Tory.
âAnyway, I really want you to live at Rainbow Ranch.â Patrickâs words poured out now. âLucky wants you to come too. We could hang out together. And I could even help you with your reading. If you want.â
Tory sucked in her breath.
Patrickâs face split into a wide grin. âSo, will you come?â
Tory thought he would make a pretty neat brother. Jonah and Summer were nice, and she could play with the orange cat and all those dogs. Best of all she would see Lucky every single day.
Tory grinned back. âYou bet I will!â
Tory rode Lucky along a trail beside the river.
A cool September breeze ruffled her hair. The air was crisp and it seemed ages since the terrible days of the forest fire.
Last week, Oliver had phoned and said that Lucky could stay at Rainbow Ranch forever. Tory and Patrick were sharing him, and Jonah said he would look for another pony to keep Lucky company.
Jonah had put shoes on Lucky and his hooves made a clopping sound. Tory rode past the cabins and all the way to a dead tree that leaned over the water. This was the place where Jonah and Summer said she should turn around. She tipped forward and patted Luckyâs neck. Her head whirled with plans.
That morning, she had baked a pan of chocolate brownies all by herself. Summer had helped her read the recipe, and had given her some neat tricks for sounding out hard words. They had a deal. Tory could cook anything she wanted, as long as she read the recipe herself, with Summerâs help.
In the afternoon, Tory and Patrick were going to eat brownies in the old hippie bus. Patrick was reading Black Beauty to her and she couldnât wait for the next chapter.
A bright yellow leaf twirled down from a tree and landed like a butterfly on the ground. In the distance, she heard Charlie, the spaniel, barking. She remembered that she had promised to help Patrick brush burrs and mats out of all the dogsâ coats today. She clucked to Lucky and squeezed her legs on his sides to get him moving.
For once, Lucky didnât mind trotting.
He knew that the two of them were on the way home.
Acknowledgments
I would like thank everyone at Second Story Press who worked so hard on this story, particularly my editor, Gena Gorrell, whose insight and ideas were invaluable.
I would like to thank my good friend Helen Helvoight who answered my many questions about social workers and foster children. Thanks also to my writing pals, Ainslie, Kathy, and Ann, who listened to the early drafts and, as always, were encouraging, supportive, and so much fun!
About the author
Becky Citra is a former teacher and the author of seventeen books for children. She lives on a ranch in Bridge Lake, British Columbia where she loves to ride horses, hike, snowshoe, and cross-country ski. She brings her knowledge of the outdoors into her books, often writing about ranch life and the wilderness.
âAnyway, I really want you to live at Rainbow Ranch.â Patrickâs words poured out now. âLucky wants you to come too. We could hang out together. And I could even help you with your reading. If you want.â
Tory sucked in her breath.
Patrickâs face split into a wide grin. âSo, will you come?â
Tory thought he would make a pretty neat brother. Jonah and Summer were nice, and she could play with the orange cat and all those dogs. Best of all she would see Lucky every single day.
Tory grinned back. âYou bet I will!â
Tory rode Lucky along a trail beside the river.
A cool September breeze ruffled her hair. The air was crisp and it seemed ages since the terrible days of the forest fire.
Last week, Oliver had phoned and said that Lucky could stay at Rainbow Ranch forever. Tory and Patrick were sharing him, and Jonah said he would look for another pony to keep Lucky company.
Jonah had put shoes on Lucky and his hooves made a clopping sound. Tory rode past the cabins and all the way to a dead tree that leaned over the water. This was the place where Jonah and Summer said she should turn around. She tipped forward and patted Luckyâs neck. Her head whirled with plans.
That morning, she had baked a pan of chocolate brownies all by herself. Summer had helped her read the recipe, and had given her some neat tricks for sounding out hard words. They had a deal. Tory could cook anything she wanted, as long as she read the recipe herself, with Summerâs help.
In the afternoon, Tory and Patrick were going to eat brownies in the old hippie bus. Patrick was reading Black Beauty to her and she couldnât wait for the next chapter.
A bright yellow leaf twirled down from a tree and landed like a butterfly on the ground. In the distance, she heard Charlie, the spaniel, barking. She remembered that she had promised to help Patrick brush burrs and mats out of all the dogsâ coats today. She clucked to Lucky and squeezed her legs on his sides to get him moving.
For once, Lucky didnât mind trotting.
He knew that the two of them were on the way home.
Acknowledgments
I would like thank everyone at Second Story Press who worked so hard on this story, particularly my editor, Gena Gorrell, whose insight and ideas were invaluable.
I would like to thank my good friend Helen Helvoight who answered my many questions about social workers and foster children. Thanks also to my writing pals, Ainslie, Kathy, and Ann, who listened to the early drafts and, as always, were encouraging, supportive, and so much fun!
About the author
Becky Citra is a former teacher and the author of seventeen books for children. She lives on a ranch in Bridge Lake, British Columbia where she loves to ride horses, hike, snowshoe, and cross-country ski. She brings her knowledge of the outdoors into her books, often writing about ranch life and the wilderness.
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