Racing Hearts

Chapter One

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any characters, I only own the characters I make up!

AN: I want to start this by saying I started this when I very first started writing and I am going back to...clean up a little bit now that I've been writing for a while! Just know, that the story gets better as it goes :) and if anything is out of place, I will do my best to fix it! -8/17/2020

Prologue

Rick Foster and Melanie Foster had wanted a child for 5 years now and now they were finally going to have one. They were adopting 2-year-old Annabelle, a little girl with blonde hair and brown eyes, they had been her foster home for the past year and a half. Annabelle was a great child and they wanted to make her their child.

"Okay Mr. And Mrs. Foster, everything is now official. You are now officially Annabelle's parents, Congratulations!" Miss Miller, the social worker said excitedly. They didn't know what would happen 13 years later to their new family.

….

13 years later...Annabelle's POV

I heard my alarm going off and groaned 'Is it 4:00 already?' I thought to myself.

I got up and grabbed a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and walked into the bathroom. I quickly changed and I grabbed my boots and protective vest, then I walked into the kitchen, I saw my mom and dad sitting at the counter talking.

They looked up and saw me and they both smiled, "Good morning Anna." my dad said, using his nickname for me. "Morning Dad." I smiled, and hugged him, then hugged my mom. I went over to the fridge and got out a Gatorade before looking at my mom and asking "Are you guys coming to watch my mock race today?"

I had been riding for Rushing Water Stables for about 2 years now, they were a racing barn, and I was an exercise rider for them. In a few weeks or months I hoped to be one of their jockeys. "We wouldn't miss it, Annabelle." Mom said smiling. I waved to them and walked to our barn.

I entered our small 6 horse barn and smiled as Four Leaf Clover aka Clover, my 13-year old dark gray thoroughbred mare neighed at me and as I walked down the aisle my dad's horse Morning Star aka Star, a chestnut retired thoroughbred gelding whinnied, knowing this meant it was time for a ride.

"Clover, " I said walking up to Clover first who was heavily pregnant with a foal. "Hey girl, when are you going to have this baby huh? I'm sure you want to have it already am I right?" I patted her cheek. Clover was pregnant with a foal by a horse named Silver Moonlight.

He was a big gray stallion about 17h and he was a good racer. He had Man O' War blood in him.

Not that Clover's bloodlines were nothing, she had Secretariat in her family tree. Not that I cared much about bloodlines, I just wanted a healthy foal, but this foal would have good bloodlines.

I walked over to Star, who was begging for attention.

"Hey Star, you ready for a ride? We need to get over to Jack's house or he'll be wondering where his exercise rider is!" I said to Star. My dad let me ride him back and forth to Jack's since Clover was pregnant.

I quickly brushed him off and saddled him up. Clover was pawing at her stall door now. "Clover, no girl, you can't come you know that. You have to keep your baby safe."

I walked out of the barn and mounted Star and we headed towards the gates at the end of the driveway.

It took about fifteen minutes to ride over. Star and I arrived just in time for workouts. Jack saw me and waved at me to come over to him. I saw that he had Moonlight Gaze reins in his hand. Moon as I called her a lot was a dark brown filly, three years old. She was a great ride—and racer!—and they were currently heading her towards the filly triple crown.

"Annabelle you're running late aren't you?" Jack teased me, he was twenty-three and the trainer at Rushing Water Stables. Also the half-owner since his father died last year, his mother owned the other half. Jack had brown hair in a crew cut and dark brown eyes about 5'9, he was really nice and he had given me a job here years ago, mucking stalls and then riding.

"I'm only 2 minutes late. Jeez." I teased back.

"I want you to exercise Moon, then Wind Spirit and then maybe you could help with your favorite yearling, Wind Bells. Oh and then you'll ride Dark Sky in the race." Jack said. Wind Bells was my favorite yearling, her mother had abandoned her when she was born and between me and Jack and Luke(another rider and groom here) we had bottle fed her, and I helped name her. I had worked with her since.

"Awesome, sounds good." I said grabbing Moon's reins and handing Jack the reins to Star. Jack gave me a leg-up into the saddle.

"I just want you to trot her around once, and then if she's good canter her. This is just an small exercise for her." Jack instructed and I nodded.

We stepped on the track and Moon was being really good this morning, really responsive. I walked her for a few minutes and then I asked her for a trot. We rode around the whole track at a trot and I patted her, asking her to slow to a walk before looking at Jack.

He nodded and I asked her to canter, she responded immediately by changing into a fast, smooth canter. We were halfway around the track and I heard fast hooves behind me. I quickly looked around to see John coming up on my inside on Dark World, a stubborn 4 year old colt who didn't like other horses, especially mares. John didn't really like me either.

I pulled my right rein, pulling Moon away from Dark World and I heard them getting closer. I could feel Moon tensing up. Then all of a sudden, I didn't know what was happening. All I knew was that I was flying out of the saddle and Moon was falling. I heard Moon scream and I hit the ground hard. Moon was right beside me.

I heard Jack and some others calling my name, I couldn't call back to him. I couldn't even breathe right now. I saw John and Dark world racing off and they slowed down and jogged towards us.

I saw Jack and Luke beside me first. "Are you okay Annabelle?" Luke said.

"I think she got the breath knocked out of her." Jack said. I nodded.

"How's...Moon?" I managed to say. Luke got up and walked towards her. I quickly sat up. She was holding her leg up as if she was injured. "Oh no!"

Jack and Luke looked at her with a sigh. "Luke, let's get the truck and trailer over here, get Moon down back to barn. I'll put a call in to the Vet." Jack said to Luke, who ran off to grab the truck and trailer.

I saw John standing there, looking unapologetic. I started towards him. "You jerk!" I shouted. He looked shocked. "You and your stupid horse veered into Moon! Do you know how dangerous that is? We could have been killed!"

John's face flushed. "Hey, if you can't control your horse—"

Jack cut him off. "No, I saw it was you. Victor, take Dark World from him. John, you can see yourself out. I don't need riders like that on my farm."

John's mouth fell open. "You're firing me?"

"Yeah, if you need it spelled out, you're fired." Jack said, rubbing Moon's neck. John threw his reins at Victor, one of the grooms and marched off.

Go Jack! I thought with a smile. My hero.