Blind Beauty by K M Peyton Read Free Book Online

Listening to them, Tessa had no inclination to mention her yard’s forlorn new horse. She sat in stubborn silence.
    Myra was wittering on about her lack of success in finding Tessa a school place.
    â€œIt looks as if you’ll have to be taught at home. They send someone.”
    â€œPoor bloody teacher, stuck with her,” Greevy said.
    â€œWhy don’t you grow up, Greevy?” Tessa enquired. “For an adult you sound like someone out of primary school.”
    Greevy glowered. With a boil on his neck, he got worse by the day.
    â€œOh, you two, stop it,” Myra sighed. She was scared of telling Maurice that the education department said he would have to pay for Tessa’s private tutor. If he could afford boarding school he could afford the tutoring, they had informed her. They weren’t to know that he had been happy to pay boarding school fees to get Tessa out of his way, not for anything to do with education. He would be less than happy to pay out if she were still to be underfoot.
    â€œI don’t want an education anyway,” Tessa said. “I know all I need to know.”
    â€œNow who’s talking rubbish?” Geevy jeered. “Peabrain. You wouldn’t last a minute at Raleigh’s.”
    â€œNor you at Mr Fellowes’.”
    â€œWell, we all know why you’re still there.”
    â€œAnd the same applies to you.”
    With this unedifying gridlock the conversation came to an end.
    Tessa went up to her room and turned on the television. It was a relief from the real world.
    The next day, when she was sweeping the yard, the lorry-driver who had brought Buffoon drove in in a Land Rover and handed her a slim, stiff-backed book.
    â€œThat horse’s passport. Buffoon. Your guv’nor will want it. OK?”
    â€œYeah, I’ll give it him.”
    The man drove off. Tessa idly leafed through the papers. It was headed “Document of description for the identification of foals, yearlings, racehorses, broodmares and stallions”. After several pages of boring rules in both English and French she came to a drawing. Under the drawing was a box headed, “Name of Dam”. And in the box was written in ink “Shiner”.

I t was no good pretending any more that she didn’t care. Knowing that Buffoon was Shiner’s child changed Tessa’s life.
    She told nobody, not even Myra.
    It was August, dry and dusty, and as she hurried to the stables in the morning she knew that, for the first time in her life, there was something she desperately wanted – to stay at the stable and look after Buffoon, the despised, useless new horse. He was a sin-bin candidate, like herself. Not wanted. They belonged together. Fate had delivered him to her. It was more than coincidence. She would die for him. To her, now, he was beautiful.
    As she hurried along, leaving a trail of dew through the downland grass, she knew she was being ridiculous. Hysterical even. But she couldn’t help it. She had never in her life had anything to look forward to, never had an ambition, save the perennial wish to get away from her situation. Now her burning wish was to stay where she was. But she was only supposed to work at the stables until the end of the month, when – somehow – she was bound for an education. Even now Myra was trying yet another school, an ill-thought-of comprehensive, the last resort. Tessa knew they didn’t want her at Sparrows Wyck, she had made herself too grouchy and unwilling. Gilly had already told her that Sarah would give her short shrift … Her mind tumbled over all the obstacles to her new, burning wish.
    She prayed aloud, “I will be good! I will be good! If only I can stay…”
    But how could she become a real stable girl, when she was only twelve?
    Desperate anxiety hastened her steps. For the first time she arrived early, while they were still at breakfast. The horses were still finishing their small