“We can’t keep her. We can’t afford it any longer. The restaurant just isn’t doing as well as it used to.” His words echoed around the simple farmhouse kitchen.

“But she’s part of the family,” his wife argued, just beginning to clear the dinner dishes from a few hours ago. “We can’t just get rid of her.”

Claire clenched and unclenched her fists in the chilly night air. She was sitting on the porch, glad her parents didn’t know she was listening. Her father was a stern man, but how could he think such a thing?

“She’s injured. She can’t even work!” Claire’s father exclaimed. “We have to get rid of her.”

Distraught, Claire ran off the porch. She knew she could convince her parents, somehow, that they were wrong. She ran under the flickering old porchlight, casting the moving shadow of a sad, running girl against the house.

She ran into the barn and was greeted by the comforting sound of a horse munching oats. When she saw Claire coming, she lifted her head and neighed softly.

Claire thoughtfully combed her fingers through the horse’s golden mane. “I won’t let them sell you,” she said softly. “I’ll make sure of it.”

Claire’s father had heard the porch boards creaking from the kitchen. Now he stepped outside, wondering what had caused the noise. He walked into the barn and found his daughter inside. He stood in the doorway, and in that moment, made a decision. The horse may have been useless for work, but she meant the world to his daughter.

The horse would have to stay. It simply wasn’t a question any longer.



*

*

*