The Horse Thief Read Free Page A

morning?’
    â€˜Well, but I have a list as long as my arm of things to do. I’ll have to chase up Fred. The stables are a mess. I want everything spic and span. I suspect Jim Mawgan will arrive today and I don’t want him thinking we don’t run a decent show.’
    â€˜You might just have left it a bit late.’ Peggy’s face broke into a knowing grin and she winked. ‘He arrived last night.’
    â€˜Last night! Why didn’t you tell me?’
    â€˜It was getting late and you and Violet were going hell for leather in the dining room. I didn’t want to interrupt.’
    â€˜Oh dear.’ India sighed. Despite her best attempts to be congenial and agreeable, nothing went according to plan. Last night Violet’s behaviour had almost driven her to distraction. Her sister couldn’t get it through her pretty head that living alone and unchaperoned in Sydney wasn’t feasible. They could hope for a suitable marriage offer but as Violet pointed out, stuck in the Hunter it was an outside chance. Helligen wasn’t the back of beyond yet it was a good ride to Morpeth and then six hours on the steamer to Sydney. Newcastle was closer, but the company Violet sought wouldn’t dwell in the coal mining port.
    Some days the responsibility was all too much and Violet’s tantrums only added to her difficulties. ‘I wish you’d told me last night.’
    â€˜Well.’ Peggy stuck her hands on her hips, her chin jutting. ‘I thought I was doing the right thing.’
    â€˜I’m sorry.’ India curled her arm around Peggy’s shoulder. ‘You’re right. It’s far better if I meet him this morning. The last thing we want is for him to become embroiled in family problems. He’s here to manage the horses. I need to be businesslike. And anyway, it’s probably better to give the poor man a chance to settle in before I bombard him with my plans.’
    Her new-found independence was both a blessing and a curse. There were days when she could do with a hand in running the place and a different viewpoint would be a godsend. Maybe Mr Jim Mawgan would provide that—not that she intended to hand over her hard-won right to make decisions, just as a second opinion.
    â€˜Here.’ Peggy pushed the round breadboard across the table. ‘You’d better have something to eat. Can’t work on an empty stomach. The loaf’s just out of the oven and there’s some of that strawberry jam you like.’
    India hacked off the crust. More than anything else in the world she wanted Helligen to flourish. Make it the vibrant family home it had once been. Bring it back to the time when any horse carrying the HK brand commanded the highest of prices.
    When she’d stood at the rail at Flemington with four thousand others and watched Archer thunder down the two-mile track she’d made up her mind. Her heart skipped every time she relived the excitement, the clamour, and the thundering hooves. She would breed Helligen’s first champion racehorse and win the coveted prize. To present Papa with the winner’s purse would compensate for all their suffering, and prove she was capable. When Archer won for the second year running she’d nearly died of jealousy. The prize belonged to Helligen but for the string of misfortunes over the past years.
    That single fact had firmed her resolve and after months of cajoling and pleading Papa had agreed—to give her a year once she turned twenty-one. One year to prove her capabilities. Before long the first Thursday of November would be a day in the history of the Kilhamptons, not just Flemington.
    â€˜People say when Archer won the Melbourne Cup they walked him all the way from New South Wales to Melbourne. And he went on to win by eight lengths. That’s stamina, but our bloodlines are just as good.’
    â€˜Are you still harbouring that little fantasy of yours?’
    â€˜I