Bullet Work (15 page)

Kyle had to restrain her but also keep the
horse’s courage and confidence up. They were going pretty good up
front for the first quarter. Kyle calculated it was just a few
ticks too fast for these types. Unless one of the horses in this
field was a superstar, the race would come back to him. He pulled
down one of his pair of goggles under his chin, leaving three clean
pair stacked over on another.

He felt Aly Dancer relax and get a good
rhythm.

He waited.

“Mystic Prose and Undaunted Cem are heads
apart…the first quarter in 22 and 4.… Aly Dancer tracks them in
third.… Arestie is fourth on the outside…Magnet Time between
horses…break of three back to Yellow Bellow, Big Bad Bess, and
Prized Piece in eighth.… Gypsum Doll follows.”

Kyle watched the horses in front of him. He
was looking for any evidence that one was tiring. As the race stood
now, he was in a strong stalking position as they neared the far
turn. If the horse on the rail tired, she would start to drift away
from the rail. This would be Kyle’s preference as he could sneak
past the leader on the rail, and everyone else would have to go
wide to catch him.

If Undaunted Cem started to drift out, he
could split the frontrunners, but he’d have to get there first as
the horse outside him would be going for the same spot. The worst
case would be if both horses ahead of him maintained pace. In that
case he’d be blocked like a pick in basketball; the horses outside
him would get by the leaders, and he’d be trapped inside.

Kyle looked over at Arestie for any clue. Was
the horse laboring? Was the jockey urging? To his disappointment,
the horse was moving well, and the jockey was sitting chilly. They
started creeping ever closer to the frontrunners.

“The leaders move into the turn…45 and 3 for
the half.… Undaunted Cem and Mystic Prose continue to lead.… Aly
Dancer moving well…Arestie outside her says, “I’m going to get a
piece of this”.… Magnet Time is losing ground. Big Bad Bess moves
along the rail.… Yellow Bellow keeping pace…Prized Piece is
fading.… Gypsum Doll is starting to make a move from the back of
the field.”

Damn it.
The
frontrunners weren’t giving it up. He could move to the rail, but
if he was shut off, so were his chances. Splitting the frontrunners
would be dangerous, and, given their position, they could all end
up in a heap on the track. Kyle and Aly Dancer edged closer to the
leaders.

He saw Meeks look over from Arestie.
Arrogant prick.
He knew Kyle had a lot of
horse and was in a bind. Kyle looked back to his left and saw a
horse beginning to move into striking distance on the rail. He
still had enough room to take the rail, but he would have to decide
fast. If he let the other horse advance along the rail and get
position, he couldn’t move left down on top of him.

  

Jake slapped his racing form on the rail in
front of him. “Shit. He’s got a ton of horse and no place to go.
Find someplace to run.” He and Dan stood on the upper level of the
mezzanine, giving them a view of the entire track. Jake held a
small set of binoculars up to his face with one hand. “C’mon, Kyle,
get her outside, God damn it!” Jake yelled.

“Out of the turn, Arestie is moving well on
the outside.… Undaunted Cem puts his head in front.… Aly Dancer is
fourth.… Big Bad Bess moves along the rail…and Gypsum Doll is
moving powerfully on the outside.”

  

Kyle saw Arestie start to make her move
around Undaunted Cem. He looked back to his left, barely enough
room.

Fuck it, that’s not Seattle
Slew up ahead.
Now or never.

Kyle threw a cross with the reins and yanked
Aly Dancer’s head to the left. He shouted, “Haaah,” loosened the
reins, and ground on the horse’s neck with his knuckles. Aly Dancer
responded to the lane shift, then seemed to balk as if to say,
Are you serious?
Kyle scrubbed her neck
with knuckles, and she knew he meant business.

Kyle saw Dagens on Mystic Prose peek over his
left shoulder at Aly Dancer. He turned back and kept riding.

He’s not going to budge off the rail, Kyle
thought. There wasn’t enough room to get through.

There was no place to go.

  

“Come on, kid,” Jake muttered. He’d laid all
but $200 of the remaining loan from Ginny on Aly Dancer—all on the
nose. She had all the ability in the world, especially against a
bunch of maidens. Running well wouldn’t cut it. Jake needed a
win.

“Come on, Kyle. Find a lane,” Dan yelled as
if he was hoping his positive vibe would counteract Jake’s
defeatist tone. “Come on, baby, get room.”

“Arestie surges to the lead.… Undaunted Cem
tries to keep pace.… .Mystic Prose on the inside…and Gypsum Doll
moves four wide into the stretch….”

  

Kyle hugged the rail and waited. Even if he
got through, the horses on the outside were moving well and
unimpeded to the finish line.

Just then it happened.

It was the slightest move, almost
imperceptible, but Mystic Prose drifted slightly to the right.
Could have been a result of tiring through the fast early fractions
or the distraction of seeing horses outside her moving well, but
she drifted.

Kyle pulled his whip and gave Aly Dancer a
full crack. She responded and quickly filled the gap when Mystic
Prose drifted off the rail. She wasn’t through the hole yet. Kyle
scrubbed with his knuckles “C’mon, c’mon, haaaah!”

  

Jake had a poor angle to see the shift, but
years of experience told him there was a hole on the rail. “Get her
through there.” He slammed the racing form against the rail. “Get
through there.” Suddenly, she had a chance. A ton of ground to make
up, but she had a chance.

“Gypsum Doll moves outside Arestie, and the
two of them are kicking on.… Undaunted Cem is third.… Mystic Prose
is losing touch with the top ones…Aly Dancer trying to get through
on the rail.”

  

Mystic Prose kept drifting slightly to the
right. Kyle flashed the whip on the right side of Aly Dancer’s
head. Keep her focused, get through the hole. Dagens tried to move
Mystic Prose left to hold the rail, but he was fighting a tiring
horse.

Kyle could feel Aly Dancer dig down and
accelerate. “That’s it, girl. C’mon.” Aly Dancer moved past Mystic
Prose, but she was still a length and a half behind Arestie and
Gypsum Doll, who were moving well on the outside.

Kyle re-gripped the reins and started driving
forward on Aly Dancer’s neck. He turned the whip in his hand and
cracked the horse on the right flank.

They still had work to do.

“Aly Dancer moves up to third along the
rail.… Gypsum Doll has a head in front on the far outside.… Arestie
battles on.”

Kyle kept pumping with his arms and driving.
The horse was giving him everything she had. They were catching the
frontrunners, but there was less than a sixteenth of a mile to go.
Kyle put his head down and pushed. He flashed the whip past Aly
Dancer’s head. No need to abuse the animal; she was already running
her guts out.

“Arestie leads on the outside…Aly Dancer
driving strongly on the inside…Gypsum Doll third…Arestie…Aly
Dancer…these two to the wire…Arestie…Aly Dancer…at the finish,
it’s….”

  

“Get up, get up, get up.” Dan pounded on the
rail as the horses hit the wire.

“She got ’em,” Jake said, throwing his fists
in the air. “Yes!”

Voices from the crowd around him questioned
the finish.

“Too close.”

“Outside horse held on,” one said
confidently.

“I don’t know,” one muttered.

Jake had seen enough races; he knew. He
started moving through the crowd toward the track. Jake was sure
she got up to win. Cashing the ticket would give him breathing room
for a few days, until he could get more runners to the track. Yes,
she won.

She had to have won.

Chapter 26

Kyle drove Aly Dancer through the
finish line. He thought he got it. He extended his legs and stopped
pushing. A few strides past the finish line, he looked to his right
at Jack Meeks on Arestie. He could see it in Jack’s eyes. Aly
Dancer won. It might be some freaky head bob, but they both knew
Aly Dancer was moving best at the wire. Kyle let out a whoop,
slapped Aly Dancer on neck, and rode her out. They got home
first.

  

Dan watched Aly Dancer ease up after the
finish line. She was flying at the end. He was breathless and
spent. Aly Dancer looked like she could go around the track again.
She was full of herself, prancing and nodding. All the time, money,
energy, and interest in these animals—and this moment was what it
was all about.

“Hell, yes,” he shouted, throwing his racing
form in the air.

That was a killer move she made down the
stretch. Not only was she talented, but she showed the will to win.
This was the one he’d dreamed of.

In his revelry he didn’t notice that Jake had
left him to go to the winner’s circle. It didn’t matter. When your
first time starter won like she did, you were entitled to jump and
shout and generally make a fool of yourself. She had won, right? At
least he thought she had. Jake was sure. Damn right, she won, he
thought as he made his way to the winner’s circle.

Dan hustled down the steps to the apron. He
couldn’t contain his smile, and pride nearly burst from his chest
as he zigzagged through the crowd to the winner’s circle. Win or
lose, she had performed. She fought through the stretch. Despite a
troubled trip, she showed ability and fire.

Outside the enclosure Dan noted the groom
he’d called Romeo among the group waiting for the entrants to
return to the unsaddling area. The horses, winded and caked in
dirt, trotted clockwise past the clubhouse turn, back toward the
finish line. Jockeys stood in their stirrups, bent over at the
waist; some sat and bounced as they returned from the rigors of the
competition.

Which horse was Romeo
connected with? He’s just a punk, why should I care?
, Dan
thought. Then Romeo reached forward for the bridle and sponged a
handful of water on the muzzle of his horse. Of course, it was
Arestie. How fitting, Dan thought. He wanted to win that photo even
more.

Arestie and Aly Dancer circled in front of
the winner’s enclosure, awaiting the photo. Beth circled Aly Dancer
in a large arching turn, the smile on her face matching Dan’s as
she chatted up Kyle. By appearances, there was no question who won.
Kyle was more reserved, but the animation in his conversation with
Beth revealed his excitement. This filly was the real deal.

Minutes later the photo sign came down, and
for half a second time stood still. A large three flashed up on the
top of the tote. Dan was airborne, thrusting his fist in the air.
“Yes, yes,” he screamed. Cheers and moans rose up from the
grandstand. Gypsum Doll held third.

Dan slapped hands with Kyle as Aly Dancer was
led into the winner’s enclosure. He patted the filly on the
neck.

Perspiration from her coat soaked his hand,
but Dan could care less. Standing in front of his now undefeated
two-year-old filly, Dan held the reins and bridle as they posed for
the winning picture.

  

After the photo, Kyle jumped down and patted
Aly Dancer on the neck. He un-cinched the saddle and slid it over
his arm to carry to the scale. Jake put an arm around Kyle’s neck
and bent low to whisper in his ear.

“You got lucky,” Jake said.

Kyle looked back in amazement. Jake wasn’t
smiling.

“I put you on the best horse in the race,”
Jake whispered. “And you nearly got her beat. I’ll tell you what
I’m gonna tell TP. If you can’t keep ’em out of trouble, I’ll take
you off fucking everything. You hear me?”

Jake didn’t wait for an answer; he walked
off. Kyle weighed in and passed the saddle to a valet. He walked
just outside the rail bird’s fence as he headed back to the jockey
room.

“Great ride, KJ,” one shouted.

“I knew you had that six horse measured at
the head of the stretch,” another said.

Several stuck out hands for high fives. Kyle
smiled and walked past. He loved the attention, but after Jake’s
parting shot, he wasn’t in the mood for glad handing.

He was lightly tapping his whip against his
boot as he entered the jockey’s room. The next thing he knew, he
was falling backward into the lockers, just inside the door. Dagens
was standing over him.

“You’re dangerous out there.” Kyle tried to
get up, but Dagens kneed him and knocked him off balance and onto
his back. “You try that again, and I’ll put your ass through the
rail.”

Phil Gillette and Meeks pulled Dagens back,
allowing Kyle to scramble to his feet. A security guard also
stepped toward the door.

Dagens gestured at Kyle. “That’s the last
time. You ride like that, you’re gonna put guys on the track. I’m
puttin’ you through the rail, you crazy bastard. Where the fuck you
learn to ride?”

Gillette was able to push Dagens backward and
away from Kyle.

Dagens wasn’t done yet and motioned with a
crooked finger extended from his fist. “Through the rail. That’s
all I got to say.”

Chapter 27

The routine in the bar had become
near clockwork. Raven walked into Clancy’s, nodded at Falcon, and
moved toward the bar. He knocked on the bar, got the bartender’s
attention, pointed at a half-empty beer bottle in front of a
300-pound biker sitting precariously on a bar stool, and raised two
fingers. Two beers were produced, tops popped off, money exchanged,
tip left behind, and Raven walked to the booth.