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was in trouble, but she didn’t know why.
    “Veronica’s been saying a lot of things about you three that I don’t like to hear,” he began. “You know that I expect—and that the Pony Club expects—certain standards of behavior to be upheld, both here at the barn and anywhere you represent the Pony Club or Pine Hollow.”
    “Of course, Max,” Carole said, looking confused. “But Veronica’s the one who’s misbehaving, not us. We’re sorry about what happened to her, but we didn’t have anything to do with it.”
    “That’s not how I understand it,” Max said. “I really didn’t think there could be anything to her accusations—at first. I know Veronica likes to complain.But I don’t think she’d persist this long if there weren’t some truth to what she’s saying. And in this case, any truth is too much. Did you break her bridle rack or fill her tack room with mud?”
    “Max!” The three members of The Saddle Club were so astonished that they all spoke at once.
    “We’d never—” Lisa said.
    “I even said I’d help her—” Stevie protested.
    “
Max
,” Carole repeated, “you know us. You know we’d never do anything like that. I don’t ever want to win if I can’t win fairly.”
    Max took a deep breath. “It’s not that I don’t want to believe you—”
    “Then believe us!” Lisa said. They told Max the whole story of the weekend—from Meg and Betsy doing all Veronica’s work, to Stevie’s finding mud in Belle’s tail, to Stevie’s offering to help Veronica. “Even after her saddle fell, we tried to help,” Lisa said. “But she started yelling at us right away. I think she just feels bad about messing up—she and Danny would have been fantastic if she’d even paid attention to what Stevie said. And she doesn’t want it to be her fault; she’d rather it were ours.”
    “Plus, she tried to wreck our chances,” Stevie said. “If she blames us loudly enough for what happened to her, then maybe we won’t be able to blame her for what she did.”
    Max shook his head. “Did any of you see Veronicain Belle’s stall?” he asked. “I don’t like anyone—you or Veronica—making unfounded accusations.”
    “But that’s what you’re doing!” Stevie said. “You should consider our reputations and Veronica’s, then figure out who’s telling the truth.”
    Max shook his head but, for the first time, grinned. “Veronica’s reputation is pretty tarnished, I admit. But, Stevie, so is yours. I seem to remember several incidents around the stable—”
    “But not like this,” Stevie said. “I want to win, all right, but I don’t cheat. You know I don’t. I never have.”
    “I know,” Max admitted. “I also know how much you three dislike Veronica. And I can’t help thinking that mud isn’t exactly Veronica’s style. I’ve never known her to get her hands dirty.
    “So,” he continued, “what I’ll say is this. I won’t blame you three, and I won’t blame Veronica, and I won’t hear another word from anyone on this subject. And nothing—
nothing
—like this had better ever happen again. No getting even, Stevie Lake. Do you hear me? This all gets dropped now.”
    “Of course,” Carole said. She felt relieved; she could tell Max was listening to them, and she felt certain he believed them.
    “I don’t need revenge now,” Stevie said saucily. “Why should I? We won.”
    Lisa swung the office door open and very nearlywalked into Veronica. “Oh—hi!” she said, startled. “I didn’t know you were standing right there.”
    Veronica brushed past Lisa and Stevie and Carole. “Max,” she said sweetly, “do you think Danny’s going to need his turnout rug anymore? It’s getting so warm. I could take it home and have the maid wash it.”
    “Whoa,” Carole said as they walked toward the locker room. “That was weird. What’s gotten into Max?”
    “He’s been worn down by two days of constant Veronica,” Lisa said. “What was she doing