A Whirlwind of Delight

 by Martha E.

Twelve-year-old Andrea Carter straddled the fence and let out a whoop of delight. Earlier that year, when she’d been trying to recover her memory after a gunshot to the head, Chad had offered to let her help train Whirlwind, the gorgeous beast of a horse that Andi had been begging to help with since the first day he arrived on the ranch. Andi took Chad up on his promise after her memory had been restored, and her brother was holding to his vow today. There was nothing that sounded better to Andi on this beautifully sunny Saturday morning. 

   “Hey, Andi!”

   Andi leapt off the rail and dashed over to where her second-oldest brother stood, leaning against the corral gate. “Yeah?”

   “I need you to hold the gate for me,” Chad instructed, slapping a palm against the plank. “I want to get Whirlwind in here as quickly as possible.”

   Andi obediently stepped forward and took Chad’s place. “Sure. But won’t you need help getting him out of--”

   Chad held up a hand and gave a quick shake of his head. “I’ll do it. Just stay here and do as I say. Don’t worry; you’ll get your share of the work.” He delivered a teasing yank to her long dark braid before hurrying off toward the stables. 

   Tingling excitement coursed through Andi as she unlatched the gate and pushed it open. She’d been waiting for this moment for a long time. Nothing was going to dampen her joy at the prospect of helping gentle one of the most striking stallions she’d ever seen. She leaned against the fence and waited eagerly for her brother.

   Within moments, Chad and several of the other ranch hands came into view, guiding the horse.

   Whirlwind plodded along, ears twitching nervously. His dapple-grey coat shone in the morning sun. He let out a clipped whinny and shook his glistening mane. 

   Andi’s grip on the rail tightened as the monstrous equine made its way past her and into the corral. She quickly swung the gate shut and made her way toward her brother, who had backed up and was quietly observing the stallion’s movements. 

   Chad turned to her and tilted his head in the animal’s direction. “Not quite as antsy as the last time we took him out. That’s a good sign.”

    Andi nodded wordlessly and watched as Whirlwind began prancing in a circle, tossing his head and snorting. Then she planted her hands on her hips and regarded her brother with a quizzical eye. “Are you going to approach him first?”

   Chad’s blue eyes moved from his sister to the stallion and then back again. “Actually,” he said, the corner of his mouth turning upward, “maybe you’d better go first, so long as you’re careful. I have something I want to do. Something that just might help his training along.”

   “What is it?” 

   He shook his head and gave her a gentle push. “Go on.”

   Andi stepped forward. Whirlwind regarded her suspiciously but did nothing else. As her feet brought her slowly closer to the horse, she began murmuring softly. “Hey there. I’m Andi. I thought that you and I could get better acquainted. I won’t hurt you, I promise. What do you say?”

   The calm words seemed to settle Whirlwind, and he shook his mane out before coming to a standstill and watching the strange girl move quietly toward him.

   Andi extended her hand and kept talking. Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Chad turn and leave the corral. He returned a minute later leading a golden palomino. 

   Andi caught her breath. What on earth was Chad up to, bringing Taffy out here? “Chad!” Andi called over her shoulder in a harsh whisper, so as not to startle Whirlwind. “What--”

  Chad responded by placing a finger to his lips and shaking his head. Then he quietly slid the gate open and let Andi’s horse enter.

   Andi watched, speechless, as Taffy trotted right up to the stallion. The two briefly touched noses. Then Taffy backed up and whickered. She sidled up alongside her mistress and waited.

   Andi stood dumbly for a moment. What would riding her horse bareback in the same corral that held a wild stallion accomplish? Shaking her head, Andi moved forward and grasped her horse’s mane. She soon found herself sitting atop Taffy, who tossed her head and snorted.

   Just then, Taffy let out a whinny and broke into a canter, then a gallop.

   Andi swallowed her surprise and hung on. She’d no idea what the purpose of this was, or how it might help train the stallion. She risked a glance backwards and was rewarded with the sight of Whirlwind’s magnificent figure galloping after them. 

   After a few minutes of running around aimlessly, Taffy jerked to a stop a few yards in front of Chad, who had his arms crossed in front of his chest in silent observation.

   Andi sat up and cocked an eyebrow at her brother. “What is the purpose of this?”

   Before Chad could reply, a shadow fell across the ground beside Taffy. Andi looked up.

   Whirlwind tossed his head up and down and heaved out an excited breath. His paw crashed to the ground. Then he stopped about a foot away from the mare and his rider. 

   Hesitantly, Andi reached out and laid a gentle hand against Whirlwind’s warm neck. A daring idea flashed into her mind. Don’t do it! That’s a sure-fire way to get yourself killed.

   Andi pushed the mental warning aside and gritted her teeth. She didn’t want to let such an opportunity pass by without taking it, but would it be wise to do such a foolhardy thing? 

Andi wanted to try it so badly. So, murmuring soothingly, she ran her hand down Whirlwind’s mane and began to ease herself from Taffy’s back.

   “Andi!” Chad’s voice was low and laced with more than mere concern. “What in blue blazes are you doing?”

   Andi waved a hand at him without taking her eyes off of the stallion. He looked calm as a summer day. She knew it was a bad idea, but . . .

  She drew a deep breath and gently slid onto Whirlwind’s broad back. 

  Startled, Whirlwind let out a loud confused snort and tossed his head. His silvery mane went flying. Then he began to prance back and forth nervously, seemingly trying to figure out what to do about this sudden weight on his back. Just then, he whirled around and took off like a shot. 

   Andi swallowed back a cry of shock and grabbed his mane to keep from being dumped. The wind whipped at her bare arms and tore the hat from her head. Panic began to creep in. Andi rarely ever felt fear while on the back of the horse, but she felt it now. Horror rose inside her throat and threatened to cut off her breath. What on earth was she thinking? She’d just put herself on the back of an untrained, unpredictable horse who could easily buck her off and kill her. He wasn’t named Whirlwind for no reason. A childhood image flashed into her mind. Father. Falling from his horse. And . . . dead. 

   Andi sucked in a sharp breath. She would stay on. Her life depended on it. She clutched at Whirlwind’s mane with trembling hands and latched onto it with an iron grip. All she could do now was let him run. If she tried to jump from the horse, she could be killed. She sent a quick prayer heavenward. Oh Lord, help! I don’t know why I ever thought it was a good idea to do such a foolish thing. Then she pressed her legs to the horse’s sides and shifted her weight backwards. 

   To her astonishment, Whirlwind responded to her nonverbal command by slowing his gait. He made a neat turn and headed back toward Taffy and what Andi assumed would be a furious brother. 

      Andi clenched her jaw and slowly sat up. Then she lightly touched her feet to Whirlwind’s sides.

   He responded by lengthening his stride. When they approached and Andi gave the signal for him to stop, Whirlwind planted his feet and skidded to a halt in front of Chad. 

   Andi gasped in a huge lungful of air. She’d barely any time to catch her breath before strong arms reached up and wrenched her off of Whirlwind’s back. 

   “Good grief, Andi!” Chad’s face was suffused with worry and frustration. “I let you get up near him, and what do you do? You were supposed to be helping me by training him, not riding him!”

   Andi couldn’t have replied even if she had wanted to. She just focused on staying upright and turned to look at Whirlwind. He had moved over next to Taffy again and was now giving a piece of his mind.

   Chad stopped ranting long enough to follow her gaze. Then he relaxed his grip on Andi’s arm and ran an arm across his forehead. “He responded to you?”

   Andi nodded. Then she turned pleading eyes to her brother. “You won’t keep me from helping now, will you? I’m fine. As Mother says, ‘All’s well that-’” 

   Chad cut off Mother’s favorite saying with a heavy sigh. “I did promise to let you help. However, this stunt does put some limits. You won’t help gentle him unless I’m right beside you. And no more jumping on wild horse’s backs!”

   Andi blew out a relieved breath. The rebuke was definitely more mild than she had expected . . . and deserved. “I’m sorry, Chad.”

   He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and gave her a squeeze. Then he leaned close to Andi’s ear and hissed, “See that it doesn’t happen again, or Mother will be hearing about this.”

Then he straightened up and regarded Whirlwind with fresh interest. “He seemed to recognize your commands. I saw how he reacted.”

   Andi nodded. “He’s smart. Training might be easier than we expected.”

   Chad regarded her with a surprised look but said nothing. He just stood quietly and watched the stallion’s movements before turning back to Andi. He bore into her with a dark look. “If I let you continue, you must promise there will be no more shenanigans. And you’d better be glad I’m letting you do so. You ought to be grounded. You can’t just get onto the back of an untrained horse!” 

Andi swallowed. She knew full well what could have happened because of her recklessness. Would she ever learn to stop and consider the consequences before leaping at every opportunity that happened her way?  She could almost hear Mother’s voice. Think before you act, Andrea. “Yes, sir,” She muttered, eyes downcast. “I’m sorry.”

   Chad cooled somewhat at her apology. “I know you are,” he said. “You just scared me. How could I have faced Mother if you’d gotten injured?”

   Andi winced at the thought. Mother would not be pleased when she heard of her errant daughter’s latest close brush with death. “Then we don’t have to tell her?” Andi suggested weakly. “I promise I won’t try that again.” She flicked her gaze from her brother’s face back to her mare. “Why’d you bring Taffy in here, anyway?”

   Chad sighed. “While you were . . . recuperating . . . I started working with him just a bit. I noticed that whenever Taffy happened to be near him during those sessions, he seemed more calm. I figured I’d try it for real and see what happened.” He looked his little sister up and down. He shook his head. “Well, something happened, all right. Though I must admit it wasn’t what I had expected.”

   Andi felt the blush that spread up from her neck and warmed her cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she apologized for what seemed like the umpteenth time. It was then that she realized she was still shaking and rather tired from her close call. She backed up against the fence and laid her arms across the railing. “It’s your turn now. I’ll sit out for now.”

   Chad nodded his agreement. “You rest. I’ll show you how to go about gentling a horse without jumping on its back.” He gave her a ghost of a smirk and then turned back to the object of his attention.

   Andi let out a weary sigh and watched her brother calmly approach the stallion. “You do that.”

                                                              * * * 

   Andi slowly and clumsily made her way up the porch steps. The shock of her dangerous experience had not yet worn off, and she felt winded. A glass of cold milk and a snack sounded wonderful. After a few more minutes of unsuccessfully trying to approach Whirlwind, Chad had declared they’d call it a day for now and go get something to eat. Andi had protested that they’d barely started, but she sensed deep down that Chad didn’t quite trust her yet. So she reluctantly agreed and was now slugging her way into the house. No doubt Luisa would ply her with inquiries as to Andi’s weariness before giving her a much-needed drink.

   Andi stumped into the kitchen and glanced around. Thankfully, Luisa was nowhere in sight. Andi was just creeping up to the counter when footsteps alerted her of someone approaching. Andi whirled.

  Her mother and older sister halted just inside the doorway and regarded her with surprise.

   “Andrea,” Mother said, moving to Andi’s side and peering at her face. There was no hiding the dishevelled hair and streaks of dried sweat running across Andi’s forehead. “Are you alright?”

   Before Andi could answer, the back door slammed open and Chad popped into the room, briefly lifting his hat in greeting. “Oh, she’s all right. We were just working with Whirlwind.” He gave Andi a wink before turning to place his hat on the peg.

   Melinda piped up from behind Mother. “And somehow training a horse does that?” She pointed an accusing finger to Andi’s britches. 

   Andi glanced down. A tear the length of her middle finger sliced across one pant leg, just below her knee. I must’ve ripped it in the struggle with Whirlwind. She straightened up and gave a nonchalant shrug. “Oh, Whirlwind was just being difficult. I’m fine.” She forced a tired smile onto her face.

   Melinda rolled her eyes. “I don’t understand why you prefer to do such dirty work. I offered for you to help me in here with-”

   “And how did it go, Andrea?” Mother broke in gently, raising her eyebrows warningly at her older daughter. 

   “Uh, great,” Andi replied quickly, flicking a knowing glance at Chad. Please don’t tell it in front of Melinda!

   Chad grinned back. Let’s let it be our little secret was written all over his facial features.

   “I’m sure.”

   Andi cocked an eyebrow at Melinda’s less-than-enthusiastic response. Suddenly the phrase her older sister loved to use to describe a wonderful time clicked in Andi’s brain. Andi grinned at Melinda and waved her hand in the air with a flourish before planting it on one hip.

    “Oh yes. It was a whirlwind of delight."