“Oh, Lee Anne.” Nancy didn't know what to say.
The evidence was pretty damaging.
“Nancy?” Bess looked pleadingly at her.
“All right. I'll keep poking around. But if all my
snooping only proves that Michael is guilty, I won't lie
to the police.”
“I don't expect you to,” Lee Anne said, some of her
old fire returning.
Nancy touched her on the shoulder. “Good, but you
have to tell me the truth.”
Lee Anne lowered her gaze. “All right.”
“I need to know how long you were with Michael
last night. And where you went.”
Lee Anne's shoulders slumped. “I wasn't with
Michael last night,” she finally admitted. “When he left
the restaurant, he drove off without me. I was too
embarrassed to face you guys, so I walked back to the
motel.”
“But you came into the barn with him after
Aristocrat was stolen,” Bess pointed out.
“When I got back to the motel, I went to our room
and called him, but he didn't answer. When it got late,
I grew worried and went to his room to wait. At about
twelve-thirty, he came down the hall. I told him we
needed to talk. He agreed. But when we got inside his
room, the phone rang. It was Klaus, telling us that
Aristocrat had been stolen.”
“You have no idea where he'd been all that time?”
Ned asked.
“He said he'd been doing some thinking about his
riding career. That's all.”
“Thanks for telling the truth,” Nancy said.
“I'm sorry I lied, but I was trying to protect
Michael,” Lee Anne said. “You kept asking me
questions, as if you thought he was involved in the
theft. But lying won't help him now.”
Nancy was afraid Lee Anne was right.
When they arrived at the motel, Bess got out of the
Mustang with her friend. “I'm going to stay here with
Lee Anne,” she told Nancy and Ned.
“Good idea. We'll head over to the showgrounds to
see if Texel found out anything more,” Nancy said.
“Then I'd like to go see Gilly.”
Lee Anne bent down to look in the open car door. “I
want to go to the hospital with you, but I've got to be at
the barn at four this afternoon to help feed the horses.
With Michael and Gilly gone . . .” Her voice faded.
“We'll pick you up about two,” Nancy said.
“So you think the key to Gilly's assault is the horse
theft?” Ned asked as he drove away.
“It's got to be,” Nancy replied. “Gilly wanted to tell
me something about the theft. But what could she have
known that was so damaging that she was attacked?”
“How about the name of the thief?” Ned guessed.
“That could be it. The problem is, Aristocrat's been
gone almost twelve hours. He could be out of the state
by now, which means the police may never find him or
the thieves. And Texel . . .” Her voice trailed off.
Ned gave her a curious look. “What about Texel?”
She told him Klaus's theory. “What if Klaus is right?
What if Texel and his guards are operating a theft
ring?”
Ned whistled. “Wow. That would be tough to prove.
Do you think Texel could be in on it? He seems as
honest as they come.”
“I agree,” Nancy said. “But right now I'm afraid to
trust him. You see, Gilly did tell me something.”
“What?” Ned braked at a red light.
“She said if anything happened to her, I should
check the scar on Aristocrat's hock.”
For a second Ned just looked at her. “What do you
think she meant?”
“The hock is the joint on the hind leg, I know that
much, but what the scar has to do with the theft, I'm
not sure.” She shook her head. “Unfortunately, I now
know what she meant when she said, If anything
happens to me.' ” Nancy shuddered. “That makes me
think she knew someone might come after her.”
“This is getting dangerous, Nan,” Ned said. “I think
you need to let the police handle it.”
“Not yet. I want to find out something first.” Nancy
shifted in her car seat to face him. “I have to know if
Security is involved.”
Ned cocked one eyebrow. “Let me guess,” he said in
a teasing voice. “That means snooping around their
office. Right?”
Nancy grinned. “Yup. We'll do it tonight. If we get
caught, we can say we were looking for Texel.”
Ned chuckled as he pulled into the showgrounds.
“You make it sound so easy.”
“Don't worry.” Nancy squeezed his fingers. “It'll be
a piece of cake.”
“I found the guards' schedule,” Nancy whispered to
Ned. She was rummaging through the top drawer of
Texel's desk. Ned was hunting through the file
cabinets.
It was after ten o'clock at night. Bess was out with
Gunter. Lee Anne had fallen into an exhausted sleep.
Earlier, when the four teens visited Gilly, they'd found
her unconscious. Still, the doctor remained optimistic.
“When she does regain consciousness,” Lee Anne
had stated firmly, “she'll clear Michael.”
The doctor wasn't sure when Gilly would wake up,
however, and Nancy didn't want to wait. If someone
else was guilty, she wanted to nab the culprit as soon as
possible.
“According to this schedule,” Nancy told Ned, “the
culprit timed the theft perfectly. He stole Aristocrat at
midnight, during the guards' shift change.”
“So he must have known their schedule.” Ned
opened the second file drawer quietly. “Here are the
guards' employment records.”
“Better check them out.” Nancy ran her finger
across the schedule, noting who was on guard that
night. Quickly she wrote down the names and what
times they worked on a small pad.
“Hey. This is interesting,” Ned said softly. “One
guard, Andy Brackett, used to work for Klaus.”
“Really?” Sliding the desk drawer shut, Nancy joined
Ned. “How long ago?”
“Just last year.”
“Wow.” Nancy's mind whirled. “Not only would he
know about Aristocrat but he'd know how valuable the
horse was.”
Flipping open the pad, she glanced at the names of
the guards who'd been on duty the night before. When
she saw Andy's name, her heart skipped a beat.
“Ned.” Nancy held the pad up so Ned could see it in
the dim light. “Andy was on duty from midnight until
eight o'clock this morning. That means he could have
been hanging around right before his shift. No one
would have questioned why he was in one of the
barns.”
“So he could have stolen Aristocrat,” Ned said.
Nancy waved the pad excitedly. “It also means one
other thing: he was on duty when Gilly was attacked.
What if Gilly found out that Andy Brackett had stolen
the horse?”
/> “He would have been able to sneak into the barn
and go after her without anyone suspecting,” Ned said.
“Right.” A gleam came into Nancy's eyes, and she
snapped her fingers. “And one more thing— the police
officer reported that Andy Brackett was the guard who
checked Michael's pass at five o'clock. What if he was
lying? What if it wasn't Michael who drove in?”
Ned grinned excitedly. “Then we might be able to
prove he's innocent!”
11. A Surprising Twist
“If we can prove Andy Brackett is the culprit, we would
clear Michael,” Nancy explained. “Now that I think of
it, even though Brackett was supposed to be working at
midnight, I don't remember seeing him when we
searched for Aristocrat.” In her excitement, her voice
rose.
Ned put a finger to his lips. “Shh. Somebody might
hear you.”
For a moment they stood and listened for any
sounds coming from beyond the closed office door.
When Nancy was certain no one had heard her, she
whispered, “And maybe Gilly knew one of the guards
was the thief. That would explain why she wouldn't
confide in Texel.”
“But what about Michael's car leaving the barn after
Gilly was killed?” Ned asked.
“Maybe Michael was working with Brackett,” Nancy
said, her spirits sinking. “They may have known each
other.”
“Or maybe Brackett or someone else used the car to
make it look as if Michael was guilty,” Ned suggested.
“Good thought.” Before tucking the file folder back
in the drawer, Nancy wrote down Andy Brackett's
address. “We need proof other than Brackett's
schedule and the fact that he used to work for Klaus.”
“Let's ask Klaus about the guy,” Ned said. “Maybe
he fired Andy or something. Revenge is a powerful
motive.”
Nancy closed the drawer. “Klaus will know what
kind of a guy Brackett is, too.”
For a minute she tried to picture the guard. The
man was so unremarkable she barely remembered
what he looked like. Short and balding?
When they got back to the motel, Bess was saying
good night to Gunter in the lobby. They were laughing
together and didn't notice Nancy and Ned until the
two came right up to them.
“Oh!” Bess jumped back, blushing. “We didn't see
you come in.”
“No wonder. You were too busy,” Nancy teased.
“Did you have fun tonight?”
“A great time.” Gunter smiled. “We went
Rollerblading.” His expression turned serious. “Though
I hear I missed much excitement last night and this
morning. I am sorry about your friend Gilly.”
“We are, too,” Ned said. Bess reluctantly waved
goodbye when Gunter headed for his room. “He's so
much fun,” she said with a sigh.
Ned walked with Nancy and Bess to their room.
Bess unlocked the door, then pushed it open and
peeked in. “I think Lee Anne is still asleep,” she told
the others.
“I'll say good night, then,” Ned said, yawning. “All
that snooping around wore me out, too.”
Nancy gave him a quick kiss. “Thanks for your help.”
When she and Bess went inside, Lee Anne was sitting
up in bed. Her hair was tousled, her cheeks pale. Bess
had already gone into the bathroom.
“Did you find out anything?” Lee Anne asked.
“Maybe.” Nancy sat on the edge of the bed. “But I
don't want to get your hopes up, so I'm not going to tell
you everything yet. I do need you to answer some
questions, though.”
Lee Anne nodded sleepily.
“Do you know Andy Brackett?”
She knit her brow. “The name sounds familiar.”
“He's one of the security guards. He worked for
Klaus until a year ago.”
“Now I remember. Sometimes Andy came to High
Hills to haul horses. Mostly he worked at Klaus's other
farm, so I didn't really know him.”
“His other farm?” Nancy queried.
“Klaus has a farm in Iowa, right across the state
line,” Lee Anne explained. “He keeps his broodmares
there. Aristocrat stays there in the spring during
breeding season. Recently Klaus said something about
getting a new stallion. I've never been to the Iowa farm
because it has no riding facilities, but Michael goes
there sometimes to work with yearlings.”
“Thanks, Lee Anne.” Nancy yawned and started to
undress. The lack of sleep was catching up with her.
“Was that helpful?” Lee Anne slid back under the
covers.
“I hope so. Now go back to sleep.” As she pulled off
her jeans, Nancy thought about everything she'd
learned. Brackett must have worked with Aristocrat in
Iowa, so he'd have to know how valuable the stallion
was. And he might have known Michael, too.
Nancy frowned. That meant the two could have
planned the theft together, and when Gilly found out
what they'd done . . .
Nancy shivered, trying not to think about the groom.
She glanced down at Lee Anne. Her eyes were closed,
and she was breathing deeply. Nancy definitely didn't
want to tell her friend the latest news, since it didn't
help to clear Michael.
“Boy, I feel better.” Nancy stretched. It was eight-
thirty Sunday morning. Bess was already awake and
dressed in shorts and a T-shirt.
“You look nice,” Nancy said. “Going somewhere
special?”
“Gunter's riding later this morning. He invited me
to come watch—and help.” She held up one foot.
“That's why I'm wearing sneakers instead of sandals.”
Nancy smiled. “Delicate sandals aren't too useful
around horses. So you'll be with him most of the day?”
“Yes, but maybe all four of us can meet somewhere
for lunch.”
“I think Ned and I are going to tour a farm in Iowa.”
She filled Bess in on all they'd discovered.
Bess looked sad. “I hope, for Lee Anne's sake, you
find out Michael and this Brackett guy had nothing to
do with each other.”
“Me, too.” Nancy glanced around the room. “Where
is Lee Anne?”
“She left early. She had to feed the horses, and she's
grooming and exercising Curio. She still insists that
Michael's innocent and will be out of jail in time for his
test tomorrow, so she wants Curio to be ready.”
Looking in the mirror, Bess checked her hair, then
picked up her purse. “See you later.”
“Have a good time,” Nancy said. Reaching for the
phone, she dialed the hospital. There was no change in
Gilly's condition. Then she phoned Ned's room. His
voice was thick with sleep. “Rise and shine, Detective
Nickerson,” she said. “We have criminals to
apprehend.”
Half an hour later they were driving to the
showgrounds. “We'll stop at the barn first and
ask
Klaus about Brackett,” Nancy said as she drove into the
parking lot. She and Ned had grabbed a couple of
bagels from the buffet at the motel before heading on
their way. “But let me do the talking.”
“That's okay with me.” The window was down, and
the rushing air ruffled Ned's brown hair. Nancy had
dragged him out before he was quite ready, and he still
looked half asleep.
They stopped at the security booth to show their
passes, then drove into the parking lot beside Barn C.
“Good,” Nancy said. “Klaus's Mercedes is here. He
might have some news about Michael.”
They found Klaus in the barn, chewing out a young
groom who held a bucketful of cleaning supplies.
Nancy hadn't seen the girl before and wondered if
she'd been recruited to help Lee Anne.
When he saw Nancy and Ned, Klaus dismissed the
girl with a curt “Be quick,” then turned to greet them.
“Miss Drew, Mr. Nickerson, what brings you to the
barn this morning?” he asked in his formal manner.
“We've been looking into the theft of Aristocrat.”
Nancy said.
Raising his hands and lifting his chin, Klaus looked
skyward as if imploring the heavens. “My poor horse.
And now Michael. My head is splitting with all the
pain.”
And what about Gilly? Nancy wanted to add, but
instead she said, “You mentioned that you thought the
guards might have stolen Aristocrat. Did you recognize
any of them? Perhaps one of them might have been out
to High Hills.”
“Hmm.” Klaus wrinkled his forehead as if pondering
the question.
Nancy had purposely refrained from mentioning
Andy Brackett's name. She wanted Klaus to identify
the man on his own.
“No, I can't say I recognized anyone.”
Nancy was surprised by his response. Andy Brackett
might be nondescript, but if he'd worked for Klaus,
Klaus should have recognized him.
“I spoke with Michael this morning,” Klaus said,
making a clicking noise of disgust. “My lawyer should
have him out in no time—insufficient evidence. Those
thickheaded police never should have arrested him in
the first place.”
Nancy studied the trainer's face. “You seem certain
that Michael is innocent.”
“I know the boy like a son,” Klaus said. “Besides,
why would he attack Gilly? There is no motive, as you
Americans say in your detective shows.”