Beginner's Luck Read Online Free PDF Page B

magic
show everyone seemed to get along better. All of the
girls got up to dance, and some of the boys did too.
    Shelby sat with Lindsey for a while.
    'You got the day off,' Shelby said.
    'Yes, Mum will be leading the trails today. Can
you imagine it?'
    Lindsey's job was to clean stables and feed horses
when their owners weren't there. She led the trail rides
on weekends, and also handled the foals so they
would get used to people. Whenever Shelby saw
Lindsey she was busy, but Shelby thought it looked
like fun work. She wished she could do that instead of
vacuuming and washing the dishes.
    An Avril Lavigne song started playing and Shelby
stood up. 'I love this song! Want to dance?'
    Lindsey shrugged. 'OK.'
    'Don't you like Avril?'
    'I don't know who she is,' Lindsey laughed.
    Shelby grinned back at her, but she thought it was
weird that Lindsey hadn't heard of Avril Lavigne. It
was brave too. When Erin talked about a song or a
singer that Shelby hadn't heard she would just pretend
she had heard of them, otherwise Erin would make a
big deal about it and make Shelby feel stupid and
embarrassed. 'Omigod! I can't believe you don't
know! Everybody knows that, Shel. Where have you
been?'
    Shelby didn't think Lindsey would get embarrassed
about it. She didn't seem to care about fashion. Shelby
would have imagined that the other girls would be
mean about it, and talk about Lindsey behind her
back, but they didn't. Hayley, in particular, was very
respectful to Lindsey. They weren't best friends, but
they had known each other for most of their lives, and
they behaved like cousins.
    At about four o'clock the parents started arriving
to take their kids home. Shelby was one of the last
people there and helped Erin and her parents clear
away. Erin's mum offered to drop her home when they
were finished.
    'Thank you,' said Shelby, relieved that she
wouldn't have to sit through another speech.
    As they turned into her street Shelby gasped. Blue
was on the front lawn tied to a stake by a long rope.

7 Bromeliads
    Shelby ran into the garage, grabbed a bucket and filled
it with water. She shuffled towards Blue with the
water slopping over the sides and saturating the legs
of her pants.
    'My poor baby. You must be thirsty. They are so
mean.'
    Blue sniffed at the water for a moment and then
resumed munching on the lawn.
    Shelby left the bucket and marched into the house.
Angry tears were forming in her eyes. The front door
hit the wall with a thud.
    Her father was sitting on the floor of the lounge
room with Connor and Blake. Her mother peeked
around the kitchen wall.
    'Hi, honey, how was it?' she asked.
    Shelby hands were bunched into fists at her sides.
She erupted. 'How long has he been there? There's no
shade. He had no water! I can't believe you would be
so cruel!'
    'Keep your shirt on,' replied her father. 'He had
water earlier. We took it away because he kept tipping
the bucket up.'
    Her tears spilled over, and she wiped them away.
'Your rope probably just about strangled him. You
don't know anything about horses! What if he caught
his leg, or poked his eye on that stick? What if he
pulled it too hard and it came out? He could get hit by
a truck or anything!'
    'He's fine, Shelby. We've all been checking on him,'
her mother said.
    'What if I came back and he was dead, huh? Did
you think about that?' She was breathing hard now,
trying to keep from sobbing. 'You don't care about
anything!'
    Shelby's dad's face went red. He opened his mouth
and his voice came out loud and booming. 'My
bromeliads are dead! My father gave them to me from
his garden from sections that came from his father's
garden, and they're both dead too! You don't have the
patent on sentimental things, Shelby!'
    Blake put his hands over his ears and started to
cry. His father rubbed the child's hair absently.
    'Blue is a living animal with feelings!' Shelby
shouted.
    Her father's voice went up a notch. 'You don't
think my bromeliads have a right to life?'
    'It's not the same!'