Marshall waited at least half an hour to make his move. He slipped from the tent soundlessly, taking the greatest care not to crack a stick or stumble over a root. He passed by the mare’s tent and glanced inside. Laci was sound asleep, her mane draped across the blankets she was settled in. He paused there a moment, but pressed on, knowing what had to be done.

  As soon as he was out of earshot of the camp, he pushed himself into a swift gallop. He lifted his forelegs to avoid the rocks and branches concealed by the darkness. For a while he was worried that he’d lost his way, but he eventually reached a clearing that led him to the main road. He walked East back to Norfolk, hoping to find help. He didn’t even make it a quarter mile before he saw the flashing lights of Services trucks. He trotted closer, relieved to finally have reached them.

  A group of muscular draft horses in full uniform spotted him immediately. One of the rabbits riding them recognized him immediately, and ordered the riders to open fire.

  “That’s one of the escapees, secure him!” he shouted.

  Marshall panicked and started running back into the woods. All he could think was Orion was right. These horses didn’t know him anymore. They pursued him into the brush, tranquilizer darts blazing past him. One whistled right by his ear, only a hair away from giving him a new piercing. In his rush to get away from them, he forgot to watch out for the footing. He tripped on a protruding rock and fell to the ground, giving them the perfect opportunity to surround him. Before he could recover, he felt the sting of a dart sinking into his flank. Desperately, he tried to scramble to his feet, but he was fighting a losing battle. The drug weakened his muscles too quickly, making him collapse. Once he was down, the horses approached, and the lead rabbit dismounted.

  “Wait, I can explain,” he tried to say. It was hard to speak clearly with his face planted in the dirt.

  The rabbit came closer and studied him for a moment. “Yes, this is the missing stallion. Markings are a match,” he said.

  “Should I call the parents?” one of the drafts asked.

  The rabbit put a paw to his chin and squinted. “Not yet. Once he’s out, pack him up in the truck. We’ll notify them later.”

  Marshall fought to stay awake, but the most he could do was shiver his skin. The last thing he remembered was one of the draft horses starting to drag him onto a board.

  He woke up restrained to a chair, dizzy and confused. The room was dim and cold, and though his vision was blurry he could see a grey pony standing next to him.

  “Where…am I?” he managed.

  Stolen story; please report.

  “Eastern Feral Horse Services Office. You are Marshall, correct?” the pony said.

  He nodded. “I need to talk to my parents. There’s been some kind of mistake. I’m not supposed to be here,” he said, starting to panic.

  “Try to relax. I’ll see what I can do. Are you hurt anywhere? Other than your knees, that is,” the pony replied calmly.

  Marshall looked down. His knees were completely skinned from his fall, but had been neatly dressed with antibiotics. They stung faintly.

  “I don’t think so,” he said.

  The door across the room opened, and the rabbit he saw earlier entered, flanked by two draft stallions.

  “He’s awake? I’ll take it from here, Dr. Pontier,” he said.

  The pony picked up his bag and hurried out. Marshall felt his heart beating rapidly. The rabbit pulled out a recording device and switched it on.

  “Marshall, before I let you go, we’ve got to ask you a couple questions about what happened,” he said.

  “So I’m not in trouble?” Marshall asked.

  “No, no, you’ll be fine. Tell me about what happened. Who was with you?”

  “Laci, Orion, and Miracle. That’s all.”

  “Okay, and what did Orion look like?” The rabbit jotted a few things down on his yellow notepad.

  “He’s a solid black Friesian stallion. Maybe fifteen hands high. Shorter than me,” he described. “Why do you need to know all this?”

  The rabbit stopped writing for a moment. “Just to ensure the safety of Norfolk. You can imagine how concerned Laci’s parents are right now. Anything you can tell us helps,” he explained.

  Something about his response bothered Marshall. It seemed rehearsed.

  “Did you see anything-strange, supernatural, or out of the ordinary when you were with them?” the rabbit asked.

  Marshall paused. “Are you talking about magic?”

  “If that’s what they called it, then yes.” The rabbit looked extremely worried.

  “Well-I saw Orion teach Laci how to use it, and her hoof caught fire out of nowhere. Then he started going on about other horses with magic, he said they were in a prison somewhere. I don’t know. Can I go home yet?”

  The rabbit dropped his notepad and turned off the recorder, alarmed. “Gentlemen, place him in holding temporarily. I need to call Federal,” he said.

  One of the draft horses put a halter on his head and the other unbound him from the chair. They started to walk him out, still unbalanced from the drugs wearing off.

  “Wait! Aren’t you going to tell my parents? What’s going on?” he demanded.

  They refused to answer. He was shut in a stall not unlike the one Laci was held in, but this one had no windows. He tried the door even though he knew it would be locked, and sat on the floor to try to quell his dizziness. Nearby, a horse screamed wildly, her voice ripping through the hall like lightning. The sound took him back to Laci, bloodied on the steps of Brimstone, eyes begging for mercy like nothing he’d ever seen. He held his head in his hooves and tried to forget where he was, but nothing could make the four walls disappear.