The Eventer's Club 2: Junior Year

Chapter 20:

Ashleigh's pov

"Should we use red and white tinsel or-" Chèrry says as I scroll through Facebook on my phone.

"Ashleigh?"

"Hmm?" I quickly look up.

"Fair lights or no fairy lights?" Chèrry asks with a perplexed look on her face.

"Definitely fairy lights" I trying to sound interested.

"Would you happen know where Evelyn disappeared to?" I ask as Chèrry moves the Christmas decorations around.

"I believe she went out, although I'm not quite sure where, and that was a while ago" she answers, glancing at her expensive Rolex watch.

"She probably went on a trail ride... I might take Venus out to see if I can find her" I sigh, lifting myself off the couch.

"Ride safely, I know that mare of yours has a thing for overstepping her physical boundaries" Chèrry warns.

She had been referring to the fact I just started riding Venus again this week. That's the only thing that's made me happy at all this week. The excited Christmas vibe surrounding the barn was barely improving my mood. I had to leave in a couple days to meet my parents. Venus wouldn't be getting moved until a week after I've left. So that meant I had a week full of no fun what so ever.

Shaking away the annoying thoughts, I say a quick goodbye before trudging through the snow and into the barn. Many of the horses were inside due to certain paddocks being buried in snow. Others were inside because they were being ridden sometime during the day.

I felt sadness rise when I see familiar faces poke their heads over the stall doors. I still had some work to do with Winter and her foal. Miora was just getting into the show circuit again and Comanche has surprisingly started to relax on trails. I got word from the Locke family that Bella was super successful in her first competition. Then there was Florence. Out of all the horses owned by Holloway, aside from Beauty, she was my favourite.

At least I got the keep Venus with me...

"Hi Ash" I hear Elaine greet perkily.

She was grooming Solomon on cross ties and looked to be in the Christmas spirit. I didn't blame her. Both of them had just gotten back from winning yet another show. The pair were on a roll and Elaine was ecstatic.

"Hey Elaine" I said mellowly as I passed by and quickly gave the stallion a treat.

When I arrive at Venus' stall, the mare peaks over and watches me approach. Her dark brown eyes and gentle face made my heart melt. She doesn't have a nasty bone in her. I guess that's why I adored Beauty so much, his persona identical to Venus'.

"Want to go for a ride princess?" I coo, sticking my hand out to pet her.

Her ears perk up and I take that as a yes.

...

"Whoa there, not so fast missy" I scold as Venus eagerly starts to walk away as I get onto a mounting block.

Circling her around, she starts to impatiently chew on her snaffle bit. Placing one foot carefully in the stirrup, I gently swing my other leg over her and settle into the saddle. It was nice to be riding Venus again. When I took her out for a ride a day ago, I could barely contain both her and my excitement.

Clucking her on, we head for the trails. Since Eve hasn't come back yet, I might as well go find her. We all know she has some weird antics that sometimes results in her getting lost. Due to Venus being unable to do strenuous work, she could only walk and trot while being ridden. So that meant it would take a while until I find Eve. She could be anywhere. The cross country course, the forest trails, the back fields, the front fields, in the mountains, at the lake, the list goes on.

That girl seriously has to remember to answer her phone. I've called her like half a dozen times and there's been no answer. The line just rung and then went to voicemail when she didn't pick up. Sighing again, I pull out my phone and ring her number again.

"This caller is unavailable, please leave a message-" I hang up in frustration.

Evelyn, her mum and I were suppose to go last minute Christmas shopping to buy gifts for the grooms. It's not like we expected a group of raccoons to break into the tack room and rip the presents apart. Imagine my surprise when I walked into the tack room early yesterday morning and these weird creatures were tearing up the gifts. It scared the living daylights out of me. Luckily they didn't destroy the Christmas tree that we put the presents under, otherwise we would have a massive problem. Christmas trees that are for sale tend to be hard to come by on Christmas Eve.

The gifts all had packets of horse treats in them which is why the raccoons were there in the first place. They wanted food. But sadly in the process, the different nic nacs that came with them were also destroyed. Now if Eve didn't get back in time, I would be the only one helping Chèrry rebuy the gifts. What if we buy something and the person hates it?! Then it'll be my fault because I don't know what these people would want.

Talk about first world problems!

"Lets go to the east meadow, she's probably hanging out with the group there. Who knows what they're up too" I said to Venus.

Call me crazy but I love talking to my horse, it's always good fun. You should try in some time. Obviously when people aren't around, they'll think you're weird. But seriously, just try it!

...

I hate myself. Of course my tracking skills were horrid. I don't even think I saw one hoof print the whole time I rode Venus. The only tracks I saw where the ones Venus made on the way to and from the barn.

How could something be so hard?

The snow is super deep and I couldn't even get a hint of what direction she went. I searched around a fair bit and came up short. No clues, no nothing. So as suspected, I had to go into town with Chèrry by myself and help her pick out some new gifts. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but I'm a little worried that they might not like what was chosen for them. They may be 'just the grooms' to some people but they're an important part of Holloway. Without their assistance, Holloway wouldn't be as successful as it's been in the past.

Pursing my lips, I look out the window and listen to the radio. We were just arriving back to the Holloway with all the gifts. I was hoping that Eve wouldn't be back yet. The gift I got her for Christmas was finally shipped in yesterday. Just in time for tomorrow. As the car comes to a stop, I jump out and help unload the gifts from the car.

"Have you heard from Eve" Chèrry asks again, casting me a worried look as we set everything on the counter inside.

"No, only radio silence" I sigh.

I follow her gaze and notice that a police vehicle had stopped outside the house. Chèrry let's out a sigh and frustration before leaving to greet the officers. I trail behind her, curious about why they're here. Surely Eve hasn't gotten herself into trouble again?