Blazing the Trail (Sunshine & Shadow Book 5) by Alie Williamson Read Free Book Online

was crossing them
with his quarter horse stud, trying to breed the perfect working horse; at
least that’s what the flier at the gas station said. It makes sense. But I
always knew they would get snatched up some day. Mustangs have a funny way of
finding their own kind,” he said, dismounting from his horse and handing the
reins to April.
    “What makes sense?”
    “Breeding mustangs and
quarter horses. Think about it; you get all the durability of the mustang
blood, with the look and attitude of the quarter horses.”
    April nodded. “Like
Chinook.”
    “Or you get a bull-headed
hunk of muscle that wants to kill you...” Kip looked at April pointedly. “Also
like Chinook.”
    She stuck her tongue out
at him, feeling her heart flutter at his joviality.
    Her dad stepped forward,
slowly.
    “Easy girl,” he murmured.
“You’re alright now. We’ll get ya out of this nasty thing.”
    The horse leaned away
from him, locked in place by the trap attached to her leg and the ropes of the two
cowboys. She eyed April’s dad suspiciously, waiting for him to move. When he
didn’t, April could almost see the wheels in her head turning. She was
thoroughly feral, after being in the wild with the mustangs for over two years.
She was ready to fight for her life, April could see it.
    “Easy,” her dad said
again.
    The trap chain was about
six feet long, but the button was on the trap itself, forcing him to have to
get within six inches of the angry horse. Stepping closer, he accidently
touched the chain and the metal made a noise. The mare jumped, spinning her
haunches towards him and tucking her tail tight into her buttocks.
    “Dad!” April said.
    Her dad backed up swiftly
as the horse kicked out with both back feet, angry, terrified.
    “Dammit. Almost.”
    “Dad, you can’t! She’s
not gonna let you get close again.”
    “I have to try!” Her dad
silenced her with a look and April bit her tongue. She wanted to scream out, to
stop him, because she could see the survival instinct in the mustang’s eyes and
she knew she wasn’t going to let Simon Cooper approach.
    She kicked out again, her
ears pinned flat to her head, sounding more like a wolf than a horse.
    April’s dad cursed.
    “Dad.” As he turned
around, April continued, “Let me try.”
    He shook his head
adamantly as Kip echoed him. “Absolutely not,” they said together.
    “She’ll see me as less of
a threat. She’ll let me close.”
    Kip leaned forward on his
horse. “Seriously, April, do you have a death wish? You’ve been putting
yourself in unnecessary danger a lot lately.”
    April knew he was
referring to her late night bareback ride. “Shut up, Kip,” she snapped.
    He gritted his teeth at
her tenacity but stayed silent.
    April could see her dad
was considering it and she didn’t give him a chance to deny her the
opportunity. She dismounted Chinook and handed both reins to her dad. He looked
shocked but let her walk slowly towards the mustang.
    The mustang pricked up
her ears, watching April intently. She didn’t look frightened; she looked
suspicious. April took another step.
    She began to sing
quietly, the same song that calmed Chinook down. Focusing on putting one foot
in front of the other, she kept her chin down and made sure not to make eye
contact with the horse. She was almost to the trap now, and with one final
step, she was beside her. Leaning forward, careful not to spook the mustang, she
picked up her foot and let it hover over the metal.
    “One hard stomp, April,”
Kip murmured. “It’ll spook her but she’ll be free, and we can hold her.”
    “Then you run, April,”
her dad said from behind her.
    April’s eyes were glued
on the mustang. The horse’s nostrils were flared but her eyes were calm. April
could see the intelligence in them. She continued with the last verse of her
song and on the final word, stepped with all her weight onto the release of the
trap. The jaws sprung open and the mare leapt into the air. She