Hello everyone,
My aunt died recently and her widower has sold her beloved horses in the South of France to our cousin, who is unable to look after them. He is very mentally ill and is barely able to function in society. He lives in a house on her estate and lives on his inheritance, as he is unable to work for a living.
One of my cousines, his daughter, who lives on the estate came to me for help. She suggested to me to go there and take the horses when he is not looking and take them to a horse stable in the neighbourhood to a man, formerly employed by my aunt, so they will be taken care of. The horses might die or run away if they are kept with my cousin. We have been in a shock that the widower sold them to him and we cannot understand why he did such a thing.
I called my sick cousin up and when he finally answered, he had forgotten he had the horses and had no idea where they were. He asked me to call the vet and get rid of them. I told him no, and then he said, "Well, then we won´t kill them." Crazy!
I´ve loved these horses for years and have always gone horsebackriding when I visited. My cousine wants me to come with her and take the horses - by night.
The question is really: Should I or shouldn´t I? I must admit, this appeals to my sense of adventure, but I don´t want to get in trouble with the law. Could there be another way? Maybe I should talk to the police and tell them about this, as it is impossible to reason with my cousin? They know him and have to deal with him on a daily basis for years.