18-year-old Laura Scott slowly led the tall chestnut stallion out of the stable and into the glorious afternoon.  She inhaled the sweet smell of the freshly cut grass, and could hear the familiar sound of hoof beats, as somewhere to the side of them, another horse was on course.

Heart, her horse, pricked his ears forward and then whinnied as he saw a familiar horse and rider coming towards them.

Laura smiled at the tall, blond-haired young man who slid deftly from the saddle of a large black mare, equal in size and build to Heart. The black horse nickered in reply.

“Hey Larry,” the young man said as he brushed a gloved hand over his sweaty forehead and gave her a lop-sided grin, “watch the Devil’s Dyke; Grace just about put me over it!”

“Oh no, Paul!” The beautiful young woman shook her head, as she affectionately reached out and pushed one of Paul’s blond locks back up under his riding hat.  “She didn’t refuse for you again, did she?”

“Disqualified,” he snorted, “What else is new? One of these days though, we’re going to show them all, aren’t we old girl?” He patted the black mare’s neck affectionately and Laura couldn’t help but laugh. Only he could still find optimism in something like a disqualification from an International Horse Derby.

In the Derby, a refusal meant an instant disqualification, and Laura sighed sympathetically at the young man – Grace was a beautiful, but inconsistent, jumper.  There wasn’t anything that the black horse couldn’t jump… but she was temperamental, and if she decided she didn’t want to jump, then poor Paul would end up sitting on his backside…once again. 

But the handsome young man believed in the horse and doggedly dragged her from one event to another.  Sometimes she performed…and sometimes, like now, she didn’t.

“Oh poor Paulie,” Laura laughed, “One of these days, that horse is going to break your neck, and then what’ll I do?”

“Sleep better?” he teased as he gave her a playful wink, and then jumped back to avoid the swipe she made at him.

But he was saved when she heard her name being announced in the coming line-up, so with a quick good luck kiss on the cheek from Paul, Laura mounted her horse and moved towards the field.

As the big-boned thoroughbred crossed the distance in long, graceful strides, she gave him an affectionate pat on the neck, very relived that - unlike his mother – Heart never refused to jump anything….

Paul watched her go with a sad look on his face. And then he turned and led Grace back to the stable. As much as he wanted to see Laura jump, he didn’t watch, for fear of jinxing her. He knew it was silly, but show jumpers were a superstitious lot, so he never watched her perform…and she never watched him.

Not that he knew of, anyway.

* * *

Paul was almost finishing untacking Grace when he was suddenly overcome with an intense premonition that something horrible was going to happen. The feeling was so strong that he staggered, and had it not been for the horse, he would have fallen.  Whipping his head around, he had one thought: Laura!

Seconds later, the young man was racing from the stable…

Something was going to happen to Laura!

* * *

Laura was flying! That was how she felt whenever she rode her horse in competitions like this: this was a Speed Derby and speed is what Heart needed to work on if they hoped to make the summer Olympic Equestrian team.

So she had entered them with a good chance of winning, and even if they didn’t, then for gaining more experience for the young horse.

As they maneuvered around the course, she knew that Heart could afford to knock down a fence or two if he kept up the pace he was currently performing at. Unlike show-jumping, where a downed rail cost the horse and rider points, in a Speed Derby, a knock-down was translated into seconds. So a fast horse could afford a couple of knock-downs and still win.

Right now, Heart was performing at a heart-stilling pace. And Laura had never been more proud.

They would do it!

She could almost see the finish. They just had one more combination jump and then they’d be home free…

The Devil’s Dyke.

* * *

The Devil’s Dyke is a triple combination jump – and kind of scary for horses.  They jump a fence, take one stride downhill, then jump a two-rail fence over a water ditch, and then after one more stride, jump uphill out of the Devil’s Dyke, but Laura knew it wasn’t anything Heart couldn’t handle….

And indeed, he started it very well….

* * *

Paul reached the fence and pushed his way through the spectators until he was flush against the railing. His heart was pounding out of his chest as he watched the petite rider astride the huge animal.  Heart was big, even by thoroughbred standards.

Laura was just approaching the Devil’s Dyke and there was nothing he could do but watch and pray that for once his gut instincts were wrong.

Please, he pleaded, please let me be wrong…

But he never was.

* * *

Moments later, as he watched the horse jump the first fence and make the stride to the next, there was not a damn thing he could do. 

And then Heart’s hind hoof clipped the fence and everything went into slow motion….

Normally, clipping a rail brings it down, but Heart hit it hard…he hit it awkwardly…and then, over 1000 lbs of equine tripped….

Paul watched in horror as Laura’s body was thrown in front of the huge animal…and it fell on her.

“LAURA!” he screamed as he easily vaulted the fence and ran towards the struggling horse.  Falling to his knees he tried, in vain to shove the stricken animal off the girl, but it was useless – they would need a crane….

“Come on Larry,” he pleaded, using his pet-name for her, “don’t do this…don’t you dare leave me….Larry?  Laura!”

But trapped beneath the thrashing horse, Laura Scott lay deathly pale and unmoving.

Ohmygod, Paul panicked, she’s dead…. My big sister’s dead…and it’s all my fault!