“Of course, that’s what makes them unique.”
“Exactly, anyway, Ball Buster has two personalities.” She quickly shook her head at his look. “Good ones. I know you didn’t want me to tell you about thehorses before you met them, but when Buster, that’s what we call him, isn’t on the track, he’s a jokester. If you have anything in any pocket, he’ll take it. If he can reach you, he’ll try and blow raspberries on your neck, or cheek.” She giggled when she saw Pedro’s expression.
“What about on the track?”
“That’s when his second personality comes in. He has to run third, he refuses to go on the track until after I’ve run Champ, and Diablo. He wants to be at the staging area and he is so focused on their running, it’s like he’s plotting in his head.” She shook hers, and sighed. “When it’s his turn, the only thing I can do is hold on tight. As soon as the gun goes off, he’s gone. He’s neck and neck with the Champ and Diablo with the times. Because I’m only one person, we haven’t been able to run the three of them side by side yet.” She looked at him, and shook her head again.
“What is it?”
“I might have stepped on your toes here, but when I was hired Naomi said that she had someone interested in purchasing Champ, but she doesn’t want to sell him.”
“That is her right. Was there anything in writing?”
“No, not even a verbal confirmation from her to the potential buyer. She did say that she couldn’t make an informed decision until she saw his stats, just like the guy interested in him. These horses inthis barn are the ones that are of the age they need to be run.”
“Okay, what’s your gut telling you?”
“They’re all good, all twelve of them, however, if Naomi wants to keep any, in my personal and professional opinion, I would tell her to keep Champ, Diablo, and Buster. Those are their nicknames, not registered names.”
“Do you have an office?”
“I do.” She turned on her heel and headed to the barn. As soon as they stepped inside, they both paused to let their eyes adjust to the dimness, and as soon as he could Pedro looked around.
He walked over to the first stall and inspected the horse there. It took two hours to go through all twelve horses, because he went into their stalls and ran his hands over them, talked to them, and got to know them in his way.
When he reached the last stall, he stood there, looking at the horse, and he would later swear on a stack of bibles that the horse was measuring him. Pedro saw the sign beside the door that this was Ball Buster. As he approached, he held his hand out and was surprised by how friendly the horse was. When Pedro got closer, the horse laid his head into Pedro’s neck, and actually blew raspberries on it.
Shocked, but not offended, and because it tickled, Pedro threw his head back and laughed. When Buster reached for the pen in his pocket, a hand suddenlycovered it, and Shay’s voice told the horse no. The horse actually gave Shay the stink eye, and blew raspberries in the air at him. Both men chuckled at the horse’s antics.
“Is he always like this?”
“Yes, but when he’s out on the track, he’s a totally different horse. Both Faith and I are wondering if his antics here are to blow off steam before he races.”
“It could be,” Pedro said with a thoughtful nod. He opened the stall door, and slowly stepped inside. He talked to the horse, the same as he had with the others, and ran his hands over him. At one point, he felt Buster nuzzling his butt, but didn’t think anything of it, until he looked up and saw his wallet hanging out of the horse’s mouth. He looked at Shay with a shocked expression.
“Seriously,” he asked the horse firmly as he took his wallet back. They stared at each other, and Pedro laughed when Buster kissed him. He shook his head and stepped outside the stall, making sure the door was firmly latched. He looked at Shay with a shake of his head. “Is he always like this?”
“According to Ann and Tony, he didn’t do this when he was over in the other barns, we didn’t notice it until he started racing. Did Faith tell you that he has to be third? It’s weird, but if he’s not out there, saddled, and standing to watch Champ and Diablo race, then he refuses to even allow you to put a saddle on him.”
Pedro studied the horse as Shay talked and nodded. “Thanks, anything else I should know about with any of the horses?”
“No, but that Ball Buster lives up to his name here in the barn, and he’s totally different out on the track.”
“What happens if you put them all out in the pasture together?”
“Nothing, no fights, no competition, if anything, Buster stays in his own little corner, but I’ve seen him off to the side looking at the other horses. It’s an eerie feeling, but it’s almost like he’s studying them.”
Pedro didn’t answer, other than a nod of his head. “Where’s the office?”
Shay led him there, and as soon as he entered, he went directly to the coffee pot, poured himself a cup, and saw Faith sitting at one of the two desks there. He also saw a stack of files on the empty one.
“How often do you race the horses? Are you going to today?”
“Every day,” Faith said, and took her time looking up. “We didn’t today for two reasons.”
“Which are?”
“One, you’re here, two, it’s supposed to rain today. I haven’t seen the track when it’s wet. I don’t know what the conditions will be, the drainage, or anything. I thought I’d hold off racing them until we see the track.”
