The Tourist Trap

Chapter Four

PLEASE REMEMBER TO VOTE AND COMMENT!!!

Behind our ranch the hill continued up for about a quarter of a mile of tree covered property, then flattened out for half a mile, then started to descend on the other side. I had been exploring the woods back there with my parents ever since I was a little girl. Back when I was in grade school, the hardly ever let me go alone, concerned I might stumble across a black bear or get lost on one of the many winding paths. But as I got older I started taking Lola on longer and longer rides, discovering corners of the property that I had never even seen before. Together Lola and I have found an old cave that is peppered with graffiti dating back to the 1920s, some carved into the wall some spray-painted. We had found a broken down shack that had been there for no one knew how long. 

We had also discovered a shortcut to the lush and unused property surrounding the Kent estate. Who knew the lowly local Grace's lived next to greatness? I had only realized it because of all of the no trespassing signs tacked on various trees. For people who were never around, the Kents were certainly paranoid. Unfortunately, the warning didn't work on me. In, fact they kind of spurred me along. Who did these people think they were, forbidding people to step foot on the property that they barley even knew was there? As far as I was concerned, someone should be able to appreciate the beauty of that estate. And that someone was going to be me.

The day after our gummy bear castle night, I got up extra early and took Lola for our regular morning ride. We walked up the winding pathway, past the old oak that had been felled by a lightning strike two years before, and then out onto the meadow at the top of a hill. As always, I ignored the large orange and black signs bolted onto the trees and loosened up on the reins. Lola was so used to this routine that she knew it was coming, and sped up a bit before I even nudged her with my heals. I sat forward in the saddle as we raced along, enjoying the cool morning hair as it whipped my hair back.

 At the far end of the meadow, the trees rose u again and I slowed Lola as we approached. She instantly dropped to a canter and I urged her to the left. I planned to ride along the tree line in the shade, then take her through the woods and down towards the Kent house. When it came down to it, I was more curious about the improvements the staff made to the empty mansion than I was about the Kent family. It seemed insane to me that these people spent all their money every year to keep the house up and never set foot in it. What kind of people had cash to burn like that?

Lola and I were about to turn down our regular path when I heard a sudden roar of an engine, it sounded like a chainsaw revving or a boat coming to life. Lola whined and I whipped my head around, looking for the source of the noise. Suddenly a blur of red and black shot right out of the woods in front of us, into the meadow. 

Clouds of dust kicked up, temporarily blinding meas Lola reared back and raised her front hooves. I coughed and Blinked my stinging eyes. gripping her reins with one hand, while patting her neck with the other one. It was an automatic reaction, trying to calm her down while my heart was pounding from shock. If Lola got spooked and took off, it wouldn't be good for either one of us. 

Finally I felt all of Lola's feet hit the ground. She steadied and I was able to wipe my hand across my eyes. Through the watery blur, I saw a bobbing, helmeted head atop an ATV, circling around the center of the meadow, and headed back in our direction. I leaned down on Lola's neck and patted her, whispering a soothing tone in her ear. The ATV skidded to a stop a few feet away.

"What are you doing, you psycho?" I shouted. "You almost killed us!" 

Normally I'm not the yelling kind, but my adrenaline was up and my pulse was pounding in my ears. Two seconds later Lola and I would have been maimed.