One Hoof In The Grave [Carriage Driving 02] Read Free Page B

there’s always someone handy to beat up on when anything gets in his way. “The starter should never have let me on the course with the pileup down here,” Giles said. I had to admit he was right about that, although I’d be willing to bet Troy was right as well. Giles had either jumped the gun or at least fudged his start.
    Giles turned back to Catherine. “If I weren’t such a damn fine driver, I might’a run my ole boys smack into that woman and her horses. Don’t know many drivers good enough to stop a team of seventeen hand warmbloods halfway down a hill when they’re rarin’ to go.” He glanced over his shoulder where his groom was just managing to head his team while his daughter Dawn struggled with four sets of reins. “Somebody was trying to drown me and my horses.”
    “Like, who’d want to do that?” Troy whispered.
    “Yeah, Raleigh, why would anybody want to drown you ?” That came from one of the spectators who’d jumped in the water to cut the Halflingers free.
    “Lucky it was the two Halflingers that went into the lake and not that team you’re been irritating to death all weekend,” Catherine said. “Out of my way. I’m driving out to check the barrels before anybody else starts.” She turned to her assistant. “Troy, you stay here and call the other course volunteers. Give them a heads-up to check for tricks. I’d be surprised if there are any. This is the best location to set up a trap like this—close to the trees and out of sight of the house. I’ll be right back.”
    She floored the ATV, drove over the bridge and into the trees beyond. She hadn’t planned to drive over to check the barrels herself, so she must have decided it was a good excuse to get away from Raleigh before she decked him. I didn’t blame her.
    Troy walked halfway down the bridge away from everyone else and keyed his walkie talkie to begin his round of warnings.
    The woman who had given Peggy her driving apron stepped between Giles and Peggy. “We’d have rescued your horses , Giles. I’m not sure we’d have bothered with you .” She pointed up the hill. “Shouldn’t you get on back to your team before they run over somebody? That daughter of yours has her hands full hanging onto them.”
    He glared, but turned on his heel and strode back up the hill to his carriage and team. “Dawn, goddammit,” he called to his daughter. “What the hell are you playing at?”
    I winced. If my father had ever spoken to me the way he spoke to poor Dawn, I’d have taken my whip to him.
    Dawn was actually doing a fine job keeping Raleigh’s big team from bulling their way down the hill, brake or no brake. His groom was having more difficulty heading them—that is, standing in front of them and hanging onto the leaders’ bridles. All four bounced on their front hooves and tossed their manes. They were raring to go and furious that the crowd at the bottom of the hill was holding them up. Raleigh climbed into the carriage, elbowed his daughter off the right-hand driver’s seat and took the reins from her. “Get on up here,” he shouted to his groom.
    “Daddy,” Dawn said quietly. “We can’t start until Mrs. Harris says we can.”
    “Hell, we’ll never make the course time,” Raleigh said and glared at Peggy.
    She glared right back.
    “Everybody’s times on course are screwed up,” Dick said. “If Catherine agrees, we might as well take a Mulligan, if we can get Raleigh turned around and back to the start.”
    At that point Catherine roared back across the bridge on her ATV and stopped beside Troy. “Did you check with the volunteers?”
    “Yes’m,” he said. “No trouble. Nothing suspicious. They’ve been out there since dawn.”
    “I saw nothing at the barrels either. The rest of the course is pretty open.” She climbed down. “We’re good to go. Let’s get everyone moving.”
    “Catherine, give us a break,” said the man who had unhooked Golden. I needed to find out his name and send