Monday 29 June 2020

Excerpt From Third Book In Meg Sheppard Mystery Series


This is the third book in the Meg Sheppard Mystery Series.

Racehorse trainer Grayson is found dead in his office trailer and Meg's trainer, Neal, asks her to investigate. The members of a syndicate, who owned five horses trained by Grayson, are all under suspicion. But the list of suspects grows as Meg learns more about the horses' unexpected poor health and disappointing performances.

The series is set in the crazy world of thoroughbred horse-racing. Meg lives on a farm with her beloved border collie, Kelly, as well as horses and cats.
If you like cozies, you'll enjoy this series!

This is the excerpt from 'Pointed Attacks', which starts on page 126:

'The condo doesn’t look as if it’s been lived in since I visited last. We help Philippa to lower onto the soft sofa. She’ll need help to get out of it too. Oscar has carbonated spring-water, with lemon slices, poured out for us - so he’s proven that he can play host if needs be.
            “Your eyes look puffy,” Philippa says as she peers at me.
            “I didn’t sleep well last night. Don’t know why.” I give her a half-smile and sip some water.
            “I’ve got no time for chit-chat,” Oscar says. “Let’s get on with it. Meg, you’re the one who asked to meet with us, so you can go from here.” He crosses his legs with a flourish. 
            “Thanks for taking the time to meet with me. I know you’re both busy. I’ll get straight to the point. I need the truth about your dealings with Grayson and with Emma.”
            “That’s easy,” says Oscar. “The horses were doing so poorly that Philippa and I wanted to change both the trainer and the vet, even though they were members of the syndicate.”
            “How did you plan to do that?”
            “We hadn’t got a plan worked out.” He shifts his gaze to Philippa. “I hoped you would buy them out, Philippa.”
            “Not a chance. Even if I had the money, which I don’t, those horses aren’t worth it. I’ve always believed that the quality of the horse is paramount. There’s only so much that the trainer can do.”
            “But I thought we agreed that we needed to change things up because everything was going wrong. I spoke to Bryce, you know the trainer who’s in the same barn where Grayson was. I heard he’s a hard worker and would do a good job.”
            “You talked to Bryce?” Philippa squirms and lunges forward as if trying to launch herself out of her soft nest. “He’s a no-good useless piece of shit. Didn’t you think to look at his race record? Who told you he was good?”
            “Emma.”
            “So, the useless vet told you that Bryce is a good trainer. This would be funny if it wasn’t so terribly sad.”
            “I thought we’d agreed.” Oscar unfolds his legs and leans forward with his arms on his thighs.
            “I don’t know where you got that stupid idea from.” Philippa flops back on the sofa as if exhausted. “Bryce would be my last choice. All he ever says is that he wants a level playing-field and that he reports anything that isn’t fair. What it boils down to, is that he has sour grapes because he can’t get results.”
            “Philippa,” I say, “what do you think is at the root of the problems? For one thing, I’ve heard that the syndicate horses get ailments of all sorts, when other horses don’t appear to.”
            “They seem to get everything going, but I think the real issue is that the horses don’t have what it takes to be runners. I blame Grayson for selecting those horses in the first place. He obviously doesn’t have a good eye or good horse-sense. Useless.”
            “They do get sick a lot,” Oscar says as he puts his glass down on the table. “That’s why I wanted someone else to look at them. I asked the vet, Edwin, to examine them, but he wouldn’t unless I got Russell and Grayson to agree.”
            “Now, that I’d agree with. I respect Edwin,” Philippa says. “He’s the new vet now anyway, so that’s good.”
            “Have things improved?” I ask.
            “Not enough to satisfy me,” Oscar says as he clasps his hands behind his head and leans back. “I want out. I’ve had it with this business. It shouldn’t be called a business, it’s just one big gamble and the owners usually lose while the trainers, vets, jockeys and barn crew do okay. We take all the risk.”
            “But if you have the right horses…” Philippa says.
            “You have to have the right people too,” Oscar interrupts. “And we have nothing right. Rehashing all this isn’t getting us anywhere. I just want out of the whole thing and, quite frankly, I couldn’t give a damn who killed Grayson. I still think it was suicide. He should have killed himself. It was the honourable thing to do.”
            “Oscar, hang on,” Philippa says. “That’s a terrible thing to say. While I’m angry and disappointed and frustrated, I wouldn’t say he should have killed himself. I don’t think that five under-performing horses is enough to die for, personally.”
            “Well, I do,” Oscar says. “It’s a disgrace.”
            “I’m going to end this with one last question,” I say. “Assume that Grayson was murdered, who do you think could have a motive to want him dead?”
            “Bryce,” says Philippa. “He’s scum, and I know he didn’t like Grayson. Amy told me he hung around the barn a lot. That’s not right. There’s something odd about that guy. I’d guess he wanted to get rid of the competition that he had a hate-on for.”
            “No, it was Emma,” says Oscar. “My theory is that she was trying out new drugs that she made up herself. Let’s face it, we got enough bills for medication. I think she thought she was going to come up with some dope that wouldn’t be picked up in testing, but would make the horses run faster. But all she managed to do was make them sick.”
            I thank them both for their time. It’s just as well that I made notes since my mind is misty, as if my silent tears have leaked into my thoughts. I lack the will or the energy to do anything else today, so drive home with Kelly with no other ambition than to make sure all the animals are looked after.'

Vicky Earle Copyright 2019

Thank you to blueheronbooks.com for stocking all three books in the Meg Sheppard Mystery Series on the shelves and having them listed on their website.

They are also available at your favourite e-book retailer: Pointed Attacks

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Excerpt from draft of fourth book to be posted soon!

Happy reading!





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