Joint Venture

by Tey Holden

  “My name is Gyro. I’m a jockey. So, what did he say about running like the wind?”

  Alex smiled and walked closer to him and sat on another haystack closer to Gyro.

  “He said he would.”

  “So, if I ever get to ride him, what should I tell him if I want him to run like the wind?”

  Alex smiled. “Tell him to remember what Alex said. His name is Alejandro.”

  The jockey smiled. “Alejandro. I’ve never known a horse named Alejandro. I think it’s a good name for a horse like him. It’s the name of a winner.” Gyro walked to Alejandro and patted him down. “Please to meet you, Alejandro.” Alex smiled.

  Alejandro seemed comfortable with Gyro and made a sound. Alex got up from the haystack and followed him.

  “He likes you.”

  Gyro smiled. “I like him too. I would love to ride him.”

  “Why do you want to ride him?”

  “I’m getting good vibes from him. He seems like he knows himself. He responds to my touch, that tells me he has good feelings. It’s hard to explain. It’s like with people, you like them or you don’t. And you don’t really know why, it’s as if you knew you had something in common with them. But I like Mr. Alejandro here. I hope the owners like me and give me a chance to ride him. I bet he has a beautiful stride.”

  “Are you going to hurt him?”

  “I would never hurt him. There is no need to be cruel. I think gentleness works better. I think that if Alejandro wants to win, he will give it all he has. We all need to want things for them to happen.” Gyro turned and talked to Alejandro, who had approached the twosome standing in front of him. “I think that if Alejandro wants to win, he will win.”

  “He wants to win.”

  “He also told you that?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then, it would be a pleasure to ride him.”

  “You have to be nice to him and not hit him with the stick.”

  Gyro laughed. “I will not hurt him. I promise you.”

  “Then, I would like you to ride him.”

  “I think we are going to have to wait for the owner to decide that, don’t you?”

  Addy approached them with Karen and Marshall behind her. “She just did, Mr. Gyro. You have just been interviewed and hired.”

  Gyro smiled somewhat puzzled as he looked at a very pleased Alex. “Mr. Gyro, may I introduce you to Ms. Alexandra Marcos Larsen, Alejandro’s owner.”

  Gyro continued to smile at Addy and then he bent over to shake Alex’s hand. “I am very pleased to meet you and your horse, Ms. Alexandra.”

  “You can call me Alex, and when can you start training him?”

  Gyro raised his eyebrows still surprised at the feistiness and sense of command of the little person in front of him. “Well, I suppose the sooner the better.”

  “Good, I want to see you train him. I stop by every morning before I go to school. If you are out there, I will see you.”

  Gyro was delighted with Alex. Addy proceeded with the introductions. “Mr. Gyro, this is my partner Karen Larsen, and this here is Marshall, Alejandro’s trainer.” In business matters, they had agreed to introduce each other as partners to maintain a sense of neutrality.

  “Yes, we spoke on the phone,” Gyro replied.

  “Like Alex, said, the sooner you can start the better.” Addy continued, “Ms. Marshall here will get you started as soon as you can. Welcome aboard. You will find your employer quite interested in your activities. She is a regular around here and she is not shy accepting work, as Marshall here will tell you.”

  Gyro looked at Alex who was walking next to him as they toured the stables. Alex participated in the conversation and gave a few insights as to Alejandro’s behavior. He was very impressed with the information Alex provided.

  When the family of three had departed Gyro had a few questions for Marshall. “That little one is something else, isn’t she?”

  Marshall stopped short. “She’s not just something else, she’s everything around here. Keep an eye on her.”

  “Is there a dad?”

  “No, two great moms, though. You have a problem with that?” Marshall thought to clear the air immediately.

  “No, not at all.”

  “Good, you won’t find better people around here. You’ve just been hired by the best. You treat them right and you are family.” Marshall smiled remembering when Carol told her those exact words.

  ***

  Gyro began his work almost immediately. Early every morning Alejandro was out on the track training. Alex would get up early as well to stop by the stables on her way to school to greet and watch Alejandro’s training even if it was only for a few minutes. Gyro always brought Alejandro to her.

  “Hi Alejandro! How are you today? I’m on my way to school. I guess training is like going to school, right Mommy?”

  “Yes, Alex, training is Alejandro’s school.”

  “Well, I have to go now, but make sure you learn a lot so that you can win. I’ll come and see you tomorrow after school.”

  Karen always found it odd that Alejandro seemed happy with Alex’s presence and even odder that he seemed to participate in a sort of exchange with her. Alex would talk and he would either move or nicker, or snort, or blow or make some kind of sound.

  As Alex shared her few minutes with Alejandro, Karen sometimes talked to Gyro about the horse. “Sometimes I think the horse understands her.”

  Gyro smiled. He loved the way Alex talked to the horse also. “Ma’am, I think he does. I think he looks forward to seeing her in the morning and after he sees her, I notice that he is much happier.”

  Karen looked at him in surprise, thinking that he probably also had a screw loose since he was already into the Alex horse-talk nonsense.

  “Little girl, we need to go. You don’t want to be late for school.”

  Alex said good bye, and the horse immediately whinnied. “He’s just saying bye, Mommy. He wants me to come back later.”

  “Yeah, sure. Tell Mommy Addy when she picks you up to bring you.” Usually, it was Karen who took her to school in the morning since she had to go to work at her office in the Manor house. Addy was always the one picking her up around three in the afternoon, since Karen usually left work between four or five in the evening, depending how busy they were. Of course, when they weren’t very busy she’d come home earlier. The cottage was a one-minute drive to the Manor house, but school was fifteen minutes away.

  “Mommy what happens when a horse wins a race? Does he become famous?”

  “Well, yes he does become famous. I suppose he could continue to race, but also there are a lot of people who would pay a lot of money for his babies.”

  “What do you mean? Alejandro can’t have a baby, he is a man horse.”

  “Yes, but what happens is that people who have women horses,” Karen rolled her eyes, “I mean mares, would want him to come over and make a baby with their mare and then they pay the owner of the boy horse a lot of money. Because you see, the thought is that the new baby horse would be a winner just like his daddy. Of course training is also very important, you can have the best horse but without proper training he would never win.”

  Alex was quiet for a while. “If Alejandro goes away, I’m not sure I want him to win now.”

  “Well, Alex, here’s how I see it. It’s like with you. You live with us now and we give you our very best, but as parents we hope that with everything you have learned and we have given you here at home, you will be prepared and ready to face life on your own one day when you go away to college.”

  “But I don’t want to leave you and M’Addy! I always want to be home with you.”

  Karen smiled. “Well I’m glad to hear that because we certainly want to keep you.”

  By then they had reached the school and Karen got out of the car and took Alex inside. As she left, she could see Alex lined up with the other kids to go inside the building. Yes, it was comforting to know that their six-year old lov
ed her home and her parents. Sadly, she knew that someday their little one would be all grown up and would fly the nest. But for now, life was good, and she would enjoy its many blessings.

  ***

  The phone rang in the middle of the night. That was never good. Addy was startled by the ring and rushed to pick it up, it was her cell and it was on the night table next to her on the bed. She put on her glasses and looked at the name and relaxed when she saw it was only Marshall and not Laurie. She never liked receiving calls made at odd hours because she always feared bad news.

  However, the tranquility didn’t last. It was Marshall’s number, but it was in fact a very alarmed Carol speaking.

  “Addy, the stables are on fire!” Marshall has Alejandro, and the other horses are out.”

  Karen woke up with the sound of the phone. She was half groggy from her sleep, leapt from the bed the minute she heard Carol’s alarmed voice on the phone, and even before Addy could say a thing to her. Addy dropped the phone and ran after her thinking that Karen was heading to the stables, but instead she found her in Alex’s room standing in front of Alex’s bed.

  Alex was peacefully asleep. Addy went to their room and grabbed Karen’s robe and her own. She came back and put the robe over Karen’s shoulders. When the phone rang again, Addy went back to their room and picked up the call, this time it was Marshall. Addy stood in the hallway not wanting to wake up Alex with the conversation. She looked inside the bedroom, and saw Karen sit on Alex’s bed. Alex woke up a bit when Karen ran her hand on the little one’s back. “Mommy?” She mumbled in her sleepy drowsiness.

  “Yes, baby, it’s me.” Alex smiled and went back to sleep. Karen tenderly brushed her daughter’s hair. When she heard steps and looked back, she met Addy’s eyes.

  Marshall continued to talk. “Addy I let the horses out. We’ll round them up tomorrow. I have Alejandro and the mare with me. Carol called the fire department and they are already here.”

  Addy was listening, but looking at Karen. Karen’s eyes were fixed on Addy, but her hand was still on her daughter’s back.

  “Marshall, get out of there. Let it all burn. You already got the horses out. I don’t want you and Carol at risk. Get out of there and come over. Let the firemen deal with it.” Addy hung up.

  The look of panic she had seen on Karen’s face had shaken her. She knew exactly what was going through Karen’s mind. No words were needed. She sat on the bed and caressed Karen’s back. “It’s all fine, baby. It’s all fine.” From the window, they could see in the distance the brightness in the sky from the fire. Addy leaned on Karen’s back and held her. Karen leaned on her and closed her eyes with her hand still on Alex’s back.

  “Addy?”

  “Yes?”

  “I don’t want you leaving this house to go there.” Her tone was somber, but firm. There was no doubt that this was not a request.

  “I won’t, Ker.”

  Karen took Addy’s hand and kissed it. The two sat in silence on Alex’s bed. “Addy, you and Alex are all I care about. Nothing else matters.”

  “I know. I also know what’s going through your mind. You don’t have to tell me. Let’s not jump to conclusions and wait and see what the fire department and police say. Maybe it was an accident, or faulty wiring. If there was a criminal hand in this, I promise you that I will personally— .”

  “No, you’ll do nothing of the sort. I don’t want you involved. I will take care of it.”

  When Karen turned to look at her, Addy saw the resolve in the burning green eyes, and she remained quiet. She knew that look, and knew that there was no point in pursuing a conversation in the heat of the moment under the circumstances.

  Neither one mentioned it, but they both suspected that Karen’s family might be behind the fire. They thought this might be another relentless pursuit to intimidate them in yet another effort to get the property. Their last attempt to get the estate through obtaining Alex’s custody, left lasting scars to the point that even after several years had passed, Karen still feared for their daughter’s safety. Addy was the kind of person who could move on, but not Karen. These were her blood relatives and she was not only ashamed of them, but also carried the guilt of having brought this upon her wife and daughter. She felt haunted and deeply responsible for her loved ones safety, and would go through anything to protect them.

  “I’m going to call James and JP. They need to be alerted just in case the refinery is next.” Addy said softly.

  Karen eyes became huge. “Oh my God, Addy, I didn’t think of that! Yes, call them immediately. Tell James to call the security company and put them on alert to protect the area.” Karen’s admission of not having thought of something was a clear indication that she was rattled to the bone. The fear of her loved ones being the object of evil panicked her.

  Addy called, and James answered. As soon as he finished talking to Addy he called the security company. They responded immediately and soon they were patrolling the whole area. James and JP went to the distillery to make sure that all was in order. While there, JP called Addy. “Addy, it’s JP. Are you guys okay? How about Marshall and Carol? Are you at home or at the stables?”

  “We are home, why?”

  “We came to the distillery to make sure that everything was okay here.”

  “JP, I want you and James out of there now. Go back home. Let me talk to James.”

  “Sure, honey, here he is.”

  “James, get out of there now. Karen and I suspect the fire was not an accident. Just leave the premises and don’t put yourselves in any danger. Please, tell the security company to send people over to the manor house. We need to check the law firm as well.”

  “Addy, how about you guys there?”

  “Yes, thanks, James, I almost forgot. We are sort of freaked out. Please, have them send people here to check the perimeter of the cottage as well. I’ll turn all the lights on.” She hung up the phone and was getting ready to leave Alex’s room when Karen stopped her

  “Where are you going?” Karen held her by the hand. Addy could tell that Karen was very anxious.

  “I’m going to turn on the security lights, baby. I’m just going to step out into the hallway.”

  “I’ll do it. Stay here with Alex.” Addy sat on the bed as Karen stepped out to the hallway. Addy saw Karen go first into their bedroom and suspected the reason. Her heart froze when she saw Karen with the gun in her hand. “I’m sorry, baby. I know you don’t like this, but I need to protect you and Alex.”

  “Just be careful, please.”

  They were still upstairs. Karen went to the control box for the alarm system and perimeter lights, and made sure that everything was activated. She then turned on all the outside lights, and went back to Alex’s room. Only when the security personnel arrived and called from outside, did she deactivate the alarm and the three of them came downstairs.

  “Ma’am, we have checked the perimeter and everything seems to be fine. No one has gone through the gate. I have left officers at the Manor house, the distillery, the stables and here to secure the sites.”

  “Thanks.”

  JP and James arrived past midnight. JP was wearing his SpongeBob pajamas.

  “Are you okay? What about Marshall and Carol and the horses, Oh! my God! The horses! Alejandro?” JP was a pack of nerves. “How could this happen? Was this done on purpose?”

  “Calm down JP. Everyone is fine and so are the horses. We need to stay together and alert until we know more.” Addy stated.

  James spoke to Karen. “Do you suspect criminal hands?”

  “Yes,” Karen replied.

  “But who?” James gasped when the answer came to him. “You think—?”

  “I wouldn’t put it past them, James.”

  James sat on the sofa between JP and Addy, who had Alex sleeping on her lap. Karen sat on the sofa with her arm over Addy’s shoulders. After chatting for a while, the group slowly quieted down with some joining Alex in peaceful sleep. Karen, however, r
emained half awake with the gun safe hidden between the cushion and the arm of the sofa.

  Around five in the morning Marshall’s truck pulled up the driveway with the horse carriage in tow. Karen immediately heard the noise, and after looking at Addy and Alex, she walked to the window, gun in hand.

  JP had just opened his eyes when he saw Karen walking towards the window. “Oh, my God! Karen, please be careful.”

  Karen didn’t even acknowledge him. “It’s Marshall and Carol.” Karen reassured. Just then Addy opened her eyes and immediately focused on Karen’s hand.

  Marshall and Carol looked ragged, sweaty, and tired. “The fire is out already. We stayed until it was out. The fire chief was still there and some fire trucks just making sure there was not going to be any rekindling.”

  “Come in, sit down.”

  “Don’t want to mess up your furniture, Ms. Larsen.”

  “Oh Marshall, who cares! Come on in and sit. Can we get you something to drink or eat?” Addy replied. “I’ll make some breakfast.” She set Alex on the sofa, then walked towards Karen and gently wrapped her arm around her waist. “Baby, I think you can put the gun away. I think we are pretty safe now.” Karen had not even realized that the gun was still in her hand.

  “Yes, I’m sorry, Addy. I—.”

  “It’s okay, baby.”

  Everyone remained silent. Marshall watched as Karen put the gun back in the safe and placed the safe on the kitchen counter. Karen wanted the gun near her, but was very much aware that they had a child in the house, so she kept the gun in its safe when it was not in her hands.

  “You don’t think this was an accident, do you?” Carol asked as she also watched Karen put the gun away.

  It was distressing for Karen to address her family’s evil intentions towards them, so Addy replied from the kitchen. “We are not sure. You know our history, so anything is possible.”

  “If this was deliberate, what are we going to do? What’s the plan? We can’t sit and let them keep us living in fear.” Marshall, who was a woman of action, spoke in a firm tone.

  Addy and Karen looked at each other. “We will get to the bottom of this, I assure you Marshall.” Addy nodded in agreement as Karen spoke.