Forever Ventured

by Kathleen Brooks

  “Yes, we also have one in the ninth. Then one racing tomorrow. And two on Saturday.”

  “When is that young one of yours racing? He looks to be around three. I don’t think you’ve ever told me who he is.”

  “He’s just a baby. We haven’t decided if we’re going to race him in the Capitol Stakes race or not.”

  Marco’s eyes went big. “You better hurry. You have to have him entered by Friday. Trying to qualify for the Derby are you?”

  Camila laughed. “I don’t think we’ll qualify. I really don’t know what he’ll do. But why not give it a shot, right?” She hadn’t told anyone about Gent, and she wasn’t going to. Friend or not.

  Wyatt stalked toward them and Marco’s smile fell. “Is everything okay?”

  Camila turned and saw the thunderous look on Wyatt’s face. “Yes. Kyle and Wyatt don’t get along so I’m sure Kyle’s put him in a bad mood.”

  “Wyatt Davies,” Marco said, holding his hand. “Marco Strinati of Aces High. I’ve heard a lot about you this past week.”

  “I’m sure all bad,” Wyatt said with a forced smile. Camila saw that he was trying to read the situation and so she helped him. She reached out and clasped his hand in hers. Marco noticed.

  “No, not at all. In fact, I had already heard about you before. You have an outstanding reputation in the veterinary world. In fact, our friends the Kranskis told us about flying you down to their farm to perform a surgery for them.”

  Wyatt relaxed next to her and then smiled for real. “You’re friends with June and Julius?”

  “Yes. My father and Julius used to work together in New York City before Julius retired.”

  Camila squeezed his hand, then stepped away the two men talked about their mutual friends. Bud had Daisy ready, and Blythe was hovering just like an over attentive owner would. Right now she was quizzing the jockey, Julio, as if she were interrogating him for the FBI. Suddenly the jockey’s face went red and Blythe’s hands went to her hips as she stared down at him.

  “Blythe, let the man do his job,” Camila said with a worried smile.

  “I’m not doing this job,” he said, turning to Camila. “I agreed to race for a fixed price on top of a cut of the winnings. Now I’m learning that you don’t have the money to pay me and the owner here won’t confirm nor deny that.”

  “Where did you hear that?” Camila laughed, but it was a tight laugh because it was true. They didn’t have the money to pay him unless he won. And while Daisy was a good horse, the race was really a crapshoot.

  “It’s all over the jockeys’ room. I’m out.”

  Camila let her head fall back as she cursed up a storm.

  “What’s the matter?” Wyatt asked when he joined her.

  “We lost Julio. Somehow our financial situation has gotten out, and it’s been made clear in the jockeys’ room that we can’t pay them. We’ve been blackballed. I’m going to have to scratch our horses today until we can find enough money to pay the jockey’s up front.”

  “I’ll do it.”

  Camila and Wyatt turned to see who had spoken. She saw a woman with wild red curls pulled back into a ponytail, standing at five feet nothing. More importantly, Camila heard the Irish lilt of her voice and noticed she was dressed as a jockey, but missing the colors of a farm.

  “And who are you?” Wyatt asked with curiosity.

  “Michaela, but everyone calls me Mike. And you’re Dr. Wyatt Davies of Wyatt Farm. Your lines are old and fast. I’ve read the bloodlines of your horses well enough that I know you’ve a contender of a horse that no one even knows about yet.” Her green eyes, the color of the Irish fields, turned to Camila. “And you’re Camila Callahan, daughter of the best trainer in Europe. Interesting that you put your name as C.C. I’m guessing you’re out to do exactly what I am.”

  “And what’s that?” Camila asked as her heart pounded.

  “To prove yourself.”

  * * *

  Wyatt looked down at the female jockey and then over to Camila who looked as if her brain were computing behind her eyes. He could practically see it shifting through information.

  “And you would race for us when it’s been put out we have no money?”

  Mike nodded and her curls bounced. “I know what it’s like to be blackballed. I am, too. We’re a perfect match.”

  Wyatt frowned at that. Jockey’s didn’t become blackballed without a good reason.

  “Bloody hell. You’re Conor Donahue’s daughter,” Camila said so fast Wyatt almost missed it.

  “I told you we were a perfect match. The daughter of Europe’s best trainer and the daughter of Europe’s best jockey. Both of whose fathers refuse to let them into the big leagues.”

  “I haven’t seen you since you were a wee little thing,” Camila said, her accent getting thicker as she talked with another woman from Ireland.

  “You probably saw me last when I was thirteen. My father thought it was cute teaching me how to be a jockey when I was little, but when I stole one of his horses during training to prove I was just as good as he was, he shipped me off to school in Switzerland. I graduated two months ago and now that I’m over eighteen, my father can’t force me to do anything. I tried to find mounts in the United Kingdom, but my father blackballed me. Apparently his reputation is enough to blackball me across the pond, too. No one will let me ride.”

  “Let me talk to Dr. Davies. We’ll be with you in a second.”

  Mike nodded and stood waiting as Camila grabbed Wyatt’s arm and began pulling him off to the side. He turned one last time to Mike and called out to her. “Have you raced at all?”

  Mike’s lips lifted in a small smile. “At the local track during boarding school. I entered under a fake name and ID my roommate got for me. I hold three track records. I was racing there until my dad found out four months ago.”

  Wyatt nodded and turned back to Camila.

  “We should hire her,” they both said at the same time.

  “I have to disclose something, though,” Camila said as she kept her voice low. “Right now we aren’t truly blackballed. We could take the time to find a low-tier jockey to ride for us and earn our way back into the game. However, we could be blackballed for real as soon as you step out in May with Gent being trained by Camila Callahan and ridden by Michaela Donahue.”

  Wyatt didn’t even think about it. He just smiled. “I have literally nothing left to lose. And when we win these big races, and I know we will, I’ll make them beg for breeding rights to Gent. We’re all way undervalued, Camila. And that makes us very dangerous.”

  Wyatt turned back to Mike and strode toward her. “Miss Donahue, welcome to the Wyatt Farm family.”

  * * *

  Wyatt raced to get Michaela the Wyatt Farm silks as Camila filled her in on Daisy. Similar to Camila, Mike seemed calm and unshakable. Wyatt, on the other hand, was a mess. He pulled it together as he handed the silks over to Mike and got everything squared up with the racing official. But he was worried. The last thing he wanted to do was have a poor showing that damaged Wyatt Farm’s reputation.

  “Don’t worry, doc,” Michaela said as he helped her into the saddle. “This is going to be fun.”

  It didn’t feel like fun. It felt very close to vomiting. Camila slipped her hand into his, and he looked at her smiling face. “Breathe,” she said with a little laugh. Wyatt let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding as they made their way to the Ashton Farm box with Bud and Blythe right behind them.

  “I heard the news. Did you have to pull Daisy?” Carter asked as he and Reagan saw them entering the box.

  Each box had six folding chairs. In the middle of the small shelf running along the front of the box was a plaque that read ASHTON FARMS. Blythe took the last open seat in the front row, and then Bud, Camila, and Wyatt filled in the second row.

  “That’s crap,” a woman’s voice said from next to them. Wyatt turned toward the mostly empty Desert Sun box to find Ariana sitting by herself.
/>   “You’ve heard, too?”

  Ariana nodded. “My horse is racing today, and I heard all about it when I was down at the barns. I tried to order my jockey to pick you up as a client, but he refused. I even offered to cover the cost, but you’ve been blackballed. The thing is, no one could tell me why. They hid behind the fact that you couldn’t pay. But when I offered to pay for you, they still wouldn’t do it.”

  “Thank you for offering, Ariana. It wasn’t necessary, but I appreciate it.” Wyatt leaned back in his chair as the horses paraded by. Blythe stood up and yelled for Daisy, drawing a ton of attention. This was not a big race and Blythe had taken to Daisy as if she really was her owner.

  “Do you think Kyle could be behind this?” Camila whispered.

  “Yes,” Wyatt answered. The same thought was going through his mind. Anger unlike anything Wyatt had ever felt stirred within him. He was not his cousin, Dylan, who had been in Delta Force. He wasn’t like his father, Marshall, who had been Special Forces before becoming sheriff. He was a doctor, raised on good manners and love. His father had shown him how to hold his own, but fighting had never been something Wyatt was interested in . . . until now. Because right now he felt like laying Kyle flat.

  “They’re loading them,” Camila said, gripping his hand tightly. As angry as Wyatt felt, he knew what this one race really meant. It wasn’t just the Wyatt Farm reputation riding on this. It was Camila’s as a female trainer and Michaela’s as a female jockey. They were three underdogs and he hoped like hell they would make their mark on the world. Starting with this race.

  “And they’re off!” the announcer called.

  Camila’s hand tightened as they thundered by with Daisy at the end of the pack. “She’s not dropping back,” Camila said in a tight voice as they rounded the first corner.

  “Those assholes!” Blythe yelled so loudly that people turned to stare. “Don’t you push my horse!”

  Wyatt’s fist tightened in anger until he realized he was squeezing Camila’s hand and not the metal rail. A very determined jockey was pinning Daisy to the rail and bumping her in a clearly aggressive way that should automatically disqualify him.

  “I’ll take him out back and horsewhip him,” Bud grumbled as his face turned red. They were halfway down the backstretch and about to disappear for a quick second behind the scoreboard so Wyatt turned to the video monitor, but the image was on the leader.

  “What happened?” Camila asked when they came back into view. Daisy was shooting up the inside and the one horse that had been pinning her to the rail was now way behind with the jockey trying to stay in the saddle.

  Reagan began to laugh as everyone kept their eyes on the bright red hair flying behind Mike as she gave Daisy her head. “She doesn’t need you to horsewhip him, Bud. She did it herself.” Reagan hooted with glee.

  Wyatt shot a look to Camila and saw a slow grin spread across her face as she realized what Reagan said was true. Mike had used the blind spot to whip the jockey who had been endangering her and Daisy with her riding crop.

  “She’s flying,” Ariana screamed with excitement as Daisy and Michaela seemed as one as they raced toward the finish line.

  “Go Daisy!” Blythe was screaming as she jumped up and down while hitting Reagan with one hand. “She’s so beautiful!”

  Wyatt and Camila stood silently as Daisy and Michaela passed horse after horse on the inside. There was no doubt about Michaela’s skill as a jockey. She saw the field, saw the gaps, and knew how to push Daisy to the best of her ability, making it look as if they were out for a run across a field and not down the homestretch.

  The leader was clearly and safely in the lead, but Wyatt watched as Daisy came neck and neck with the horse in second. Camila gasped and clutched Wyatt’s arm as they watched the battle for second. Mike shifted her hand and patted Daisy’s neck. Daisy responded by surging forward and crossing the finish line second.

  Wyatt shouted and lifted Camila off the ground. By their celebration, it appeared as though they were the winners of the race, but in reality it was validation for the team. And everyone at that track knew Daisy could have won if she hadn’t been pinned to the rail.

  “Are you going to file a report?” Carter asked.

  “I’ll leave that up to Mike. Come on, let’s go see our girls.” Wyatt walked hand in hand with Camila as Bud, Carter, Reagan, Blythe, and Ariana followed behind.

  “What the hell, Davies?” the owner of the horse who had blocked Daisy stormed forward with his jockey, none other than Julio, the jockey who had refused to race for Wyatt just an hour ago. “I’m filing a report against your jockey.”

  Blythe had silently moved to Camila’s side as everyone else moved to Wyatt’s side. They were a wall of silent support as Michaela hopped off Daisy and sauntered over with a smile on her face.

  “Pauly,” Michaela said with a grin at the owner of DP Stables. “I see you found someone to ride for you. Not surprised by who it is. How much did you pay Julio to pin me in? I didn’t know you were this big of an arse.”

  Pauly’s face turned molten. “You bitch!”

  “Then explain to me why your jockey tried to unseat me?”

  “Me? You’re nothing but a hysterical female who hit me for no reason,” the jockey yelled as his voice rose.

  Mike smiled at him. “Yeah, I’m the hysterical one here. And do you really want to file a report? Because I’ll feel the need to disclose I whipped your arse for cheating. The way I see it, things are settled. You tried to cheat. I didn’t let you. Of course, the track stewards have it all on camera so if you want to call for a review . . .” Mike let the threat hang in the air.

  The little jockey cursed in Spanish and stormed off, but not before giving Michaela the bird. Michaela closed her hand and turned it fingers up and shook it back and forth. “Wanker,” she mumbled under her breath as Camila burst out laughing.

  “I’m sorry. He told me it was your jockey, but I think I see the picture clearly now,” Pauly said with a frown. “You’re a hell of a rider, but you better watch your back. He looks like he’s out for blood.”

  “I will,” Michaela said before the owner left. “I should have won. I’m sorry I couldn’t find a way out sooner.”

  Wyatt held out his hand. “You are officially the exclusive jockey for Wyatt Farm now. And by finishing second, you get a commission. We might be blackballed, but we make one hell of a team.”

  14

  Camila, Michaela, and Bud danced around the stables to the current top pop song, singing at the top of their lungs as they celebrated. Two second-place finishes out of two races. Wyatt Farm, Camila, and Michaela Donahue were getting a nice payday.

  “Excuse me,” a man said, causing Camila to stop dancing. She looked at the racing official standing with Dr. Avery and frowned.

  “What now?” Camila asked as Bud ran to find Wyatt.

  “We need to take blood from the number five horse in the last race,” Kyle said, moving to push past her.

  “For what reason?” Camila asked, putting herself back in his path.

  “On suspicion of drugging your horse. Now get out of the way,” Kyle demanded.

  “Kyle,” the official said in a warning voice before turning to Camila and trying to smile. “We are just here to make sure the rules are being followed.”

  “By all means, then let’s both take blood and have it tested.” Wyatt had arrived.

  “I have no problem with that,” the official said as he shook Wyatt’s hand.

  “That’s arseways right there,” Mike whispered to her. Camila nodded as the group went to draw blood.

  “How much sleep do you need?” Camila asked Mike.

  “Not much, why?”

  “Meet here at two in the morning. I want you to work with Ruth’s Gentleman. We’re going to give these wankers the biggest F.U. possible. We’re going to win the stakes race.”

  * * *

  Blythe, Wyatt, Bud, and Camila were spread out across the track making
sure they could see if anyone was around. There wasn’t a soul in the grandstand where Camila was standing. It was actually very spooky as Gent thundered past them in the darkness. Camila didn’t need to see to know how it was going. She could hear it. She felt the rhythm of his stride, felt the power of his hoofbeats, and knew if he was pushing himself by the sound of his breathing.

  And right now he wasn’t pushing himself and was still flying. It gave her goosebumps. She couldn’t wait to see Gent reach his full potential.

  Camila flashed the flashlight on her smartphone to indicate to Mike that they were done. Blythe would move in from the corner and meet her to walk back to the barn. Camila heard the sound of someone coming in the distance and turned toward Blythe. She was about to speak when a hand covered her mouth from behind. A strong arm moved to pin her to a large thick body.

  “Tell your boyfriend to stop digging or you’re next. This is just a taste of what will happen to you if you don’t back off.”

  The hand was removed from her mouth and pinched her nose. Something that felt like a plastic straw was shoved against her lips and when she finally gave in and opened her mouth to breathe, a drop of thick, sweet gel was pushed into her mouth before the hand moved to her cover her mouth again.

  Almost instantly, Camila felt her heart begin to race. Her head swam, her body flushed, and yet she felt no pain. The hand disappeared from her mouth and she turned on him, but he was already gone. The shadows engulfed him so quickly that even her flashlight couldn’t find him.

  But then Camila felt as if her heart would burst. Her breathing was shallow and rapid as she went down to her knees. Sweat poured from her face as Blythe found her. Blythe yelled, but Camila didn’t hear what she said over the roaring of blood pumping through her ears.

  She did see Blythe’s gun drawn and see her on her phone. A second later, Blythe took off and Wyatt was suddenly in front of her. His lips were moving, but she couldn’t hear him. Instead, she clutched her heart, trying to press it down so it would stay inside her.