Harriet woke early the next morning; the sky was clear, and the air was cold. James and Luke were still sound asleep when she took thez dogs out, so she decided to go for a long run. She had a lot to think about.
She didn’t agree with her aunt about it being safer for her to live somewhere else, but if she was being honest she had to admit she’d faced more than a normal amount of dangerous situations since she’d come to Foggy Point. She was going to have to reflect on what about her own behavior was drawing these situations to her.
She had pounded out six miles by the time she arrived back home, but she still didn’t have any answers. James and Luke were in Foggy Point; and as long as that was true, that’s where she was staying, so she was going to have to figure something out.
That could wait, though, she told herself. Today, she and James had decided they’d go watch Luke ride in the morning, and then take the ferry ride to Victoria they’d missed the day before.
James was up and in the kitchen cooking when she came into the house.
“I made steel-cut oats for breakfast. I hope that’s okay.”
“Sounds good to me,” Luke said as he appeared. He took a bowl of oatmeal from James and sat down at the table.
“Are you sure you don’t mind watching me ride again?”
Harriet sat down opposite him, and James set a bowl in front of her.
“I love hanging out at the barn. Riding was one of the best parts of going to boarding school.”
“I told Emily we’d probably be there around nine-thirty.” Luke said between bites.
Harriet sprinkled brown sugar on her oatmeal.
“I need a quick shower, but I think that will work.”
“Sounds like a plan,” James agreed as he joined them.
Harriet and James sat on the first level of the bleachers watching Luke guide Major through a series of spirals at a walk as Emily circled the perimeter at a canter on Fable.
“Fable looks like a pony compared to Major,” James commented as the two horses passed each other going in opposite directions.
“Too bad we can’t keep him,” Marcia said, sitting down beside Harriet.
Harriet tensed. “What do you mean?”
“The people who own the stable are very conservative. Even though Major broke out of his stall to protect Becky, they think it’s too risky to include him in the therapy-horse program.
“So, what’s going to happen to him?” James asked.
“He’ll be returned to the mounted police unit, and they will undoubtedly attempt to sell him. Failing that, he will, sadly, probably become dog food.”
Harriet and James looked at each other.
“We can’t let that happen,” he said.
“Agreed,” she said.
Marcia smiled.
“I was hoping you’d say that.” She handed Harriet a folded piece of paper. “Here’s the person you need to call if you’re interested in buying Major.”
Harriet slipped it into her purse.
“Assuming you’re successful, I took the liberty of drawing up a boarding contract—to hold his stall space. You just need to sign it and bring it back to the office.”
Harriet pulled a pen from her purse and handed it and the contract it to James. He laid the contract on the bleacher and signed it.
“You can go ahead and file that. We will acquire Major, whatever it takes.”
Marcia didn’t take the contract from him She looked away.
“What’s wrong?” Harriet asked.
She sighed.
“I can’t file anything here anymore. The owners decided my decision to let Jade stay in the dorm when she was hiding from the killer was not the sort of behavior they expected from their now former stable manager.”
“They fired you for helping Jade stay alive?” Harriet said, incredulous.
“They said I should have taken her to the police. In any case, it’s done. The new manager will be here this afternoon, and I will be gone tomorrow.”
Harriet put a hand on Marcia’s arm. “I’m so sorry.”
Marcia gave her a half-smile. “I should have known better. I knew what sort of people they were when I went to work for them.”
“Well, we’ll be sorry to see you go. Will you be okay?”
Marcia grinned. “I’ve had a former client from here who opened their own stable in Ridgefield. They’ve asked me several times to come work for them. I called them this morning, and they said their offer is still good.” She stood up. “I better go, I’ve got a lot to do. Good luck with Major.”
James gestured for Harriet to give him the piece of paper she had put in her purse. He left the arena pulling his phone from his pocket. Harriet was watching Luke working to master his trotting when he came back in.
“What would you think about putting off that trip to Victoria and instead going to Seattle to pay for our horse?”
“Our horse?” she said with delight, and wrapped her arms around him as he sat down beside her. “Do you want to tell him, or shall I?”
“Tell me what?” Luke said as he pulled to a stop in front of them.
James and Harriet both grinned broadly at him
END