Horsing Around with Murder by Maureen Fisher

Author:Maureen Fisher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Canada, Animals, Horses, Mystery, Romance
Publisher: Maureen Fisher
Published: 2019-02-06T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15: Performance Anxiety

Four wranglers moved in to take care of the trail horses. I talked to guests while waiting for Zeke to help the remaining riders dismount. Predictably, Tess was the last one down. I figured she’d plotted her timing to catch him alone.

After Zeke exchanged a few words with the wranglers, he returned to me and took my hand. I beamed a brilliant smile at Tess. “Nice riding with you today, hon. See you later. Don’t forget the demo this afternoon.” After giving her an extra-cheery wave, I felt the weight of her gaze drilling into my back as Zeke and I headed off to debrief with Dodie in my apartment.

Zeke and I had barely set foot on the path to the main lodge when a young wrangler hailed him. We stopped and waited for him to catch up with us.

“What’s up?” Zeke asked.

Sweat dripped off the tip of the wrangler’s nose. Gasping for breath, he said, “Lancelot’s back. I ran all the way here to tell you the good news.”

Relief coursed through my veins. We could proceed with the demo.

Zeke let out a wild, “Yee-haw.” With no apparent effort, he lifted me off my feet and swung me around in a circle.

Once he put me down, I managed, “How? When? Who?”

“Lancelot spent last night and this morning at the Baxter farm,” the wrangler explained. “We brought him home in the horse van and put him out in the meadow to recuperate.”

“Recuperate?” I squawked, my voice an octave higher than normal. “Is he hurt? Sick? What?”

The wrangler shot Zeke a pleading glance. “Uh, not exactly. It’s just ... well ... let’s say he’s been a real busy boy.”

“It’s okay, Abby,” Zeke said in a reassuring voice. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it.” He turned to the wrangler. “What happened?”

“Lancelot mounted three mares that were in estrus. Baxter’s doing a happy dance because he reckons a winning racehorse knocked them up.”

“Seriously?” I said, processing the implications of the news.

A sharp voice behind us said, “I sincerely doubt Lancelot knocked up any mares.”

I whirled around. “Clay. I didn’t know you were there. Why the doubts? Lancelot has a proven track record as a sire.”

“That’s not what I heard,” Clay said. “Wish I could stop to chat, but I’m on my way to meet Veronica for lunch. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone your stallion was missing.” He tramped away.

“Much appreciated,” Zeke shouted at Clay’s back.

Yeah, right. Like he wouldn’t spill the beans to Veronica, inventor of the commando lie. I had to find a way to convince Clay to zip his lip, but how? I had an inspiration and went for it. “Clay,” I called. When he turned around, I ignored Zeke’s frown and said, “Don’t tell a soul. That means Veronica, too. If word leaks out, we’ll know who talked, and it won’t be pretty.” I paused before taking a risk that might backfire. “We know your secret.”

Clay’s eyes narrowed. “How did you find out?”

“Not important. Suffice it to say, we know.

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