Whisper

By Heather Fox

An inspiring tale of life, love, and loyalty, Whisper recounts our fall off the mountain, the struggle to survive, and the sacrifices of those who search and rescue. A relaxing trail ride in the mountains with friends turns desperate suddenly when the trail edge crumbles and my horse, Whisper, tumbles off the side. The pitch is perilously steep and covered with snow, large rocks, and downed trees with broken branches. As our situation worsens and I must ask Whisper to do impossible things, his iron will and unshakable loyalty reveal the true strength of a bond that has been years in the making. As miracles unfold, I see it's no accident I have this horse ... on this ride . . . in this dire situation. Everything happens for a reason, and the story of Whisper began long before this ordeal. Flashback chapters tell how I bought a scared and skinny old horse that nobody wanted because he "whispered" in my ear, the both funny and frustrating struggles to overcome his fears and establish trust, and the staggering reward of his loyalty at any cost.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 20, 2018
• ISBN: 9781640033276

Heather Fox

Heather Fox is an illustrator and graphic designer, creating art in pen and ink, digital, and gouache. She is the illustrator of Don't Feed the Coos, Santa Baby, and the Llama trilogy. She lives in Lititz, Pennsylvania, with her husband, the writer Jonathan Stutzman. Fitz and Cleo is her debut graphic novel.

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9781640033276_cover.jpg

Whisper

Heather Fox

ISBN 978-1-64003-326-9 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-64003-327-6 (Digital)

Copyright © 2017 Heather Fox

All rights reserved

First Edition

Cover photography by Scott Fox

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books, Inc.

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Postscript

About the Author

With special thanks to:

Daniel Clements (Uncle Dan), for supporting and encouraging my horsemanship through the decades, for introducing me to the joy of Arabians, and for finding my beloved Whisper. Without you, there would be no Whisper, no story, and no book.

Dawn Miller, Kevin Miller, Susan Melendez, and Robert Clements, for sharing that entire night of prayer and worry on the mountain. You would not rest until Whisper and I were safely returned. I am truly blessed to have such dedicated and loving friends and family.

The Mount Solon Volunteer Fire & Rescue and the Deerfield Volunteer Fire & Rescue, for the huge sacrifice of time and energy on behalf of strangers that you made. I also want to thank Ben and Jeremy specifically for going above and beyond to get Whisper out. You not only found and rescued me, you saved me from a broken heart. Words cannot express what that meant to me.

Chapter One

It was glorious to be back in the mountains, happily astride my scrappy little Arabian, Whisper. It was early March, and there was finally a break in the weather. After months of constant snow and ice that had made it impossible to ride, we were finally on the trail. I was riding with my friend Dawn and her husband Kevin, and we had picked a long loop trail in a remote, completely undeveloped area along the Virginia/West Virginia line. The peace and beauty of the Appalachian Mountains melted away the stress and fatigue that were building in my everyday life. This had been a particularly difficult year for me already, and my nerves were shot. I needed this day in the mountains on my horse with my friends.

The day was beautiful. The sun was out, most of the snow had melted away, and the temperature was very comfortable for March. We parked our trucks and trailers at Camp Todd, an old spot near the foot of the first mountain range where frontier travelers once stopped to rest and prepare themselves for the long, difficult trek over the forbidding mountains that stretch as far as the eye can see. Now there is nothing there except a semicircular, grassy clearing with some old, mostly buried foundation stones and a good level place to park vehicles. The gravel fire road leads over the mountain to West Virginia, and has little traffic. We planned to ride a few miles up the fire road to Puffenbarger Pond, a place we wanted to scout out for a possible overnight riding/camping trip. We wanted to try packing in gear for a primitive camping trip on horseback, but we had to plan it around water sources for the horses. We hoped to find a trail that led from the pond up to the top of the mountain, where we thought it would merge with a loop trail that ran along the crest of the mountain and eventually dropped back down to the valley directly behind Camp Todd where we had parked our trailers.

As I cantered along the gravel road, I looked back to see Dawn with her silly grin. What’s so funny? I asked, And why are you behind me? Dawn was riding Rudy that day, and Rudy is one of the few horses in our group that can match Whisper’s speed and endurance with no problem.

She chuckled, I just get such a kick out of watching you ride Whisper. He’s so crazy with his dancing and whirling, but you make it look so easy to ride him. You two have the same personality and energy. It looks like a synchronized dance, and he is fun to watch. Dawn often rides behind me, instead of in front. She says it’s because she wants to remind her horse that he can’t always be in front, but I think it’s mostly for her entertainment. Whisper is always doing something unexpected. No ride is boring with him in the group. Dawn’s comment about Whisper’s antics took me back to the day I got him eight years earlier, and I thought about how far we’d come together.

Pauline

Chapter Two

Eight Years Earlier

My little mare, Pauline, was beginning to develop arthritis and having more frequent off days when she just wasn’t up to hours of strenuous mountain climbs and jumping over obstacles. In her younger days, she never ceased to amaze me with her endless energy and a desire to run that never quit, even when my back was more than ready to do just that. Pauline had turned a die-hard Quarter Horse person into an Arabian lover through and through. She has more personality than any three horses I’d ever owned, and she loves people. In fact, Pauline is the horse that first showed me the depth of emotion and strength of bond that horses can feel for their humans.

It was becoming apparent that I needed another horse, or else I was going to end up sitting out rides when Pauline wasn’t her old, or should I say young, self. It was my Uncle Dan who finally convinced me to give the Arabians a try when he had brought Pauline down from Delaware seventeen years earlier. He had gotten Pauline for a very low price the year before, more as a favor to someone looking for a home for her than as a planned investment. He had been so pleasantly surprised with her spunk and her sweet temperament that he’d kept her, but he really didn’t need another horse.

Uncle Dan used to come down from Delaware to Virginia once or twice a year and bring several horses for friends and family to ride. I was between horses and had nothing to ride, so he brought me Pauline. I told him over and over again that I was not interested in an Arabian.

I like my horses big and strong and tall and calm. I need a horse that can cart me up and down the mountain all day, and a horse that isn’t going to panic in a scary situation.

"Just try