"Hey Henry, were we expecting company?" Alec asked from the back of the colt he was riding. The son of Satan, and grandson of the mighty Black was chomping at the bit as the jock walked him slowly around the track in a cool out.
"I don't believe so, and I don't recognize the rig. Any ideas?" The old trainer was resting against the white pole that ran around the sandy track, watching and directing Alec on his colt. He wasn't impressed with this one comparatively in this year's crop. He was good, but not good enough. "Go see who it is, I'll take Gramps here to the barn." He referred to the two year old as Gramps because of his relaxed stature. Registered, though, his name was Royale, a tall strapping sorrel colt.
Alex nodded, swinging a leg over the tall colt and handing the long rein to the short trainer. He then started toward the gate to the newcomer at the farm. He didn't even have a guess to whom it would be, or why they'd brought trailer along with them. They weren't looking to buy or sell any horses right now.
He was surprised when the driver got out, and the man he was expecting to see turned out to be a slender girl. She couldn't have been any older than him, with blonde hair in a long braid running down her whole back. She had a white complexion with slim, but sharp features, and light grey eyes. When she saw Alec approaching, she stepped out of her truck and lightly shut the door behind her. "You're Alex Ramsay, right?"
"Alec," he corrected. He never had and never would go by Alex. "You are?"
"Sorry," the girl apologized. "Hope Bailey, great to meet you. I'm a barrel horse trainer from Colorado, but I found myself with a horse that might be of interest to the pair of you."
Alec furrowed his brow, confused. Why would a barrel horse be of interest to them? Most rodeo horses were bred Quarter horses, who were used for quick speed, with little stamina. Henry and Alec raced thoroughbreds, who were distance runners, unlike the very different sprinters. "Why is that," he was now irritated with the time he had wasted, he had colts to be riding. By now, he could hear the crunch of gravel underfoot, and understood Henry was walking up to the girl as well.
"Well, I'm a quarter horse breeder," she started. Obviously, Alec thought to himself sharply. "And I found this horse given to me by a friend. Well, he's a big time thoroughbred man himself, and has travelled the world looking for the best of the best, and claimed he found it," she continued. Henry was listening intently, but hadn't spoken up. The girl turned away and went to the trailer, where she opened the back doors and backed a horse down the ramp easily.
What Alec saw he wasn't expecting. Standing in front of him was a horse the mirror image of the Black! The colt was dapple grey with a flowing silver mane and a tail to match that touched the ground in the braid it was in - there wasn't a single spot of white on his steel body. His arching neck met a small, dainty head, and his body was that of a freight train. The only difference between the horses was the one standing in front of him was maybe an inch or two shorter, and already he seemed much friendlier. He turned to the trainer standing next to him and saw a similar reaction to his own, shock.
"This is Sui-hēr. I call him Sugar," she said, leading the stallion towards the shocked men. The horse pranced excitedly, looking around the new place with his small and attentive ears. Even his deep black eyes reminded Alec of his own stallion's. "My friend apparently found him in Arabia from a breeder there."
Alec automatically found himself interested. "Abu Ishak?" He asked intently. The girl shook her head.
"No, I don't remember it, by that's not it. But anyways, he assisted this breeder somehow, I'm not sure exactly, and as a gesture of good friendship or whatever, he gave him this colt. Well, my friend is what you would say," she paused, looking for a word, "...obsessed with me. And when he was in Colorado he brought me this weanling as a present." Alec couldn't understand why someone would give a horse up like that, no matter the reason. Even if he was in love with the girl in front of him right now.
"But, you see, I don't have any interest in trying to make him a barrel horse because, he's just not got the right stuff in the right places for what I do. But he sure does for what you guys do." Alec couldn't argue with the girl there. He looked perfect for the part of a racing horse.
"So what are you wanting to do with him. Sell him to us?" Henry asked gruffly, looking over the stallion with wise eyes. Even though he was hiding it, Alec could tell he was in awe of the horse in front of them. But Hope shook her head.
"This is my best friend," she stated, patting the stud's neck. He arched his head towards her, blowing easily in her face, bringing a smile to her lips. "But I can't just let him sit around my place forever. He's late in his two year old year, that's not fair to him. No, I want you two to train and race him, and hopefully win on him."
Alec wanted to say yes with every bone in his body. Another horse just like the Black, only younger, more in the prime? Yes! But he didn't speak up, looking at Henry for their answer.
"I'd like to see him go before I make any promises, girl," the trainer said, crossing his arms across his chest.
She nodded in agreement. "I agree. I wouldn't have it any other way. I brought my English saddle and would love to ride him for you, but it would probably be better to show him off in a race saddle, which I don't have."
Alec spoke up quickly. "Borrow one of ours," he offered. She nodded and tied the quiet horse to the trailer, while Alec ran up to the barn and pulled his exercise saddle off its lone peg. He also grabbed the maroon blanket he had sitting with it, just in case. When he got back he saw Henry talking with Hope as she brushed the stud's coat, even though it already shone dimly. When she saw Alec she met him and took the saddle from him, slinging it over the tall horse's back. She was shorter than him, even though not by much, and he was impressed with her ethic with the tall horse. It didn't take her long at all to finish and bridle the grey.
She wasn't wearing racing attire, but had English tall boots on and a pink t-shirt. He wouldn't criticize her any for sure.
She sat nicely on the quiet horse, but now that the rider sat astride him, he started prancing, and half reared a few times. He didn't do it with intent to be dangerous, only from sheer excitement to work for the jock. He pranced all the way to the track, his clean cost glistening now in the sun with sweat.
She trotted him a bit to adjust herself to the different saddle. "I've only been in a racing saddle once," she admitted, but the seasoned rider had no trouble at all finding her balance in the small saddle. She started loping around the short track, her horse taking long, elegant strides evenly. He moved effortlessly, his head arching lowly as she held him back. He looked anxious to run, but not demanding of the girl. She loosened her grip slightly he saw by a twitch of her hands, and the stallion bounded forward, his long legs reaching far out, eating away at the track. She sat unmoving in the saddle, more evenly than some of the most seasoned jocks Alec knew, only her braid swaying in the breeze.
She brought him back down to a canter, then a trot, then a prancing walk as she neared the two watching on the rail. "He's working good today, a little excited but that's all. I'm gonna work him up and let him breeze a bit, so you can see him for yourselves." Henry nodded, motioning for her to go.
The grey broke perfectly into a canter again, swishing his tail in the sky and playfully striking out with his forelegs but never breaking stride. His eagerness to work reminded so of his own stallion. When Hope dropped her hands low and moved her body forward smoothly, he reacted immediately, collecting himself and thrusting himself into a high gallop. He could tell though, the girl was still holding smugly, and wasn't asking anything of her steed. His light and even strides ate away at the track, and she rolled around the oval with beautiful ease. Once she had finished a lap, she recollected him, brought him down to a walk, and led him to the men watching again.
When he got back to Henry and Alec, he wasn't even taking a deep breath. He'd broken a good sweat, but Alec guessed it was just the nerves of a new place. The horse looked like he'd hardly done anything.
"It wasn't anything impressive, he's incredible to run with. Alec, you can get on him if you want. I'm the only one who's ever been on him so I don't exactly know what he'll do but he's never been anything but eager for me." Alec nodded, hopping over the rail and to the horse, excited to get on him. Hope slid off easily and held the reins at the bit as Alec pulled himself on the horse.
Sugar half reared as Alec collected his reins, eager to go run again. Alec wanted to see what he felt like, not just what he looked like. "He hates when you get in his face, be light but firm. You only have to ask once, and not too hard, he'll just stop," Hope explained, stepping over the rail to join Henry who eyed the horse with impression in his face.
Alec turned him and took him to the rail, giving the grey his head slightly. The motion was automatically met with a surge of power as the stud broke into a fast gallop. Alec realized what Hope had meant by "light", and changed his hands, hoping to lower the speed. He must have asked too sharply, for he found himself on the ground, thrown right over the horse's head. He stood up and the grey was standing still in front of him, swishing his tail nonchalantly. Alec wasn't mad, it was his fault for being too sharp on the horse.
Hope came running over, asking, "are you okay? I'm so sorry. When I broke him to ride it was western. All my horses have a reining foundation, and he's been taught to slide stop on sharp commands." Alec understood now, this horse was different than any he'd been on. He was curious now what else the horse would do. Gathering the reins he jumped back on, asking Hope, "anything else I should know?"
She chuckled lightly. "If you use the right combo of leg and rein he'll spin fast as a devil." Alec could see himself falling off again as he hit the jackpot of leg and rein. He couldn't decide if he was amused or irritated. As Hope waded through the sand back to Henry, though, he decided amused.
He went on to gallop the horse easy a couple laps, the stallion bored with the work but eager to please. When he got back to the others he still wasn't breathing hard at all, but his coat had a thick lather to it.
As Alec got off, Henry turned to the girl and said, "if you want the honest truth, this is the best horse I've ever seen except for the Black. And little lady, I've seen a lot of good horses, but this one is on a different level. I'll offer to buy him right now."
But she shook her head, petting the grey's nose as he nestled her with his head. "This horse means the world to me, he'll die with me." Henry nodded, and Alec knew he appreciated the girl's attitude.
"Well then, I believe we have ourselves a deal. I'll make this horse a racer for sure, a great one, if Alec can ride and run him," Henry said, reaching out to shake her hand. She nodded and smiled, returning the hand.
"I just have one request then. I dropped a lot of what I was doing to come here to bring this horse to you two because I knew you would be the best option for him. But I couldn't drop all of my responsibilities, you see, training barrel horses is my livelihood. So I had to bring along a couple others, they're back in the trailer still. Would it be possible to keep them here, and work them here? I don't expect you to have a place for me, but these two horses need to go on and get finished." Henry nodded quickly, not wanting to lose the opportunity he had in front of him with this grey stallion.
"Of course. And we do have a place for you, actually, if you're staying," Henry offered.
"That would be amazing. Sooner or later I'll leave and go back to Colorado, but if Sugar starts running with you, I'm staying with him." And with that, she unloaded the two barrel horses. The first was a bay mare she called Dime, a stout and short mare with the biggest, squarest hindquarters Alec had ever seen. The second, a black gelding who was skittish and catty and quick, who looked like he'd just come off the track. She called him Bear, which didn't seem too fitting to Alec, but he wasn't about to say that out loud. It was a nice pair of horseflesh.
After she got the pair out, she started packing away in the loft above the stud barn. Alec couldn't stay with her because he had more colts to ride, but she was almost finished by the time he rode the remaining six head. Of all their up and coming horses, only two showed potential of being great, being spectacular. But nothing near the Black or Sugar.
He'd moved the grey into the stallion barn, and was utterly surprised when the Black didn't offer a single challenge to the opposing stud. Sugar didn't either, walking calmly past the three other stallions, including Satan, and Wintertime, and into his stall, more interested in his newfound hay than his new stablemates. He was amazed at the handle Sugar had, he led into the stall with slack in the lead. Hope said she'd had the colt since his weanling year, and said nobody else had done much handling on him. Even the way he rode was entirely alien to the jock.
Walking away from the horse who nibbled peacefully at the hay, Alec decided to run upstairs to see how Hope was settling in. He meandered up the creaking wood stairs, and at the top found the door to be ajar, so he pushed it slightly, going through.