brakes are in your hands,” he told Kit. “Just pull back and say ‘whoa.’ But if you ever find yourself on a runaway horse—”
“Runaway?” Kit asked.
Benny smiled. “Don’t worry. It likely won’t happen, but say we get startled by a bear, you want to know how to stop a frightened horse.” He demonstrated by pulling one rein until Cloud turned his head toward the saddle. “Just like this. You pull one rein tight and he’ll turn his head. He’ll have to circle, and that will slow him down. Got it?”
Kit nodded, hoping for no bears.
It didn’t take her long to settle into a rhythm in the saddle. With the balls of her feet in the stirrups, one hand on the saddle horn, and the other holding the knotted leather reins, Kit rode Cloud down the tree-shaded gravel road after Benny and Honey.
Kit didn’t have to steer. Cloud followed willingly behind Honey’s tail as they walked on the shoulder of the road. They cut left into the woods under a giant umbrella of tree cover.
At a small stream flowing between moss-covered boulders, Honey picked her way carefully across. Cloud followed, but stopped midstream. Both horses stood still, their ears pointed straight ahead. Kit’s heart gathered speed. She stared at the undergrowth ahead, looking for anything that might startle her horse: a black bear, snake, or bobcat.
Benny pointed left, just as two deer bounded into dense woods, their white tails waving high. Then, unconcerned, the horses lowered their heads and rode on.
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.
