Alliance by Marriage

Chapter 25

"How do you like it outside?" I say.

Emilio glances at me over his shoulder, then pulls at the reins, forcing his horse away from the edge of the cliff from which he's been observing the view. Behind him lies endless blue sky, and a few gulls fly in circles, crying shrilly. Yet I'm more interested in looking at him rather than at the scenery, noticing the color that's finally showing on his cheeks, his excited eyes, his unruly hair ruffled by the breeze.

"I like it," he says, simply. "Thank you for dragging me here."

His horse snorts and shakes its head, unaware of its role as a tool to finally lure him out of the palace. Apparently, Manilla has become connected in his mind with the traumatic events of the day he rode it last, so that he wouldn't hear of coming near it again. Yet the new brown horse with its thick black mane and smart eyes has won his heart the moment I've presented it to him this morning. He has spent a good half an hour riding around the courtyard until I offered to accompany him outside, and, to my surprise, he agreed.

"So," I say, "what are you going to call it?"

He shrugs, allowing his horse to trot towards me and the two guards who wait for us at a respectful distance.

"I don't know." He looks up thoughtfully. "Never gave names to horses. What do you usually call them—Wind, Blaze, that kind of things?"

"The way you're riding it, you should call it Turtle."

He chuckles. "I can ride fast when I want to."

"You hide it well."

"Excuse me?" He raises an eyebrow. "I haven't been in a saddle in more than a month. It's only reasonable I take it slow."

"That's a slim excuse, you know."

He grins, seeing through my game but clearly willing to play along.

"Fine," he says. "Till the main gates?"

I look back at the stony road that leads down the cliff before disappearing behind the trees of the oil-garden that stretches all the way till the main road. Around the garden and up the main road until the palace's gates—it would take us fifteen minutes at his slow pace; I wonder if I can make it in two. His horse if fine but it's no match to my Thunder.

"Fine," I say, turning Thunder around. "On the count of three?"

"Three!" Emilio cries, kicking his horse, and the next moment I find myself gaping at his retreating shape as he canters past the confused guards and down the slope.

"You..." I swallow the curse word and grab the reins. This trick won't help him. I know this road too well.

I gallop past the guards while they are still turning their horses to follow Emilio.

His head start gives him little advantage. As we reach the main road, I surpass him and shoot ahead. He gradually falls further behind as Thunder gains even more speed. The rare pedestrians jump to the sides of the road or take shelter behind their carts as we pass them by. I can hear his hooves behind me, but by the time we reach the hill, they're getting fainter, as his horse is tiring while mine still goes strong.

Hooves drumming on the cobblestones, I enter the gates, sending the servant scattering. I turn Thunder around and stop in the middle of the courtyard, waiting, patting him approvingly on the neck.

Emilio appears about half a minute later, the guards following him suit. It looks like he's not making much of an effort, knowing he has lost; as he notices me, he makes the horse go even slower. Visibly trying to look nonchalant, he trots in through the gates at pretty much the same relaxed pace he has exited them an hour ago.