Read Online Comet and the Champion's Cup by Stacy Gregg - Free Book Online

tonight she had considered telling the kids her own true story. She wanted to tell them that ghosts could truly be real–that Mystic was dead, but he was still with her somehow. He had come back to her, not as a ghost, but as flesh and blood, like a real horse. He was her horse and he always would be.
    Issie wanted to tell them. But something stopped her. She was suddenly filled with the enormous weight of the dark truth that she held within her. At that moment she realised that Mystic wasn’t something you could tell kids as a bedtime story. The sacred bond she shared with thegrey gelding was too special to be turned into a campfire tale. Mystic had been her best friend. Now he was like her guardian angel. He was her secret and she shared it with no one–that was the way it had to be.
    Issie had been so deep in thought that she was halfway across the lawn before she noticed the noise. In fact, even when she did finally notice it, she wasn’t really sure whether she had actually heard something. Was it her turn to imagine ghosts now? No! There it was again! The noise sounded a bit like the crunching of branches underfoot. It was as if something or someone were following her. Issie spun around, shining her torch beam in a circle. Then she stopped and trained the beam on the garden to her right, where she thought the noise was coming from.
    Issie kept her torch pointed on the garden. There! In the shadows. She could have sworn she saw a branch move. She shone the torch on the spot, but whatever it was had gone. She tried to listen again, but all she could hear was her own heart beating. All those ghost stories were getting the better of her!
    Then she heard the rustling sound again. Closer this time. It was coming from behind the trees just beside her. She could hear branches crackling as something moved through the undergrowth.
    â€œIs there someone there?” She could feel her palms sweating. “This isn’t funny!” Issie’s pulse quickened. She thought about what Lucy had said back at the cottage, about there being another Grimalkin. Maybe she was right. How did Issie know there had only been one? Ohmygod, what if…
    Out of the shadows now a dark shape came towards her across the lawn. As it loomed closer Issie shone the torch beam directly at the creature. Not a black cat as Issie had feared, but a chestnut and white skewbald pony.
    â€œComet?” Issie groaned. “Comet! How did you get out?” Issie already knew the answer. Sure enough, when she led the skewbald back to his paddock she found the gate was still shut tight. Comet, must have jumped.
    â€œOne metre fifty!” Issie whistled. “And in the dark too!” She turned to face Comet, who was looking extremely pleased with himself.
    â€œComet!” Issie said firmly. “You have to stop this. No more jumping out or Aunty Hess is bound to put you back in the loose boxes. And you wouldn’t like that, would you?”
    For a moment there, Issie fancied that Comet actually understood her. The skewbald pony looked at her with sorrowful, deep brown eyes, as if to say,
Sorry, it won’t happen again
.
    Issie couldn’t help but giggle at his apologetic expression. “OK then,” she said, opening the gate, “I’m giving you one last chance.” As Issie released her grip on his halter the skewbald trotted off merrily across the paddock. Issie shook her head as she watched him go. Would he still be there by the morning? Hester would have a blue fit if he jumped out again. Maybe Issie should just give up and lock him up now in the loose boxes herself?
    Issie trained her torchlight on the paddock, searching for Comet. And then she felt her pulse quicken as she caught something unexpected in the beam. There was another horse in the paddock with Comet! She had only caught a glimpse of him for just a moment, but she was sure of it! Searching frantically in the darkness, she waved the torch