Free Hide and Seek by Alyssa Brugman Page B

Besides, I only go in there to sleep.'
    'More horses then,' Shelby said.
    Lindsey looked around. 'How many more horses do you think I need, Shelby?'

17 A Clue
    When the trail riders had left for the day and Shelby had finished making up the feeds, she continued with her investigation.
    She wandered up the laneway between the stable blocks. There were lots of people around making a day of it as the weather had cleared and the trails were much drier.
    Over near the jumping arena one family had set up a barbecue and were selling sausage sandwiches for a dollar a pop. Shelby could smell the frying onion and her mouth watered. She felt in her pockets but she didn't have any change.
    She stopped at the stable rented by her friend Monica, who had a fine thoroughbred hack that she showed with some success. Monica was sitting on the step to her tack shed, cleaning her bridle. There was a pile of dirty rugs and saddle blankets near the gate. Shelby assumed that Monica was taking them home to wash.
    'Good time for a clean out,' Shelby observed.
    'Yep, every school holidays. Mum dreads it. She says I'm wrecking her washing machine.'
    'Weird about Diablo going missing, eh? Wonder how he got out?' Shelby stole a glance at Monica.
    Monica put down the bridle. 'Actually, I saw some-thing funny around then, but it wasn't to do with Diablo. I was going to tell Mrs E. Come on, I'll show you.'
    Monica led Shelby down the laneway and into the broodmares' paddock. 'Now, where is she?' she muttered to herself. Having spotted the horse she was after, Monica led the big mare towards the gate to the back paddock – the one with the latch that Shelby had noticed before. Now it was tied closed with baling twine.
    'That's the mare that Lindsey thought was Diablo,' Shelby said.
    'You think?' Monica looked the mare up and down. 'Maybe in the dark. Can you untie that baling twine for me?'
    Shelby did so and waited on the other side.
    The big mare strode purposefully towards the gate. 'Be ready to catch her!' warned Monica.
    The mare nosed at the latch, at the same time kicking the bottom of the gate. She flicked the latch with her lips. Soon she had the latch lifted, and simul-taneously her kicking of the gate made it ricochet forwards. She nudged the gate open with her nose and squeezed through.
    Shelby caught hold of the mare's hood to prevent her from escaping any further.
    'She's clever, isn't she?' said Monica, smiling. 'I've found her in here a few times. That's why I put the baling twine around it. All she does is stand on the other side wanting to be let back in again.'
    'Have you seen any of the others come through?' Shelby asked.
    'She can't do it from the other side,' Monica explained. 'The gate always swings back and relocks itself. It's weird, though, because I told Kim about it, and she said that she found her in the laneway between this paddock and Diablo's the other day. So she must be able to open that gate as well, but I've only ever seen her open this one.'
    'What day was that?' Shelby asked.
    'One afternoon last week. I can't remember.' Monica shrugged.
    'Was it Good Friday?'
    'It could have been. Yes, I think it was. Kim was helping Mrs Edel with the poo vac.'
    Shelby remembered seeing Lindsey's mum drive through the breezeway on the quad bike while she had been talking to Mrs Crook.
    'I'll tell Mrs Edel,' Shelby said. 'She should probably replace this latch.'
    'Good idea. Although the baling twine seems to be working for now. They can only escape into the back paddock, so it's not a huge risk, and besides, none of the other horses seem to have mastered the trick.' Shelby nodded. She wondered if Diablo knew a trick like that – or maybe he had help.

18 Contradictions
    That night Shelby updated the timeline on the blackboard.
    'Friday 5 pm – Kim finds accomplice equine in alleyway.'
    Afterwards, she lay in bed thinking it through. The mare must have opened the gate again later on Good Friday night, and opened both the electric and