The next was the day before the race, and in the morning Dorrington,
making a circuit, came to Mr. Warren Telfer's from the farther side. As
soon as they were assured of privacy: "Have you seen the man with the
red beard this morning?" asked Dorrington.
"No; I looked out pretty sharply, too."
"That's right. If you like to fall in with my suggestions, however, you
shall see him at about two o'clock, and take a handsome rise out of
him."
"Very well," Mr. Telfer replied. "What's your suggestion?"
"I'll tell you. In the first place, what's the value of that other
horse that looks so like Janissary?"
"Hamid is his name. He's worth--well, what he will fetch. I'll sell him
for fifty and be glad of the chance."
"Very good. Then you'll no doubt be glad to risk his health temporarily
to make sure of the Redbury Stakes, and to get longer prices for
anything you may like to put on between now and to-morrow afternoon.
Come to the stables and I'll tell you. But first, is there a place
where we may command a view of the ground behind the stables without
being seen?"
"Yes, there's a ventilation grating at the back of each stall."
"Good! Then we'll watch from Hamid's stall, which will be empty. Select
your most wooden-faced and most careful boy, and send him out behind
the stable with Hamid at two o'clock to the moment. Put the horse in a
full suit of clothes--it is necessary to cover up that white star--and
tell the lad he must _lead_ it up and down slowly for twenty yards or
so. I rather expect the red-bearded man will be coming along between
two o'clock and half-past two. You will understand that Hamid is to
be Janissary for the occasion. You must drill your boy to appear a
bit of a fool, and to overcome his stable education sufficiently to
chatter freely--so long as it is the proper chatter. The man may ask
the horse's name, or he may not. Any way, the boy mustn't forget it is
Janissary he is leading. You have an odd fad, you must know (and the
boy must know it too) in the matter of training. This ridiculous fad is
to have your colt walked up and down for half an hour exactly at two
o'clock every afternoon, and then given a handful of malt as he comes
in. The boy can talk as freely about this as he pleases, and also about
the colt's chances, and anything else he likes; and he is to let the
stranger come up, talk to the horse, pat him--in short, to do as he
pleases. Is that plain?"
"Perfectly. You have found out something about this red-bearded chap
then?"
"Oh, yes--it's Naylor the bookmaker, as a matter of fact, with a false
beard."
"What! Naylor?"
"Yes. You see the idea, of course. Once Naylor thinks he has nobbled
the favourite he will lay it to any extent, and the odds will get
longer. Then you can make him pay for his little games."
"Well, yes, of course. Though I wouldn't put too much with Naylor in
any case. He's not a big man, and he might break and lose me the lot.
But I can get it out of the others."
"Just so. You'd better see about schooling your boy now, I think. I'll
tell you more presently."
A minute or two before two o'clock Dorrington and Telfer, mounted
on a pair of steps, were gazing through the ventilation grating of
Hamid's stall, while the colt, clothed completely, was led round. Then
Dorrington described his operations of the previous evening.
"No matter what he may think of my tale," he said, "Naylor will be
pretty sure to come. He has tried to bribe your stablemen, and has been
baffled. Every attempt to get hold of the boy in charge of Janissary
has failed, and he will be glad to clutch at any shadow of a chance
to save his money now. Once he is here, and the favourite apparently
at his mercy, the thing is done. By the way, I expect your nephew's
little present to the man you sacked was a fairly innocent one. No
doubt he merely asked the man whether Janissary was keeping well, and
was thought good enough to win, for I find he is backing it pretty
heavily. Naylor came afterwards, with much less innocent intentions,
but fortunately you were down on him in time. Several considerations
induced me to go to Naylor's room. In the first place, I have heard
rather shady tales of his doings on one or two occasions, and he did
not seem a sufficiently big man to stand to lose a great deal over
your horse. Then, when I saw him, I observed that his figure bore a
considerable resemblance to that of the man you had described, except
as regards the red beard and the spectacles--articles easily enough
assumed, and, indeed, often enough used by the scum of the ring whose
trade is welshing. And, apart from these considerations, here, at
any rate, was one man who had an interest in keeping your colt from
winning, and here was his room waiting for me to explore. So I explored
it, and the card turned up trumps."
As he was speaking, the stable-boy, a stolid-looking youngster, was
leading Hamid back and forth on the turf before their eyes.
"There's somebody," said Dorrington suddenly, "over in that clump of
trees. Yes--our man, sure enough. I felt pretty sure of him after
you had told me that he hadn't thought it worth while to turn up this
morning. Here he comes."
Naylor, with his red beard sticking out over the collar of his
big coat, came slouching along with an awkwardly assumed air of
carelessness and absence of mind.
"Hullo!" he said suddenly, as he came abreast of the horse, turning as
though but now aware of its presence, "that's a valuable sort of horse,
ain't it, my lad?"
"Yes," said the boy, "it is. He's goin' to win the Redbury Stakes
to-morrow. It's Janissary."
"Oh! Janey Sairey, is it?" Naylor answered, with a quaint affectation
of gaping ignorance. "Janey Sairey, eh? Well, she do look a fine 'orse,
what I can see of 'er. What a suit o' clo'es! An' so she's one o' the
'orses that runs in races, is she? Well, I never! Pretty much like
other 'orses, too, to look at, ain't she? Only a bit thin in the legs."
The boy stood carelessly by the colt's side, and the man approached.
His hand came quickly from an inner pocket, and then he passed it under
Hamid's cloths, near the shoulder. "Ah, it do feel a lovely skin,
to be sure!" he said. "An' so there's goin' to be races at Redbury
to-morrow, is there? I dunno anythin' about races myself, an'----Oo my!"
Naylor sprang back as the horse, flinging back its ears, started
suddenly, swung round, and reared. "Lor," he said, "what a vicious
brute! Jist because I stroked her! I'll be careful about touching
racehorses again." His hand passed stealthily to the pocket again, and
he hurried on his way, while the stable-boy steadied and soothed Hamid.
[Illustration: "THE HORSE STARTED SUDDENLY, SWUNG ROUND, AND REARED."]
Telfer and Dorrington sniggered quietly in their concealment. "He's
taken a deal of trouble, hasn't he?" Dorrington remarked. "It's a sad
case of the biter bit for Mr. Naylor, I'm afraid. That was a prick the
colt felt--hypodermic injection with the syringe I saw in the bag, no
doubt. The boy won't be such a fool as to come in again at once, will
he? If Naylor's taking a look back from anywhere, that may make him
suspicious."
"No fear. I've told him to keep out for the half-hour, and he'll do it.
Dear, dear, what an innocent person Mr. Bob Naylor is! 'Well, I never!
Pretty much like other horses!' He didn't know there were to be
races at Redbury! 'Janey Sairey,' too--it's really very funny!"
Ere the half-hour was quite over, Hamid came stumbling and dragging
into the stable yard, plainly all amiss, and collapsed on his litter as
soon as he gained his stall. There he lay, shivering and drowsy.
"I expect he'll get over it in a day or two," Dorrington remarked. "I
don't suppose a vet. could do much for him just now, except, perhaps,
give him a drench and let him take a rest. Certainly, the effect will
last over to-morrow. That's what it is calculated for."
V
The Redbury Stakes were run at three in the afternoon, after two or
three minor events had been disposed of. The betting had undergone
considerable fluctuations during the morning, but in general it ruled
heavily against Janissary. The story had got about, too, that Mr.
Warren Telfer's colt would not start. So that when the numbers went up,
and it was seen that Janissary was starting after all, there was much
astonishment, and a good deal of uneasiness in the ring.
"It's a pity we can't see our friend Naylor's face just now, isn't it?"
Dorrington remarked to his client, as they looked on from Mr. Telfer's
drag.
"Yes; it would be interesting," Telfer replied. "He was quite confident
last night, you say."
"Quite. I tested him by an offer of a small bet on your colt, asking
some points over the odds, and he took it at once. Indeed, I believe
he has been going about gathering up all the wagers he could about
Janissary, and the market has felt it. Your nephew has risked some more
with him, I believe, and altogether it looks as though the town would
spoil the 'bookies' badly."
As the horses came from the weighing enclosure, Janissary was seen
conspicuous among them, bright, clean, and firm, and a good many faces
lengthened at the sight. The start was not so good as it might have
been, but the favourite (the starting-price had gone to evens) was not
left, and got away well in the crowd of ten starters. There he lay till
rounding the bend, when the Telfer blue and chocolate was seen among
the foremost, and near the rails. Mr. Telfer almost trembled as he
watched through his glasses.
"Hang that Willett!" he said, almost to himself. "He's _too_ clever
against those rails before getting clear. All right, though, all right!
He's coming!"
[Illustration: "CAME IN THREE LENGTHS THE WINNER."]
Janissary, indeed, was showing in front, and as the horses came along
the straight it was plain that Mr. Telfer's colt was holding the field
comfortably. There were changes in the crowd; some dropped away, some
came out and attempted to challenge for the lead, but the favourite,
striding easily, was never seriously threatened, and in the end, being
a little let out, came in a three-lengths winner, never once having
been made to show his best.
"I congratulate you, Mr. Telfer," said Dorrington, "and you may
congratulate me."
"Certainly, certainly," said Mr. Telfer hastily, hurrying off to lead
in the winner.
It was a bad race for the ring, and in the open parts of the course
many a humble fielder grabbed his satchel ere the shouting was over,
and made his best pace for the horizon; and more than one pair of false
whiskers, as red as Naylor's, came off suddenly while the owner betook
himself to a fresh stand. Unless a good many outsiders sailed home
before the end of the week there would be a bad Monday for layers. But
all sporting Redbury was jubilant. They had all been "on" the local
favourite for the local race, and it had won.