Small Town Filly (Sandbar Stables Cozy Mystery Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

and pounding hooves.
    A screen door slammed. Alex looked up to see a short, heavy woman with very short gray hair hurrying across her lawn to the edge of the lot. "What is going on out here?" she yelled.
    Alex was the closest to her, so she tried to smile and give the woman an explanation. "I'm so sorry. They got out. We don't know how. We'll have them back home in just a minute."
    The woman looked closely through her thick glasses at Alex. "Are these horses from across the street?"
    "Yes. They are," said Alex nervously, watching as Lance and a few neighbors began spacing themselves out to form a barrier between the horses and the sides of the vacant lot.
    "Well!" she said and folded her arms across her chest. "I might have known. I used to ride myself, and I know a poorly run place when I see one!"
    "I'm sorry," Alex said over her shoulder. She was getting close to Jet and tried to creep up quietly.
    "My poor little Mary took riding lessons over there last summer, but due to their negligence she fell off twice! Now she doesn't like horses at all!"
    Alex began moving towards Jet at a slow walk. "Maybe we can–"
    "You can get these horses off of my property!" the woman yelled, loud enough to startle Jet into throwing up her head and trotting off again.
    "Yes, ma'am. We're getting them," said Alex, walking after the big black mare once more.
    "I've tried to buy that place before!" the woman yelled again. To Alex's dismay, Jet trotted off even faster. "We'd all be better off if it was a hotel and not a barn!"
    Alex tried to get close to Jet again. Just then, the screen door on the house banged loudly again as the woman stalked back inside.
    The confused mare only changed direction at the sudden sound and tried to rejoin Starfish. The pony was so small he could probably walk under her belly if he wanted to, but they were good friends and spent much of their time together.
    "Alex!" called Lance, from across the lot. "Back off, and just let them relax! Wait until they start eating!"
    She did as he said, and made herself stand still while the horses wandered about. The other people standing around the sides of the lot did the same, even though they didn't look too happy about it. She saw that one of them had a very long stick in his hand and was tapping it up and down on the ground like he'd be glad to use it.
    Finally, with everyone simply standing quietly and the angry woman back in her house, the horses began to realize that they were standing ankle-deep in a lush green field. In a moment, they had all stopped dead and began greedily stuffing themselves on the weeds and grass.
    "Let me get Jet first," called Lance, walking towards the herd. "She's the one in charge of this herd."
    "Is that because she's the biggest?" asked Alex.
    "No. It's because she's a mare. The boss is nearly always a lady. Just like in real life."
    Alex glanced up at him, but he had his back turned to her. She watched quietly as he walked up to the big mare and calmly slipped her halter on just as she raised her head up from the grass, still munching on some huge stalks of green stuff.
    "Okay," he called. "I'll go for Starfish. See if you can get the other two."
    Alex readied the first halter in her hands, and approached the two black-and-white escapees. "Hey, guys," she said to them. "Time to come in now. Recess is over for today."
    To her relief, Lightning barely flicked an ear as she walked up to him. In fact, he was so determined to go on eating that she could barely get his head up far enough to slip the halter under his nose. Thunder proved to be the same way, and in a moment all four of them were safely caught.
    Lance led the way with Jet and Starfish, and Alex followed them with Thunder and Lightning. Most of the drivers blew past them as they waited at the side of the road, but finally one car stopped and then another, so that the traffic was stopped in both directions.
    Even from the road, they could hear the other horses in the barn all whinnying