by Brian Cain
CHAPTER THREE
And the little foal was housed within the Blake racing stable complex at Flax Burton, further delegation was required and Winston sat on his porch for a few days in deep thought. He watched Kalika tend to Taunton Barr, a lifelong bond developed, Kalika even slept with the foal for the first two days as he was wide eyed and unsettled with his new surroundings. Gaps in managing general every day track work and personnel began to show, Kalika's focus was suddenly elsewhere, the operation would require further control, but from whom.
Winston sat by his phone, he waited diligently for a certain call, from where did this little horse originate, was the information that would be of such value be forthcoming, he decided to proceed with registration of the horse void of history. This he realised would be a difficult task, registering horses with TBHA The British Horseracing Authority was usually an easy process. Winston Blake was a top registered breeder and trainer and had been for many years but without background information on the foal registration would be difficult, he figured he had two years, more than enough time to get to the bottom of the horses bloodline. Today unbeknown to Kalika three of the top equine vets in the country would be attending the stable to register and micro chip the foal. Winston was no fan of TBHA and they were no fan of his, bringing an overseas horse into the country and making off with some of the most coveted trophies the equine nation had, in a manner they deemed unsportsmanlike, had injected an indelible memoir in the minds of the aristocracy.
With overbearing prominence and ingenious negotiation he got three of the top equine vets in the nation to micro chip the foal without statement of bloodline. The registration now identified the horse, its markings and its birth date, calculated by expert opinion amongst the vets. They all took blood to match DNA data bases in search of the animals bloodline, he instructed them to carry out tests immediately regardless of cost. Two of the vets left leaving his regular vet from Temple Meads, Winston asked a simple question, they were in the barn by the door leading out to the training track. 'In your opinion what is the health of the foal.'
Equine vet Trevor Hocket put both his hands on top of his herringbone cap and stretched his neck backwards then looked at Winston with a half smile. 'Where the hell do you get them from, it has the heartbeat of an elephant, bone structure of a giraffe, and the temperament of a terminator. Healthiest horse I've seen for as long as I can remember.
'Roger found him.'
'Rogers de... how.'
'He gave us the location of this horse with his last breaths.'
'Surely Roger would have known we need to know the bloodline.'
'Mmm, I'm working on it.'
'I don't think he's a thoroughbred.'
'We'll see, to do what he has to do he has to run fast, jump high and long. Thoroughbred or not, makes no difference to those things, they are reality in its true form.'
Trevor was packing things into his bag, he stopped and looked up. 'Jump, can mean only one race, a race you despise.'
'Indeed.'
'This thing the grand national, you must be joking.'
'What if I told you Roger Palmer found a horse that could jump a six foot fence at six months.'
Trevor continued to pack his bag and chuckled. 'Hmmph, I'd say you were hallucinating, taking some kind of mind enhancing drugs, or just plain bullshiting.'
Kalika was in Taunton Barr's stall with him. 'Kalika bring him out with and hand the bridle to me.' She looked puzzled but obliged. 'Now walk out across the track to the inner field and keep walking directly away.'
'Why.'
'Please if you would.' Kalika shrugged her shoulders and walked toward the first wooden track fence, she had to walk to one side of a newly installed area of the fence, another tier had been built on top of the white wooden railing and was far too high to scale. She walked out across the training track and beneath the rail on the opposite side then began walking backwards to get what she thought would be further instructions. Taunton Barr began to rear up as she walked further away.'
'Things a lunatic Winston, you willing to gamble all this money on a nag like this.'
Winston struggled to hold him and shouted at Trevor as he let him loose. 'I've told you many times Trevor, there is a marked difference between a gamble and a calculated risk.' this foal broke into a gallop heading straight for Kalika, only the high part of the fence was in line with her and he being reunited. Kalika realised what Winston was doing and put her hands over her mouth.
'Oh no!'
The foal cleared the extended fence then the inner railing and was reunited with Kalika. Trevor wore a face of serious surprise. 'Jesus Christ.' Kalika grabbed him round the neck laughing.
'Taunton I was shitting myself.' The foal muzzled her and grunted.
'Any more questions Trevor.'
'No, I'll get onto that DNA.' He left shaking his head.
There was a purpose in everything Winston did, he knew Trevor was a terrible gossip, he planned the demonstration on his behalf. As soon as Winston had obtained the foal he had applied for the horses name through the TBHA, Taunton Barr had shown up as a name available because no other horse had ever been called that. He also knew he had some pretty smart enemies within the aristocracy.
Winston settled down on his porch by his phones and waited.
