New Hoofprints in the Snow, page 12
“Thank you.” Maia hugged her mom back.
“For what?”
“For understanding. I was afraid you’d be upset. I was also afraid Billy would come right over here and tell you and Ramon about it. That’s what he threatened to do.” Maia let out a long breath as the stress of the past couple of hours escaped under her mother’s understanding.
Her phone beeped with a new message, but she ignored it.
“First, you’re my daughter. Mi hija, I have to understand or I wouldn’t be much of a mother. Second, I’ve known you were going to be into girls for a long time.”
Maia jerked back and stared at her mother. “How? I just figured it out.”
“A mother knows these things.” She kissed Maia’s cheek. “One day you’ll understand.”
“But what if I don’t have kids?”
“Do you want them?”
“Yes. I think I do.”
Her mother smiled. “Good. There are ways that don’t involve direct contact with boys. When it’s time, you’ll find a way.”
Maia hadn’t really put any thought into how she could have kids if she was a lesbian. “Okay.”
“Now, I think we need to go down and tell the family. If Billy’s threatening to tell Ramon, we need to warn him.” A dangerous gleam appeared in her mother’s eye. “Maybe Ramon can beat him to the punch.”
That brought a chuckle from Maia. “That would be nice.”
Her mom stood and reached for her hand. “Now, come on. Let’s go down and talk over dinner. I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry.”
“Yeah.” The stress of earlier emptied out of Maia, and her stomach rumbled.
WHEN THEY reached the table, the rest of the family was already eating and the baking dish of enchiladas was half-empty.
“Come, sit, eat,” Abuela Sylvia urged.
Maia sat quickly, but as her mother settled in, she looked grim. “Maia’s decided she’s not going to be going out with Billy anymore.”
Abuela Sylvia slammed her fork down on her plate with a loud ring. “I knew that boy was no good. Did he hurt you, chica? I’ll tell you what to do to him the next time you see him. But after dinner. Men don’t need to hear such things.” She glanced at Ramon and Maia’s dad.
Maia shook her head as she reached for the spatula to get a couple of enchiladas. “He didn’t hurt me. He’s an asshole.”
“Language, chica,” Abuela Sylvia admonished with a wave of her fork. “At least you found out quickly. It’s better than marrying the gringo grosero.”
“Ramon.” Her mother turned everyone’s attention from Maia. “Billy’s probably going to tell you…. Maia’s a lesbian. I’ll let you figure out how you want to tell him off.”
Ramon gaped at their mother, and then at Maia. “A what? Wait a minute—are you and Emma…?” He rubbed his hands together in a rude gesture.
“Ramon Alberto Perez!” their father shouted. “How dare you do something like that at your sister, and at the dinner table? You apologize right now!”
“Sorry.” Ramon looked down at his plate.
Heat rose on Maia’s face. “Yes, Emma and I—”
“I knew there was something about her.” Ramon looked at Maia intently. “She’s nice. Do you really like her?”
Maia nodded. “I do.”
A mischievous look crossed Ramon’s face. “So, what were you two doing in the girls’ bathroom the other night that took so long? Was Tess part of it?”
“Ramon!” their father warned.
“Does she make you happy, Maia?” Their father turned to her.
Maia nodded. “Yes, she does.”
He reached across the table and patted her hand. “Then that’s what’s important.”
The sound of a fork hitting a plate drew everyone’s attention to the end of the table where her abuela sat glaring at them. Her look sent a chill through Maia.
“Abuela Sylvia?” Maia’s voice was soft.
“Listen to all of you.” Abuela Sylvia picked up the fork and waved it at them. “Acting like this is perfectly normal. The Bible still says this is wrong. Do you want to be denied communion, chica? Do you want to sit at the Lord’s feet after you die?”
“Abuela Sylvia, I want to be happy in my life. Is that wrong?” Maia’s heart sank. She’d been so worried about what her mother was going to say, she hadn’t stopped to think about how her abuela would react.
The frown on her abuela’s wrinkled face was deep and dark. “Our life here is to follow the Lord’s teaching as the pope and the Bible directs us. Our happiness will be in heaven, not on earth. You should know that.”
“Mama, don’t be this way,” Maia’s mother said, coming to her defense. “We live in the modern day. There are a lot of good Catholics who are gay or lesbian. It’s not the big deal it was in your day.”
“It is a big deal until God tells us otherwise. When God says we accept it, we will accept it.” She glared at Maia. “This is my house. While you live here, you will respect my beliefs. If you must tarnish your soul, it won’t be done here. Do you understand me?”
Maia nodded. She wouldn’t have dreamed of doing anything with Emma in Abuela Sylvia’s home anyway. It was a show of disrespect. Making out in the barn was one thing. This was different.
“Good.” Abuela Sylvia stood and stepped away from the table. “I need to go pray. You can clean up the kitchen.”
Maia reached out for her abuela as she walked past. “Abuela Sylvia….”
The older woman shifted aside to avoid contact and walked out of the kitchen.
An uneasy silence descended, and no one touched their food.
Her father sighed. “Maia, don’t let her worry you. She loves you. She’ll come around.”
“I know.” Maia swallowed hard. She hadn’t realized how close to tears she was until she spoke. She willed herself to stay strong. “Can I be excused?”
“Sure.” Her mother nodded. “Your father and I will get the kitchen cleaned.”
“Thanks.” Maia hurried out of the kitchen. She paused in the hallway. Abuela Sylvia’s door was closed, but the sound of low chanting came from within. Maia started to go to the door, but stopped herself and went upstairs to her own room.
When she sprawled on the bed, she remembered the phone beeping while she’d been talking to her mother. She pulled it out of her pants pocket and looked at the message.
Maia, I’m sorry I acted the way I did. Billy warned me not to be around you and I was scared he was going to tell your parents I’m gay. I miss you and I’ll never do it again. Love, E.
Staring at the phone, Maia read the message over several times. That short message explained why Emma had been acting so strangely. And Emma said she loved her. Her heart soared. She started to reply to the text but decided to call Emma instead.
“Hey, Maia, you okay?” Emma sounded worried.
“I love you!” Maia said, trying to keep her voice low so nobody would hear her.
“You do?” Emma sounded a bit surprised.
“Yes, I do.” Maia smiled and got comfortable on the bed as she relayed everything that had happened since Emma had headed to the feed store. It felt so good to talk with Emma when they could both be honest and without Billy looking over their shoulders.
They talked for an hour until Maia reminded herself that she shared minutes with the rest of her family. After passionate farewells, she climbed into bed and had trouble falling asleep knowing the next day she’d see Emma and they could be open and honest with the people around them about how they felt. It was very liberating.
20
EMMA GRINNED as Maia’s van pulled into the driveway. With Billy out of the way and Maia’s parents knowing about Maia, there was finally nothing to stop the two of them from being together. Cassie had found another man to help sidewalk since Billy was gone. The man was named Jerry and lived down the road.
A brisk chill in the air reminded Emma of what they were trying to do—get one last hippotherapy session in before the blizzard hit sometime later that day.
“Hey, Emma!” Maia said as she came up to Emma and kissed her on the lips.
“Ewww, you two watch what you do around me. I may accept you two dating, but I don’t have to watch or anything,” Ramon said with a joking tone.
“Ha ha, Ramon,” Emma said as she pulled away from Maia’s embrace. “I’ve missed you.”
“Oh, it’s only been a few hours. Geez,” Ramon said as he rolled his eyes.
“I’ve got everything ready so far. Marco and Jerry—the new guy Mom found to help—are in the barn waiting on us. We’ll call Georgia in after Ramon’s session. It’s too cold out there for her to foal, especially when we have a nice warm stall waiting on her.” Emma smiled happily. “Let me go get Mom and we’ll be ready.” Maia’s kiss had made her day. She wasn’t sure whether they’d be kind of shy around each other or not—sometimes discovering how others feel about you could do that to a person, Emma thought—but Maia’s kiss said volumes.
Maia kissed Emma again, a short peck on the lips, and then she wheeled Ramon into the barn where Selena and the two sidewalkers were waiting. Emma ran up the stairs to the house in twos and opened the door.
“Mom! Mom?” Emma called.
Her mom answered from the kitchen. “I’m right here, watching the weather. This storm is supposed to be a doozy. I’m not sure we should have told Maia and Ramon they could come out today.”
“It’s getting colder, but, Mom, really, it’s nothing we can’t handle. We’ll be done long before the snow hits.” Plus maybe she could stay the night if the roads get bad.
“What about Maia driving in all that snow?”
“If nothing else, they could just stay here. That is if you don’t care. I’m sure Rosie—”
“After finding out Maia’s gay and you two are dating? She might have a couple thoughts about that.” Her mom raised an eyebrow and smiled.
“Well, from what Maia’s told me, everything’s fine, except for her ab… abuela—her grandmother—who is having a fit about it. Her mom, dad, and even Ramon are fine.”
“See, honey, a lot of families are that loving and connected. They just want what’s best for their daughter, that’s all.”
“Well, come on. Let’s go do this before it gets any colder.”
Her mom nodded and slid into a pair of cold-weather boots and a heavy coat. “We’d better be quick.”
“NO, NO, Jerry, you just hold on to his thighs and make sure he stays on the horse.” Emma leaned against Ramon’s thighs, showing Jerry what to do.
“Yeah, I have to do the rest. You wouldn’t imagine how tiring this gets.” Ramon smiled.
“I bet it’s tiring,” Jerry said, putting his arms and hands on Ramon like Emma showed him. “I’ve been riding for fifteen years and it’s still tiring sometimes. You use lots of muscles you don’t know you have.”
“I’m really enjoying it, though,” Ramon said. “I’m hoping with all this physical therapy, one day I may be able to walk again, even if it’s short distances.”
“Maybe,” Emma said. Selena was being a great horse. Earlier she’d been a little skittish because of the wind blowing, but in the inside arena, they were sheltered from the brunt of the wind chill. “Only your doctor can tell you that, though. But we’ll do the best we can out here.”
“Here, Maia, take Selena’s lead rope and walk them around some. Just keep it nice and easy in a circle.” Emma handed the lead rope over to Maia and grinned, thinking of what might happen if she did stay the night. She pushed those thoughts aside to focus on Ramon and watch Selena as she walked.
When they were halfway around the arena, Emma called out, “Ramon, do you think you’re ready to trot?”
Ramon laughed as the horse kept walking. “Maybe, I don’t know.”
“It’s a bit bouncier than a walk, but we can do it for a short period of time and then see what you think,” Emma said and nodded to Maia. Maia clucked at Selena, and for a few short strides, she trotted down the arena, Marco and Jerry running alongside holding Ramon on. Emma could hear Ramon laughing as they trotted down the arena.
“What did you think?”
“That was fun, but hard to stay seated. I kept bouncing in the saddle. I’m glad Marco and Jerry were there to hold on to me.”
“The more you relax your knees, the less you’ll bounce. We’ll see what the sidewalkers can do next time about that. You’ll get it eventually.” Emma smiled and glanced at Maia who was rubbing Selena’s cheek. Her lips were moving but Emma couldn’t hear what she was saying. She was just eager to get this session over with so she could finally spend time with Maia.
THE WIND was blowing harder outside the arena and the snow was beginning to fall. Looking outside, Emma could see Carl, Oops, Clover, and Doc through the barn door but not Georgia. She was probably out in the pasture somewhere. Figures that I’ll have to trudge out there in the cold and the wind and all.
“Hey guys, I think it’s time to pack up and go. We gotta get the horses in, and I have to go search the pasture for Georgia.”
“Okay, well, it was a good ride even if it was a little short and bouncy.” Ramon grinned as Jerry and Marco helped him off the horse and into his wheelchair.
“I can help you get the horses in,” Maia said, holding Selena’s lead rope.
“Well, if Jerry and Marco are willing…,” Emma said.
Both men nodded. “Sure, I’ll go get Oops and Clover,” Marco said. “Jerry, you get Doc.”
“Dammit, I wonder where Georgia is,” Emma muttered as she walked outside, wrapping her arms around herself, trying to stay warm. “Maia, go put Selena up. I’m going to saddle Carl up and ride the pasture and see if I can find Georgia. There are lots of little dips and hills and whatnot where she could be hiding.”
“Let me go with you. Selena’s ready, and two can cover more distance in shorter time,” Maia said. “Especially if this is going to be the blizzard everyone’s been saying it’s going to be.”
“Maia….”
“Emma, I’ve been riding for years, and Selena and I have been out in the cold a lot before this. We can do it.” There was an odd pleading in Maia’s voice, like she really wanted to prove something. “Plus you need the help.”
“Okay, I suppose.” After grabbing an emergency pack from the feed room, Emma ran outside and haltered Carl as Jerry and Marco easily caught Oops, Clover, and Doc. It was almost as though the horses knew that they were going to shelter. Emma threw a saddle pad and saddle on Carl and quickly bridled him. Selena and Maia waited nearby, ready to go.
“Hey, Jerry, we’ll be back fairly soon, hopefully with Georgia in tow,” Emma said. “Can you tell Mom that we’re going to go look for Georgia? She might have even foaled while all this started. I hope not, but just in case….” She knew horses often vanished to the far side of a pasture to foal and always seemed to do it when the weather was changing. The fact the vet thought Georgia still had a few weeks wouldn’t matter if the foal was ready to come.
“Sure, no problem,” Jerry said, tipping his hat.
“Yeah, you two be careful, will ya? This snow’s supposed to be a doozy,” Ramon said, looking a little forlorn, as though he wanted to join them in the search.
“Oh, and one of you help Ramon back to the house. I’m sure Mom’s got some hot chocolate on hand. She always does.” Emma turned Carl around facing the door. “See you all when we get back.”
IT HAD been at least thirty minutes since they’d left the barn. The cold was getting to Emma a bit more than it usually did. The snow was becoming more than just a nuisance, covering the ground. The wind was sharp and biting. Emma and Maia met along one side of the pasture.
“Find anything?” Emma said. She’d searched every section on her side where she thought a horse could hide and had come up empty.
“Yes, come over here.” Maia nudged Selena to turn around and Emma followed. They rode about twenty feet and found a broken spot in the fence. Part of the fence had been removed.
“Dammit!” Emma said. “I bet Georgia wandered off through here. I didn’t see her in the pasture.”
“Me neither. And I feel like I searched every square foot.” Maia patted Selena’s neck, knocking snow off. “But there aren’t any hoofprints, so if she went, she went a while ago.”
Emma nodded slowly in agreement. “Have you ridden Selena in open country before? Outside of an arena?”
“A couple times. How about you and Carl?”
“Yeah, we’ve been out. I don’t quite know the lay of the land, but we’ve got to find Georgia before something happens.”
Emma rode through the fence and Maia followed.
21
MAIA BENT over Selena’s neck as the wind tore at her coat. Knowing the snow might hit before she and Ramon would get home, she’d worn her heavy coat, but hadn’t grabbed her warm knit hat since she and Ramon had been in a big hurry. It was also easier than heading back to her room where she’d have had to go past the door to the kitchen and Abuela Sylvia. Abuela Sylvia had been coldly civil to her since she came out but always seemed to be looking at her like she was some kind of strange animal, or worse. She pulled her collar up and ducked her head deeper into her coat, hoping to cut some of the wind from her ears and neck.
Emma brought Carl to a stop at the top of a rise and motioned Maia to ride up alongside.
Selena stepped so close to Carl, Maia’s leg brushed Emma’s. “What’s up?”
“If we head down that way,”—Emma pointed toward a rocky canyon—“down into the canyon, we can get out of this wind. I think Georgia might do that. A lot of horses know how to get somewhere safe in a storm.” Some of the rocks didn’t have snow on them and stood out, bright red in the blanket of white that was quickly burying everything else. Above the canyon, the snow was blowing fiercely in the wind. It was hard to see more than a few feet, but where the change of terrain cut the wind, the visibility was better.
