Promise of Hunters Ridge

by Sarah Barrie

  ‘No, you won’t get me,’ he told her, his voice rising again. ‘You refuse to. Because you’ve never forgiven me for interrogating Ally. Why don’t you tell me what it’s going to take to make up for that?’

  She hesitated, caught off guard. ‘You can’t ask me to—’

  ‘The hell I can’t!’ Exasperation was complicated by a flare of anger, and something else, something wounded she wasn’t sure she understood. ‘It’s been years, Mia. I’m sick to death of being the bad guy. I’ve done everything I possibly could to make up for it. So what do you want, blood? Will that make it better? I’ll cut my fucking arm off!’

  Mia’s mouth fell open as, without a backwards glance, he left her standing staring at the front door. Shocked, and not sure what to do, she walked on shaky legs upstairs and onto her balcony to sit, looking out over the street. For a while nothing got past the anger. Then her mind started asking questions. Was he right? She thought about Ally’s time in the hospital. Ben had pushed and pushed and questioned and questioned, caused those horrible panic attacks. She’d hated him. Hated him for causing the attacks, hated him for being a cop, hated him for reminding her of her ex. Hated him more as, the more she got to know him, reluctant admiration had crept in. Because she didn’t want that. A cop who thought he knew better had hurt her. A cop who thought he knew better had hurt her sister. There was no room for admiration. Certainly none for attraction. And whenever she felt the slightest bit swayed, something like this happened and her reservations were validated. But if it hadn’t been for Shane, would she feel differently about him?

  No, of course not. That didn’t excuse what he’d done to Ally. Even though she now knew he’d been more interested in clearing her than charging her. And it didn’t excuse today’s accusations. Even though he hadn’t actually made them. Shit. Damn it.

  ‘Fuck it.’ She stood and finished collecting her things. She wasn’t waiting until morning—there was no point, she wouldn’t sleep. She may as well leave tonight. When her phone alerted her she had a message she checked it with little interest. It was that number again.

  Jobs complete.

  Jobs? Ben had said he was a hitman. But she hadn’t ordered those hits. What else could that mean? Had he sent her the information? Of course, wasn’t that the job she’d paid for? Any other possibility didn’t bear consideration. Shaking off the sick little twist in her gut, she quickly pulled open her laptop and waited impatiently while her emails came through.

  Nothing. The small amount of hope that had risen inside her died. So he hadn’t emailed it. Perhaps he’d posted it? It might still turn up. Maybe.

  ‘Jasper!’

  Jasper came over with a shake of his tail and a yawn.

  ‘You can sleep in the car. Let’s go.’

  Back at Hunters Ridge, Mia buried herself in her work, cocooning herself at the cottage until she was caught up. But by the time she was feeling much better about her workload, Jasper was driving her nuts. Between his owner spending long hours at the computer and the weather turning nasty, he was spending too much time inside and was bored. And when Jasper was bored, he chewed. Everything.

  He’d had a good run with her around the paddock this morning, but when he’d brought her part of a chewed-up magazine and pressed it into her lap with sad doggy eyes a couple of hours later, she’d felt sorry for him. Then she’d found the rest of the chewed mess all over the bed and all sympathy had flown out the window.

  ‘We’ll play soon, but we’re not going out while it’s blowing a gale,’ she told him when the next thing to land in her lap was the slobbery remains of a decimated tennis ball. She turned her attention back to a final review of photos she’d chosen for her menswear ad campaign and took another sip of the water she had beside her, moving some text around on screen.

  Jasper pressed his nose onto her leg and she dropped a hand to pat him, knocking the water off the table. The glass shattered and Jasper yelped, then took a step back.

  ‘Jasper!’

  Blood dripped rapidly from a paw he was holding up, but he wriggled excitedly at the attention.

  ‘Damn it. Hold still.’ She found the cut on the pad of his paw and winced. ‘I guess we’re going out after all. Let’s go see Ebs.’

  Hoping the injury wasn’t too serious, she found a bandage in her first aid kit and wrapped it up, then got him into the car while he worked on shredding it.

  By the time she pulled up at Ebony’s surgery, the bandage was in pieces and his mat was ruined, but the bleeding was down to a gentle trickle. In consideration of Ebony’s floor, she tied the remains of the bandage back on and took Jasper, limping, into reception. The new surgery was sparkling clean, of course.

  ‘Hi, Carla.’

  ‘Mia!’ Ebony’s vet nurse came out from behind reception with a smile. ‘I have to thank you for those proofs you sent through of Beck and Prince. They’re amazing. I want them all.’

  ‘All of them?’

  ‘Yep. Oh, what’s he done to himself?’

  ‘A run-in with some broken glass.’

  Carla bent down and Jasper stepped in for a pat while she took a look. ‘It’s not bad. Ebs will probably just clean it out and pop a bandage on it for a few days to help it heal.’

  ‘What am I doing?’ Ebony asked, appearing in the reception room. ‘Hi, Mia. What have you been up to, Jasper?’

  Jasper bounced at the end of the lead, bloody paw prints appearing all over the floor.

  Ebony just grinned. ‘He’s always been the happiest dog ever to see a vet.’

  ‘So he should be. You saved his life. He cut his paw.’

  ‘Bring him through to the consult room. I’ll take a look.’

  ‘Quiet day?’ Mia asked.

  ‘Just finished surgery. I have an hour before clients start turning up again.’

  A young woman popped her head in the door. ‘Excuse me, Ebs? I’m going for my lunch break.’

  ‘No worries, thanks, Michelle.’

  ‘How’s the new vet going?’ Mia asked.

  ‘She’s great. A good fit, I think. And now I’m living out at Lee’s place, it’s life saving to have someone reliable living here, on site.’ She lowered the examination table and tapped it. Jasper bounced on.

  Carla came in and filled a bowl with some water, added antiseptic and handed it to Ebony with a handful of swabs.

  ‘Grab the liver treats too, please, Carla.’

  Ebony examined and cleaned Jasper’s paw while Carla fed him in an attempt to keep him reasonably still. ‘What colour bandage would you like, gorgeous boy?’ She went to a cupboard and pulled out a couple of Vetwraps. ‘Blue? Or yellow?’

  ‘I’d say let’s keep it coordinated with the collar,’ Mia replied, ‘but he’ll have that thing chewed off in thirty seconds anyway.’

  Ebony opted for blue. ‘If he tries, I’ll make him wear a big ugly plastic collar, yes I will,’ she crooned to Jasper.

  The phone rang and Carla left to answer it. She’d reappeared by the time Ebony had the bandage neatly completed.

  ‘Joe Davison’s got a colicky yearling.’

  ‘Right. Tell him I’m on my way. Can you let Michelle know when she gets back? If it’s a difficult case she might need to squeeze in a couple of my afternoon appointments.’

  ‘No worries.’

  ‘Joe Davison of the big thoroughbred stud on the way in to town?’ Mia asked with interest.

  ‘That’s him.’

  ‘You delivered twin foals for him last year, didn’t you?’

  Ebony grinned. ‘The mare delivered them, but yes.’

  ‘I wonder if he knows of any reject racehorses that need rehoming?’

  ‘For you?’ Ebony asked as she started getting equipment together.

  ‘Just an idea I got from the dressage comp last weekend. I was thinking more along the lines of a coloured horse, but then this big bay one I saw was gorgeous, so I’d compromise on that. There are so many that end up going through the sales for meat because they do
n’t work out, right?’

  ‘That’s true.’ Ebony closed the lid on her kit. ‘Wanna come with me and ask him? Jasper can stay and keep Carla company. She’ll make sure he doesn’t demolish his bandage.’

  She should really go home and finish off her work, but the idea had taken hold, the wind had died down and the sun was coming out. ‘Absolutely.’

  The yearling groaned and flopped on its side, his breathing heavy, his coat slick with sweat. He kicked, then dropped back to his side. ‘Let’s get him up,’ Ebony advised.

  Mia watched her work, assisting when instructed. The horse objected violently to the nose tube, but Ebony worked with a calm efficiency that soon had the situation under control.

  ‘The painkillers and antispasmodics are working,’ Ebony told them. ‘His gut sounds are improving. Oh, there we go.’ The horse lifted his tail and dropped some manure. ‘So is the paraffin oil. Good sign.’

  ‘I’ll have one of the boys keep an eye on him. Thanks, Ebony.’

  ‘Pleasure. How are the twins going?’

  ‘Really good.’ He handed the yearling to a waiting stablehand and gestured to an avenue dividing two large paddocks. They walked through it to another paddock dotted with young horses. He pointed to one at the far corner. ‘That’s the big filly and the little one … is over there.’

  ‘Not so little now. How’s the racing going? You winning?’

  ‘Can’t afford to keep them long enough to race them. I’ve been selling them all at the yearling sales.’

  ‘Oh, that’s a shame. Mia was hoping you might have something that didn’t make the grade.’

  ‘Best off heading up to the sales, first Sunday of the month. Bit of a drive, but there’s always some around.’ He scratched his head. ‘Only got one big old thing around here doing nothing and that’s him over there minding the colts.’

  They walked to yet another paddock and a group of curious youngsters came to the fence line, followed by an enormous older gelding. When Mia extended an arm, he approached and his big black head nudged her chest.

  ‘Look at you, handsome. I bet you won some races.’

  ‘Never ran one to win. Got broken in, barrier trialled, then bowed his tendon. I tossed him out in the paddock to recover but it took a while and I had other young ones coming on and he just got passed over. Should have gotten rid of him but he’s a friendly fellow and not worth much of anything, so now he just wanders around feeding his face.’

  ‘He’s gorgeous.’

  ‘And huge,’ Ebony said. ‘But sweet,’ she added when he sniffed gently at her hair.

  ‘I don’t know that he’d be any good for what you want though,’ Joe told her. ‘He’d be going on eight now and not ridden since he was a baby.’

  Mia continued to stroke his face, from the little white star on his forehead down his long dark nose. His big brown eyes closed happily. ‘He doesn’t look too mean to me.’ She stepped through the fence into the paddock and looked him over. When two young colts got too inquisitive and one took a nip, she swished them away.

  She rubbed her hands over his coat, through a tangle in his mane. He was in fat paddock condition and his coat had a shine to it, even though a light layer of dust covered him. His nose dropped towards the ground in lazy contentment as she preened over him.

  ‘Not mean exactly,’ Joe confirmed, ‘but he can be cheeky. And you need to watch him because if he gets a bee in his bonnet he might have a bit of a nip.’

  Mia took a handful of mane, wondered if she could vault all the way up and decided to give it a go. She just got her leg over his wither when he came to life and shot off with a pigroot. The younger horses scattered.

  ‘Be careful!’ Joe called out.

  Mia laughed as the horse took a couple of big, bounding strides before coming back to a trot, then stopping altogether. Ears back attentively, he stood, waiting to see what she wanted. She stroked his neck again. ‘You are cheeky. Are you going to behave?’ She got a better hold of his thick mane as he walked a few strides then, when she didn’t ask for anything, put his head down to resume grazing.

  ‘How much do you want for him?’ she called out, already planning his future.

  ‘You’re crazy!’ Joe said with a shake of his head.

  ‘You’re not the first person to tell her that,’ Ebony replied. ‘If it makes a difference, she’ll give him a fabulous home.’

  ‘He’s not doing anything here but costing me money.’

  Mia slid down and gave the horse another pat before brushing herself off. Her jeans were filthy. She was pleased when he followed her back to the fence.

  ‘What’s his name?’

  ‘Moby.’ When Mia just stared, Joe grinned. ‘Like the whale. All he does is eat.’

  ‘Right.’

  ‘If you’re serious about wanting him, why don’t you take him home, give him a proper try? If he doesn’t work out, he can always go back in here, no dramas.’

  Mia looked the horse over again. He was absolutely not what she’d had in her head to start with, but he was sweet, available and needed something to do. It didn’t hurt that he was big and black and pretty, either.

  ‘I’d love to, thanks, Joe.’

  ‘Good, that’s settled,’ Ebony said with a glance at the time. ‘I might just take another look at that yearling, then I’d better get back to the surgery.’

  Mia climbed through the fence and grinned as she walked to the stable block. ‘Ally’s going to flip.’

  ‘Why?’ Ebony asked. ‘She knows you want a horse.’

  ‘It’s my choice of horses. No doubt she’ll think this one isn’t the best option for me. I have a bit of a history of being …’

  ‘Reckless? Crazy? Suicidal?’ Ebony teased.

  ‘Certainly seems that way,’ Joe added.

  ‘Thanks. But I think he’ll be fine. His temperament is so gentle.’

  ‘In his home paddock. You don’t know what he’ll be like when you take him out and start training him,’ Joe said.

  ‘Which will be Ally’s point. That and the fact that the only times in my life I’ve ever really injured myself have been when I’ve been riding horses I probably shouldn’t have jumped on.’

  ‘You mean like Moby today?’ Ebony asked. ‘I can’t imagine why Ally would have any concerns at all.’

  * * *

  Mia picked up Jasper then headed straight from the surgery to Ally’s. She was hoping they could collect Moby this afternoon if Ally was free—if she convinced Ally to pick him up at all.

  ‘Stop it Jasper!’ she ordered when she heard licking and chewing from the back seat. ‘Leave your bandage alone.’ Ebony had given her a couple of spare wraps in case she needed them. She’d be lucky if she didn’t use both of them in the next couple of hours from the sounds of things. And she hadn’t cleaned up the glass yet. She’d need to make sure he didn’t charge in there and do more damage when she got home.

  She turned up Cam and Ally’s driveway, noting both their cars parked at the top. ‘Good start,’ she muttered with a grin as she pulled up behind them. Her sister was going to love this one.

  ‘What happened?’ Ally asked when Jasper jumped out of the car in his blue bandage.

  ‘It’s nothing major, he just cut his pad. All good.’

  Ally came down from the veranda and gave the dog a sympathetic cuddle. ‘Poor baby. Silly boy. Come in. Cam’s inside and I’ve just put Chloe down for her nap.’

  ‘That’s handy.’ Mia followed her through the front door.

  ‘Why? What are you up to?’ Ally asked.

  ‘I was actually hoping for a small amount of help. Hi, Cam.’

  ‘Hi, hon. You need something?’

  ‘Hmm.’ She looked at Ally. ‘I need to borrow the float. And a yard at the farm. Please.’

  ‘What? Why?’ Ally asked slowly. ‘What have you done?’

  Mia pulled a face. ‘I want to borrow your float and a yard. Hazard a guess.’

  ‘My guess would be you’ve done
something impulsive and crazy.’ Ally put her hands on her hips and eyed her sister with suspicion. ‘You’ve been with Ebs and either heard about some broken down old horse in need of a good home or something so incredibly bloody insane no one else wants it.’

  ‘Doesn’t sound like Mia at all,’ Cam piped up with a wink.

  Mia stared at Ally with a glimmer of amusement. ‘And we’re nothing alike in that regard, are we? Shall I start listing some examples?’

  Ally visibly struggled with that for a minute. ‘Stick to the point. So you did? Is it A or B?’

  ‘I went on a house call with Ebs to Joe Davison’s. He has this horse sitting around doing nothing and—’

  Ally’s eyes widened. ‘You bought an ex-racehorse? You haven’t ridden for years. What if—’

  Mia held up a hand. ‘He never raced. He bowed a tendon in the barrier training stage and—’

  ‘Is he sound? Have you had it checked? Bowed tendons—’

  ‘It healed years ago,’ Mia said. ‘He’s fine.’

  Ally pursed her lips in consideration. ‘How old is he?’

  ‘Rising eight.’

  ‘And he hasn’t done anything since barrier training?’

  ‘Not a thing.’

  ‘So no education to speak of. I suppose he’s big?’

  Mia couldn’t help the grin. ‘Seventeen hands something—enormous.’

  Ally’s hands moved from her hips to her head. ‘You were always determined to kill yourself with your saddle choices.’

  ‘He’s a big pussy cat. I jumped on him in the paddock and he barely did anything.’

  Ally’s eyes widened. ‘You jumped on him? Helmet? Boots? Bridle? Anything?’

  Mia just grinned.

  Ally attempted to look stern, ended up grinning back. ‘Is he pretty?’

  ‘Gorgeous.’

  ‘Good. Then I won’t have any trouble rehoming him to another lunatic when he kills you.’

  ‘There you go. Can we go get him?’

  ‘Now?’ Ally looked from Mia to Cam and back again. ‘Will he go on the float?’

  ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘Mia, are you sure? I mean really sure?’

  ‘Yep.’

  Ally glanced at Cam again. He was sitting back, obviously enjoying the show. ‘Chloe and I are fine here,’ he prompted.