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She reached out and squeezed his hand. ‘I promise I won’t let it.’
Hazel knew, however, that sometimes the stress did get to her. It had in the early days too. She and Arnold had been excited to take over the Heritage View Stables and although they’d seen their parents run it and helped out often enough, they’d both been shocked at how much work it was when it was just the two of them and ownership transferred. There was a great deal more that went on behind the scenes. The first year Hazel and Arnold had been totally in charge, they’d had to refer to their parents plenty of times – what did they do if an invoice for lessons was unpaid? What happened if a delivery wasn’t up to scratch or failed to turn up? What were all the various insurance covers they needed, what happened when weather battered Heritage View Stables and the house itself? It was like growing up to a whole new level overnight and Hazel had been exhausted with it all but willing to ride it out with the reward so worth it. Things ran a lot smoother now, apart from her reluctance to teach, the one jump she hadn’t quite been able to make.
‘We’ll catch up in a few days instead then.’ James realised she wasn’t going to budge, not on this, at least not now. But still he didn’t give up. ‘I’ll take lots of photos of the house. And you still have Tate’s number.’
Hazel was about to launch into another spiel about how this was a family business, tell James how if she got someone in to help, she might lose any impetus to get back to normal and she and Arnold wouldn’t have what they’d always wanted to build. However, her spiel didn’t even get off the starting blocks because she heard a scream that saw her darting out of the indoor school and around to where Arnold was taking his lesson.
Hazel’s gaze fell on a child lying on the ground, yelling. She felt her legs wobble, James’s hand on her back as he swore at the scene playing out in front of them. Her mind had already catapulted her back to a similar instance, a boy lying motionless in the riding school, his body twisted, and then the screams of pain, the ambulance and sirens and flashing lights, the nightmare playing out here and then in the days and weeks to come when his father confronted her in the stables and made threats she’d never forget.
Hazel almost melted into James’s arms but something inside her snapped and instead she hot-footed it over to the school.
‘Is she all right?’ Hazel couldn’t take her eyes off the young girl lying there, her pink top soiled with dirt, her blonde hair dishevelled, Arnold crouched beside her. ‘I’ll call an ambulance!’
But before she could turn on her heel, the girl had got up with Arnold’s help and between them, they were brushing the dirt from her leggings. Her tear-stained cheeks were bright pink, but the young girl had actually begun to smile at Arnold’s attentions.
‘She’s fine,’ Arnold told his sister and in one look, conveyed to Hazel that she needed to stop panicking and thinking the worst and stop scaring this girl and the other rider in the lesson.
‘Are you sure you’re really all right?’ Hazel bent down to talk to the little girl. ‘Your name is Megan, that’s right, isn’t it?’ Her dirty hands and clothes were the only sign now that she’d fallen. ‘Do you want to come with me, take a break?’
‘Hazel, she’s fine.’ Arnold was not impressed with her intervention. But it was better to be careful, act fast if they needed to.
‘Are you?’ Hazel asked Megan.
Megan nodded and Arnold encouraged her back onto Pebbles and continued the lesson.
‘The more fuss you make,’ he told Hazel once Megan was in the saddle, ‘the more she will panic and likely never get on again. Is that what you want?’ And when she shook her head, he told her, ‘I assessed her when I was down there, I’ve got quite good at it, even have more than one certificate in first aid.’
‘I know.’ They both did, as did their parents.
Arnold encouraged the riders who were trotting around the edge of the school, Megan looking as though nothing had even happened. ‘I’ll talk to her mum when she collects her, Hazel. I’ll explain what happened, but she’s fine. Look at her.’
With a nod of relief, she left him to it. If she’d had her way, Megan would be having a drink and some cake in the kitchen right about now, but she knew Arnold’s way was better. Not only had Hazel lost her confidence teaching, she’d stopped seeing horse riding for what it was, an activity that was fun, rewarding, a challenge that sometimes came with a few knocks. And she knew her brother; he’d never risk it if the kid had fallen awkwardly or really didn’t want to keep on going. It came from years of experience, and she’d lost her ability to assess situations, to see that tears and wailing were sometimes a good sign. It was when the rider lay there still and quiet that was more terrifying.
‘Arnold didn’t seem too happy with you.’ James was waiting for her as she closed the gate to the school.
She was about to point out that he might well be annoyed but she’d reacted that way because what had happened before had left its mark. But James hadn’t totally understood it then and it seemed he still didn’t get it. ‘I need to get on. Enjoy the house viewing tomorrow. Tell me about it another time.’ And she walked off, leaving him in no doubt it was time to go.
Hazel finished her chores and at lunchtime went inside to make a sandwich. And when Arnold came in for a break too, scraping the heels of his boots against the back step to get them to come off, she handed him the first ham, cheese, and pickle sandwich on rye. ‘Peace offering?’
‘Hmm. Thanks.’ But he was too hungry to say much else and for that she was glad.
Sandwich finished, he went to the fridge, took out the orange juice, and poured a generous glass of it for himself. He put the carton back into the fridge and closed the door. ‘You know you overreacted today, right?’
With a sigh, she told him, ‘I felt it better to be safe than sorry.’
He took a swig of juice. ‘And you don’t think I’m safe?’
‘Of course I do.’ And she really did. But her reaction had been just that, a reaction, not something she’d felt in control of.
‘You came running over in a flap and you scared both of those kids with your yelling and face of doom.’
Face of doom? That sounded worse than she’d realised. ‘Arnold, I—’
‘No, enough is enough, Hazel. It’s one thing if you won’t teach as much as you could, therefore impacting the business and me, but to interfere in my lessons?’
‘I was trying to help.’
‘And I had it all under control.’
