I watched the other horses train for races and competitions as I gave Jay a bath. He was much older now, but still blind. He was only a tiny bit smaller than King, our champion horse. I put my hand on Jay's side and moved around him, trailing my hand along. I let him sniff the hose before I sprayed him. I let him sniff the soap, then I lathered it all over him. I scrubbed and scrubbed until all the dirt and mud was gone. When I was done and reaching for the towel, he shook like a dog and I got soak in water.

"Jay!" I laughed. He spun his head around to face me and nudged my face like he did when he was little. Dad had wanted to get rid of him since he was of no use to us, but I refused. He said I could keep Jay if I could find a way for him to earn his keep. I rubbed his neck and kissed his forehead.

"You ready to try again, buddy?" I asked. Jay stomped his hoof and moved his head up and down. I laughed again. I grabbed his lead rope and led him into the stables. I kept my free hand on his side so that he knew where I was. His ears and nose twitched, alert and ready.

"Okay, buddy, big step on one...two....big step!" I said. He took a big step and stepped over the hole in the ground. I rubbed his shoulder.

"Good boy. Great job!" I said. I led him into his stall. I opened the door and he tried to step forward, banging his foot on the wooden track. He whinnied and stepped back again. I rubbed his nose.

"Shhh, Jay. It's okay. Listen to me." I said. I stepped into the stall and tapped the heel of my boot on the wood. He pricked his ears and slowly stepped forward. I kept tapping and he raised his foot, placing it inside the stall.

"That's it, come on boy!" I said encouragingly, my foot still tapping. We continued like this until all feet where in the stall. Getting out was much easier then getting in. I partially closed the stall door and slipped out. Jay snorted in protest and I touched his nose through the bars.

"I'll be right back, buddy. Don't worry. Just stay still." I told him. His fast breathing slowed a little. He hated being alone, because when I was around him, it was like having eyes of his own. I walked through the stable and past all the horses. We placed the most useful ones in the front and went back from there. I never did like that part of the stables. The boys were on one side and the girls on the other, usually across from their mate. So starting from the front, it went King and Sissy, Pine and Needle, Bear and Cocoa, Fox and Nike, Dakota and Sugar, Lee and May, then Jay. The stall across from Jay was empty. King and Sissy had Pine and May, Pine and Needle had Nike and Dakota, Fox and Nike had Cocoa, and May and Lee had Jay. Bear, Needle, Fox, and Sissy were transfers, and Lee was wild and injured until we found and saved him. I've overheard the stable-hands saying that that was the reason Jay was blind. I went into the tack room and grabbed Jay's saddle, bridle, bit, and saddle blanket. As I walked back through the stable, King stomped his hoof and huffed at me. I threw an apple at him.

"Shut it, King. You're just scared he'll beat you!" I snapped. The apple hit the bars and King bit the apple. He was pressed up against the bars with his teeth bared, holding on to the apple. I laughed. It was a very un-kingly position. Sissy made a snickering sound and King dropped the apple. It rolled by my foot and I kicked into the air and it landed on my saddle. I went into Jay's stall and started tacking him up. Then I led him out into the riding arena.

"Okay, Jay. We are in the center of the arena. There are about five gallops to your left and right, and around ten in front of you and behind you. Just listen to me, and trust me. I'm getting on now." I said. I put my foot in the stirrup and swung my leg over. I placed a hand on one of Jay's shoulders, and the other hand on the other shoulder.

"If we get near the fence, I'll kick it, okay? Trust me and let's take it slow." I said. Jay snorted and I squeezed him slightly. I left the reins wrapped around my arms, I told him which way to go by rubbing or tapping that shoulder. Reins confused him. We walked forward and I stayed leaned down. I rubbed his shoulder slowly and he curved slightly to the right. I patted his right shoulder and kicked the fence. Jay hesitated a fraction of a second before turning away. After going around a few times without having to kick the fence, I sped Jay up to a trot. Then to canter.

"You ready, Jay? We can do this." I said. He snorted and raised his front legs in anticipation. I laughed and we began to gallop. Jay was fast! I had only ever seen King move this fast. We were speeding around the arena when I saw Dad on King in the arena next to us.

"Uh-oh." I said. King saw us and got really mad. He let out an angry neigh and bucked Dad off. Dad jumped off and rolled onto his feet.

"Elizabeth!" He screamed. King was angry. He was also very competitive. He never let Jay run, because:

A) he was blind

B) he was his grandson

King jumped over the fence and raced toward us. I grabbed Jay reins.

"Trust me. Relax and follow my commands, okay?" I whispered to Jay. I spurred Jay and we raced away from King. He was an even match. We weren't faster, but we weren't slower. But we weren't even running yet. I kicked Jay one more time and we picked up speed. There usually isn't much difference between a gallop and a run, but Jay's had a big difference. We ran to the other side of the arena, and King stomped his hoof. He dug his hoof in the soft ground, like a bull, and I knew what was coming. The only reason King ever won was because of his sprint. No one could beat him in a sprint. I spurred Jay and we ran towards the fence. I heard King gaining on us. Jay began to freak out. He couldn't see King, but he sure knew he was there. King reared up on his hind legs. I pulled up hard on the reins and spun Jay around. Jay's hooves met King's and Jay took it from there. He kicked at King and King kicked back. Jay was doing well for himself until King crouched down. When Jay's legs missed, he got confused. King lunged at Jay's stomach, knocking him backwards. Before I knew what was going on, Jay reached his head back, grabbed the reins in his mouth, and flipped me off of his back and on to the ground. I got back on my feet. If Jay hadn't flipped me off his back, I would have been crushed. Now it was my turn to save Jay. King reared up on his hind legs again and Jay was on his back, trying to get up.

"Jay! On your left!" I cried. Jay rolled to the right just as King's hooves struck the ground on his left. Jay was on his feet, and King was making such a ruckus that Jay landed a few blows before I got in between them. I put one hand on Jay's nose, and I reached the other one out to King. King tried to bite me, but I popped him hard on the side of the mouth and he took a step back. Dad came over and smacked King hard on the back. I turned to Jay.

"You okay, buddy? You hurt?" I asked him. Jay sneezed and pressed his head against me. Of course he was terrified. He had just been attacked! I couldn't even imagine how annoying it would be to be blind! Dad turned to me angrily.

"Get that horse inside. Now!" He shouted. Jay's ears swiveled around and faced Dad, he hoofed the ground nervously. I gave Dad a look and clicked my tongue.

"Come on Jay." I said, rubbing his cheek and jaw. He stayed close to me, his head leaning over my shoulder as we walked. I glanced back at Dad who was riding King again like nothing had happened. Then I looked past him and at the road. There was a little kid, running out to get his ball in the middle of the big street. There was also multiple cars coming. I acted without thinking.

"Trust me, Jay." I said. Then I jumped onto his back. He seemed to sense my urgency because his ears tilted forward and he whipped his tail. I gave him a kick and we flew up the gravel path.

"Trust me, trust me, it's okay, trust me, trust me, Jay, it's okay." I kept saying over and over again. The cars were coming in fast and the boy was oblivious to their whereabouts, happily chasing after his ball. He saw me approach though. I expected Jay to freak out, what with all the new sounds and smells, but he seemed to only hear or smell me, the boy, and the approaching danger. He picked up speed and we were on the road. I leaned sideways and Jay shifted his weight so that I could stay on while I grabbed the boy. Never breaking his run, Jay jumped to the other side of the road, stumbling, but none the less staying standing. I had the boy clutched to me, I wasn't even controlling Jay. Jay stood perfectly still on the safe grass as I let the boy down. The mother ran out of the house and hugged the boy. Then she looked up at me.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you!" She said. Dad appeared behind us. The mom saw him and ran forward to shake his hand.

"Mr.Henson, is this girl yours?" She asked. Dad glanced at me.

"Indeed she is, Mrs.Patters. Elizabeth and her blind horse, Jay." He said. The mom looked at me again, then at Jay who had his head swiveled around to listen better.

"Blind you say? The horse? I wouldn't have known the way she was riding him! The way he ran! Landing with a jump! Amazing! They saved my son! My little Adam!" She exclaimed. The boy, Adam, reached up and patted Jay on the nose. I had clutched a bit of Jay's hair at the same moment, which was our signal for someone about to touch him, so Jay nuzzled the boy's face.

"Horsey!" He said. Dad smiled.

"Thank you, Mrs.Patters. Come on Elizabeth. Let's get back to the stables." He said. I nodded at Mrs.Patters then spurred Jay into a trot to catch up with Dad who was already halfway across the road. I rubbed Jay between the shoulders. He let out a huff. He was terrified, I could tell, but he did an amazing job of hiding it. Just like I knew when he was born, I knew now that this was a horse worth gold. And there was no amount of gold I would sell him for.