Stormchaser and the Silver Mist (7 page)

The Pony Detectives left the mayhem of Greenfield’s and set out to help search for the missing ponies.

“I cant believe I’m having to do serious investigative work,” Rosie puffed, “while I’m dressed up as a Christmas pud.”

“I think we should ride back past the Abbey,” Mia suggested. “The ponies could well have bolted in that direction. We need to ask if anyone there has seen them this morning.”

Charlie gave her a sideways smile. “And I guess we might just bump into Archie while we’re there…”

“Well, the thought had crossed my mind,” Mia replied. I’d really like to find out what he was so desperate to hide in his pocket.”

They trotted their ponies on the uphill lanes, telling any riders hacking to the Greenfield’s show what had happened.

“Can we walk again for a second?” Rosie panted. “I think I’m starting to overcook…”

“We’re nearly there, anyway,” Alice said, as they came back to a walk, turning onto Abbey Lane and seeing the Abbey ruins rise in front of them. Billy Pyke was standing by the entrance, glancing over his shoulder, then staring up the road. The girls had never spoken to him before, but they decided he’d be approachable because of the quiet way they’d seen him handle the polo ponies.

“Hi there,” Mia called over. As he looked over at the group, and scowled, Mia started to wonder if they’d got him wrong. “Er – some ponies were let out of their fields last night at Greenfields Riding School—”

Billy started slightly and cut Mia off rudely. “So what’s that got to do with me?”

“Oh, nothing,” Charlie said, taken aback. “It’s just three of them are still missing, and we wondered if you’d seen them, that’s all. One of them was a skewbald—”

“I don’t know anything about it, all right?” Billy snapped back.

“We were just asking,” Rosie said, indignantly. “Don’t you care that there might
be terrified ponies wandering around here?”

Billy glared at her darkly. He was about to answer when a silver estate car rounded the corner at speed. It skidded to an abrupt halt. Billy forgot the girls in an instant as he leapt up and grabbed at the car door, yanking it open. He jumped in and the girls heard a snatch of his conversation.

“Rumour’s up on the grass gallops.”

Then the door slammed shut, and the car accelerated away, spitting out gravel from spinning front tyres. It turned into the entrance of the Abbey estate and disappeared inside. Phantom skitted sideways, his head up as Charlie rested one hand on his neck to soothe him.

“Come on,” Alice said, slightly taken aback, “if everyone at the Abbey’s this rude we’re not going to get any help here.”

“And I guess this isn’t the time to try and sneak in to find Archie, either,” Rosie said, looking down at her pudding shaped body.

“Not exactly,” Mia agreed.

Charlie shivered. She wanted to keep moving
as Phantom still felt tense beneath the saddle. “We’re not going to find the ponies standing about. We might as well keep riding – they could be anywhere round here.”

The girls touched their heels to their ponies’ sides. They made their way along the lane, until the woods petered out at the boundary of the Abbey estate. At that point, the trees were replaced by tall, dense holly bushes dotted with bright red berries, which the girls couldn’t see through.

Mia paused by Perryvale Polo Club’s gated entrance, and looked up the long, tarmac drive. Grazing near the gates were horses in smart rugs, chomping on piles of hay in their neatly pooh-picked fields.

“Do you think we should ask here about Molly and the other loose horses?” she asked the others. Mia desperately wanted to have a sneaky look round the glamorous club, but she also genuinely thought it might help find the missing ponies. The others slowed their ponies to a halt, unsure about heading into the vast, private estate. Then they heard a car engine and
prepared to move their ponies to the side of the lane, out of the way. But the shiny grey Range Rover, complete with smart royal blue Perryvale Polo Club insignia on its side, stopped beside the girls instead of turning into the drive and its window rolled down smoothly

“Ah, just who I wanted to see,” a large, stocky man with a broad smile and thick black hair leant out of the open window. He puffed on a fat cigar. The Pony Detectives recognised the Range Rover, and the man inside; it was Mr Perryvale himself. The girls shared a quick, surprised look between each other. Mr Perryvale had never spoken to them before, and they didn’t know whether to be excited or worried. After all, why would
he
want to see
them
?

Rosie tried to look serious and important, to make up for the fact that she was dressed as a Christmas pudding.

Mr Perryvale smiled even wider, as if sensing their uncertainty and wanting to put them at ease. “You four are local riders, aren’t you?” The four girls nodded, feeling wary. “Ah, good. That means you may well be able to help me out.
A couple of my grooms found a few ponies roaming loose on the lanes early this morning. They came from the direction of the Abbey Polo Club, although I notice that no one from there bothered to do anything about them… Anyway, my grooms have taken the loose ponies up to my stables to keep them safe. Don’t suppose you know who they belong to, do you?”

“Oh, is one of them a skewbald?” Alice asked, brightening, as she realised that Mr Perryvale actually seemed really friendly and helpful.

“That’s it – pretty thing, all plaited up,” Mr Perryvale smiled, taking another puff on his cigar.

The girls grinned, pleased by their stroke of luck. “They were let out from Greenfield’s Riding School last night.” Charlie explained.

Mr Perryvale’s smile faded. “Another lot?” he said, in his rich, deep voice. “Tut tut. I heard about that business at the other two places. Sheer luck none of the horses have been injured – not yet, anyway. But, of course, this isn’t the first time that horses have been let out of their fields for no apparent reason. There was
another incident – oh – some months ago now.”

Mr Perryvale let his words linger in the air for a moment.

“Really?” Mia asked, frowning as she and her friends exchanged a questioning look. “We didn’t hear a thing about that!”

Mr Perryvale raised one eyebrow. “I thought it was common knowledge,” he purred. The girls stood waiting impatiently, wondering if Mr Perryvale was going to carry on. But instead he picked up his mobile phone, holding one hand up for quiet while he dialled a number. Then he spoke to one of his grooms, telling them where the ponies came from.

“Organise the lorry to take those ponies back,” he said grandly, “and call Mrs Greenfield to let her know that they’re safe and on their way home.”

The girls exchanged a quick look, impressed by his generosity. “Now, where was I? Oh yes, that incident a few months back. Young chap was caught in the act.”

“So, who was it?” Charlie asked, her heartbeat starting to quicken.

“A young man, on a motorbike,” Mr Perryvale said, puffing on his cigar again. The girls looked up sharply. “Thought it would be funny to open a gate and chase the ponies inside the paddock out onto the lanes.”

The girls knew that they were all thinking the same thing – it was sounding pretty similar to what had happened at three yards in the last three weeks.

Mr Perryvale continued. “It wasn’t widely reported at the time. That was just because I thought I could deal with it myself. Now I wonder if that was a mistake, given what’s happened recently.”

“What do you mean, you thought you could deal with it yourself?” Rosie asked. She hoped Mr Perryvale would stop talking in riddles and hurry it along a bit. Dancer had just licked the bonnet of the highly polished Range Rover and left a big, grassy smudge. She wanted to escape before Mr Perryvale noticed.

“I tried to smooth it over with everyone concerned, because the young man responsible was working for me at the time, you see,”
Mr Perryvale said dryly. “It was a bad business, very bad. If word had got round that someone from my yard had been letting ponies loose in the village, well, it wouldn’t have looked very good for the Perryvale Polo Club. I had no choice but to sack the young fella. His father worked for me, too. I would have kept him on, but he said if his son was going, he’d go too.”

Mia frowned, her brain starting to whizz from wondering who it was that let the horses out.

Mr Perryvale took another thoughtful puff of his thick cigar. “Still, he found a new job quickly enough.” Mia noticed the large man glance toward the Abbey. “
Some
people aren’t so fussy about who they employ, it seems.”

Mr Perryvale looked back to the girls, and smiled once more. “Anyway, must dash. Thanks again for your help with identifying the ponies.”

“No probl—” Charlie started to say, as Mr Perryvale’s window smoothly buzzed upwards. Before she’d even finished the second word, the Range Rover had rolled off up the long drive.

Chapter Eight

T
HE
girls didn’t hang around once they got back to the yard. They slipped off their ponies’ tack and brought them brimming haynets. Once they’d slung rugs over the ponies, and tucked them up warmly, the girls headed for the farmhouse. In the cosy kitchen, Charlie, Mia and Alice helped haul Rosie out of her fancy dress, then they all raced up the stairs to change from their show outfits back into their usual riding gear. They ran downstairs again, grabbed their packed lunches and the hot chocolate that Mrs Honeycott had quickly whipped up, and headed for the hay barn. As they hungrily scoffed their lunch, they went back over the new information they’d got that morning.

“So, we know that three lots of ponies have been let out,” Charlie said, biting into a cheese and onion pasty. “At Long Lane Livery, Mrs
Maplethorp’s and now Greenfield Riding School. And each time a motorbike’s been heard nearby.”

“And now we know that someone who used to work for Mr Perryvale was caught letting out horses from a paddock a few months back,” Alice added, wrinkling her nose. “Do you think it’s the same person now, back to their old tricks again?”

“Maybe,” Rosie agreed, inspecting her turkey and stuffing roll before taking a big bite. “But we still don’t know who that person was, so it doesn’t exactly move the case forward, does it?”

Mia grabbed her notebook from its hiding place in the barn and between mouthfuls of sandwich, turned to a clean page and wrote three neat headings:

“Mr Perryvale may not have told us a name,” Mia said, “but did anyone else notice him glance at the Abbey when he mentioned it? I reckon the guilty person works there.”

“In that case Mr Perryvale must be right…” Charlie added. “Nick Webb really can’t be fussy about who looks after his horses.”

“We already know he’s not fussy, though, don’t we,” Alice sighed. “He lets Mr Pyke get away with shooting his gun near horses.” She couldn’t help feeling disappointed that the Pony Detectives’ early excitement about the Abbey Polo Club was disappearing seriously fast.

“Do you think that’s why Archie was looking so shifty earlier, by the paddock?” Rosie asked. “Maybe he’s got some inside information about who’s been letting the ponies out?”

Charlie gasped, and almost fell off the hay bale she was perched on.

“What is it?” Mia asked, a bit miffed Charlie had thought of something before she had.

“Mr Perryvale might not have named the person responsible,” Charlie said breathlessly, “but he said it was a young man and his dad…
Archie’s brother, Billy, works for the Abbey, and so does his dad, Mr Pyke! It has to be them, doesn’t it?”

“Billy’s one of the polo riders at the Abbey,” Mia added, feeling her heart start to quicken. “So he could have been employed by Mr Perryvale, along with his dad!”

“Totally!” Rosie beamed. “How many other father and son pairs work at the Abbey? I’d bet my lunch that they’re the only ones! Oh, hang on – I’ll bet my empty wrappers. I’ve finished most of my lunch already.”

“Well, there’s only one thing for it,” Charlie said, standing up and sounding determined. The others looked at her. “We have to get back into the Abbey. We need to see if there’s any evidence there that could pin this on Billy.”

“Like what?” Rosie asked dubiously.

“I don’t know yet,” Charlie said. “But if we can find out where Archie’s cottage is, we might be able to sneak in and find out what it was he slipped into his pocket at Greenfields.”

“Charlie!” Alice cried. “We can’t break into people’s houses!”

“All right, maybe not,” Charlie agreed, sheepishly. “But we can’t just sit around here, either. Let’s get our ponies tacked up again and go out. They haven’t done much yet today, so they’ll be okay. Otherwise we’ll have to wait until next weekend because it’ll be too dark after school. Come
on
!”

Despite Charlie’s enthusiasm, Alice felt her heart flutter slightly. The thought of bumping into Mr Pyke and his gun again made her shudder. But she wasn’t about to admit that, and she followed close behind the others as they flew back out to the yard.

The air was growing even chillier, but the girls barely noticed. They quickly slid their ponies’ bridles on, and were back on Duck Lane before Dancer had a chance to protest at turning out again.

It wasn’t until they were half way to the Abbey that the mist started to snake through their ponies legs. It wrapped itself round the girls like a freezing blanket, only revealing the next few metres in front and behind them.

“What do we do now?” Alice asked
nervously, as the group slowed. She knew that if a car came along, even if it was going slowly, it wouldn’t see them until the last second. And to try and stay hidden in the Abbey woods, they’d left off their hi-vis gear. All they could hear was the clop of their ponies’ hooves, the noise bouncing off the mist and echoing around them. Scout’s step became more unsure and his ears flicked back and forward, like he was checking with Alice if everything was okay.

“Look, there’s the turning onto Abbey Lane,” Charlie said, finding herself whispering, without knowing why. She could just about make out the metal sign, and knew that the Abbey was to their left. “We’re here now, so we might as well carry on. And look on the bright side – this mist will give us the perfect cover for when we get into the woods!”

But Charlie was the only one who was keen to carry through their haphazard plan. Even Mia felt uncertain, now they were about to actually sneak into the Abbey grounds. She knew, though, like the others, that this might be their best chance to get inside and find some clues.
She just wasn’t sure now they were actually here
what
they hoped to find. But even if there was just the tiniest chance of uncovering the truth behind the ponies being let loose, it was worth sneaking in for a dig around. If they didn’t, it was just a matter of time before a horse got hurt.

“Come on, then,” Mia said, gritting her teeth as they turned up the lane. “Let’s get this over with.”

At the edge of the murky woods the girls dismounted, but the last path they’d tried had already been blocked off. They began to search for another gap big enough to shimmy the ponies through, but had no luck. To Alice’s relief, they were about to give up, when a hushed cry came from the front of the group. It was Charlie, who was still at the front.

“Here!” she hissed, as quietly as she could. The others led their ponies over to her, and in a snaking line, they walked into the dank, misty woods.

The ponies’ hooves turned from metallic clangs to dull thuds as they stepped from the lane onto the peaty, woodland floor. Charlie had
to hold a fractious Phantom with one hand and try to clear a path with the other as her horse tried to charge forward. They slowly made their way in the direction of the little cottage they’d seen previously, hoping it would be Mr Pyke’s. Distant but familiar voices soon told them that it was.

“Shh, everyone!” Charlie whispered over her shoulder. “It’s just through the trees ahead!”

The four girls could smell tangy wood smoke coming from the cottage chimney. They stayed back with their ponies, standing where they could just see the outline of the cottage, straining to hear what they quickly realised sounded like an argument by the open back door.

“I’ve told you already, Archie! We can’t afford for anything to go wrong here, we
have
to make this place a success, no matter what. And that involves you keeping your mouth shut.”

Mia glanced round, and mouthed the words ‘Billy’ to the others, who all nodded, recognising his voice at once.

They could just make out Billy’s silhouette at the doorway to the cottage, with the light
behind him. They could see that he was holding out something, but the mist was too heavy to tell what it was. Billy quickly pulled on a jacket and the girls saw Archie follow him out of the cottage. Their school friend looked worried. Billy hopped down the wooden steps and was about to walk away, when he paused and turned back to his brother.

“Listen,” he said. “You did the right thing earlier. But don’t go and spoil it all by shooting your mouth off. Dad and Nick mustn’t hear about this. I’ll sort everything out, trust me. All right?”

Archie nodded, sinking against the door frame, as if he wasn’t sure what to do next.

With that, Billy strode over to a shed next to the cottage. He slung the doors open and disappeared inside. Archie suddenly seemed to come to life, and rushed after him. He stood anxiously outside the shed.

“You can’t go over there now!” he called, his voice anxious and reedy. “It’s too misty! Billy, don’t!”

A few seconds later they heard an engine
splutter, then burst into life. The girls watched, as Billy emerged on a motorbike. It sounded high-pitched and tinny. The girls exchanged silent looks, their eyes almost popping out of their heads. Phantom pulled back on the reins, scaring himself as he tangled his hooves in the splintering undergrowth. He gave a short, explosive snort. Charlie quickly soothed him, one hand on his high neck, her heart racing as she glanced through the trees to see if her horse had alerted Billy and Archie to their hiding place.

But Billy had his helmet on. He revved the bike and sped towards the Abbey entrance, oblivious to the girls in their hiding place. As the sound of the engine’s exhaust faded, Phantom continued to back up, scrunching through the brambles. Alice held her breath as Archie lingered at the doorway. Charlie soothed Phantom, and the other ponies stood stock still. Suddenly the silence was broken as Dancer let out a loud, lingering fart. Rosie’s mouth dropped open in horrified surprise. The girls desperately tried to stifle their hysterics,
for fear of being discovered. But they needn’t have worried; Archie seemed lost in thought. In the next breath he turned back inside the cottage and quietly shut the door behind him.

Even as the girls stood there, the mist began to waft away, slowly revealing more of the estate.

“Well, that confirms it, don’t you think? Billy Pyke’s got a motorbike, and that’s like the last piece of the puzzle,” Charlie said, struggling to hold onto an increasingly agitated Phantom. “It has to be him that got sacked from Perryvale Polo Club, and this proves that he
must
be up to his old ways again!”

“I thought he looked guilty earlier when we asked him about Molly and the Greenfield’s ponies!” Mia said, triumphantly.

“The question is, why would he do it?” Alice asked. She felt excited about finding out who was behind the mystery, but a tiny part of her couldn’t help feeling disappointed, too. Billy might have been grumpy with them, but they’d
seen him being nice to the polo horses. “What would make him do something that might end up hurting ponies?”

“I don’t know,” Rosie said, “but I don’t think we should hang around here to try and figure it out, do you?”

“Rosie’s got a point,” Mia agreed, “the mist might be disappearing but it’ll be getting dark soon. Come on. We’ll have to try and work it out later.”

But with tangled brambles on the ground, not to mention the tightly packed trees, it was difficult to turn round. After a few minutes scrabbling about, the ponies got upset and anxious. The girls decided it would be better to go forwards and find the woodland gallops.