The Colt That Could

Famous Bloodlines

Craig spent hours testing the blood samples that he had gotten from Mischief and Athena. The results sent shivers down his spine. West hadn't realised it, but she'd just purchased and saved the lives of two horses with famous sires. Excited, he grabbed the phone, and quickly dialed the number for West''s barn. "Pick up. Pick up" he muttered impatiently as the ringing continued. The second West answered, he wasted no time in telling her the news.

"West. You're not going to believe me. But who's your favourite racehorse?" he asked, trying to give her the news in the best way possible. "Frankel, why?" she asked, walking over to the stall that housed Athena and Mishchief. "Well. West. Take a look at a picture of Frankel. Then look at Mischief. West. You've got a Frankel colt. Mischief's was sired by Frankel. And Athena was sired by Octagonal. You've got two famous sires related directly to your horses"

Absolute silence greeted the news. West, lost for words, stared at her horses, before she let out an excited cry. "Are you serious? Please. You've gotta... You're playing with you. You're messing around" stammered West, still in shock and not believing the news. Part of her wanted to believe, part of her was struggling to believe.

Craig chuckled. "I'm not messing with you West. Your mare, and your colt, both have famous sires. They could both do well on the track. You should consider racing them. Athena is around 5 years old. And Mischief is 8 months. Obviously he's not old enough, but she is. You'd have to train her first, and I'd advise letting me check over her again. There has to be a reason she was cast aside. But otherwise West, you've got two very special horses"

West stared at her horses. "Thank you so much Craig" she stammered, trying not to scream her excitement down the phone. Mischief and Athena gave her knowing looks. "Craig, could I get a copy of their files? I'm gonna need those if I plan on doing anything with them"

Craig quickly responded, eager to just see the horses again. "Sure. Just let me get them together, and I'll bring them right over" he smiled with excitement in his voice. Though West couldn't see him, she knew he was smiling. Once Craig ended the call, West nearly screamed in excitement, rushing over to Danny who'd been cleaning saddles in the tack room. "Dad. Dad you're not gonna believe this. Mischief and Athena... Their sires... Like..." she said quickly, stumbling over her words as the excitement built up.

"West. Slow down. I can't understand you. Speak slowly and start again. Mischief and Athena?" said Danny, looking to his daughter who looked ready to explode with that smile spread across her face. "Mischief's sire is Frankel. And Athena's is Octagonal" she spat, still speaking quite fast, but not so much that her words weren't understandable.

Danny stared at West. "What? Are you serious?" West stopped him mid sentence. "Yes. Dad. I'm serious! Craig just called with the blood sample results. We have famous horses dad!" Without waiting for a response, she moved back to the horses.

"The more I look at you. The more you look like Frankel" she smiled, looking at Mischief. The colt nickered, trotting around the stall as Athena watched. "You look like you wanna run already little guy" she smiled, rubbing his head when he came over to her. "When the time comes, we'll get you out in the field. The freedom you deserve is just around the corner"

Before too long, Craig returned with the files. Craig had been their vet for over 5 years, and West had never seen him this excited. With a huge smile on his face, he handed the files to West. "Never thought I'd get this close to horses with such famous sires. And you know what this means too, right? You're going to be able to meet Frankel. You own his son, and the possibility of you being able to meet the racehorse is very high. Not to mention how thankful people are going to be that you saved a Frankel foal. And Athena? She's just as important. Octagonal was a fantastic horse, one of the best. And his filly is bound to be just as good. Give both of them a few months break before you start any work with them. Wait until Mischief is 1 year old, then start the bonding work. Get him in the field with you, let him run around, let him get that taste of freedom. Try some join-up work, try and get him to trust you. And once you have his trust, then you can start other stuff. The same with Athena. Give her a few months to get settled. Start some bonding work, join-up work, get her to trust you, then when she's ready. See if she's broken to a saddle. If not, then you know what to do. And I'll be here through every step of the way. Call me whenever you need me, and good luck" said Craig with a smile, before he hugged West gently.

This was going to be one fun adventure.