Tail Gait by Rita Mae Brown

Author:Rita Mae Brown [Brown, Rita Mae]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2015-05-26T00:00:00+00:00

April 29, 2015

Late Afternoon

“An act of kindness?” said Cooper as she walked Shortro, a young athletic Saddlebred, on a lead rope behind Harry, who was walking another one of the brood mares into a stall.

“Well, maybe it was, Coop. I’m sure other people might feel that way.” Harry slipped off the halter, hanging it outside the stall.

Cooper, having done the same, followed Harry into the tack room, where Mrs. Murphy, Pewter, and Tucker slept on fleecy saddle pads. Harry had tried cozy dog and cat beds, which they had ignored. The fleece saddle pads it had to be, so Harry used old ones, washing them once a week. Much as Pewter might complain, the two cats and one dog really were a little spoiled.

Coop sank into the director’s chair as Harry sank into hers.

“Tea? Coke? A beer?” Harry offered.

Cooper shook her head. “No, thank you. I was so struck by Paul Huber’s comment that I had to stop by on my way home from work. What do you know about Huber?”

“Not but so much. My parents knew him, of course, and his father. Paul Jr., is midway between their age and mine. I like him. He does outstanding work. The company wins landscape design prizes.”

“Can you think of any reason he might have to kill Frank? After all, the body was found at his job site.”

Pewter, eyes open, crabby, as her nap was being interrupted by chatter, grumbled, “I found the body.”

Tucker, awakened by the cat muttering, lifted her head. “I did.”

An altercation began, hisses and barks rising in decibel level.

“Will you two shut up!” Harry said and glared.

“She’s always taking credit for my work.” Tucker’s ears drooped.

“You! Bubblebutt. Ha! I’m the brains of the outfit. I found the exposed ankle before you did.”

“I dug his foot up!” Tucker growled. “I could smell him under the dirt.”

Harry again glared, this time pointing her finger at the two, who finally shut up. Mrs. Murphy turned her back on the lot of them. She had only so much patience.

Focusing her attention on Cooper, Harry replied, “I don’t think Paul Huber could have killed Frank even if it was a mercy killing, which I very much doubt. Granted, you never really know for sure about anyone, but he doesn’t seem the type to commit murder, hide the body, and then on top of that be stupid enough to hide it where he’d just planted a river birch.”

“Yes, there is that, though the killer could hardly guess some nosybody would be snooping around there.”

Harry ignored that. “Frank hardly qualified as one of life’s useful or positive people. He aroused pity or disgust—all the more so from those who remembered his glory days. To most people walking along the mall, he was just another reeking drunk.”

“Harry, clearly, more than a pain in the ass. He was a threat. Irritating people are rarely killed. Too many of them, and too much trouble cleaning up.”

A wry smile played on Harry’s lips. “I don’t mind cleaning.”

Cooper smiled in return.

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