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Nigel’s company. What do you think?”
    Lisa thought it sounded like just what she needed—a vacation! Stevie, frowning, picked at the heel of her boot, but Carole spoke first.
    “You keep saying ‘Chincoteague,’ ” she said to Mrs. Reg. “Do you mean
the
Chincoteague? As in
Misty of Chincoteague
?”

“I MEAN IT ,” Stevie said. “I really don’t want to go.”
    “I can’t believe you wouldn’t want to go!” Lisa said. “This is Chincoteague Island, Stevie. Haven’t you always wanted to see it?”
    “Don’t you remember the book?” Carole asked. “
Misty
? C’mon, Stevie!” Carole had called both Lisa and Stevie—three-way calling was a great invention as far as The Saddle Club was concerned—to discuss plans for their week on the coast. Stevie’s attitude didn’t make any sense to Carole—Marguerite Henry’s
Misty of Chincoteague
had always been one of Carole’s favorite books. Carole knew she’d gladly spend morethan a week working for anyone, let alone good friends like Dorothy and Nigel, for a chance to see where the book actually took place. She could still remember the descriptions of Chincoteague Island and Assateague Island.
    “Of course I read the book,” Stevie said. “A zillion years ago, when I was a little kid. Of course I like it. That isn’t the point.”
    “I read it again this afternoon,” Carole said. “Right after Mrs. Reg asked us to go.”
    “That isn’t the point,” Stevie repeated.
    “Didn’t Mrs. Reg call your parents?” Lisa asked. “They’ll let you go, won’t they?”
    “Yes, she called them.” Stevie was beginning to feel exasperated. Why couldn’t her friends understand? “My parents would be happy to have me gone for a week, believe me. But—”
    “I’m amazed that you’d pass this up,” Carole interrupted. “Think about it, Stevie—a free vacation
and
a chance to get away from your brothers. And it really doesn’t sound like we’ll have to do too much work—no more than what we would do at Pine Hollow anyway in the summertime.”
    “I’m not afraid of hard work,” Stevie retorted. “You know that, Carole. In fact, that’s why I don’t want to go to Chincoteague. I want to stay here and work onBelle. She’s got to learn those flying changes. You and Lisa go. I’ll be okay.”
    “But aren’t you curious about Chincoteague? Don’t you want to see it?” asked Lisa. “You remember Misty—the wild foal born on Assateague Island—remember. Stevie? How they swam her across the channel to auction her off?”
    “But she was too little, and she almost drowned,” Carole cut in. “That’s my favorite part—Paul Beebe jumped in the water to save her. He swam her to shore.”
    “And Paul and his sister, Maureen, bought Misty and her mother, the wild Phantom,” Lisa recalled. “And the book is dedicated to them and to other people from Chincoteague.”
    “They were all real people,” said Carole. “That’s my other favorite part. The wild ponies are real. They’re still there today. Don’t you want to see them, Stevie?”
    Steve sighed into the phone. “It’s not that I don’t want to see them; of course I want to see them,” she said. “And I’d love to go to Chincoteague with you, and see Dorothy and Nigel. But neither of you understands. I need to stay and work on Belle.”
    Carole thought that that just about summed up Stevie’s problem—she wanted to “work on” Belle, not “work with” her. She wondered just how far Stevie would go not to be beaten by Phil. For Stevie’s sake, aswell as Belle’s, Carole was determined to get her friend to Chincoteague Island. Stevie needed a break!
    “You know, Stevie,” she said slowly, “The Saddle Club is supposed to help whenever help is necessary. Dorothy’s mother needs us.
All
of us are obligated to help her.”
    Stevie hesitated. “Mrs. DeSoto isn’t part of The Saddle Club,” she said at last. “The rule only says that you have to help Saddle Club