Silver Hawk Ridge: Taking Flight

{ Chapter 20 }

The rain continued all afternoon (if anything it'd only gotten heavier) and I was thankful that the barns and arenas weren't anywhere near the creek in case of flooding. But there were still lessons. My tall boots were still in my locker, so I didn't have to try and trek them through the muck unnecessarily. I put on a pair of navy breeches and a black long sleeve quarter zip, grabbing my rain slicker and rain boots. I intended to be there early, so I rushed out the door.

By the time I make it to the barn, the rain has increased to torrential. I shook my hood off as soon as I was under the awning, sending droplets of water onto the nearby flower pot. Striding in the door, the grooms and hands were flying around, bringing in any of the horses that had been in turnout. The poor things were drenched (handlers and horses both). Thankfully, Rega was already inside, so that would be less time with a sweat scraper and towel. I made sure Rega was groomed, and I had all my tack laid out, then I went to see if anyone needed help.

"Savannah!" I whipped around to see Ray coming towards me.

"Glad I caught you! We're short staffed tonight thanks to flu season. Can you go and get Soldier and Medley out of paddock 2?" I nodded and grabbed their halters off their hooks. Thankfully they both were both pretty easy and went from stall to paddock with no fuss. I was about to go help Anna with Skip when I heard a commotion coming from outside the stable, and I rushed back into the downpour.

"Adam! Give me a hand with this big lug!"

What I came upon was Ms. Flint and Mr. Watts struggling with a massive dark thoroughbred. She strained violently against the lead rope as Ms. Flint struggled to hold onto her. Mr. Watts was attempting to cajole the poor thing despite having to nearly shout. I could barely make out their conversation.

"This horse is supposed to be for the national team?!" Ms. Flint cried incredulously.

"This is the first time it's stormed since she's been here, I don't think this is something I have full control over!" Mr. Watts retorted back.

Suddenly the horse ripped the lead from the two of them, effectively landing Ms. Flint in the mud. The next thing I was able to process was the animal barreling in my direction. I could vaguely hear the panicked shouts of Mr. Watts and Ms. Flint in the background. But time seemed to slow down and the few seconds seemed to stretch. I quickly raised my arms hoping she would slow down.

She slid to a stop in front of me, and I took the opportunity to grab the muddy lead rope. The poor thing was drenched and frightened to death. Without thinking, I gently raised my hand to her head to swipe her forelock to the side. She quieted in my hands and lowered her head, the fight gone. I barely registered Mr. Watts and Ms. Flint behind me.

"Savannah, why don't you take her in? Jordan, you might want to change into something less muddy". I nodded and followed their directions to the third aisle. Many of the horses down on this aisle looked even more top of the line than the others up in aisles 1 and 2. There was a groom waiting at the end of the aisle by her stall with towels and a grooming kit. As I handed her off with a pat on her neck, I glanced at the name on her halter.

Riesling

It suited her. Something simple and elegant. Turning on my heel, I made my way to my locker to put on my riding boots and grab my helmet. I wandered back to Rega to find her snoozing comfortably. I plopped my saddle pads onto Rega's back, my saddle soon following. She picked her head up and looked back in my direction as if to say "Girl, what are you doing? I was resting!"

I pleasantly found myself first to arrive in the arena. I settled onto Rega's back and warmed her up. She was a bit more anxious than I would have liked thanks to the rain, but she was still supple under my hand. Anna arrived with Skip. He was behaving well enough for their warm up, but sluggish, especially for his normally energetic disposition. She noticed too apparently.

"Savannah, is it just me, or is he looking a little sleepy?" She called out. I moved to the center and I watched his canter stride on the left rein. Forget about lagging, it was way off beat from what I'd seen previously, almost choppy.

"Go ahead and bring him in, something's way off" I said. She eased him to a walk and brought him to center and dismounted. His girth wasn't slipping or too tight, which occasionally would slow a trained horse down if they knew their rider would fall. I bent down to take off his boots.

"Did you notice swelling or anything when you were grooming him?" Anna shook her head.

"No, he was completely sound". I ran my hand down each leg. Sure enough, his front left leg was warm and puffy all the way down the cannon and a motion check revealed some fluid and more swelling in that knee.

"He's definitely not sound NOW. That flared up awfully quick" I said, my brow furrowing. I looked up to notice other riders doing their warm up and Mr. Watts walking in.

"Ladies, why aren't we warming up?"

What could have been a potentially dangerous decision to make, I ignored Mr. Watts and noted Skip's drooped ears, as they weren't swiveling towards any of the noises in the arena line they should. I walked to one side and clicked my tongue, and repeated the process on the other. He was responsive to both, so his hearing clearly wasn't being affected.

"Savannah what are you-"

"Mr. Watts I think Skip needs further attention. He's flaring up-"

"Skip's had joint problems in the past, he bounces out of them pretty quickly. Now, please get on your horse". Normally I wasn't one to stir up trouble if I could help it, but something didn't sit right and I knew Anna was concerned.

"Mr. Watts, if you'll just give me a moment, Anna, can you remove his saddle?" After his back was clear, I stood on the mounting block and gently pressed around the spinal area. It was fine until I got to his withers, to which he promptly flinched. Mr. Watts crossed his arms and nodded.

"Fair enough. Anna, you take him back for a rub down and I'll have Dr. Lahey look in the morning. Good attention and excellent teamwork girls. Now, let's get you back on that horse Savannah. As for the rest of you," he said, raising the last part for everyone. "Let's get going. We've got work to do."

~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe you did that!" Avery exclaimed when we were back at the lockers. "You realize if you hadn't been right that Mr. Watts would have bitten your head off?!"

"Look, I know it was stupid, but I wasn't about to let Skip do a lesson and risk mangling his leg up further. I would defy Eric Lamaze or the President if it was to ensure safety of horse and rider. AND-" I paused, shutting my locker to make my point. "I know that the rain was bound to make everyone a little crabby. Did you see Jenny and Kennedy's face? It was a new bad mood even for THEM."

"Fine, but still. You're an idiot" Anna said, smiling. As much as we were all missing Madi, we'd all bonded together and decided to make the best of this. I was proud to call this my team and my home for the year. "So what do you say we go shower up and meet at Dragon Palace for dinner at 7?

"Sounds good! Should we see if the rest of the team wants t-"

"Nope"

"Not a chance"

"Not on your life", rang out Kennedy, Daniel, and Jenny.

"Drew, you in?" I asked, looking over my shoulder. He picked his head up from his locker and smiled.

"Yeah, sounds good"

"Cool, see you the-"

"Hey Savannah! I'm gonna invite Kenny and Taylor from Calc, okay?" Anna called over her shoulder. I turned back and gave her the go ahead, but when I turned around, Daniel's shoulders had gone tense.

"So, Dragon at 7?" He repeated. I nodded and left the aisle. God, that was so weird! What was that even about? Oh well, SHR could have its mysteries, and I would keep my nose out of it.

Finally got a chapter in y'all! It's been a bit crazy, but it got done!😂