BELLA SARA 2 VALKRISTS FLIGHT

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Chapter One

Emma Roland woke soon after sunrise.

Before she opened her eyes, the eleven-year-old girl let her dream linger. She held on to her memory of the smell of her mother cooking breakfast in the kitchen, and the sound of her father knocking on her bedroom door. "Emma, the horses need us," her father had said.

He used to say that every morning. Even now, in her dreams, her father's voice had woken Emma up and reminded her about the horses they both loved. Even now, after he—

Emma opened her eyes, staring up at the rafters. Her mother had always told her keeping busy would help her stop thinking about something unpleasant. So Emma pulled off her covers, jumping into action.

She wasn't in her old bedroom—she now slept in the hayloft in the stable at Day Mare Ranch. Emma had cleaned up the loft and made it a cozy sanctuary.

Hearing her feet on the loft's floorboards, the horses beneath her snuffled, expecting their breakfast. "I'll be right there," Emma called, as she twisted her hair in a loose braid.

Emma had been sleeping in the hayloft for more than a month now. Emma never felt quite right unless the horses she adored were close by.

As she climbed down the loft's ladder, Emma had to admit that there was another reason she'd moved to the hayloft. When her aunt and uncle had taken over the Day Mare Ranch, her aunt Cynthia had redecorated the main house. It just didn't feel like the house Emma had grown up in anymore.

Emma was an only child, and two of her three cousins had gone off to college. Her youngest cousin, Colm, was just two years older than Emma, but he was so snotty that any day Emma didn't run into him was a good day.

The horses shuffled in their stalls as Emma walked down the stable's wide center aisle. There were twelve stalls in the barn, with a storage area under the loft, and an enclosed porch in the front near the tackroom and the wash bay. When Emma's father ran the ranch, all twelve stalls were usually occupied—with either the Quarter horses the ranch was renowned for breeding, or with boarded horses from other owners.

Now there were only six horses in the stable, along with Emma's Shetland pony, Mischief. Uncle Morgan wasn't as popular as her father, and many boarders had withdrawn their horses. The only remaining boarded horse was a black thoroughbred mare named Dowager.

Emma said hello to Mischief in the first stall. Mischief blinked up at Emma, fluttering his long eyelashes. The gold hoop earring in his ear glinted in a ray of sunlight, and Emma felt a swell of love for the adorable pony. Then she moved on to the horses.

"Good morning, Cookie," she told a proud chestnut stallion. He twitched his ears at her.

"Hello, Dewdrop," Emma greeted a young bay mare. Dewdrop nuzzled her gate—that was her way of asking for breakfast.

Blinky, a dark dapple mare with a white ghostlike shape on her forehead, craned her head as Emma approached. Emma patted her on her distinctive marking.

"Hey, Spaceship," Emma said soothingly to a gray, jittery yearling colt. Spaceship clopped in his stall, snorting. He was Blinky's son, but was much more high-strung.

The last family horse, Firelight, didn't look up as Emma arrived. Firelight was a dreamy mare and had been Emma's mother's favorite. But since the car accident—

Emma leaned into Firelight's stall and let out a sigh. "I miss her, too, Firelight," she said. Firelight twitched her legs, her enormous eyes so sad. "I'll have breakfast for you soon."

When Emma reached Dowager's stall, she was surprised to find the mare staring at her. Dowager's eyes twinkled . . .

almost as though she were keeping a secret. . . .

Emma shook her head and got busy taking care of the horses. She removed all their blankets, and then she filled their troughs with fresh water. She gave them hay to eat.

After they were done eating, she checked their hooves. Cookie's shoes were still fine, but it was almost time for the farrier to come in for a trim.

Emma inspected the horses' tack to make sure all the equipment was in good shape. She slipped halters onto all the horses and walked Cookie, Dewdrop, and Blinky out to the corral so they could get some exercise. Uncle Morgan, Walt the stable foreman, and Brian the ranch hand would be along soon to start mucking out those horses' stalls. When they were done, Emma would bring the three back in, and then turn out Dowager,

Firelight, Spaceship, and Mischief for their exercise.

While Cookie and Dewdrop trotted around the big dirt ring, Emma let herself relax. Watching horses run and play was her favorite pastime—horses were so easily joyful.

Dewdrop caught up to Cookie, and for a moment they galloped side by side. Emma had an odd flash, a daydream so strong it was almost like a vision—the horses adorned in beautiful bridles, with magnificent saddles on their backs. They stepped smartly, fancy tassels fluttering on their heads. Emma saw them as royal horses, proud members of a powerful noble family—

"Emma!" a voice called behind her. She whirled around.

Walt strode out of the stable. "Working hard, or hardly working?" he snapped.

Emma bit her lip. Walt was always gruff, but he used to have an occasional kind word for her, recognizing how much she loved the horses. But since Uncle Morgan took over, everyone seemed to be in a bad mood.

"I'll watch the horses," Walt said. He nodded his head back toward the barn. "Go," he ordered. "Your uncle has something to ask you. Now, girl."

Hurrying back toward the stables, Emma racked her brain for anything she'd forgotten to do. Maybe she hadn't folded the blankets in the specific way he demanded. . . .

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Excerpted from Valkrist's Flight by Felicity Brown
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.