indoor arena where a girl with long, jet-black hair worked a bay mare. They watched as she sped through a reining pattern. The young lady rode with precision and sat the horse well.
Yvonne moved to a nearby table and spoke into a speaker system. “You need to practice your rollbacks some more. They’re sloppy. Slide to a complete stop and don’t rush through it.”
“That’s Natalie Adams,” she said when she returned to her husband’s side. “She’s riding some of our horses to train for the Miss Rodeo Kansas competition.”
Mattie rested her foot on the bottom rail of the arena fence and observed the rider. “How did you get involved in such training?”
Yvonne chuckled with a low, throaty voice. “We’ve been helping pageantry competitors for years now, ever since our daughter ran for a title. I was a queen myself, a long time ago.”
Gil studied the older woman, who probably made quite a sight in her day. Of course, Mattie would have made a fine queen too, with her long hair and flashy smile. Especially dressed as she was today in tan jeans and a suede jacket with fringes that swished and swayed with her every move. In his estimation, the only thing missing was the gold crown.
MATTIE TURNED TO GIL, WHO MOTIONED TOWARD TWO HORSES TIED up to the arena. She recognized the determined line of his brow and knew he had business on his mind.
“Are those the mares?” he asked.
Yvonne nodded, then frowned, her attention drawn to the rider in the ring who pranced backward on the bay, the horse’s head beating up and down in agitation. “Wayne, you want to show them around? I need to help this gal in the arena.”
Yvonne headed toward Miss Adams, while Mr. Chappell led Mattie and Gil to the other side of the barn. “Over here, we have the two mares you mentioned on the phone. Some of their offspring are out in the pasture.” He stopped a few feet from a red roan, and Mattie had to admit the mare looked dynamic. She stood about fifteen hands tall with nice conformation.
“I’m not sure how much you know about foundation bloodlines, but this ten-year-old has some Driftwood in her. She placed first and second at the National Finals Rodeo two years straight.” The man seemed quite pleased, but Gil remained poker-faced.
“If you’d like, you can ride them after lunch,” Mr. Chappell said. “Yvonne’s got ribs in the oven.”
“Thanks for your hospitality,” Gil said without consulting Mattie.
“The wife and I like to treat our guests when they come. Gives us a chance to visit and get to know them better.” He smiled and moved on to where a big bay mare stood tied. “This girl’s refined, with good bones and mind. She has some Doc O’Lena in her and placed in the AQHA World Show a couple years ago. Both our son and daughter have earned top money on her in roping and barrels at the pro level. That’s her dam out there that Miss Adams is riding. Quite versatile in the show ring.”
Mattie stepped up to the mare and ran her hands down the front legs. Nice and straight, and her forearms were long and muscular. She circled the mare for overall conformation.
When she’d finished her inspection, Mr. Chappell turned to leave. “We can load up in my old truck to look at the others in the pasture. Wouldn’t want to get your shiny rig all muddy.” He gave an impish grin, then led them to his truck outside.
Gil opened the passenger door for Mattie, and she slid in between him and their host. It seemed that Gil sat particularly close, or maybe that was due to all the jostling she endured as Mr. Chappell drove through several bumpy pastures to a herd of yearlings.
The young horses milled about the parked truck, curious, yet skittish. Gil opened the squeaky door, and they sprang from their hind feet as though a gun had fired, their short tails hiked in the air.
Gil pointed to a colt with a broad chest and muscled rear. Mattie acknowledged his interest right away.
Mr. Chappell noticed too. “That one’s an experiment we tried, mixing our Eddy stallion with a daughter of Flying X 6. So far, we like what we see.”
“I do too.” Gil stepped from the truck to study the colt. “He reminds me of a horse I once trained. How much would you sell him for?”
The man hesitated and shook his head. He got out and rested