Free Peril by Ponytail (A Bad Hair Day Mystery) by Nancy J. Cohen Page B

lessons were available as well as grooming fundamentals and team penning.
    Wearing jeans, sneakers, and a long-sleeved top for the chillier morning air, she entered the door marked Riders Entrance and took a seat until a wrangler came to get her. Inside, the air-conditioning unit hummed as she waited with several other victims who seemed to know each other and stood around in clusters. She sat wringing her hands and wishing she’d signed up for a massage instead. She’d only agreed to this activity so she could start accompanying Dalton on the gentler rides.
    “Don’t you have a pony for me?” she asked the wrangler who’d summoned her. She had been fabricating when she’d told the bartender her lesson was with Jesse. This guy’s name was Tom Mallory. Outside, she eyed the brown creature he’d selected with trepidation, while other horses snorted and whinnied in the corral. “This horse is too spirited.”
    “Nah, you’ll do fine. Candy is real gentle. Put on this helmet and then place your foot right here.” He showed her how to get on the horse.
    Marla mounted with his assistance and sat there, wondering what she should do next. Tom explained the different parts of the saddle and some basic horse lore. Then he led her around the corral while she grew accustomed to her seat. It took a while to get the hang of pressing in with her thighs as he taught her. She suspected she’d be sore after being locked into this position. Muscles that she didn’t normally use were getting a workout.
    By the end of the hour, she was able to trot around the fenced enclosure if not with ease, at least with more confidence. She could probably handle a walking ride but needed more lessons to feel comfortable going faster.
    “How long have you been working here?” she asked Tom during one of their rounds. She patted the horse, pleased with Candy’s tolerance of her mistakes. The horse nickered in response, as though approving of her awkward efforts.
    “I’ve been here nearly seventeen years now. Hard to believe it’s been that long.” He stroked his grizzled jaw, squinting under his cowboy hat as he walked beside her horse, letting her handle the reins.
    “Have you seen many changes in that time?” She glanced at the mountains in the distance from behind her sunglasses. Saguaro cacti dotted the landscape like aged sentinels on guard.
    “Sure have, ma’am. Raymond brought us into the technical age and raised our visibility on the global networks. Guests from around the world come here now. Plus, he improved on the expansion his daddy started.”
    “Did you see him more often before he got involved with his ghost town project?”
    “Raymond was never one to micro-manage, if you know what I mean. Wayne and Carol take a personal interest in everybody and make us feel like family. Raymond did too, but more from a distance. He was a stickler for safety rules, but that’s to be expected after the tragedy their family experienced.”
    Her ears perked up. “What happened?”
    “You don’t know?” His brows lifted in surprise. “I suggest you ask your cousin for the particulars. It’s not my place to say. Most of them keep mum about it, and I don’t blame them. Why dredge up old hurts?”
    Because it might help to explain why Kate doesn’t speak to her brother, Marla thought. She wouldn’t ask Carol. Marla had promised to visit Wayne’s sister at her nutrition clinic. Annie might know about the events affecting her parents’ generation.
    Thus when she and Dalton drove into town, they split up. Marla had called ahead to verify that Annie would be free for lunch, so Dalton dropped her off and set a time to meet her later. He wanted to stop by the sheriff’s office while she was occupied.
    Stiff and sore from her morning exertion, Marla gave her name to the receptionist inside the tan adobe building. Did Annie own the property or lease it? The waiting area appeared to be well maintained. It held comfortable jade