A Horsewoman for Harlan by Barbara Goss (the top 100 crime novels of all time TXT) 📕

Millie’s grimaced.  “I’m scared.”

Elise put her arm around Millie’s shoulders.  “Don’t be.  I’ll be right here with you.”

“My papa won’t let me wear pants like you, but he did say he’d buy me a riding outfit.”

“It would be easier to ride astride if you had one.”

“I’ll remind him so I have one on time.”  Millie thanked Elise and sprinted into the stables.

Elise brought out the other horse with which she'd been working to the corral.  She was shocked to see Harlan Tanner standing in the corral, his hands on his hips.

“May I have a word, miss?”

“Elise.  Please call me Elise.”

His manner seemed a bit strained.  Elise steeled her emotions for a battle with him if needed.  “How can I help you?”

“Is Millie’s horse really ready for her to ride this week?  Isn’t it too soon?”

“Cocoa, as Millie’s named her, is more than ready.  What I’m doing now is transferring ownership from me to her by letting her walk the horse and talk to her.  The horse is ready to ride, now. If you’d like for me to ride her so you can see. I’ll bring her out.”

“Are you telling me you broke that horse already?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I would like a demonstration, thank you,” he said brusquely.

“Fine. Let me take this horse back, and I’ll bring Cocoa out.”

Elise patted Cocoa, talked to her, and trotted her around the corral, demonstrating a trot, gallop, and turns.  Then, she jumped down and faced Harlan. “Well?”

Harlan shook his head.  “That’s unbelievable.  It used to take Pedro a month or more to train a horse.”  He looked up at her and said, “My apologies.”

“No problem,” Elise answered.  “I’ll also walk or ride along with Millie for some time before I let her go off alone.”

Harlan rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Do you think you could train the others that quickly?”

“Pretty close to that.  Every horse is different.  I find the males take longer since they are more stubborn.”  Elise forced herself to hold back a smile.

Harlan laughed. “Are we still talking about horses?”

Now, Elise did smile. She hoped she wasn’t blushing.  “Of course.”

“How about you pick out any horse from either stable to ride while you’re here?” he said.

“I’d love to.  Thank you.  A brisk early morning ride would make my day more enjoyable.”

 Harlan tipped his hat.  “I’m sorry for my boorishness. If there is anything I can do for you, just let me know.”

Harlan felt rather foolish after the confrontation with Elise.  The tiny woman knew what she was doing.  If she continued to train horses that quickly, he’d have a good number to sell at his auction.

He also had to admit she was pretty.  He noted how dirty her pants became after a day of working in the dusty corral.  Maybe pants were the perfect thing for her job, after all.  He’d have to find a way to show his appreciation for her work.  Maybe he’d give her a percentage of the sales.

On Sundays, Elise attended church with the family, and she always appeared to be a perfect lady in her pretty feminine outfits. And Millie doted on her, besides. He decided that he liked Elise Ansell, and he was, indeed, pleased with his new horsewoman.

Pedro reappeared a week later.  “Hey, boss—where should I start?”

“Pedro!” Harlan greeted.  “I didn’t think you’d be back.”

“Sad news, my friend—my mama, she didn’t make it.  So after the funeral, I decided to come back to work.”

“I’m sorry about your mama.  I’m glad you came back.  I’m having an auction at the beginning of September, and I need saddle-trained horses.  I’ll need you to work at the male’s stable and use the back corral.”

“Why is that, boss?”

“I have a horse trainer doing the females in front.  She’s new and very good.”

“She?  You’re joking, of course.”

“No, and I was as shocked as you, my friend, but she’s good.  Very good.  I hope you’ll make Elise feel welcome.

Pedro shook his head, “Then, that is a good thing.  We’ll get more horses done by September.”

Harlan clapped Pedro on the shoulder.  “I’ve decided to give you both a percentage of the sales for doing such a great job.  Oh, and welcome back.”

Millie sat on the fence at the back corral, watching Pedro train a stallion.  She almost fell off the fence when a male voice shouted, “Hey, you!” She turned to see two men on horseback.

“What?” she yelled.

A nicer voice said, “I’m looking for an Elise.  She’s a horse trainer, and there’s only one other in Russell, at a smaller place, and she’s not there.”

Millie jumped down from the fence and walked closer to the men on their horses on the other side of the property's fence.  She recognized the one with the nicer voice as the man who had been on the stage coach with Elise.  She panicked, crossed her fingers behind her back, and prayed for forgiveness ahead of time.  “Well, she isn’t here, either.”

“She has to be,” the gruffier-voiced man said.

“Not anymore.  She didn’t care for the job and left.  She got back on a stagecoach for home,” Millie said.

“Are you sure?” the nicer-voiced man asked.

Millie nodded, turned, and ran through the stables, into the house, and into her bedroom.  She got on her knees and prayed:  "Dear Heavenly Father, please forgive me for lying.  I didn’t like those men, and I have to keep Elise for Papa.  I know she’ll come to love him.  Please, let them get a chance without those men interfering.   Thank you, Lord, and I’ll try not to lie again.”

She’d heard the minister say "Ask and you shall receive" so many times, so she asked, and now she waited to receive.

Millie jumped when Martha called up the stairs:  “Elise says