The Challenger

Prologue

Samantha Forster stood at the top of the stairs, straining to hear the conversation her father and step-mother were having downstairs. A phone call just after dinner had driven her up to her room, leaving Wyatt, Brynna, and Gram to discuss whatever news the caller had given the Forster family. The phone call took roughly two minutes and it had left Brynna in tears.

Cougar, Sam's kitten, weaved in and out of her legs with tiny waves of purrs.

"Sam," Dad called tiredly, "could you come downstairs, please?"

Plucking the tiger-striped kitten from the hardwood floor, Sam practically flew down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Yes?" she asked, blue eyes dancing from the three adults milling about the River Bend Ranch kitchen. Wyatt stood just behind Brynna, who had stopped crying, and Gram scurried around the kitchen, cleaning the remnants of the dinner dishes.

"That was Child Protective Services on the phone and..." Wyatt rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. "Brynna's niece is still underage, so she'll be coming to stay with us. I don't want any issues with her coming to stay at River Bend, is that clear, Samantha? Brook's been through a rough time and I don't want to make things even tougher with her parents bein' murdered and whatnot."

Sam's blue eyes widened. Murdered? "I-I won't," she promised, shaking her head quickly.

Wyatt nodded, a sign that Sam took for a dismissal and took off, scampering back into her bedroom. I didn't know Brynna had any siblings, much less a niece. That'd make her my step-cousin, wouldn't it? Sam thought anxiously, sitting cross-legged in the middle of her bed.

"I feel bad, but it'd be terrible if she turned out to be just like Rachel," Jennifer Kenworthy, Sam's best friend next to Jake, said matter-of-factly the next morning on the bus ride to school. With her long, snowy blond hair braided, Jen looked the part of a mathematical genius.

"Jen!" Sam exclaimed softly, though agreed mutely. Family or not, it wouldn't be easy living with another Rachel Slocum, Darton High School's reigning princess, at River Bend Ranch.

There was just under four hours before Brook would arrive from Hollywood, Florida. All Brynna had told her was Brook was older than Sam, around Jake's age, and enjoyed horses as much as she did. Though Brynna didn't say much more due to the fact she hadn't seen her brother's family for almost five years. Brynna's brother and sister-in-law had both been successful criminal lawyers, resulting in scarce vacation time to visit family.

Sam had spent all night preparing for her step-cousin's arrival by cleaning and shifting furniture to allow the newcomer to sleep in her own bedroom and finally found a combination that allowed everything to work out on her favor. A blow-up bed had been fitted to the bedroom and closet space had been made. With any luck, everything would work out.

The remainder of the school day had gone by in a blur for Samantha Forster and by the time she had reached River Bend, she raced off the bus, promising she'd call Jen as soon as she had figured the visitor out. The thirteen year old hesitated at the front door when the aroma of Gram's famous cooking had greeted her and with a final intake of fresh air, she stepped inside, dropping her backpack off once she had registered the welcoming sight before her.

Gram sat at the table with a brunette with piercing steel-gray eyes. Both had plates of pastries in front of them. "Hi, you must be Sam," the newcomer said, offering the younger girl a friendly smile, revealing petite white teeth. "I'm Brooklynn, but everyone calls me Brook. I'm Brynna's niece, so I suppose that makes us step-cousins."

The warmth that colored the older girl's voice suddenly sounded promising for Sam and she returned the smile. "I am and I guess we are," she replied sheepishly.

"Sam, why don't you show her around?" Gram suggested. "I'm sure Brooklynn would like to stretch her legs after being cramped up in a plane for more than half of the day."

Sam nodded quickly, well prepared to ask if her new step-cousin would like to walk around River Bend when she slid carefully from her seat. Sam's jaw dropped. Brook towered over her and she was only two years older than she was? Brook was easily Jake's height at around five seven. Brook reminded Sam of someone she had seen in a magazine from her appearance. The clothes she wore were simple, but she somehow made them look like they were couture.

"Um, we have several mustangs we use for the HARP program - "

"What's HARP?" Brook interrupted gently, her smile bashful.

"It stands for Horse and Rider Program, it's a program used to pair up misfitted children and mustangs together," said Sam. It still startled her to hear the question despite the fact Brynna had said her niece was a horse fanatic. "We've only had a few sessions, but all of the mustangs we've used have benefited from it."

"Do you use that little black filly for the program or is she still too young?" Brook asked, nodding towards the little corral adjoining to a large box stall.

Sam smiled wistfully. "Tempest is mine, but we use her dam, the buckskin for the program," she replied. "Sunny was abused by some horse rustlers and then kind of had her freedom damaged when there was a barn fire, but she's tolerant of most humans now. You just have to be gentle and careful around her - "

"Hi there cutie," the seventeen year old crooned, turning to a little bay. "Is this one used for the HARP program too?"

"Occasionally," said Sam, shrugging. "This is Ace, he's mine. That little sorrel is your aunt's mare, Penny. Blue Wings is that beautiful gelding right there. The bald faced gelding is Tank and next to him is Amigo. The Appaloosa next to the roan is Jeepers Creepers and the roan is Strawberry. And the white albino is Popcorn, he's used for the program too."

"Who does that black mare belong to then?"

Sam inhaled, squaring her shoulders at the sight of the black mare with the roached mane. "Jake. Jake Ely, he's one of my...best friends," she said, fumbling with her words. "Jake works for and with my dad training young horses. My dad buys them and Jake trains them and they split the profit."

"Hasn't anyone told you it's not polite to talk about people, Brat?"