickly disappeared, running up to her room.

  “That kid hates me,” Sam said to Brenda.

  “She’s angry at the entire world so don’t think you’re s
o special. You’re not,” said Brenda, dropping a teabag into a cup.

  “I’m not able to run out the door and race around this town searching for a dog until I wake up. Plus, I’m starving. If I don’t get some food in me I’m going to pass out.” She poked her head into the refrigerator.

  “Aw, shucks, nothing but cheese, veggies, and fruit. I’m dying for some French toast and fresh OJ.”

  “Let’s take Carrie out and grab some breakfast before we start searching,” said Sam.

  “How can you leave the B&B? Don’t you have to cover the front desk?’ asked Brenda.

  “Of course I can go,” Sam said. “Kelly’s able to run this place all by herself. Come on. Grab your purse and call Carrie. Let’s eat!”

  Brenda climbed the stairs and found Carrie in the little room in the back fiddling with a craft. Carrie dropped it and stood up.

  “Finally, Mom. Are we going now? I’ll just grab my backpack.”

  “Not yet,” said Brenda, hugging her. “We need to go get something to eat first. Sam is joining us. Geez, I imagine you’re just as hungry—you haven’t eaten since yesterday morning.”

  Carrie, pulling away, looked at her mother with astonishment. “You want to go out to breakfast?! You promised we would look for Flannel first thing! No, I don’t want to go sit and have breakfast with you and Sam…the owner of that stupid cat!”

  “Come on, Carrie,” Brenda replied. “We’re all on edge and I think it would be best if we had a good meal and recharged our batteries. This is not Sam’s fault and you need to get over that.”

  Carrie’s face turned bright red. She was angry and disappointed that she was placed in a position to go along with something that was not of her choosing. That’s how it always was, she thought, shaking her head. When would she learn that kids had no say in anything and adults made all the rules? “Pick me up when you’re done eating,” she said quietly. “I’m gonna make myself some peanut butter toast. I get it, Mom, but I want to stay here. Just come get me as soon as you’re finished, okay?” Brenda was too tired to argue. She nodded and gave her daughter a quick hug.