The episode opens with the return of Douchebag Jake, who we last saw in Set it Up. Despite his general incompetence, he has somehow managed to remain employed at Pine Hollow. Red asks him to put a hay bale delivery indoors, Jake is all, 'Yeah, nah, totally will get around to it.' Ugh. While putting Samson out in a paddock, Jake neglects to close the fence properly, leading to Samson escaping. Red sees this and has no choice but to leap onto Comanche and chase the foal down. He jumps Comanche over a gate, and The Saddle Club are super impressed by this, especially Red doesn't ride anymore, remember?
The girls proceed to gush over Red's stunt double's riding prowess. They want to know where Red learned to ride like that, but he explains he gave up riding two years ago. The girls are determined to find out why he quit.
Jake is playing guitar for Veronica and Kristi in the lounge. It's beginning to rain, and Jake brings the (now) wet hay inside. He flops down to rest, and the camera pans to steam rising off the bales. Later, he attempts to awkwardly flirt with Deborah, telling her that she's worried about her - a woman like Deborah deserves more than horses and hay, and there's a world full of 'music and good times' out there. I'm sure I can imagine exactly the type of 'good times' Jake wants with Deborah. Shudder.
Kristi invites Veronica to go shopping with her, but Veronica declines. She has a present for Jake, a CD called 'Timeless Love Songs.' Kristi laughs at the gesture, but Veronica tells her, 'You've got no romance in you.' (Once again, these two are arguing like an old married couple!) They notice Jake flirting with Deborah, and Veronica looks deeply betrayed, the kind of betrayed you can only feel when you're eleven years old and the boy who doesn't know you're alive clearly likes someone else.
Lisa finds an old newspaper article about Red's Dark and Mysterious Past, and shares it with Stevie and Carole. Redford O'Malley was the youngest rider on the Nationals Team. They say that Red must've been a great rider to make the team (duh doi), and Lisa explains that there's no further records of him, he just stopped riding.
(We also finally get confirmation on Red's age: The article describes him as fifteen, making him seventeen at the time of the series. No wonder he's so uncomfortable with all these eleven-year-olds crushing on him!)
Carole says there has to be some way to make Red realise how much he misses riding. Stevie reminds the girls of the old saying, 'When you fall off a horse ...' She brings a tacked up Comanche to Red, and says Comanche's feeling neglected, and dying for a ride. She says that Red is the only person she can trust to ride him. (As if Comanche, a lesson horse, has nobody else to ride him but Stevie. Right.) Red tries to decline, but Stevie tells him that nobody who rides as well has Red could give it up forever.
Max is looking for Red, but can only find Jake. He tells Jake that he and Deborah are heading off into town, and leaves him a list of jobs to complete. Red then tells Jake that he's heading out on a trail ride. Jake has his headphones in at the time, and doesn't process what Red is saying. He gives Red a cheerful, oblivious wave, clearly not understanding that Red's leaving.
Veronica's bummed that Jake is interested in Deborah, and Kristi offers to read her tarot cards about her romantic future. They sneak up into the loft to do a reading. (Being something of a tarot girlie myself, I couldn't help but notice that Kristi pulls the Three of Swords for Veronica - a card associated with heartbreak and disappointment. As in, it's literally a card of a heart getting pierced with swords. I'm not sure what's funner: if this was intentional, or if it wasn't.) It's too dark for Kristi to read the cards, and the lights aren't working. Veronica pulls a lamp down onto the hay. Jake appears, wanting to speak to Veronica, and the girls leave - LEAVING THE LIT LAMP RESTING ON THE HAY. Veronica, you fool! We see more smoke emerging from the bales, then flames breaking out.
Red joins the girls on their trail ride, and is clearly enjoying being back in the saddle.
Back at Pine Hollow, the fire is starting to spread, and the horses are beginning to panic - including little Samson :(
On the trail ride, Red admits that he is happy to be riding again, and that it feels like part of him was missing. Lisa spots smoke in the distance, and asks if it's coming from Pine Hollow.
They arrive back at the stables to find Jake attempting to fight the fire with a single garden hose, and Veronica and Kristi rushing out with Garnet. Stevie yells at Veronica to call for help on her cell phone. Jake tells Red there's not enough water pressure (yeah mate, because you're using a GARDEN HOSE) and Lisa despairs for the horses. Red says he'll get them, and tells the girls to wait outside. Of course they ignore him, and follow him inside to evacuate the horses. Red goes to Barq, Stevie to Patch, Carole to Delilah, and Lisa to some horse we don't recognise. (I assume it's meant to be one of the school ponies? Maybe Nickel or Dime?)
Everyone gets their horses outside, and Red checks an injury on Barq's leg. They then realise Carole is still inside - she's still with Delilah, who is refusing to move. Red goes back inside for Carole. We can now hear sirens in the distance. He blindfolds Delilah, and manages to lead her outside, with Carole leading Samson.
Outside, the firetrucks have arrived, along with Max, Mrs. Reg, and Doctor Judy. She explains that the horses are all safe, and that the Saddle Club deserve a medal for their quick reactions. (Sigh.) She asks how the fire started, and Red and Douchebag Jake look guilty. Max asks to speak to the boys in his office, and demands to know what happened. Red admits he wasn't at the stables, and that he didn't know Max had gone out. Max proceeds to read Red the riot act: he put lives at risk, he was given a second chance here at Pine Hollow, that he said he's changed and now he's let Max down ... Red is (understandably) quite upset, and quits. The Saddle Club, standing outside, hear all of this go down.
Kristi and Veronica wonder if they light they left on the hay bale caused the fire, but quickly reassure themselves it wasn't the case. Jake comes in and drops that Red has quit. Kristi wants to come clean to Max, but Veronica tells her that if they tell him the truth, he'll ban them from the stables for good. Kristi looks torn.
Lisa finds Red, and hands him another newspaper article. The headline reads: 'Youth linked to Greenwood barn razing.' Red tells her the truth: he was a student at the stables, and it was his job to check that everything was safe at night. After a fight with his trainer, he took off, and that night a fire broke out. Two horses had to be euthanised, and one of them was his own one. Red wonders if he's a jinx.
Red packs his bags, and his guitar, and heads out. Mrs. Reg asks if he's really leaving, and tells him she knows he didn't start the fire. Red tells her that if Max is going to think the worst of him, and bring up mistakes from the past, then he has to leave. (Very fair!) Jake, in probably the only decent thing he's done so far, offers to leave with Red, but Red tells him it's not necessary.
Stevie, Carole, and Lisa come across Jake moping in the lounge. He admits that he brought in wet hay, and the girls explain that this could've started the fire.
Mrs. Reg is in Max's office, (rightfully, IMHO) chewing him out for dredging up Red's past. Max points out that this is the second fire Red's been linked to which, yeah, I agree does not look good. However, I'm always on Team Mrs. Reg, so I'm siding with her on this one - Max should've at least heard Red out. Also, it behooves me (#pun) to point out that this fire is 100% Max's fault. Dude, you're the one who left two teenagers in charge of your stables. You're the one to blame here! The Saddle Club come in with a guilty-looking Jake, saying he has something he needs to share.
Red is still walking down Pine Hollow's very, very long driveway, and Max chases after him, telling him to wait. In the lounge, Max gathers the students in the lounge to make some announcements. He publicly apologises to Red for not trusting him, and asks him to take back his job. Red accepts, everyone group hugs, Jake is FINALLY leaving Pine Hollow, so a happy ending for all!
All in all, I think this episode stood the test of time. It's a good blend of action and story - we finally get to the bottom of Red's Dark and Mysterious past, which was hinted way back in the first episode. I'm also not mad that we finally see the end of Douchebag Jake - farewell, we shall hardly miss ye! Before I finish, though, I also have to point out that we do not hear ANY SMOKE ALARMS going off during the fire. Once again, Max is horrifically terrible at his job. How that man has managed to not kill a child through gross negligence, we'll never know ...
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