The Mystery at Saratoga

Stinson doesn’t mind.”
    “Carl won’t mind, as long as you stay out of his way and don’t frighten the horses. Right, Carl?” Mr. Worthington asked.
    “Right,” the trainer replied, still not looking up from his minute inspection of the beautiful Thoroughbred.
    Mr. Worthington and Mr. Wheeler walked away, quickly lost in conversation, and the girls stood quiet, watching the trainer.
    Carl Stinson finished his inspection of the horse and began rubbing him down with liniment. Then he buckled ice packs around the horse’s front knees.
    “What are those for?” Trixie asked.
    “Keeps the swelling down,” Stinson replied.
    Trixie gave Honey an anguished glance. This man could provide important information about Regan, but only if they could get him to talk, and it was beginning to seem as if that might be an impossibility.
    “This is one of the most beautiful Thoroughbreds I’ve ever seen, Mr. Stinson. You must be very proud of him.”
    Stinson paused in his work and gave Honey a sidelong glance. “More than proud, miss. There’s a big chunk of my life invested in this horse. Name’s Gadbox, son of Gadfly out of Jack-In-The-Box.”
    The girls stood in startled silence, which the trainer mistook for confusion. “That means his father was a horse named Gadfly and his mother was named Jack-In-The-Box,” he explained. “Gadfly was the best horse I ever trained. Pegged him as a winner first time I ever saw him work out. When we had to retire him, I thought I’d never see his like again. And I didn’t, for five long, dry years. Then, two years ago, he presented me with Gadbox, here, and I knew I had another winner.” Stinson stopped speaking suddenly. He stood with his mouth clamped shut, the muscles in his jaw moving as he gritted his teeth.
    The girls stood silent, too, moved by the depth of emotion they sensed behind the trainer’s brief speech. Both knew that he hadn’t really been speaking to them at all, but to himself, remembering his hopes for Gadbox, the son of the horse he’d pegged for a winner. No wonder he says there’s a chunk of his life invested in Gadbox, Trixie thought.
    Carl Stinson reached out and began to stroke Gadbox’s silky neck. “I’m not going to make the same mistake twice,” he said intensely. “I’m not going to trust anyone else with this horse. No one touches him, grooms him, or feeds him but me. His sire could have gone all the way, become one of the greatest horses in history. Now his son has a chance, and no thieving little groom like that Began kid is going to dope him before a big race and ruin his chances.” The trainer’s face had hardened as he spoke, and when he spoke Regan’s name, his mouth twisted as though the word had left a bitter taste.
    Trixie felt tears welling in her eyes. It was painful to hear this stranger speaking of Regan, her good friend, with such contempt. She wanted to blurt out a defense. “Regan—” she began, then stopped when she felt Honey’s hand on her arm.
    The trainer turned and looked at her. “Yes, Regan,” he said. “He was a groom who worked for me seven years ago. He wasn’t more than sixteen when he came to me looking for a job. A runaway. From what, I don’t know. Didn’t ask. Just took him in. Treated him like a son. Taught him about horses. And he learned fast. He had a natural gift for working with horses, that boy. So I started trusting him with more and more of the work around here. Thought he’d be able to take over from me someday.” Stinson snorted. “But someday wasn’t good enough for that redheaded sneak. He had no time for living on a groom’s wages and taking orders from me. So he found a way to make some fast money by doping a horse. He ruined Gadfly, and he almost ruined me. But not quite. Not quite.” Abruptly, the trainer straightened his stooped shoulders and turned to face the girls.
    “You better move along,” he said. “I have to feed Gadbox before the racing starts, and I don’t even let anybody see where I keep his feed. Not anymore.”
    The girls stood in confused silence for a moment after the trainer finished speaking. His attack on Regan had left them shaken, unable to move. Then they heard the voices of Mr. Worthington and Honey’s father as 'the two men neared Gadbox’s stall. Trixie pulled herself together, taking a deep breath to try to ease the tightness in her chest.
    Honey once again put her hand on Trixie’s arm, pulling her friend in the direction of Mr.