Саманта Сильвер - Just Horsing Around

I looked up the name of the mare who had given birth to Touch of Midnight. Amazing Grace was her name, it turned out. Googling her, I looked at a half a dozen photos carefully. As far as I could tell, she was pure dark chestnut. Was that really enough though? I had to be sure before I said anything about my new suspicions.

Thinking back to Polly’s offer to show me around her stables, I grabbed my purse and rummaged around in it until I found the card she’d given me. I called the number and held my breath waiting for her to pick up.

“Hello?” came her chipper voice on the other end of the line.

“Hi, Polly?” I asked.

“Yes, speaking.”

“It’s Angela here, we spoke at the police station a few days ago.”

“Oh of course! Hi Angela, what can I do for you?”

“Well, this might sound kind of weird, but I’m wondering if it would be possible for you to organize for me to meet with Touch of Midnight. His father was just such an incredible race horse, and from a purely scientific point of view I’d love to be able to see his offspring, even if it’s just for a minute or two.”

“I understand completely, Angela. Once you start to learn about race horses, it’s hard to let go. I’m friends with the stable manager who runs Freidrich Suter’s horse business over here. Let me give him a call, and I’ll let you know.”

“Thanks, Polly. I really appreciate it,” I told her, and hung up the phone. I suddenly realized I was bursting with nervous energy. If this hunch was right, then I had maybe just uncovered one of the greatest scandals in horse racing in a long, long time. Polly called me back ten minutes later. I was welcome to join her at the stables the following day at 4:30, after the horses had finished their training for the day. Thanking her, I went out to enjoy some pizza. I couldn’t tell Sophie and Charlotte about my suspicions. Not yet, anyway. Not until I was sure. For now, we were going to have to settle for teasing Bee about her new boyfriend for a while.

The next day I told Sophie I had to head off on my own to check something out to do with the case.

“Where are you going?” Sophie asked.

“I’m going to see Touch of Midnight, the foal of Touch of Frost. I have this suspicion about his eyes, but I need to confirm it in person.”

“Really? What is it?”

I shook my head. “I don’t want to say until I’m sure. It’s probably nothing, but I want to check it out.”

“Oooooh, is it scandalous ?” Sophie asked, her eyes widening in excitement.

“Pretty much, but I’m still not telling you,” I told Sophie, sticking my tongue out at her as I walked out the door to my car. I left my pouty best friend in the clinic to take Bee home while I focused on the directions Polly had given me.

Polly’s farm was an old-style home, painted in a dark blue colour, probably built in the 60s, with a lot more of a “real farm” look about it than the sanitized, super expensive Gibson Farms. There was a broken down tractor out to the side of the house, two chickens pecking at the dirt outside the front door, and grass that was perfectly mowed in spots and overgrown in others. This was definitely more what I thought of when I thought of farms. I went up to the front door and knocked, and Polly came out a minute later.

“Oh, fantastic, you’re here!” she said, dressed in jeans and a simple plaid blouse. “Let’s get going.”

The two of us got into her old Range Rover and Polly started driving south.

“They recently bought a small farm not far from here. The Pacific Northwest is growing in the horse racing world, since the weather here is so nice. It’s not too cold in the winter, but it’s also not too hot in the summer, like places like Phoenix are. I know a few major race horse owners who have recently bought places up here to train, mainly in the summer.”

“Interesting,” I said in reply. “And you’ve never met the owner of this place?”

Polly shook her head. “No, he’s definitely the reclusive type. I don’t know if he ever even leaves Switzerland. Me, I’m too much of a micromanager to be willing to leave an entire business on another continent in someone else’s hands, but what do I know?” she asked, laughing. “Maybe there’s a reason he’s the one with billions of dollars, and not me.”

We chatted a little bit more on the way, until finally we arrived at another farm, which much like the Gibson Farm, was perfectly manicured and taken care of. The house was a lot smaller, however; I imagined it was mainly used to house staff. It was still far more luxurious than nearly any house I’d ever seen. I imagined people must be clamouring to work here.

Polly parked the car in a little parking lot out by the front – yeah, this place had its own actual parking lot – and was quickly met by a guy who looked like he’d just stepped out a of a country music video. Cowboy hat, cowboy boots, dirty jeans, blue button-up shirt with a red bandana around his neck, this guy was the goods. He was in his late 30s, with tanned skin and a friendly smile.

“Hey ladies! Out here to look at our newest little family member?” he asked.

“Yes please! This is Angela Martin, the local vet in Willow Bay. Caroline hired her to take care of Touch of Frost when their vet was out of town, and she’s taken a bit of a liking to him. Wanted to get to know his son.”

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Martin,” the guy said, holding out a hand. “I’m Kevin. Kevin Drury.”

“Please, call me Angela,” I told him as we shook hands.

“Sure thing. Now of course, the only reason I’m letting you in here is because you’re a friend of Polly’s, and a vet. We aren’t showing Touch of Midnight to the public yet, he’s too young. There’s been a lot of interest in him though. It’s horse racing, it’s a small enough community that everyone knows everything, no matter what.”

I smiled slightly. I knew what that was like, living in Willow Bay.

“How old is he now?” I asked.

“Just over four months. We’re going to start weaning him in a few weeks.”

Kevin began to lead us towards a stable at the back of the farm. Like the Gibson stable, it had state-of-the-art security measures put in, including the fingerprint scanner.

“Amazing Grace is really good about people coming near her foal,” he told me. “There shouldn’t be any issues. I’ll give you some apple slices to bribe them with anyway, though.”

I thanked Kevin as he gave me the apples, and he led Polly and I down to a stall at the end of the stable. In there, eyeing us with a gentle curiosity, was Amazing Grace. She was tall, and obviously powerful. Her black coat shone even in the dull light, and I realized just how good of a match it was to have her be with Touch of Frost. Touch of Midnight was at the back of the stall, playing with a little bundle of hay.

“Hi there, new momma,” I told Amazing Grace, holding out one of the pieces of apple. “Do you mind if I just have a look at you and your little one for a few minutes?” I asked. “He’s really beautiful.”

Amazing Grace came over and ate the piece of apple. “That’s fine. He really is a beautiful boy. He’s really wonderful, although he’s getting a bit big.”

I smiled at her motherly love. Animals were animals; everyone just wanted the best for their young, human or not. I stroked her nose gently while I looked her over carefully. Every single inch of her was chestnut brown; she really was a beauty.

Glancing over at Touch of Midnight, I looked over at his eyes. From that distance though, I couldn’t tell what I was looking for.

“Hey, Touch of Midnight, want a piece of apple?” I asked with a smile, leaning over the fence to offer it to him. The promise of a treat brought him over, and I handed him the piece while looking carefully at his eyes, and at the same time, trying to look like I wasn’t looking at it at all. I didn’t want anyone to notice my suspicions. But yes, up close, it was obvious. Touch of Midnight had blue eyes.