CHAPTER 9

With Andrew's absence, the afternoon passed with impossible slowness for one Irish angel. Though they went hours on assignments without crossing paths, knowing he was away from the farm brought more than an inch of sadness to her heart and she was barely able to comprehend it. Yes, she always missed Andrew when they were separated, but he was out working on his part of the assignment; she had no reason to be upset.

Monica deducted that part of the reason for her grief was that she had been putting off the conversation she had told Andrew she would have with the Snyders'. Well, she had not entirely put it off. She had started to have the talk with Jonathan stating with her concerns about Grace but he had gently explained to her that Caroline handled all issues and concerns regarding all the horses. She had never even gotten to her concerns about Ian.

At the mere thought of him, a tremble went through her small body; something else she had trouble rationalizing in her mind. It was not really in her nature to be afraid of humans, but something about this one frightened her terribly. She wanted nothing more than to pour her heart out to her dearest friend about her feelings about the trainer, but yet, she couldn't bring herself to do it. She had told him as much about Ian as she felt willing to tell him. She didn't want Andrew upset because of her and her ride the other day had already caused him enough problems.

Without Andrew there, Monica skipped lunch and just stayed down in the stables, tending to and spending time with the horses. She even took Midnight out on a brief trot around the track, knowing better now than to venture any farther. She had always enjoyed riding and being able to was definitely a perk of this particular assignment.

"Hola Angelita," Rafael called to her as he stood by the fence, "The two of you look beautiful together."

Blushing slightly, the little angel guided the stallion over to the fence and quickly dismounted, "He's so lovely, isn't he? And such a gentleman." She patted Midnight's neck affectionately.

"Grace's leg looks good, Monica. She is healing nicely."

She nodded her head, "I just hope I can keep it that way."

He surveyed her in silence for a moment, trying to narrow in on an expression in her dark eyes he didn't understand but it left him feeling unsettled, "Is Ian back tomorrow?"

Lowering her eyes immediately, she started leading Midnight through the gate to take him back up the stables, "Yes. I think so. Andrew went into town with Caroline to present a solution on getting the farm out of debt," She deftly changed the subject, "Do you know if they have come back yet?"

"I haven't seen them yet but Margaret told me to tell you dinner is almost ready."

Shrugging slightly, Monica managed a small smile, "I'll be up in a bit. I want to cool Midnight off and check on Grace one more time."

"I can wait..."

"No, really. I'm fine. You go on ahead."

Rafael hesitated. He wanted to ask her something but he had no idea of what, "Angelita, estas bien?" He settled on asking her if she was all right. He already knew for some reason she wasn't, but he was at a loss for questions.

"I'm fine." Her voice sounded sad to her own ears and she blinked, wondering where it had come from, "I have a few more things to do. I'll just grab something later."

He was still doubtful, but it was obvious his friend was not in the mood to talk and he knew her well enough to not push her. There was only one angel who could succeed in getting Monica to open up when her heart was heavy, "Very well. I'll let Margaret know. I hope to see you later." Though her parting smile didn't reach her dark eyes, he touched her arm before he turned and headed up the hill toward the house.

Monica sighed as he left and continued her slow walk to the stables with Midnight right beside of her. She spent the next hour grooming him and then she slipped into Grace's stall to check her leg once more. Satisfied that the swelling had not returned, she rose to her feet and brushed her hand down the space between the horse's eyes.

"Ah Grace, what is the matter with me? How I wish you and your friends here were my only assignments..." Wrapping her arms around Grace's neck, she rested her cheek against the horse and closed her eyes for a moment, willing Andrew to return and for tomorrow to never arrive.

"Shall I bring your dinner down here so you and your friends can eat together?"

Releasing Grace, Monica's face instantly lit up in a smile, "Andrew."

She surprised him by leaving Grace's stall and flinging her arms around him, "I missed you." She murmured up against his chest.

Wrapping his arms around her in return, Andrew frowned slightly. Monica was probably the most affectionate angel he knew, but her greeting after he had only been away for a few hours made him wonder if something had upset her. But the thoughts vanished when her sweet face looked up at him with a smile, "How did things go at the bank? Were you able to work out an agreement with them?"

"As a matter of fact, we did, Angel. The farm is much more on track now," He brushed his fingers along her cheek, enjoying the happiness that sparkled in her eyes and wondering what made him so deserving of that joy being directed at him.

"Really? So the horses won't need to race?"

Her face was so open and so hopeful that Andrew felt loathe to reply, but when he did, he kept his voice as gentle as possible, "I'm afraid the arrangement with bank will not resolve all the farm's problems, sweetie. They still need a winner for the Preakness in a few weeks."

"Oh." For the second time today her expression held disappointment and he hated the fact that he had caused it both times.

"Have you talked to the Snyder's yet about Ian?" Andrew had a feeling that the trainer was part of her concern.

"I tried but Jonathan said I needed to talk to Caroline as she handles all the issues regarding the horses. Of course, she was gone all day today so I was hoping to talk to her tonight."

"I'm afraid she has gone out again, Angel. Something about dinner with a friend."

Monica emitted a little sigh. She would have to start tomorrow with Ian and end it with a talk with Caroline if things were not much improved, "Well, tomorrow then."

He looked around the stables and then met her eyes once more, "Are you all finished here? Margaret kept our dinner warm for us, though everyone else has already eaten."

"Yes, Andrew. I'm finished. Just two seconds..."

He watched through loving eyes as she slipped back into Grace's stall and gave the mare an affectionate hug around her neck, "I'll see you in the morning, beautiful." She whispered, giving the horse a kiss before turning back to him. His heart had thudded up against his chest at her sweet gesture and as she closed the stall door, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head, "I missed you too."

x

Monica only ate enough breakfast the next morning to keep Andrew from worrying. She had woken up at nearly five am with a knot in her stomach and she knew it was due to Ian's return today, but she had stayed in her room, watching the sunrise outside of her window until she heard Andrew stir in the room across the hall.

But the morning had been relatively uneventful. Caroline had not been at breakfast, so the little angel decided that she would give the trainer one more chance before she spoke her concerns to the owner. She had greeted Ian with a cheerful "Good morning" and though he didn't answer her, at least he hadn't snapped at her. Monica tried to tell herself this was progress.

Rafael had gone to run some errands and Ian had elected not to run Grace today, but instead was on the track working with Jumping for Joy. The little angel spent as much time as she could in the stables, cleaning out Grace's stall, trying to tell herself that what she didn't know about what Ian was doing couldn't upset her, but that ploy only worked for so long. She could hardly bear wondering if he was hurting the horse or causing her injury, so just after lunch, she slowly made her way down to the track.

What she saw there made her want to be sick.

Ian was galloping the filly at an alarming speed but what upset her much more was the whip he had in his hand, which he was repeatedly bringing down on the horse's hind quarters with a vengeance. Joy was running faster than Monica had ever seen a horse run before but still Ian brought that hateful whip down on her again and again. The horse was gleaming with sweat and Monica knew Ian had been down here with Joy for at least three hours. Certainly he could not have been riding her that hard for that long. She couldn't have survived it.

The angel's mind spun in several directions as she wondered what to do. Joy was running too fast for her run out onto the track but the situation soon took care of itself as Joy reached the end of her tolerance. Slowing down, she reared up, attempting to throw Ian from the saddle, but he held on and brought the whip down against her shoulder.

"Stop it!" Once again, Monica barely recognized her own voice as she screamed out the words and ducked below the fence, running as quickly as she could. Joy had reared back again and where the angel didn't fear for Ian, she did fear for Joy's safety. Ignoring her own safety, she stepped in front of the horse and reached up to grab the halter as Joy came back down. The horse was breathing hard and her body was slick and white with sweat. Monica's heart pounded as Joy rolled her eyes back, her anger apparent at the human who was on her back.

"What's the matter with you?" She was unable to keep the words from tumbling out, "You're going to kill her, running her like that and beating her!"

Dismounting, Ian grabbed her arm and attempted to move her away from the horse, "You're as dangerous as you are stupid! I told you to stay out of the way! I swear, I will have your job for this!"

Her arm felt like it was in a vice, but she refused to let go of Joy's halter, "You are the dangerous one, Ian. You are a danger to every animal on this farm!"

"You have no idea what you are talking about! They aren't pets, you moron! They have a job to do here and it is my job to make sure it happens! No one asked you for your opinion as it certainly doesn't matter much! I'm not having you get in my way anymore and I'm sure the owner will agree with me!"

Releasing her arm, he turned away from her quickly, his arm snapping and the whip making contact with her arm. Monica gasped in pain but Ian never turned around. A welt was already forming and she knew he would insist it had been an accident. The angel knew better.

"Hush," She whispered to Joy as her hand stroked the horse's head but the animal was already beginning to calm though she was still breathing heavily enough to worry Monica. Unable to focus on her fight with Ian, she walked Joy around the track to both cool her down and calm her.

Finally walking her up to the stables, the little angel first slipped into her jacket. Her arms showed the evidence of her battle with the trainer and it was the last thing Andrew needed to know about.