The Hidden Horses of New York by Natalie Keller Reinert

Author:Natalie Keller Reinert
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Natalie Reinert

HOT TODDY, THE bay horse who lived in the end stall of Caitlin Robert’s sweet little Saratoga shed-row, had learned to look out for them.

Every morning, Aidan and Jenny sloshed through the wet grass between the stable and the drive, squinting into the orange sunrise as it pierced the sky behind the myriad green barns, their leather bags stuffed and rattling with the tools of their trade.

Hot Toddy leaned out of his back window, pricking his ears at the pair of them. Aidan slipped a hand into the pocket of his slouchy jeans, and the horse neighed his interest immediately, his high-pitched voice wavering through the damp morning air.

A few other horses whinnied in reply, their responses echoing through the little barns, growing ever more distant, an equine version of telephone. Jenny wondered what the message became as it reached three, four, five barns away. Their calls joined the early morning bird song, the sound of hose jets hitting water buckets, the whisper of a breeze stirring the tall northern trees.

Jenny took a deep breath and absorbed the scents on that whisper of wind: of grass and hay and manure and some elusive upstate mountain essence. She let them soak into her soul, fill her heart with gladness, her feet with lightness.

She loved Saratoga.

Hot Toddy accepted a peppermint from Aidan’s hand with eager lips, and after this morning ritual was completed they were free to walk around the side of the shed-row, the ground beneath their boots changing from wet grass to thick mulch. A tidy pathway led up to the little stable’s center entrance. The horses looked over their rubber stall guards with interest. Everyone had heard Hot Toddy’s teeth crunching down his mint.

Jenny smiled as Aidan distributed mints all the way down to the tack room at the far end of the shed-row, where Caitlin was standing where she always was standing at this time of morning: before her white board on the wall, a mug of coffee in one hand, a dry erase marker in the other, going over the day’s plans for her little string of racehorses.

Aidan stuffed crinkling peppermint wrappers deep into his pocket and set his heavy bag down on a wooden bench. He was, as always, carrying an impressive array of photography equipment: lenses and zooms and bits of camera Jenny couldn’t even name. Jenny’s bag was stuffed with a more eclectic assortment of items: battery chargers, cords, notebooks, a riding helmet, a tightly-rolled rain jacket.

Caitlin glanced over at them, blinking a few times as if to shake the racing plans from her brain so that she could reenter the outside world for a few stolen moments. “I heard Hot Toddy whinny and knew it had to be you guys,” she said with a grin. “He’s turning into our watchdog.”

“Aidan always gives him a mint,” Jenny replied, winking at Aidan. “He learned by day three that Aidan’s always good for a treat.”

“Ah, I thought his breath was fresher. Jenny, if you want to join me on track first thing this morning, I’ve got two works going early.

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