Pony Dreams Read Online Free PDF Page B

his arm.
    “Can't you take a break? Ma and I worked hard
on supper. It's a shame for all that food to go to waste.” I set
the fork on the table.
    He ruffled my hair. “Sure would like to, but
those Paiute chased us halfway home. Pa wants to make sure we're
safe.”
    “Did they come near the house?” I asked.
    For as long back as I could remember, the
Paiute had presented a danger. It was a danger as in they might
attack at any time, rather than them breathing down our necks.
Tales from neighbors had frightened me about the possibility, but
I'd never experienced an Indian attack. And I never wanted to!
    “Nah.”
    “Pa probably made you split up the herd and
go in all sorts of directions.”
    “Sure did.” Adam shook his head. “You sound
almost like you watched us, but you know Pa as well as the rest of
us. He won't rest easy until he's sure the Paiute won't attack the
house.”
    “Can't you sit down for a nice meal while the
food is hot? We'd hear the Indians coming,” I said. “It'll near
break Ma's heart if you don't appreciate what she took so long to
make.”
    He leaned over the table and drew in a deep
breath. “She used buttermilk on the chicken, didn't she?”
    The whole kitchen still smelled of Ma's
special buttermilk mix. She not only used the milk that came off
the top from the cows, but also a few seasonings she promised to
tell me about one day.
    “Yup,” I said.
    “Pa would never forgive himself if he missed
all this good food.” He raised his voice. “Ma, I'm taking Abigail
to round up the hungry horde.”
    She scurried back into the kitchen. “Are you
sure she won't get hurt?”
    Had I imagined more than normal worry in her
voice? Was there something to all my strange dreams? Without
thought, my hand rose to touch the scar on my neck. She
frowned.
    “She'll probably sweet talk the Indians into
peace.” Adam grinned. “Our little gal can charm a man into
anything.”
    “You keep a good eye on her.” She dunked pots
into the dishwater. “Abigail, don't you dare set one toe inside the
corral. Those horses aren't settling well.”
    “Yes, ma'am,” I said.
    Visions of all the times I had done just that
danced through my head. I gulped as I imagined her reaction if she
ever found out.
    “Nothing will happen, Ma.” Adam grabbed my
hand.
    “See that it doesn't,” she snapped.
    We scampered to the corral. The whole time,
he scanned the nearby area. I tried to figure out what he was
looking for, even asked once or twice. He never said a word until
we reached the rest of our family.
    “Hey, Pa,” he called. “You really need to
come up to the house. Ma soaked the chicken in buttermilk, and Abby
made a couple of pies. Supper smells downright delicious after cold
meals on the trail.”
    Blaze trotted over to the fence and whinnied.
I ran over to him and stroked his forelock, but held back the urge
to use his name.
    “You don't say. You're right, Adam, sounds
like your ma made us something really good tonight,” Pa said.
“Charles, go find out if Peter and Paul have finished. It's supper
time.”
    “Yes, sir,” Charles said.
    Even though I wanted to ride Blaze, and prove
how good I was at training, I backed away. Pa stopped inspecting
the fence. A smile relieved the tension on his face.
    “Come here, child.”
    I ran into his arms, and he swung me into the
air. His way of greeting me hadn't changed, even after Ma made me
wear full-length skirts and put up my hair, for which I was very
grateful. My pa said he still thanked the Good Lord whenever he
laid eyes on me.
    Looking into the face that was a lined,
harder version than mine, I did the same thing, offering an instant
prayer of thankfulness he had come home. His nut-brown hair was the
same color everyone but Ma and I had. Pa's hair now had strands of
gray running through it, but life on the frontier was hard. It was
all I heard whenever I thought about making a complaint.
    “Where did you get all that yellow hair?” he
asked,