Making Her Mark (Merindah Park, #2) by Renee Dahlia

Author:Renee Dahlia
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Published: 2019-08-06T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

If Rachel thought winning on Static Alarm had been the most amazing day of her life, it had nothing on winning the Makybe Diva Stakes on Darnation. The opportunity came thanks to the owners of Darnation being upset with his previous loss, ironically in the race where she’d ridden Static Alarm to beat him. The owners had moved Darnation to Shelley Twayne’s stable, and given her the chance to ride him. She’d first been legged up on him on Thursday morning at trackwork, and again yesterday. Not much time to get acquainted with him before the big race, but when the gap opened up with ten strides to go, and she pushed him through it, he responded with everything. Nothing beat the sheer exhilaration of seeing the empty green grass between a horse’s ears and knowing that you’d crossed the line in first place.

All the hoofbeats and cheering faded as the gap opened, and she had leaned down close against Darnation’s neck. His mane whipped against her cheeks as she asked him to push through the gap, and he responded, his huge lungs drawing in oxygen and his body stretching out towards the finish line. On her outside, another horse ranged up beside her, and she waved her whip in the air between Darnation and the other horse to keep it from leaning on Darnation. She felt her whip brush the other jockey’s leg, a measure of how close they were as they surged together to the line. Darnation’s head was still in front as they passed the finishing post. A few strides after the post, Rachel relaxed and let Darnation slow his speed naturally, allowing him to pull up without risk of injury. The jockey on the second horse leaned over and yelled his congratulations, and she turned her head to thank him with the biggest grin possible on her face. The reins and her whip in one hand, she ran the other gently down Darnation’s mane. She patted his neck and told him what a good horse he was, whispered in his ear what a marvellous horse he was. Everything you’d want, brave, fast, willing, tough—there weren’t enough adjectives to describe him. By the time they reached the back straight, Darnation had slowed to a loose trot, nice and even, and the journalist on horseback had reached them.

‘Congratulations. How good was that! Is this your first Group One win?’

She refused to let his ill-informed comment steal the joy of her win, ‘My second. I won the Memsie on Static Alarm a fortnight ago.’

‘And now you have a second on Darnation. Talk me through the run.’

‘To win on the big stage, in front of everyone, is an amazing feeling. All credit to Darnation—he took the gap when I asked and kept finding when the second horse came up beside him.’

‘The trainer, Shelley Twayne, had a good chat with you in the mounting yard. What is it like to ride for her?’

‘Amazing. I’m so pleased to get the result after she gave me the opportunity to ride Darnation.

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