A Silver Christmas (Tipperary Carriage Company Mystery Book 4) Read online

  Her other horses were quite different. Steel would generally keep going at the requested speed until asked to change, while both Copper and Star were more timid, especially at first, and had to be watched to make sure they'd keep going forward.

  Silver, though, was a different story. He was very strong about going forward, and that was not a bad thing. Mae knew that you usually ran into trouble with a horse when they tried to stop or spin around, and not so much while they were moving, but you still had to be able to put on the brakes when you needed to.

  At last, the training session was over. Back inside the barn, Mae felt nothing but exhilaration.

  "Thanks for the schooling," she said to Ross, laughing. "I think we're as ready as we'll ever be. He’s a wonderful horse."

  "I hope so," said Ross. "Tomorrow is the first night of your Christmas Fair. Bus leaves at four o'clock sharp."

  "I'll be there," promised Mae.

  And so will Silver.

  6

  After parking in the small designated lot on a quiet side street, Mae and Ross got the two horses, the carriage, and the antique sleigh unloaded and ready to go.

  Mae had already decorated the black Landau carriage with plenty of realistic-looking holly leaves and bright red berries, all tied together with elegant silver bows. The dark green sleigh was done in snow-covered pine branches with more silver bows, and Mae was very pleased with the effect.

  Once Steel and Silver were hooked up to their vehicles, Mae brought out the antlers. They were just heavy cloth caps with holes in them that fitted over the horse's ears and had soft plastic antlers attached.

  She tossed one to Ross. "I already tried these on the horses," she said. "They didn't mind at all. The kids will love them."

  Ross caught the set of antlers and looked at it as though it was radioactive. As soon as he realized what it was, he tossed it back. "Keep your horse right behind me. See you over there."

  Mae had realized that Ross might not go for something that was quite this silly, so she was not about to argue with him. On the other hand, she was determined to get the antlers on Silver. He was already pulling an actual sleigh and wearing harness bells, so antlers would provide the perfect finish to the picture he created.

  "Come down here, now, Silver," she crooned, trying to persuade the very tall horse to lower his long slim neck so she could get the cap over his head and slide his ears through it. "We tried this at home and you did great. Let me get this on, here we are, good boy."

  The antlers sat a little crookedly on top of the horse's head, rising up right behind his ears. There was really no fastener and mostly the snug earholes held the thing in place, so Mae tucked the sides of the cap under the heavy bridle. She could always take it off if it caused any problems, though right now it seemed that it would stay on just fine.

  She got into the sleigh just as Ross turned around to see what the holdup was. He glanced briefly at the antlers on Silver's head and then called, "Ready?"

  "Ready."

  With that, to the sound of jingling harness bells, Mae and Ross started their horses walking toward the Sparkling Spectacular Holiday Fair.

  The neighborhood streets were very quiet and tranquil with older houses along the straightaways and some small businesses on the corners. Old-fashioned Victorian lamps served as streetlights, and most of the houses had at least a few Christmas lights and maybe a decorated tree in the window. All it needed was a little fall of snow to be the perfect picture of a small town at the holidays.

  This was also the section that had been blocked off for the fair's carriage rides. It was a beautiful, quiet setting, with people walking on the sidewalks to go back and forth to the fair, but no car traffic allowed. All of the crowds and music and noise and confusion were confined to a big center block where the horses didn’t have to go.

  Perfect.

  As they walked along, Ross stayed in the lead with Steel and the black Landau. Steel was a huge grey Percheron who had been a New York City carriage horse before Mae bought him, and he was about as steady and bombproof as a horse ever got. Ross had advised bringing Steel out here for the first night of the fair as a way to help keep Silver calm, since he could just follow behind the more experienced horse.

  Right behind him, Mae sat in the front seat of the dark green antique sleigh. It had two identical black-velvet seats, one behind the other, and was really just for couples, though Mae could allow one or two small children to ride in the front with her while their parents rode in the back.

  The six-passenger Landaus were more practical for events like this since they could carry far more customers, but Mae would not be dissuaded from using the lovely little antique sleigh for the Christmas fair. It rolled along the street quite nicely on the wheels that had been attached inside its runners and she was certain it was going to be a big hit.

  The only thing bigger is going to be the horse pulling it.

  Mae had already worked Silver once today, just to make sure he did not have too much pent-up energy before bringing him out among all the excitement. He was fired up, to be sure, holding his head high and looking at everything, but he kept to a walk and stepped along behind the black Landau with his buddy Steel up ahead.

  The harness bells didn't seem to bother Silver. Mae had tried them out on him at home and he had done fine. Most likely he'd worn them before at some special event or holiday party at some point in his life.

  The bells were no problem, but right now Mae was beginning to wonder if the fake reindeer antlers had been such a good idea. They were a little wobbly and really not very secure, and Silver sometimes shook his head as if a little confused by what was up there just behind his ears, but he went along all right, and Mae told herself that perhaps the antlers would distract him from whatever else was going on.

  It all looks absolutely perfect. Sleigh, harness bells, antlers, and gorgeous horse. The crowds are going to love it.

  As they rounded the corner, the bright and colorful lights of the Holiday Fair threw a glare over everything. The pounding noise of the rock bands on at least two separate bandstands, and the talking and laughing of a few thousand people reached them, too, and it was quite a contrast to the quiet neighborhood streets. But this was what they had come for, so Mae took a deep breath and followed Ross and the Landau through the last turn that led to the fair.

  The moment the two horses stepped onto the main street with their jingling bells, the nearby crowds stopped and turned to look at them. Steel was all power, strength, and size pulling the big black carriage, while Silver was all grace, beauty, and high-stepping charm in front of the smaller antique sleigh.

  Mae could hear the ooh's and ah's of the people as they watched the little parade.

  "Oh, look at the horses."

  "They're so, so pretty. Look at that carriage. And that sleigh."

  "I think they're doing rides over there at that stand."

  "Can we ride, Dad? Can we? I want to ride in the sleigh."

  Mae could not help smiling to herself. Of course, earning money at these events was important. She could not support five horses without it. But seeing and hearing the genuine delight of such crowds whenever they saw her horses and carriages meant a great deal to her, too.

  She and Ross walked their horses up to the pick-up stand where their passengers would board. It was a nice set-up with a booth selling tickets which meant the carriage drivers did not have to handle any cash. The carriage companies would settle up with the fair later on. A few teen-age volunteers from a local riding school helped out with horse-holding and water buckets and anything else that might be needed.

  There were already two other carriage horses standing at the curb, but they were from another local company and had no decorations or harness bells, and consequently those carriages and horses were looking a little plain and utilitarian.

  That meant almost everyone in line waiting for a ride stopped and turned and looked at Mae's two horses. She was feeling quite proud of how beauti
ful her own Steel and Silver looked and at how nicely the decorations on the carriage and the sleigh had turned out.

  Every day is horse show day in the carriage driving business. It really does pay off.

  The other two carriages left with their passengers. Ross and Mae pulled forward into their spots and right away there were people lining up for rides. But just as quickly, both vehicles were surrounded by more people trying to pose for pictures and selfies with the horses, especially with the antlered Silver harnessed to the sleigh.

  As she tried to talk to those who wanted to ride and answer their questions, Mae wondered if maybe next time she should just bring an extra carriage, decorate it up, block the wheels, and charge folks to use it as a picture prop.

  Five dollars per carload to take all the cellphone pictures you want. Shoot, that might make more than driving does.

  But for tonight, there was still driving to be done. Mae got a sweet romantic couple for her first ride, and as soon as Ross had his six passengers in the black Landau he pulled out and Mae allowed Silver to follow. They had to go through some noise and confusion to get back to the side streets, but that didn’t take long. In a moment, they were back in the peaceful neighborhood with its modestly decorated houses.

  Silver stepped along nicely, keeping his ears up. Mae knew that right now he was mostly watching Steel walking ahead of him. Very soon she would have to make sure that Silver would pay attention to his driver and not just follow another horse, but for the moment, the important thing was to introduce him to his new job and make sure all went well.

  The setting was quiet and calm. The passersby, either going to the fair or simply out for a stroll on a pretty December night, all turned to look as soon as they heard the sounds of the two big grey horses. Steel had regular horseshoes that rang out on the pavement as he walked, while Silver's slip-ons made a much softer sound. But the jingling of two sets of harness bells could not be missed.

  In the seat behind Mae, the romantic couple sat cuddled up together and whispered quietly with one another. Mae wanted to ask them if they were newly engaged, but she'd learned long ago that some passengers loved to talk while others just wanted to keep the ride to themselves.

  I can see what kind these two are. Wouldn't dream of disturbing them.

  It was just as well, for it gave her the chance to concentrate on her horse during their first trip. Mostly she just hoped those antlers would stay where they belonged. They seemed to be sliding a little and Silver occasionally shook his head as though to put them back in place, but the wobbly things only hung more to one side.

  Well, she would take them off once they returned to the pickup stand and only put them back on the horse if someone really wanted a picture. It was a silly idea anyway, but maybe she could find a better way to fasten them.

  The sleigh jerked to a stop as Silver whipped his head to one side. The cap with the antlers fell to the street and he half-reared at the strange object that had suddenly appeared beneath his front feet.

  "Whoa! Whoa, now," called Mae, working to get her horse under control. She pulled him away from the fallen antlers and moved ahead a few steps, since the blinkers on the bridle would prevent Silver from seeing the antlers in the street behind him.

  In front of her, Ross immediately turned around on the box and looked back. She waved to him and then heard the man in the sleigh behind her.

  "Everything all right?" he asked, sounding a little anxious.

  "Oh, yes," Mae said, and then glanced back to smile at the two of them. "Just a little spook. We're good. It's what horses do, sometimes. I'm used to it."

  Ross halted Steel anyway, and Mae took advantage of that to order Silver once again to halt.

  "Whoa!" she barked, and to her relief the tall grey stopped and then smartly parked out in his show-horse stretch.

  Good. That means he knows he's supposed to stand still. I'll let him stand for just a minute and then we can get going again.

  "Hello, there, ma'am. Is this yours?"

  7

  Mae looked to the side and saw a young couple standing in the street just several steps away from the carriage. The man was holding the fallen set of reindeer antlers that had just dropped off of Silver's head.

  "Why, yes, those are mine," said Mae, glancing at the man and trying to watch Silver at the same time. "I'm afraid they didn't stay on very well."

  The man holding the antlers approached the carriage, while the young woman moved closer to Silver and seemed to be looking him over.

  "Careful, there," Mae warned. "He's a sweetheart, but he's very new and might be a little skittish."

  "Here you go," said the man, as though he hadn't heard anything Mae had said. "They looked good on him. Too bad they fell off."

  "I have to be more careful with putting them on," Mae agreed, taking the antlers and dropping them to the floor of the sleigh.

  Then, to her dismay, the couple walked around right in front of Silver to look at him.

  "Careful, there," she called out again, but they both ignored her.

  "Gosh, he sure is pretty," said the woman.

  "Did you say you just got him?" asked the man as both of them looked the horse up and down. Silver's ears flicked back and forth in confusion as the two circled him, and he began to step forward out of his stretch.

  Mae knew this was not a good situation. In a minute, these two were going to ask to get a picture even though they were right in the middle of someone else's carriage ride. Two rides, actually, since they were also standing beside the rear wheel of the black Landau where Ross's six passengers sat waiting.

  Mae steered Silver to one side of them and let him take a few steps forward in hopes that the couple would move.

  "Excuse us," she called to them. "We have to finish our rides."

  "Oh, can we take just one picture?"

  I knew it.

  "You can certainly take pictures of the horses back at the pickup stand. You'll see it as soon as you enter the Holiday Fair."

  "Well," said the woman, sounding disappointed. "I guess we could do that."

  "Hold on, hon. I'll get one," said the man. "Hey, miss, if you could just hold him still for a second – hey!"

  The Landau pulled out, forcing the couple to step back.

  Silver hopped a little at seeing his buddy Steel walking on and Mae allowed him to walk on, too.

  "Thank you," said Mae, as the sleigh rolled past them. "We'll see you back at the stand. Once we're there, I promise you can take some pictures if you like."

  As they walked off, Mae could still hear the couple talking to each other.

  "Come on," said the young man. "I know a short cut. We can be at that place where the carriages pick up by the time they get back. We'll get a good picture there."

  "Okay," said the woman. "I just hope you're right."

  With that, they seemed to walk away, and Mae breathed a small sigh of relief. Such little incidents happened all the time with city carriage driving, handling a startled horse or too-eager spectators, and it was becoming almost routine to her now. The important thing was that Silver was doing well and was moving along at a nice fast walk to keep up with Steel.

  I must remember to thank Ross for that smooth move pulling out into the street. That's one way to get the traffic out of the road.

  She nudged the antlers out of the way with her foot and found herself looking forward to the rest of the night. Her beautiful Saddlebred was already attracting attention, even out there on a side street. He was definitely going to be a hit with the crowds, just as she had known he would.

  The rest of the drive went just fine. Mae was grateful to have such a peaceful, quiet, and very picturesque place to conduct the carriage rides. The old brick houses with their huge oak trees and pretty Christmas lights were lovely, and the fact that these side streets were closed to car traffic during the fair made it all even lovelier.

  After the small mishap with the antlers falling off, Silver had seemed to settle in. S
he couldn't blame him for being startled over that. He didn't need anything as silly as a pair of fake antlers to draw attention to himself anyway, as flashy as he was.

  As they approached the cab stand, Mae immediately spotted the same couple they’d met out in the street when the antlers had come off. The man who had picked them up came right over, even before Mae's two passengers could get out of the sleigh.

  "Hey," he said. "Can we get a picture now?"

  Mae glanced at him before turning around to face her passengers.

  "Thank you, sir," she said to the man, for he and his fiancée, or whoever she was, had just given Mae a nice tip. "Thank you for riding with Tipperary Carriage Company. And Merry Christmas."

  They nodded and left. It seemed that they had enjoyed their ride and now walked off arm-in-arm, completely wrapped up in each other.

  Ah, young love. And such a beautiful time of year for it, too.

  "Ooh. Keep him right there, please. Can you get a picture of me from this side?" The young woman asked the man she was with.

  Mae turned around to see that the woman was right beside Silver, while the man took a picture. Then they hurried around to the other side of the horse and posed again.

  "This time you take my picture. Good. Now, let me move down and you get another one. Make sure you get the whole horse in it."

  Mae smiled politely at them, wishing they would move out of the way. Other horses and carriages were trying to pull out around them to start their drives, but the couple wasn't paying any attention at all.

  "Got it?"

  "Yeah, I got it."

  Her next ride was paying the fare to the staff running the concession and they'd be at the sleigh in a moment. Mae was about to ask the young couple to move when they finally stepped back over to the sidewalk for a moment, and then walked right up to the sleigh as though they were about to get in.

  "Hello again," said Mae, as nicely as she could. "If you'd like a ride, the line is right there. The staff will be glad to help you make arrangements."