Read Charlotte and the Starlet for Free Online

want to ride,
I want to eat.'
    The grey mare shook her head in disbelief. 'No you
idiot, they ride us .'
    She inclined her head to the gaggle of teenage girls
who had congregated in the centre of the circular
driveway.
    Oh yeah? Leila smirked. She'd like to see them try
and ride her, she really would.

    Miss Strudworth ascribed the success of her academy
to careful selection of horses. Some she sourced in
Australia, some came from Europe and some from
her favourite breeders in California. Her program of
putting young riders and horses together in an
equestrian symbiosis had won plaudits, not just from
Mr Graham, who ran the JOES program, but
internationally. While most of the girls attending
would have their own horses back home, Miss
Strudworth had set in place a rule that at Thornton
Downs all the girls would start equal. They would
each choose a new Thornton Downs horse and bond
with that horse over the course of their stay. In this
way she felt that girls from less advantaged back-grounds
were on something of an equal footing
with their wealthier peers. Miss Strudworth looked
over the array of inductees and blew her whistle
loudly.
    'Girls,' she commanded in an imperious voice,
'your rooms are listed on the board in the foyer. Place
your bags in your rooms and return immediately to
the stables to select your horses.'
    The girls moved off briskly. Those who had been
here before knew that the right horse could make or
break your chances of making the JOES elite squad.

    Caked in red dust, the battered old station wagon
swung up through the high stone arch of Thornton
Downs. Charlotte tried not to show that she was
worried about arriving late. Her poor dad must be so
tired. Thornton Downs was almost at the other end of
the country to Snake Hills and he had driven all day
yesterday. They had slept in the car before setting
off again before dawn. Unfortunately, not long
after starting this morning they had hit a steer. The
impact had created a leak in the radiator and her
dad had been forced to make running repairs.
The only upside was that Charlotte got to chew
a lot of gum so her dad could push it into the hole
in the radiator to stop the leak. It worked but the
car had kept overheating and they'd had to
keep topping up the water, which also slowed
them down.
    For the last hour or so of the drive Charlotte had
been sitting with her mouth open. The land here was
so different to Snake Hills. The fields were lush and
as green as the tracksuits of Australian athletes.
Thornton Downs itself left her speechless. Even her
father let out a low whistle. Charlotte drank in the
crisp white fences that surrounded the paddocks.
Everything seemed neat. Everything seemed perfect.
In the near distance, she could make out a circle of
smooth dirt with hurdles and steeples around it. This
was the real deal. Thick bush bordered the paddocks.
A flock of exotic parrots shot across the sky,
squawking loudly.
    She was so excited but also a little nervous. How
could she ever belong in a place like this? That feeling
deepened when the massive main building loomed
into view.
    Three stories high, gabled and built of neat red
brick criss-crossed by white piping, the building
totally dominated the landscape. Compared to this,
even Mr Thomas' house looked like a doll's house.
Directly in front of the main building was a large
parade area of unblemished clay. Wow. She just knew
she was going to get lost here.
    There didn't seem to be anybody else about as her
father pulled to a stop near the building. Charlotte
had already said goodbye to Rusty the cattle dog, who
sat in the back seat moaning as if he knew he wouldn't
be seeing her for a while.
    'Explain we're late because we hit a steer.'
    Charlotte nodded and gave her dad a final hug.
    'I guess it's time,' he said simply.
    'I guess it is,' she said, and let go.
    'I'll ring you,' her father promised.
    'You better.'
    She managed a smile. She knew that she had to
go that instant. If she stayed any longer