Chapter 3
Five days later, Faith pulled her small truck beneath the sign that said she had reached Erin’s Way and sighed in relief.
She had been delayed by two days because of a freak storm, and had to pull over.
She’d called Naomi Alcott, and had been told to stay where she was, and not endanger herself with the weather.
She was now at her destination, and nodded as she slowed to take a ninety-degree turn.
Further down, she slammed on her brakes and stared in utter shock at the barns, and vehicles parked near it.
The barns were extremely impressive. She hoped she’d get the job, just working in those barns alone would make her feel good.
She pulled forward and ended up parking at the end of a line of vehicles and pulled up next to one the same size as hers, but red, instead of her own hunter green one.
She shut everything down, looked around, and for the first time in ages, butterflies starting fluttering in her stomach.
She didn’t know whether it was excitement or dread.
She closed her eyes, and processed the feeling.
When she opened them, she had a smile on her face.
These were the type of butterflies she always had before she had a race, and ended up winning it.
She reached over for her jacket, she didn’t like to drive with it on, and instead of putting it on inside the cab of the truck, she stepped out, donned it, and pulled on her gloves. She looked around and cocked her head to the side when she spotted several horses in a barn.
“What the hell?” She started to walk forward, but a man came out of one of the barns and approached.
“Help you?”
“I’m here for Naomi Alcott.”
“Are you Faith Webber?”
“I am, and you?”
“I’m Duane Manchester, I’m head of security for Erin Riceman.
” At her look he invited her to follow him to his office, and he sent a text as he did.
Inside his office he looked at her with a grin.
“You look confused.” He offered her something to drink, but she declined, knowing she was nervous because the horses she spotted were no way in hell racehorses.
She wondered if she was being punked or something.
She looked up when someone entered, and stared in shock when she immediately recognized the woman. She was older, but she recognized her.
“You’re alive!” Faith responded in shocked awe.
“I am,” the woman laughed as she approached with her hand extended. They shook and Naomi introduced herself, “Naomi Alcott.”
“Faith Webber. I have to say, when I spotted a couple of these horses, I thought I was brought here under false pretenses.”
Naomi laughed and they settled in the seats before Duane’s desk, and he conveniently disappeared. As Naomi studied the other woman, she drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Would you like something to drink?”
“No, honestly, I’m too nervous.”
“Perfectly understandable. Okay, then I’ll get right to it then. You were told that I moved my ranch, The Double A, from Wyoming to Colorado, correct?”
“Correct.”
“Okay, it’s here, but this isn’t it. We are currently at Erin’s Way.
There’s history here, the owner and operator of everything is Erin Riceman.
I won’t get into the details of how she became the boss, we can save that for when and if you are offered the job and accept.
Anyway, you were correct, the horses you saw are not racehorses.
There are currently three ranches on this side of the road.
Once this snow melts off, and it’s safe to do so, another ranch will be built across the road.
That one will be named Riceman Rodeo Ranch.
That will be for rodeo stock, and if people want to board their own rodeo horses during the off season.
It’s still a work in progress, because Clark, hasn’t even broken ground yet.
“Now, let me give you some history. Erin’s Way has been in the Riceman family since it was established back in the eighteen thirties.
Erin and Clark’s so many times removed grandmother started it.
Again, that’s history not relevant to your job.
However, this next part is. Back when Erin was twenty-one, she and her parents were late celebrating her birthday because of the mares foaling.
It was six weeks later. On their way to town, they were struck by a person that had an aneurysm and their foot got stuck on the gas. ”
“Oh god, let me guess, they were dead, and kept coming.”
“Yes, Erin and Clark are siblings. Clark is three or four years older than Erin, however, at this time he was in the military, deployed overseas, and on a mission that was highly classified. No one knew where he was.”
“To keep him safe?”
“Yes. Anyway, they lost their parents in that accident, Erin lost her hand. When she came to and was released from the hospital, she had inherited everything. It’s all straightened out now, but both Erin and Clark are equal partners.
Anyway, as soon as Erin came home, she went to see her horses.
They had roughly five hundred head. Erin’s Way is known for their studs, and extremely valuable brood mares. ” She paused when Faith nodded.
“What happened?”
“Not all, but several horses rejected her. She thought it was because of the bandage still on her hand. Anyway, the guys that ran the ranch while she was in the hospital for three months told her to wait until the bandages come off.”
“Did it work?”
“No. Once she was able to go around without them on, she approached the horses again. The studs that rejected her were culled from the herd. She talked it over with her vet and that was her first new enterprise.”
“What?” Faith was fascinated by the story so far.
“It was discussed that they could extract the sperm from these studs, store it, all on the up and up, and then sell the horse. I know it wasn’t as quick as I’m making it out to be, but once she had enough sperm from each of them, she sold them.
We’re talking, not all, but some of those studs went for up to five million. ”
Faith felt her eyes bug out, then nodded. “Yeah, if they have the lineage, I can see that. You don’t want a horse around that won’t work with you, that was smart of her. What happened with the sperm once they sold the horse?”
“This is where Erin is a smart businesswoman. She had it written in the contract that the samples stay with her, and she has all rights to them.”
“That too makes sense, because she owned the horse they came from. It wasn’t like she stole it.”
“Exactly, and that is where Riceman Stallions was born. It’s strictly on-line for breeders.”
“Smart.” Faith nodded as she relaxed.
“Okay, that is two businesses, now on to the next one. With the sale of the horses, she purchased lumber, and about five miles from here, Erin’s Way is three thousand acres.” She paused at the whistle Faith let out.
“Anyway, that lumber she purchased put up six cabins and a gigantic barn with an indoor arena. The horses that fill that one, we are currently at thirty-five, are rescues. They were either rescued by the SPCA from abusive and neglectful owners, or bought from the auction barns to prevent them from going to slaughter. As much as Erin wants to purchase more, we don’t really have the room, unless she builds another barn.
Anyway, that ranch is called The Broken Wheel ranch.
I know you can’t see it beneath all the snow, but out at the road there is a broken wheel from an actual covered wagon that the original Erin started this ranch.
” She gave the history as she knew it, and watched as Faith stared in shock.
“Anyway, Erin reached out to me after I got out of the hospital from my accident to ask me to come work as the manager at Broken Wheel. In the meantime, some shit went down, and there was a farm with roughly fifteen hundred acres that borders Erin’s land to the North.
She was able to get it for a song, again, that’s a story for a different time.
The owner of that property has lifetime use of it.
His name is Ducky, or rather Donald Donaldson, and everyone calls him Ducky.
I don’t know exactly how old he is, but I do know he’s in his eighties and is still spry.
Oh, he doesn’t muck out the stalls, but he gets around with a golf cart. ”
She waited for Faith to process it all, and nodded again.
“That is where I moved my ranch to. In Wyoming it was The Double A, here it is called New Double. We have twenty-nine racehorses, and twelve of them are slotted to be purchased, but the potential owners would like to see their potential. I have another dozen that are ready to be run. That’s where you come in. ”
“Do you have any other jockeys?”
“No, we were getting settled after the move, and the jockeys that worked for us before I fired. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of my father? Benson Alcott?”
“Not really.”
“What about Percy Biggins?”
“That asshole? He’s not here is he?” Faith was passionate in her response. “I’ll tell you right now, if he’s here, I’m out of here. This interview can stop right now, and I’ll leave. You won’t have to waste your time.”
“Why do you say that?”
“He was the one that got me fired from my last job. He tried to tell the owner of the horse that I was stealing money from him, Biggins, and that I was in debt to him.”
“Why would he do that?”
“Because Percy Biggins came to me to throw the race. He said he could line my pockets if I didn’t win. He bet against the horse I was racing, so did the owner, based on Biggins’s say.”
“Oh, shit, that’s bad.”
“Yeah, and the bitch of it was that he did it to other jockeys, and they took him up on his offer. I’m not blacklisted, but I not being offered any jobs.
I’m thirty-eight, and we both know that racehorsing is still a man’s world, but I’ve been doing this for twenty years, and I’m not dead yet, so I have experience, knowledge, guts, and gumption under my belt.
Please, tell me Percy Biggins isn’t involved with anything here. ”
“He isn’t. He’s in jail, and has been for a year.
This is over in Wyoming, oh, and my father is sitting beside him.
There is a lawyer that is working a case for Erin, it’s complicated, but connected to my case against The Big Pig, and Bensen.
If you can answer any questions he has for you, I would appreciate it. ”
“Would it help keep him in jail?”
“Yes, at least we hope so.”
“I’ll talk with him.”
“Good. Anyway, that’s it with the ranches. Erin’s Way, The Broken Wheel, New Double, and like I said, the rodeo ranch will be starting to be built this spring.”
“Question.”
“Shoot.”
“Why don’t you have any more room at this Broken Wheel?”
“Oh, sorry, the horses we were able to save, were broken. The people hired to work with them were at first all women, all former military women, who had been released from service because they too were broken. PTSD, a missing limb, TBI. Eventually, the men from Clark’s former SEAL team unit joined us here when they were discharged, and they were just as broken as the women and horses.
Gradually, humans and equines healed, and Erin turned Broken Wheel into a horse rehabilitation center for people of all ages.
We have the young ones in late spring to early fall.
This way, they can still use our services and not interrupt their schooling.
While adults it doesn’t matter what time they can come. ”
“How many people work at New Double?”
“Currently, five.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I’m not proud of it, but when the guys from Broken have the chance, they go over and help as much as they can.
There are currently five permanent members, and that includes my manager and barn boss.
A man just started last week, and he’s working out well so far.
” She slowly stood, then nodded. “Let me take you over there, and you can see what I’m talking about. ”
Faith stood and put her jacket back on, then looked at Naomi with a frown.
“What’s wrong?”
“Are we riding together, or do you want me to follow?”
“Could you follow? I’ll explain when I get there, but in the long run, it will work out.” She paused when Duane returned with something and laid it out on his desk. “What’s that?”
“Erin’s map.”
“Oh, Faith, come here, this will explain things.” She and Duane lifted all the layers, and she told Faith about the original ranch, then how Broken was added, along with Broken Two, as well as New Double.
When she finished, she looked at Faith with a smile.
“Trust me, it’s not as confusing as it seems. However,” she said as she lifted the top layer so everything was laid out.
“This is all Erin’s Way. The three things are connected.
You can drive through the property to get to each section.
You can’t access New Double from this property.
” She lowered the film she’d raised, and pointed to the boundary.
“The only way to access New Double is from the road. It’s roughly a good twenty-minute drive from here. We have to go around.”
“Got it.” Faith didn’t know what else to say, so she only nodded. “Before we go, is there a hotel in town? After this interview, I won’t be able to make it all the way home tonight.”
“Where is home?” Duane asked as he rolled up the map to return to Erin’s office.
“East Kentucky.”
“Okay, I don’t know if Naomi told you this yet, but we do background checks on any potential employee.” He held up his hand at her shock. “Precautionary measure. Katherine, Naomi’s assistant, gave me your application. You passed with flying colors. Nothing was flagged as bothersome.”
“I guess that’s a good thing.”
“That’s a great thing,” Naomi said. “Follow me over to New Double and I’ll explain more.” They quickly left and practically ran to their vehicles to get away from the biting wind and swirling snow.