"So," Alex went on, "you've been here for the last two weeks? Ever since–"
"Yeah. I've been here since Fred Lucas was killed."
Alex stopped halfway down the aisle and turned to Lance. Behind him, she could see the horses lifting their noses up to the wire mesh of their stalls to look at the two of them in the aisle. "Does anybody know what happened to him? Nobody will tell me anything."
"There's not a lot to tell. He was found right about here where we're standing—right in the middle of the barn aisle—dead from a gunshot wound. There's no word on who did it, or why."
"Oh." Alex turned away and went on walking. "So, you've been taking care of this place for more than two weeks all by yourself? You've been keeping sixteen horses fed and cleaned?"
He glanced at one of the stalls, where what looked like a tall and slender gray horse stood looking at him. "When I heard what had happened, I came straight over here and asked the cops who was going to take care of the horses now. They said the family was gone and they hadn't hired anyone else. So they told me to go ahead. And I did. Fed them twice a day, and turned them out into the arena each morning."
Alex stopped again near the rear doorway of the barn. "Lance, I am very grateful that you stepped in to take care of these horses. Now, you did get paid, didn't you? Because if you didn't, I can arrange that right now. I have access to all the estate money, and there's plenty in there to keep this place going for a long time."
"Yes. I was paid. Thank you. The day after Fred Lucas was killed, the lawyer for the Norman estate came out here, found me working, and hired me on the spot to take care of things. I liked working around the horses a lot better than fixing air conditioners for hotels. I agreed to do this until the family could be located."
He looked up at her. "And now the family's here."
CHAPTER THREE
Alex caught her breath. "Oh, no, no," she said quickly. "I'm not family. It's true that this place was left to me in a will, and yes, I'm the one they meant to leave it to, but I've never heard of the Normans and I've never been to this part of the country at all."
Lance just nodded. "Okay. I guess I'll be back at the motels, then. They said they'd take me back anytime."
"Lance! Don't you—don't you want to stay? I need you!"
He looked up, puzzled.
"I mean—I hope you'll keep on working here. You said you liked it better than your other job, and I need you to show me how it's done. I have some experience with horses—I do like them and I used to take lessons as a kid—but I have no idea how to run a place like this."
"Okay. Sure. I'll stay."
Alex sighed with relief. "Good, good. Thank you. Now, if you don't mind giving me your address and cell number, so I can always contact you–"
"No cell. And my address, well, it's here."
"Here?"
"Yeah. Been sleeping in the barn alongside Fanny. I think the horses should be watched, especially after what happened to Fred. There's nobody living in the house. "
"But where were you living two weeks ago? While you were working for the motels?"
"Oh. Well, they'd let me have an empty room sometimes, and that was all I needed."
He must have seen the concern in her eyes, because he shook his head. "Don’t worry about me. I like my independence. Just let me know what you want done around here."
She tried to smile. "I think you're doing fine with it, Lance."
Alex found herself looking steadily into his very bright blue eyes, and then he suddenly turned away. "Time to turn the horses out," he said. "You can help me if you want. Get to know them."
"Sure. Sure! I'd love to."
"Grab a halter, then."
She did and opened the nearest sliding door, trying to remember the right way to catch a horse in a stall. Fortunately, the tall gray mare—the one who had been watching Lance—seemed to be pretty easy to handle and ready to get outside for her daily turnout.
Lance kept up a running commentary as they worked. "All of the horses and ponies here are good to go for work. I've ridden each one of them in the arena since I've been here, just to check them out and keep them working."
"Oh, that's good," Alex said, slipping the halter on the head of the gray mare. "I know you have to keep horses working, or else they get a little crazy."
"Yeah. They're like kids in school. They get used to being on vacation and forget how to work. But these are mostly all right."
"I'd love to see them go back to work, teaching kids about horsemanship and taking families for rides down the beach."
"Yeah. I think that would be nice, too."
Lance came walking down the barn aisle with two horses—a pair of pintos. One was black and white and quite tall and stout, while the other was chestnut, white and very small and dainty. "This is Moonrise and Sunrise. And you've got Violet. Just follow me."
Outside was the large and nicely kept wood-fenced riding ring, painted bright white just like a racetrack. They took the horses inside, slipped off their halters, and stepped back as they trotted away.
There were twelve horses in the barn, and so Alex and Lance made three more trips to take the rest of them to the ring. Fanny stayed close by, watching all the activity. Lance kept trying to tell Alex the names of the horses, but she knew it would be a while before she remembered them all.
There were two pretty chestnut mares, the color of new pennies. "Lady and Ginger," Lance said. "There's always a horse named Lady. And you've got Snowflake, the leopard Appaloosa."
Snowflake was white and entirely covered with small black spots. "A leopard App," she marveled. "I've read about them, but never seen one before." She ran her hand over his soft coat, and realized that she could actually feel the velvety black spots in the longer white hair.
The next three were Pearl, a tall cream-colored mare, along with the bay geldings, Seaweed and Sky. And in the final group were Swifty, a tall bay who had once been a racehorse, and a pair of chestnut geldings almost as big as draft horses. Their names were Tank and Truck. "They're not too pretty, but they're the ones you need for the extra-large guests," Lance said, and Alex laughed.
With all of the barn horses trotting, playing and rolling in the sand out in the arena, Alex followed Lance as he walked out of the barn towards the fence line at the far end of the property.
"There's your next-door neighbor," said Lance.
"Looks pretty nice," she said, gazing over the fence. She saw a full-service boat dock with a large sign at the front proclaiming it to be the Wood Marina. There were two docks with boats of all sorts, some large enough for charters and others that were just privately owned fishing and pleasure boats. There were even a few sailboats.
"This makes for a nice area, doesn't it?" she said to Lance. "They've got the boats and we've got the horses. Charter fishing and beach rides, right next door to each other!"
"Well, sure, I guess so," he answered. "But I keep hearing that the guy over there wants to buy this place for himself."
"Really? You mean, he wants both the fishing and the riding operations for himself?"
"No," said Lance, and she could hear him trying to keep his patience. "He wants to expand his marina. Tear down his own house and move into the one over here with his wife. Then tear down the barn and use the rest of the land for parking. That would leave more of his beach access open and he could put in another dock."
"Oh." Alex glanced over at the marina again. Its docks had boats tied up at every slip, and she could see that if the house wasn't there, a third dock could be put in. "Yeah, I guess that would be nice for him." Even though she'd just arrived, she didn't want to think about this beautiful barn being torn down.
They walked around the outside of the barn and over to the paddock with the three-sided, concrete-block shed. It sat on the far side of the property, between the beach and the barn.
"Wow! These four run from extra large to extra small, don't they?" Alex said with a laugh, looking at the horses in the paddock.
"I guess they do," said Lance. "The big black mare is Jet. She's probably a Shire, at least mostly, because they're the largest horse breed there is. With her size, she's really more comfortable out here than in a stall in the barn, so that's where I let her stay."
"She is just gorgeous," Alex marveled, looking up at the very tall but very beautiful mare. "And she seems very sweet with her little friends."
"Oh, sure. The two larger ponies are Thunder and Lightning. I think they'll be good for the older kids. And the little guy, the gray Shetland, is Starfish."
"They're all gorgeous," Alex said. "The kids are going to love those black-and-white pintos. I can't believe they're all mine!"
"You will when you get the feed bill," Lance said. Then she followed him on a walk around the rest of the property.
The other side of the driveway held two very large concrete-block sheds along the front, backing up to the road and facing the inside. One was the hay barn and the other was a garage and general storage shed.
Alex was quick to notice that there was some open space at this end, and if she ever wanted to expand, she could add another paddock, or even another barn.
"Do you have a key?" asked Lance.
"Key?"
"To the house. It's yours, too, isn't it?"
Alex looked over at the house. "Yes, I have a key. And yes, I guess it is mine."
"Maybe you should go and take a look at it."
Alex hesitated. "I will," she said, "but I want to ask you a question first."
Lance simply looked at her and stood waiting.
"Where are you staying right now?"
He looked back over his shoulder at the horses in the ring. "I still get a room at one of the motels every few days, just so I can clean up a little. But mostly I've been staying right here."
"In the barn? Sleeping on the hay bales in front of the tack room?"
"Sure. Somebody needs to watch this place. You see what happened to Fred."
"Yes, I know. What about food? How are you eating?"
He shrugged. "Plenty of diners and fast food around here. Sometimes I walk to the grocery and get a few things. Keep 'em in the tack room. It's fine. Really."
She closed her eyes. "Listen. I want you to stay in the house. I don't know if there's any furniture, but it's supposed to have the electricity and water still on."
"Aren't you going to stay there?"
"Well…I don't know yet, for sure. I just got here. It's kind of a big decision."
"Yeah, I can see that. Well, why don't you go in and look it over, and if you still want to let me use it, I might take you up on that."
She looked at his very dirty clothes and the black lines under his fingernails. "I'm grateful to you for watching this place and taking care of the horses. Of course you're welcome to stay in the house."
"Okay. Thanks. I'll go get started on cleaning those stalls."
CHAPTER FOUR
Lance walked away, and Alex turned towards the house. It looked very much like a smaller version of the barn, for it was also made of concrete block and painted the same pale aqua color. It sat longways across the left side of the lot, so that the back of it faced the beach and the gulf.
Walking up to the front door, Alex wondered how many big storms this house had survived over the decades, just as the barn had. Her key turned easily in the lock, and she walked inside the small house that was now her very own.
The front door opened directly into a large living room and kitchen area with picture windows along the back, giving a beautiful view of the Gulf of Mexico.
There was a master bedroom with its own bath at one end, also with a picture window looking out at the beach. Down the hall at the other end was another bathroom and two smaller bedrooms.
She made a quick check of the water and electricity. They were working as they should.
Everything was quite bare but clean. It was strange to see the smooth and well-worn floors and walls, and think about all the people who had lived here for so long…to think about their lives in this place.
Yet Alex was surprised at how comfortable she felt, even though she'd never been here before or known anyone who had.
The little house was very inviting. Its proximity to the beach was a bonus you could get almost nowhere else. But as she walked back outside, she made the decision that she did not want to move into the house just yet. There was too much to do, and even though she was already drawn to the whole place, she had to be sure she was staying before becoming even more attached to it.
Alex walked back into the barn and found Lance hard at work with a manure fork and a wheelbarrow. "Lance," she said, "the house is empty, but the water and power are on. Please feel free to stay there and at least get a shower. I'll make a run to a store today and bring in some food and a set of bath towels. And a cell phone for you."
"You're sure? Where will you stay?"
She grinned at him. "I'm sure. I can keep my motel room for now. It's not that expensive, and I can use a little of the estate money for it. The important thing, now, is to get this place up and running and earning its own money again. It's almost tourist season, isn't it?"
"Sure is."
"Well, then! I guess I'd better make that run to the store. We've got work to do!"
***
That evening, just as the sun disappeared, the half moon was about midway between the zenith and the western horizon. Alex walked out in back of the house and looked out over the gulf, drinking in the beautiful sight of both sunset and moonset and watching the softly shining water stretching as far away as she could see.
But she hurried back to the barn because it was feeding time and she was going to help Lance. He was just pulling the large handcart out of the storage shed when she walked up.
Alex waited while Lance strapped a wide weightlifting belt around his waist and then tossed her a pair of gloves. "Use them. And be careful lifting. Don't want to end up like me."
Together they started swinging hay bales onto the low wagon. "Hey, these bales aren't too heavy," Alex said. "I did this a little when I was a teenager, but they were so heavy I couldn't lift them by myself."
"I get these local from a farmer who sets the baler for a fifty- to sixty-pound bale instead of upwards of a hundred. Easier for anyone to handle."
"Well, I'm glad for that," Alex said, "but I'm still going to be sore tomorrow!"
She noticed that he was moving very slowly and carefully as he first lifted the hay bales from the barn to the cart, and then picked up a large paper bag of rolled oats.
Lance was certainly a mystery. He'd clearly been injured at some point and was limited in what he could do, but chose to do hard physical work at a horse stable. He was obviously smart and educated, but was content to live alone in a barn with only a dog for company.
She did not know him well enough to ask any personal questions. She'd only just met him this morning, and she told herself she'd better just be glad he was here and had been willing to step up and care for this place and all of these horses.
They made the rounds of the barn and the paddock, throwing the horses their flakes of hay. "I ordered the oats for a few of them," said Lance. "Swifty and Sky look like Thoroughbreds to me, and I would bet that Pearl is a Saddlebred, so I knew they'd need some grain along with their hay or they'd lose too much weight. Same for Jet, Tank, and Truck, because they're draft types and need a little extra when they're working."
"Thoroughbreds?" asked Alex. "You mean, racehorses?"
"Sure. Swifty's got a lip tattoo, which means he was on the track at one time. All racehorses have a number on the inside of their upper lip to identify them. Sky doesn't have one, but I still think he's a Thoroughbred just by the look of him."
"Where did you learn all this? You sure know a lot more about horses than the average hotel maintenance man."
But he only glanced at her and went on measuring out the oats. "Oh, here and there," was all that he would say.
F
inally, the work was done for the day, and Alex got into her rented blue Nissan to drive back to her motel. "Here's the extra house key," she said to Lance as he stood next to the open car door. "There's some food in the house and a set of clean towels. And a coffee maker. Make yourself at home."
"There's really no need–"
"Please. It's the least I can do after all you've done for this place. And Fanny's welcome in there, too."
He smiled a little. "Okay. You talked me into it."
Alex grinned back at him. "See you tomorrow." As she started the car, she was glad to see Lance go into the house and turn on the kitchen light.
Just as she reached for the key to start the car, her cell phone rang. It was a number she did not recognize. "Hello?"
"Ms. Byrne? This is Anton Leonov. I'm the attorney for the Norman estate. We've never spoken, but I'm the one who sent you the papers."
Alex blinked. "Yes. I remember seeing that name." Then she had an awful thought. "Is everything all right? Has there been some mistake?"
He chuckled. "No, no, Ms. Byrne. There's been no mistake. Why do you ask?"
She sighed. "Well, I'm here now, at Sandbar Stables, and it's a pretty wonderful place. I can't believe that I could inherit it from people I've never heard of."
"Oh, not to worry. I've seen far stranger things in my time as an estate planner. But that's why I was calling. I take it you've seen the place, so I need to know if you wish to keep it or sell it."
She answered without even thinking. "No! No, I don't want to sell it. I'm staying."
Mr. Leonov paused. "I'm glad you like it," he said, "but it is my duty to inform you that the property is worth a great deal of money. The Norman family was pressured to sell, but they always refused."
"A great deal of money?"
"Oh, yes, yes indeed. Four acres of beachfront property in a beautiful spot on the Gulf of Mexico is almost impossible to come by these days. I have any number of developers who would offer you a very good price for it."
"I knew it was valuable, but I didn't know how much," she murmured.
"You would earn far, far more from selling it than you would trying to keep it as a horse operation. I know a little about horses myself—mostly that they are very expensive to keep and rarely pay for themselves." He laughed again.
Small Town Filly (Sandbar Stables Cozy Mystery Book 1) Page 2
