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“He knows he’s got an audience,” Mac said as Tiffany approached. Wolverine was resting at the trainer’s feet. At the sight of Tiffany, he thumped his tail on the moist ground. She reached down and scratched the collie’s ears before propping her foot on the lowest board of the fence and resting her arms over the top rail.
“He’s going to have more,” Tiffany said with a sigh.
Mac’s eyes narrowed. “More what?”
“More of an audience.”
“What d’ya mean?” Instantly Mac was concerned. He read the worry in Tiffany’s eyes.
“I’m afraid Moon Shadow is going to get more than his share of attention in the next couple of weeks. Take a look at page one.” Tiffany handed Mac the paper before shading her eyes with her hand.
“Son of a bitch,” Mac cursed after reading the article. He pushed his hat back to the crown of his head. “A pack of lies—nothing but a goddamn pack of lies.” His eyes flickered from Zane to Tiffany before returning to Moon Shadow. “Damn reporters never have learned to sort fact from fiction.” After smoothing the thin red hair over his scalp, he forced the frumpy fedora back onto his head. “A good thing you and Vance already told the Jockey Club about the dead colts.”
“Yeah, right,” Tiffany agreed without much enthusiasm. “But wait until the owners who have broodmares pregnant with Moon Shadow’s foals get wind of this.”
Mac frowned and rubbed the toe of his boot in the mud. “You’ll just have to set them straight, Missy. Moon Shadow’s a good stud. He’s got the colts to prove it. Why the hell didn’t that bastard of a reporter write about Journey’s End or Devil’s Gambit?”
Tiffany’s eyes moved from Mac to Zane and finally back to the stallion in question. “I don’t know,” she answered. “Probably because he needed a story to sell papers.” And he’d get one, too, if Zane decided to publicize his conjectures about Ellery and Devil’s Gambit.
“How many foals were affected?” Zane asked.
“Three—no, Ebony Wine’s colt makes four,” Tiffany replied softly. “Three colts and a filly. Two died shortly after birth, the colt last night was stillborn and Charlatan . . . well, he lived longer, a couple of days, but . . .” Her voice faded on the soft afternoon breeze.
The silence of the afternoon was interrupted only by the wind rustling through the fir needles and the sound of Moon Shadow’s impatient snorts.
“And they all died from heart failure?” Zane asked, staring at the proud stallion as if he hoped to see the reasons for the tragic deaths in the shining black horse.
Tiffany nodded, and Mac shifted the piece of straw from one corner of his mouth to the other.
“Seems that way,” Mac muttered.
“Unless Vance discovers something different in the autopsy of the colt born last night,” Tiffany added and then shook her head. “But I doubt that he’ll find anything else.”
“What about other horses bred to Moon Shadow?”
“Fortunately, none of the foals of mares from other owners have been affected—at least not yet. I’ve corresponded with all of the owners. So far, each mare has delivered a strong, healthy foal.”
“Thank God for small favors,” Mac mumbled ungraciously.
“Some owners even want to rebreed to Moon Shadow,” Tiffany said, almost as an afterthought.
“But you’re not breeding him?”
“Not until we find out what’s going on.”
“I don’t blame you.” Zane’s gaze returned to the imperious stallion, who was tossing his head menacingly toward the spectators.
“He knows we’re talkin’ about him,” Mac said fondly. “Always did like a show, that one.” He rubbed the back of his weathered neck. “Should’ve won the Triple Crown, ya know. My fault for letting that son of a bitch ride him.”
“Mac’s been blaming himself ever since.”
“I should’ve known the boy was no good.”
“Quit second-guessing yourself. Ellery thought Bill was a decent jockey. Moon Shadow didn’t win and that’s that.”
Mac frowned as he stared at the horse. “The closest I’ve come to a Triple Crown. Moon Shadow and Devil’s Gambit were the finest horses I’ve ever seen race.”
Tiffany stiffened at the mention of Devil’s Gambit. “Mac’s prejudiced, of course. The owners of Secretariat, Seattle Slew and a few others would have different opinions. But Moon Shadow sure used to be a crowd-pleaser,” Tiffany remarked thoughtfully as she stared at the fiery black stallion.
