Mending Horses Read Online Free Page B

“Delighted to make your acquaintance. Although I fancy you’d be more delighted to make the acquaintance of a peach pie and a cup of tea.”
    Billy searched the peddler’s face for a cue. Jonathan nodded. “She’s only asking us to tea, son, not the governor’s ball.”
    â€œI—uh, yes, please, thank you, ma’am,” Billy blurted.
    Sophie tucked one hand under Billy’s arm and the other under Jonathan’s, but Billy pulled away, face stricken with a spasm of guilt. “Phizzy!” Billy said, glancing at the floppy-eared gray gelding who nodded sleepily at the gate. “I got to see to Phizzy first. It’s me job.” Billy’s cheeks flushed with shame.
    â€œI’m sure Phizzy will excuse you for a bit,” Sophie said.
    â€œI’m sorry, ma’am, but you see Phizzy
needs
me.” Billy broke away to rush back to the horse. Jonathan caught bits of murmured Irish apologies as Billy caressed Phizzy’s nose.
    Jonathan started to apologize for Billy’s breach of manners, but Sophie cut him off with a laugh. “Let the boy be. It looks like he loves that old horse as much as you do.”
    â€œWhere’s Eldad?” Jonathan asked.
    â€œThere was some hubbub down to Chester Ainesworth’s. He went to see what the to-do was all about. He should be back soon.” Sophie nudged her cousin’s elbow. “Go show your boy where to put Phizzy. I’ll have tea ready when you come in.”
    Jonathan and Billy led Phizzy to the wagon shed and backed the wagon in. They’d just finished unhitching the gelding whena long shadow loomed in the doorway and a gruff voice boomed, “There’d better not be any tin left in that thing.”
    Jonathan spun around to greet the tall, gray-haired man. “Eldad! Ain’t you a sight!” He gave his cousin’s husband a strong handshake and a hearty thump on the back. “So what’s this Sophie said about you chasing down some hullabaloo in town?”
    â€œChasing down a lot of gossip, is more like it.” Eldad’s hooked nose wrinkled with his scowl. “Seems Jacob Fairley caught himself a thief and a murderer.”
    â€œA murderer in Chauncey? Now that does beat all.” Jonathan returned to Phizzy, looping the gelding’s reins through an iron ring while Billy fetched his halter.
    Eldad leaned his long frame against the doorjamb and watched the two work. “The story is he came out bold as brass, looking to get his horse shod. But Jake said he could tell it was stolen, just from the looks of this fella. Foreign, I guess, and shifty-eyed.”
    Jonathan paused in the middle of trading bridle for halter. “The fella or the horse?”
    â€œThe fella.”
    â€œOh. You seen him yourself?”
    â€œI couldn’t get in. The whole town must have been crammed into Chester’s parlor and yard. By the time I got there, a snake couldn’t have slipped in the door.”
    â€œSo where’s this foreign murderer from?” Jonathan gathered up bridle and harness, then gave them to Billy to store in the back of the wagon.
    â€œSeems he worked for some fella up in Massachusetts. Killed the whole family—slit their throats while they were in their beds, stole their goods and took off. Some say he—” Eldad cast a glance toward Billy and lowered his voice. “Some say he assaulted the mother and daughters before he—” Eldad ran his thumb across his throat.
    â€œFunny I ain’t heard nothing about it. You know how folks love talking murder with a peddler.” Jonathan gestured for Billy to take Phizzy out to a little pen next to the barn. The men leanedon the fence and watched the gelding shake himself all over, then crumple into the grass with a contented sigh. In a moment, all four enormous hooves were waving in the air as the horse erased the harness marks and sweat stains in the grass.
    Eldad