Bloodless Day

Holding Back

Jack? Why was he talking to Mary? And during Santa Anita? How good of friends were they? I had to force myself to focus.

"So, in human terms, BD basically ran the equivalent of a twenty five mile marathon in a dead sprint. After an all-nighter. When the last time he ate had been the week before."

I thought about that for a moment, and then ran a hand over BD's neck. The stallion sighed, as docile as a lamb and about as personable as a fish. No interest gleamed in his eyes, but I thought I could see, even recognize, the dead exhaustion inside him. It was the kind that weighed down the soul days, weeks, months after the event. "That makes sense," I finally admitted. "Poor guy. I would be out of it too."

"Mmhmm." Mary nodded, and we fell into an agreeable silence as we matched BD's slow, ambling pace up the hill towards the trails. At last I had to know.

"How good of friends are you and Jack?"

Mary's face didn't turn, but I saw her studying me out of the corner of her eyes. "Why?"

I didn't answer.

A slow smile crept across her face. "Not as good as friends as you two ought to be."

Oh. My. God. What had I just done? Face burning and ears probably a traitorous red, I turned to face BD, looking studiously away from Mary as she burst out laughing.

"I knew it! Come on, Anna, let's get your horse out of here."

*****

"Nice plan. Long, romantic walks in the woods will have your horse feeling better in no time."

Wes's sneer was the first thing to greet me when I arrived back at the stable, BD trailing listlessly behind on a loose rope. Just like Mary, who had split away to go continue mucking, Lilac's sister wore a baseball cap and a smile. However, unlike the new groom, she did not look friendly in either of them.

Behind her stood a woman. She was familiar- I'd seen her around the track once or twice, but never thought to put her face to Lilac. Though their facial structure was the same- short nose, angular jaw-, her smile was jarred by something unfriendly and her eyes were cool. Nothing like Lilac, who was standing unhappily next to her.

I ignored Bloody Murder's owners and looked to my friend instead. "How was the drive?" Lilac had gone to Churchill Downs with one of the grooms to pick up Goodie, Bloody Murder, Wes, and her mom and step-dad from Churchill Downs, where the two stallions had been trailered. Judging from the dark look in her eyes, it hadn't gone well.

"I'll tell you later. Go put BD away and help me with So Far So Good." With that, she turned on her heel and strode towards the trailer, where a darker-than-night Bloody Murder danced backwards down the ramp, head high and eyes wide. He bugled, the sound streaming across the Kentucky fields. A challenge. Furious neighs erupted from the stallion barn and inside the trailer, where Goodie still was, but BD didn't do anymore than lay his ears against his rumpled mane.

Wes whistled. "You let your 'friend' order you around like that? What a pushover."

I stared after Lilac. She'd never ordered me around like that- never, which meant she had to be pretty upset. A question pressed against my teeth, my tongue, but I swallowed it and forced myself to roll my eyes at Wes. "Whatever. Come on, horse." With a cluck and a light tug at the leadrope, BD followed me back towards the shedrow.

Lilac met me in Goodie's stall, after BD had been safely deposited in his own and I'd retrieved enough shavings to bed down his brother. She leaned over the stall door, exhaustion drawn over every line in her face, dripping onto her shoulders and the veins in her arms that folded over her chest. Goodie wasn't with her, which meant he was with a groom, something entirely unlike Lilac- she obsessed over every aspect of her Derby horse's life, insistent on doing everything for him. "I'm sorry, Anna. About earlier."
I studied her through small pieces of shavings that clung to my hair. "What's bothering you? Is it something Wes said?"

"Unbelievably, no, for once." Lilac sighed. "There's a rumor going on at the track that I threw the race."

Understanding was not one of my friends. "Threw the- huh?"

"The race," she explained. "So that BD would win. Since he's my family's horse, it would've raised his worth and made us richer. It did, I guess, but we have enough money so that it doesn't matter. But now people are wondering if I held Goodie back."

"You didn't!" But I wondered, suddenly. The horse was fast- undefeated before race day. He should've been able to at least keep up with BD and Bloody Murder.

A flash of anger straightened Lilac's spine. "I would never! Anna, your horse set track records that day. He breezed the entire race! If I had Goodie keep up- if he could keep up for that distance- I would've been off the ride before the race had finished!"

And so it was still about her keeping her ride. I said, "I believe you. I was just trying to see it from their point of view."

Large, hollow clopping of the hooves of a horse sounded through the barn. "Goodie arrives." Lilac sounded tired. "At long last. Thank you, Anna. I'm sorry for.... whatever. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, she slipped away, and I was left to the task of bedding down Goodie for the night.

For once, my thoughts were not on BD.

***

Surprise! I have this update for now and I'm almost done with the next chapter! I was going to save this for Christmas and then update you guys with a zillion chapters but I got too impatient!