Antonia, the Horse Whisperer Read online

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  Original edition © 2012 Coppenrath Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, Münster, Germany. English Translation Copyright © 2014 by Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.

  Original title: Reiterhof Rosenburg: Antonia, die mit den Pferden flüstert (ISBN 978-3-8157-5112-1). All rights reserved.

  First English-language edition published by Sky Pony Press, 2014.

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  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  eISBN: 978-1-62873-942-8

  Manufactured in China September 2013

  This product conforms to CPSIA 2008

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Zöller, Elisabeth, 1945- author.

  [Antonia, die mit den Pferden flüstert. English]

  Antonia, the horse whisperer / Elisabeth Zöller and Brigitte Kolloch; with illustrations by Betina Gotzen-Beek; translated from the German by Connie Stradling Morby.

  pages cm. -- (Rosenburg Riding Stables ; volume 1)

  Originally published in German by Coppenrath F in 2011 under title: Antonia, die mit den Pferden flüstert.

  Summary: «Antonia loves horses but when a skiddish gelding arrives at the stables--who only responds to Antonia--will she be able to keep him safe until his French owner comes to check on him?»-- Provided by publisher.

  ISBN 978-1-62636-383-0 (hardback)

  [1. Horses--Fiction. 2. Horsemanship--Fiction. 3. Human-animal communication--Fiction.] I. Kolloch, Brigitte, author. II. Gotzen-Beek, Betina, illustrator. III. Morby, Connie Stradling, translator. IV. Title.

  PZ7.Z74An 2014

  [Fic]--dc23

  2013035686

  CONTENTS

  For Ever and Ever

  Out of the Dream

  Love at First Sight

  Guilty Conscience?

  Help!

  The Plot

  The Storm

  All’s Well That Ends Well

  For Ever and Ever

  She had won the big jumping competition! A no-fault ride with the best time! No faults!

  Antonia was absolutely stunned and overwhelmed. She sat on Snow White, her horse. The gray mare pranced with excitement and seemed just as proud as Antonia.

  Yes, she, Antonia Rosenburg, had actually won first prize in the horse show!

  “The result of years of training . . .” she heard a voice exclaim over the loudspeaker.

  He means us, Snow White and me, she thought, and enjoyed the resounding applause. She stroked Snow White’s mane, stretched, then lifted her head and swung it, shaking her long hair to the back. Her eyes lit up with joy. She could hardly believe it. They had won! And the people in the stands were clapping for her.

  Next to her Leona was sitting on Thunder. Leona, her very best friend. Had she won too?

  “Man, I knew it,” whispered Leona. “You and Snow White cleaned up all the prizes!”

  Somewhere in the audience Antonia’s father, Alexander, and Grandma and Grandpa Rosenburg were sitting. And, of course, her older sister Caroline was there too.

  Antonia bowed her head as the medal was hung around her neck and then she accepted a gleaming trophy. A ribbon was placed on Snow White’s bridle. Proudly, Antonia sat up straight in the saddle and waved to everybody. The fanfare sounded, and the six best riders galloped their victory lap for the grand finale. It was a wonderful feeling. It was like a dream . . .

  . . . from which she suddenly awakened, because somebody was calling to her. What had happened?

  “Hello!” Leona leaned down toward her from the top bed and grinned. “You were talking in your sleep again!”

  Antonia rubbed the sleep from her eyes and beamed. “Really? I was standing on the very top. It was an unbelievable feeling!”

  “Antonia, you’ve gotten to the top so many times. You know the feeling already. I train and train and I’m still not half as good as you. You were just born to ride horses.” Leona jumped out of bed and pointed out the window. “It’s going to be a super-duper day! Not a wisp of a cloud to be seen. Riding and swimming are on the menu today!”

  And the sun really was shining brightly already, sending its warm rays into Antonia’s room. Antonia stretched her arms and legs. Yes! It would be a great day. It was summer vacation! Finally! Six weeks of riding, swimming, and dreaming.

  “Get up!” shouted Leona.

  Antonia leaped out of bed. She would be able to spend the whole day with her best friend and Snow White. And tomorrow, too. And the next day. Leona was staying here at Antonia’s house, in her room, for three weeks. That’s what both friends had wanted for their summer vacations.

  Antonia suddenly felt butterflies in her stomach. The Snow White butterflies! Today was Snow White’s big day; today, she finally got the bandage off. At last Antonia and her mare would slowly be able to begin training again. But there was another feeling, too, a slight ache in her tummy and a nervous trembling. Was it doubt? Oh, nonsense. Everything will be fine, Antonia told herself.

  “We’re going to the lake after riding, right?” Leona was such a tomboy! There wasn’t a sport she didn’t try. And that’s how she looked: slim, well-trained, short-cropped blonde hair, blue eyes, and thousands of freckles on her snub nose. Swimming and riding were her absolute favorite sports, and she was really good at swimming and best at diving. Antonia was sure one of Leona’s ancestors must have been a real mermaid. Antonia liked to swim, too, but really, for her, there were only horses. She had been sitting on horses since she was barely able to walk.

  Below in the farmyard, Felix and John, the two grooms, were puttering around already. On the Rosenburg stud farm, things started early—at six o’clock; otherwise, horse care, stable care, riding and jumping, feeding, and stall mucking would never get done. The little tractor rumbled over the path. Mr. Rosenburg used it to distribute feed. Antonia’s father was usually the first one out in the morning and, as the feed specialist, he gave each horse its “breakfast helping,” as he lovingly called it, shortly after six o’clock. Meanwhile the grooms mucked out the stalls and groomed the horses.

  Antonia and Leona slipped into their clothes. Now there was no holding them back. Downstairs in the kitchen, they heard Karen clattering the silverware. Karen Steinmann was the good fairy in the house and ran the big household with Grandma, while Antonia’s father, her aunt Maria, and her grandfather took care of the horses, breeding, stables, and riding lessons.

  Antonia’s mother was no longer alive. She had died when Antonia was only three years old. Sometimes it made Antonia sad that she could barely remember her. When she felt that way, she would run to Grandma or Caroline, who would tell Antonia about her.

  But this was no time for sadness.

  “First, to the horses!” called Antonia. “And then we’ll pack our breakfast and ride to the lake.” During vacation, she and Leona were always in the barn, accompanied by Bellmondo, the lively Bernese mountain dog. He leaped around their legs, ran ahead, waite
d impatiently for the two of them, and let them give his head a scratch.

  Antonia took a deep breath of the still fresh summer air. Yes, here she was at home; her room was in the big longhouse, exactly over the huge kitchen, whose big bay window gave a clear view of the old oak tree. In the back part of the longhouse were twelve of the twenty-five stalls in which cows and pigs had once lived.

  Last year, the newer stalls had been incorporated into the former coach house across the way. And Grandma and Grandpa lived in-between in the “sheepfold,” as they lovingly called their little half-timbered house, in which sheep really once were kept. There they were entirely separate from the main house and lived right in the middle of the busy horse farm.

  Antonia and Leona opened the big gate to the stables. The sweet smell of hay greeted them, as well as the warmth and familiar lip-smacking and neighing.

  “Hello, Fiona. Hello, Morning Star. Hello, Mr. Right. Hello . . .” They greeted the horses left and right—the gray horse, the brown ones, the black horse, and the sorrel; they heard snorting, kicking, and the sounds of impatient horses waiting for feed. Antonia’s father divided the hay portions evenly; the doors behind them stood open, and the tractor rolled up from there.

  “Hello, Thunder!” called Leona, stroking her favorite horse.

  It was through Thunder that Antonia and Leona had met. Three years ago, Leona’s parents had looked for a good stable for Thunder and for a riding instructor for Leona. The Rosenburg Farm was the best farm far and wide, and Leona was instantly impressed by the friendly atmosphere.

  “There are really terrific horses here!” she had shouted with joy, and then, as Antonia came around the corner, the two had immediately become friends. From that day on, the two girls were inseparable.

  Antonia went three stalls farther to Snow White. “Snow White, hello! How are you?” An affectionate snorting and familiar neighing were the answer.

  “You’ve been waiting for me, right?” Antonia stroked down Snow White’s back to her legs and carefully touched her bandage.

  “That’s coming off today,” she whispered in Snow White’s ear. “And then you have to be patient. We have to take it easy at first. But we’ll be fine.” She looked at the tight bandage, which had been supporting Snow White’s hind leg since the fall exactly six weeks ago.

  “Of course, you’ll start with long rides around the Rosenburg Farm, but I’ll just lead you at first,” Antonia whispered to her. “You’ll see, it’s changed a lot in six weeks. The grain fields are full of blue cornflowers and red poppies. They finished building the new indoor riding arena. There’s no scaffolding anymore. You’ll like it. And Grandma’s rosebushes are blooming as beautifully as ever!” Snow White seemed to understand every word and answered with a vigorous snort. “We won’t go to the jumping area until much later.”

  Antonia held out a few oats for Snow White. “But this will be the last morning with this annoying bandage.” When Snow White had eaten her oats, Antonia led her to the grooming area, put her grooming kit down, and began to run the soft brush over the horse’s neck and back. Snow White held completely still while she was brushed; only a soft, melodic humming came out of her nearly closed mouth.

  “See, the sun is shining. From now on, we’ll be outside again every day. It’s the perfect time to slowly get moving again.” Antonia patted her mare’s back and flanks, combed her mane and tail, removed pieces of straw from the comb, and ran the soft brush along her legs. With the hoof pick, she cleaned Snow White’s hooves.

  “And now for a little treat, my dear,” she exclaimed cheerfully and went back to the stall with Snow White.

  She heard her father, who was approaching a car that had just rolled into the farm. Voices came closer. Grandpa accompanied Mr. Rosenburg and Dr. Kemper, the veterinarian, to the stalls. Dr. Kemper had been there so often in the last weeks. He had shown Antonia everything she had needed to know about splinting, bandages, and other dressings. Today, finally—after six long weeks—the nightmare was over.

  They greeted each other with a nod, and Antonia relinquished her spot in the stall to Dr. Kemper. Good thing the stalls were so big after the renovation last year! Her father and grandfather had planned it well. Now she was able to stay there during the examination and look comfortably over Dr. Kemper’s shoulder. Dr. Kemper set down his portable ultrasound unit in front of the stall. Leona waited there anxiously with Mr. Rosenburg and Grandpa. The three of them looked through the bars.

  Dr. Kemper opened his bag and got a syringe ready. Was that some kind of sedative shot?

  Get on with it, Antonia thought impatiently. Her eyes looked at him imploringly. Dr. Kemper greeted Snow White, petting her ears and tail. At last he bent down.

  As the vet slowly loosened the bandage, Snow White flinched.

  “Snow White, easy. What’s the matter?” Or was Antonia mistaken? That shouldn’t be painful anymore! But once Dr. Kemper had completely removed the bandage, a noticeable shudder ran through Snow White’s body. Was she trembling in pain? No, it was just relief. Dr. Kemper got the ultrasound unit. Grandpa, Antonia’s father, and Leona looked at the screen too. Unfortunately, Antonia couldn’t see a thing from her corner of the stall.

  The adults looked serious. For goodness’ sake, what did that mean? Why was Dr. Kemper shaking his head? Six weeks, he had said back then, and they were up today. The veterinarian stared ahead for a second, almost self-consciously, then looked from Mr. Rosenburg to Grandpa and finally at Antonia. Even though he wasn’t saying anything for the time being, Antonia knew exactly what he would say to her.

  As though through a bank of fog, she heard Dr. Kemper explain, “I’m sorry, Antonia, but you won’t be able to jump Snow White anymore. At most, you can go for a little ride.”

  Alexander Rosenburg pulled Antonia toward him and took her under his arm, and Grandpa put his calloused hand on her shoulder, as if he could protect Antonia from everything bad.

  Dr. Kemper was speaking again, and Antonia forced herself to listen to him. “The chances weren’t good from the beginning. It’s true everything is healed, and with careful, specific exercises, she could be pain-free. But jumping is no longer an option. Never again. Further therapy, even complex operations in the animal clinic, won’t fix that. You know, it was an eighty percent tendon tear, which exhibits a poor tendency to heal. With easy movement on firm ground and with supportive, conservative therapy, Snow White can slowly be ridden again. But this kind of healing process drags on for many months. The scar tissue is much less elastic and can’t withstand the intense pressure of jumping. However, Snow White will soon be fit again for quiet rides.”

  Antonia heard everything from afar, understanding nothing and not wanting to. Tears ran down her face. Snow White was her friend. They had done everything together up to now. She turned and ran out of the stable. From a distance she heard Leona call, “Wait, Antonia!” But she just kept running—through the hens clucking around, scattering under protest. Tears clouded her vision, and she couldn’t see where she was running. From behind, someone laid a hand on her shoulder, and Leona whispered, “Antonia, come back. Snow White needs you. Surely she understood everything and is just as sad as you.”

  “So what?” sobbed Antonia. “It doesn’t matter.” She stuck out her lip defiantly.

  “You’re just disappointed now, Antonia. But Snow White needs you, really. She realizes that something’s wrong. You have to comfort her.”

  Antonia nodded; Leona gave her a nudge, and they headed back to the stable. Mr. Rosenburg, Grandpa, and Dr. Kemper had left. It was just Antonia and Leona now.

  Antonia took Snow White’s head in her hands. She stared at the mare for a while. “You’ll be my friend forever and ever. I promise.”

  She whispered it twice, like an incantation, then repeated it loudly the third time. She wanted everyone to hear it. Snow White was her friend!

  And Snow White looked at her so lovingly that she felt sick again. She pressed her head on Snow White’
s neck and sobbed while Leona gently rubbed her shoulder.

  Just this morning I had this fantastic dream that I was standing on top as the show jumping winner, thought Antonia. Will that ever happen now?

  Out of the Dream

  The next day Antonia scanned the big pasture. Where was Snow White? She swept her dark brown hair out of her face and closed her eyes. Very softly she whistled through her fingers. Right away she heard a familiar neighing—just as usual!

  Antonia felt footsteps approach on the soft ground. Her gray mare came limping happily up to her.

  “Hey, old girl.” Antonia smiled and carefully removed a few burrs from Snow White’s light coat. “Here, my dear,” she whispered softly and held a carrot out to the horse. Warm air streamed out of the mare’s soft nostrils.

  “Oh, Snow White.” Ever so slowly, Antonia became conscious of the thought that she would never again be able to jump Snow White. But she still wanted to be a show jumper! She wanted to be just as successful as her mother once was and as her older sister was now. Before Antonia was born, her mother had won every competition that had a high status and reputation. Antonia, along with Leona, had often looked at the old videos and photo albums of her mother’s competitions. Doing that always made the two friends start daydreaming. Antonia’s mother looked so happy and proud in the photos. Antonia wanted to experience the same feeling.

  But then the horrible accident had happened. Her mother had died instantly. Antonia’s father was sad all the time and didn’t want to do anything. Caroline slowly snapped out of her grief, and Grandpa and Grandpa moved into the sheep stall. Shortly thereafter, Maria, Papa’s sister, came to live with them. Maria had said right from the beginning that she didn’t want to—and couldn’t—replace their mother, but she had consoled both children and given them new strength and confidence.

  Antonia still remembered it all clearly.

  She had just turned three years old and had called out so many times for her mama. And although Maria had come to her bed and Papa had stroked her head, and although Grandpa had sung songs and Grandma had read stories to her, Mama never came.