Wyatt squeezed Camila’s hand back as their box went nuts.
“Blitz is fading!” the announcer called. “And here comes Ruth’s Gentleman charging up the home stretch. It’s Equos owned by Kranski Stables and Wyatt Farm’s Ruth’s Gentleman surging past Blitz. And here they are, Sandstorm, Equos, and Ruth’s Gentleman neck to neck!”
“Go, go, go,” Camila chanted as she gripped Wyatt’s hand even tighter.
Wyatt sucked in a breath because he knew what was going to happen. For the first time the entire race, Mike moved. She slid her hand up, tapped Gent on the neck, and the horse responded instantly. His stride lengthened and in the last thirty yards of the race, Gent settled into his perfect stride.
“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Camila whispered as tears began to roll down her cheeks. This was what she’d been training Gent for. All the practicing in the world did nothing without raw natural ability and here it was. Finally, the world got to see what Gent could really do.
“It’s Ruth’s Gentleman by a length and a half followed by Sandstorm by a nose over Equos and Blitz in fourth,” the announcer boomed as all of Keeneston broke out into a chant.
“Keeneston, Keeneston,” Wyatt heard as his parents wrapped him up in a hug. Carter was there slapping his back and then Mo stood smiling.
Wyatt turned to Camila, realizing he still had his hand in hers. Her face was one of shock. Wide eyes turned toward him. “We’re going to the Derby!”
“Why, yes we are!” Wyatt laughed as he lifted Camila up and swung her around. He set her down and shook Bud’s hand before Camila threw her arms around his waist and hugged Bud. It was the most elated Wyatt had ever seen him.
“Come, on!” Camila giggled, grabbing Bud and Wyatt by the hand. “We have a winner’s circle to visit.”
They were about to leave the box when an older man with some red hair mixed with mostly white stopped them. Camila instantly froze. “Camila Callahan!”
“Mr. Finley! It’s wonderful to see you.” Camila eyes were wild as she gripped tightly to his hand. Wyatt wondered if she were squeezing Bud’s just as much.
“Your da told me to look you up. He said that you were Dr. Davies’s farm assistant.”
“Mr. Finley, this is Dr. Davies. Wyatt, this is Mr. Finley. He’s from Ireland, too.” Camila’s eyes begged him not to say much, so Wyatt pulled his hand from Camila’s and shook Mr. Finley’s.
“Nice to meet you, sir. We’re on our way to the winner’s circle. Sorry we can’t talk further but hope to see you around.”
The man smiled and shook his hand before turning to Bud. “And you must be C.C. Callahan. You did a hell of a job training, son.”
“I’m not . . .” Bud began but Camila cut him off.
“C.C. just can’t wait to get to the winner’s circle, isn’t that right?” Camila stared Bud down until he nodded.
“Well, I won’t hold you up. I hope to see you soon,” Mr. Finely said before pulling Camila in for a hug. “Let’s send a photo to your da.”
“I’ll take it,” Wyatt offered quickly. He snapped the picture and then made their excuses. He waited until the man left before whispering to Camila, “Your father would be proud of you. You just won a graded stakes race and qualified for the Derby.”
“I know. But I really want to show him in person what I can do.”
“If that’s what you wish.” Wyatt turned to the grandstand and cupped his hands around his mouth. “Come on, Keeneston!”
His friends and family filed from the boxes and the grandstand and a group of more than forty people made their way down to the winner’s circle.
“I told you I was going to win this,” Mike called out as soon as they saw her. Camila, Bud, and Wyatt no longer acted cool as they ran toward her. They showered her and Gent with praise as the photographer had a mini freak-out about fitting everyone into the winner’s circle for the picture.
Wyatt took a deep breath as he was handed the trophy for the Capitol Stakes. He smiled and held it as the camera clicked and the commissioner laughed at having two competing owners, Carter and Mo, in the winner’s circle, too.
Finally the pictures were done. Bud, Wyatt, Mike, and Camila began the walk back to the barns.
“You did it, Michaela!” Camila cried as she tried to wrap her up in a hug.
“Wait,” Mike said calmly as she waved to the crowd.
The second they were out of sight of the grandstand, Mike let out a loud celebratory yell and broke into tears as she hugged Camila. “Un-freaking-believable! We’re going to the Derby!” Her face suddenly went white. “I mean, if you want me to ride him, that is.”
Wyatt reached down and picked her up into a hug that left her laughing and her legs dangling off the ground. “Of course you’re riding Gent! You’re Wyatt Farm’s exclusive jockey. I told you that.”
He set her down and looked at Camila, Mike, and Bud. “This is our team.”
“Oh my gosh!” Sydney cried as they finally reached the barn. “I’ve been waiting forever. Do you know how many interview requests you have?”
“Take these,” Sydney said, shoving Wyatt Farm caps at Mike and Camila. “No time for hair and makeup. Let’s go! Everyone.”
“Oh no,” Camila said. “I can’t be interviewed.”
Syd rolled her eyes but didn’t push. “Fine. I’ll spin it. It’ll make you more mysterious. Come on, Wyatt. You and Mike have a roomful of people waiting for you. But before we go, I just have to say I cannot be more proud to have my name attached to such a great jockey and to such a great farm.”
Wyatt saw his sister tear up as she kissed his cheek. “Nana Ruth would be so proud of you.”
“Thank you, Syd. I think she would be, too.”
Wyatt took a breath. It was time to tell the whole world Wyatt Farm was back.
DeAndre was waiting for them as they left the interviews. Normally DeAndre was just as happy-go-lucky as his fiancée, Aniyah, but now his lips were compressed in a straight line and his arms were crossed over his chest.
“Is something the matter?” Wyatt asked as they all approached him.
“Arnold isn’t talking. We are running the other man’s fingerprints through the database now. He is also refusing to talk. He hasn’t said one word. Not where he’s from, not his first name, not who he works for . . . nothing.”
“But it’s over now, right?” Camila asked as she moved closer to Wyatt.
“I’m afraid not. Kyle is talking. He said the nameless man we arrested is paying him to make sure the tests are all negative. Kyle said it was payment for the future when a test would be made. They thought they had years, not weeks. He is under the impression that it is a major criminal organization. He said everyone from jockeys to stable hands is involved. He’s giving up names now. It was much bigger than we thought,” DeAndre told them.
Wyatt let out a long breath and looked to the group. “Any ideas?”
Mike shook her head. “I know jockeys rig races and some have a worse reputation than others, but I wouldn’t be able to hand over proof.”
Wyatt’s phone buzzed on silent and he turned it over in his hand to look at the message. CALL ME. “Piper needs something.” He called her back and put it on speaker so everyone could hear it.
“The commissioner had the blood draw done before the next race. It’s a throwaway race with junk horses, but we found something. One horse tested positive and that same horse happens to have over five hundred thousand dollars placed on him to win and there were some really large bets placed on a very specific trifecta. The commissioner believes the entire race is rigged.”
“Which horse tested positive?” Wyatt asked.
“A horse owned by Leo Zampa. The trifecta was of Leo’s horse coming in first, a horse from Aces High coming in second, and then a horse from DP Stables coming in third,” Piper explained as the call to post sounded. “The commissioner is going to delay the race as we investigate. The starting gate will suddenly develop a problem. But he’s asking for
DeAndre to find out what he can. He wants to take down the whole race rigging before the race happens. If we can’t do that, then he’s pulling Leo’s horse only since it tested positive.”
“Marco and Leo are involved?” Camila asked, sounding hurt. They were friends.
“I think it’s best to face this head on. DeAndre, why don’t you slide into the box behind us? Stay hidden as best you can but still be able to hear us. Let’s go have a chat with them,” Wyatt told them.
26
Wyatt and Camila held hands as the group returned to the cheers of their friends and family. Instead of going to their box, they entered Mo’s where only Ahmed, Veronica, and Blythe sat while the Ali Rahman family took photos with Sandstorm.
“Congratulations, my friends!” Marco smiled and shook hands with Wyatt. His smile began to fade as he took in Camila’s face. “Are you all right, Camila?”
She shook her head.
“What’s taking this race so long to start?” Leo asked, not paying attention to Wyatt, Camila, and Mike standing in the front of the box and certainly not to DeAndre who had taken a seat next to Ahmed.
“You had me fooled, Marco,” Wyatt said, taking a seat in the chair and crossing his ankle to his knee. The way the boxes stepped down, Marco was now looking Wyatt in the eye.
“I don’t understand,” Marco said slowly looking between Wyatt and Camila. “Did something happen?”
“You’re pushing Popular. You’re giving it to the horses so you can rig the races for the long shots,” Wyatt said bluntly.
“By having the long shots actually perform better, you don’t have to pay off as many jockeys to hold the favorites back. Except in this race,” Mike said, crossing her arms and staring Marco down.
“Popular?” Marco asked as he blinked. “The street drug?”
“Leo’s claim horse, your horse, and then Dawn and Pauly’s horse for the trifecta. How much did you place on it?” Wyatt asked, his temper fraying.
“DP Stables, but they’re . . .” Marco’s head whipped around to his cousin. “What have you done?”
“What?” Leo asked, having not paid attention at all to the conversation.
“Popular, Uncle Pauly, this race, and a trifecta . . . what have you done, cousin?” Marco asked again as he stepped menacingly toward Leo.
“Uncle?” Camila asked.
“Pauly Zamprogna is Leo’s father. Leo shortened his last name to Zampa because he thought it sounded cooler. Dawn is his second wife. Pauly’s first wife, Leo’s mother, was my aunt—my father’s sister,” Marco explained. “Son of a bitch,” he cursed as he went to grab his cousin, but Leo dodged him.
“What? I haven’t done anything. Have the vet test his blood if you don’t believe me,” Leo said, full of cockiness.
“We’ve already tested the blood with our new test. One that tests for the street drug Popular. One that your horse tested positive for,” Wyatt said, putting his feet on the ground and looking Leo in the eye. “And the commissioner found it very interesting that there were large amounts of cash placed on this race. All in favor of your claims horse.”
“There’s no such test,” Leo stuttered.
“I should have known the second I saw my father here,” Marco said, gritting his teeth.
“What does your father have to do with this?” Camila asked as Marco grew rigid and Leo began to look like a caged animal.
“My father swore to look after Leo when Leo’s mother died. You know our family takes oaths very seriously. You know that family is everything. When my father, uncles, and aunts emigrated from Italy, they had nothing. My father earned money by gambling, playing cards—poker, mostly. He started a restaurant that my aunt ran. That’s where she met Pauly. My father thought he was leaving the old world behind when he came to America, but it was already here, waiting to sink its teeth into us. And once again, my father kept me out of this. He told you to go straight, didn’t he?” Marco demanded to know.
Leo sneered at Marco. “You can’t prove anything.”
“We have your employee in custody, the one who threatened Michaela. We have Kyle in custody. And Arnold. And Julio. How long do you think it’ll take for them to talk?” Wyatt asked.
Leo stared at him and Marco. Then in a flash, he lifted the chair and threw it at Marco. Marco stumbled back and ended up falling into the neighboring box. Wyatt was ready. He pushed off his feet and tackled Leo as he tried to run by. The two of them went down in a tangled heap in the aisle outside Mo’s box. Wyatt felt his body slam into the concrete and groaned as he and Leo rolled down the two steps into the lower box level.
The two of them lashed out at each other as they struggled to their feet. DeAndre was leaping boxes to try to come in from the far right. Marco was covering the left and Wyatt felt Ahmed at his back.
“You’re surrounded, Leo. Turn yourself in,” Wyatt said calmly as he felt all of Keeneston converging.
“Hold on! I got my gun!” Wyatt heard Aniyah call out as suddenly track security was unsure of which person to go after. “I can shoot really well now I have my glasses.”
“That bitch is crazy,” Leo spat and Wyatt grimaced.
“That was the wrong thing to say,” Wyatt said, shaking his head. “You had a chance to walk out of here unharmed before saying that.”
DeAndre let out a rumble and his face said everything. Leo was going to pay for that.
“There’s no way out. Just tell us about Popular. Did you invent it?” Wyatt asked trying to keep everyone calm.
“There’s always a way out,” Leo smirked before placing his hand on the rail at the front of the box and jumping.
The sickening crunch of his leg as he hit the ground two stories below had everyone grimacing. But Wyatt knew people like Leo. He wasn’t going to give up. There were screams and Wyatt didn’t wait. He took off for the stairs with everyone else close behind him.
When Wyatt reached the bottom level of the grandstand, Leo was still trying to hobble away as security surrounded him. Wyatt and Marco stepped in front of Leo, making a wall between Leo and the security guards.
“I told you this would happen, but like always, you don’t listen,” Marco scolded.
Leo snapped his head around and there was Mr. Strinati looking completely collected. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his nephew.
The older gentleman shook his head in disgust. “Your mother would be so disappointed in you. I always knew your father was a worthless bum. I swore to my sister that I would raise you in her honor, but you’re too much like your father. Worthless.”
“My father is better than you’ll ever be! Just because you made money doesn’t make you better. Everyone knows power rules the world. And I have it. Not you,” Leo spat.
“Father, what is he talking about?” Marco asked as Leo tossed his head back and laughed.
“You’ve always been so stupid,” Leo snapped at his cousin. “You tried helping me all the while I was using you. Now, I’m not saying another word. My father will take care of this. I’ll be home by dinner.”
“Not this time,” Mr. Strinati said, turning to DeAndre who was standing next to Wyatt with his gun drawn. Much to everyone’s surprise, the gun was pink. It appeared he’d confiscated Aniyah’s gun for the takedown. “Are you the officer in charge?”
“I am,” DeAndre answered never taking his eyes off Leo as the crowd around them grew.
“My brother-in-law, Pauly Zamprogna, is from the Zamprogna crime family in Italy. Against his family’s wishes, he set up a money-laundering and drug business in New Jersey. Pauly is in charge, and Leo cleans the money. The bets that were all made today were from drug money. He paid bribes to jockeys and who knows who else to rig the race. The money that they’d win would come out clean. I have evidence of both Leo and Pauly’s illegal activities as well as permission from his family in Italy to turn it over with their blessing and a message.” Mr. Strinati looked Leo dead in the eyes. “There will be no help coming. You and your fath
er are disowned.”
“I told you it was money laundering!” Wyatt heard Aniyah yell.
Leo went white and Mr. Strinati turned his back to Leo. Marco did the same as DeAndre stepped forward and cuffed Leo.
“What does that mean?” Camila asked from behind Wyatt.
Wyatt turned to see most of the town slipping guns back into purses or into their suits. Lucas carried Miss Lily in his arms while Talon carried Miss Violet and Deacon held Miss Daisy, each held a wooden spoon in their hand.
“It was faster to carry them,” Lucas said with a shrug as he was about to set Miss Lily down.
She swatted his shoulder to stop him from setting her down. “The excitement is all over. Would you be a dear and carry us to Aniyah’s car? It’s time to celebrate a day at the races. Everyone to the café!”
* * *
The group began to disperse but Wyatt and Camila stayed put. The commissioner, stewards, and track officials all came running. With a word to security, a path was made as DeAndre and Luke escorted Leo into the offices as officers were sent to round up his father.
There were so many questions, but Camila knew there wouldn’t be any answers. Every question asked of Leo was met with silence. Soon Ned and Danny joined them and Mr. Strinati called DeAndre over. A flash drive was handed off as Leo and Pauly were taken away.
Marco looked completely shell shocked. Everyone wanted answers, but right now Camila was watching a man’s whole world crumble. She hurried over to his side and squeezed his arm. “Are you okay, Marco?”
Marco acted as if he didn’t hear her as he looked over to his father. “You knew the whole time? I thought you didn’t trust me to run the farm.”
“It was never you, son.” Mr. Strinati finally seemed to melt as his eyes softened and a sad smile creased his face. “I was hoping you would be the good influence on Leo. I tried to warn you against him when you both went off to college, but you got mad at me instead. I thought it was better to step back and let you see for yourself I wasn’t lying about Leo. But then he latched onto the horse racing, and his father bragged about how you were helping. I knew the time to step in was now.”
Forever Ventured Page 20
