Laci’s feet pounded the dirt ceaselessly, turning in circles over and over like a carousel horse. Her mind was numb from the constant noise and pain clawing at her. The world was spinning around her, drugs melting her brain into soup. Chase flicked the whip to get her going faster.

  “She looks good. She’ll do well at the sale tomorrow,” he told Fennec.

  “Well” was an understatement. Chase had already gotten dozens of phone calls with absurd offers for her, based on her portrayal from word of mouth alone. He knew the rabbits would be fighting tooth and nail for her-the line to see her would wrap around the building. Her bloodlines had done him a massive favor. There wasn’t a rabbit on the coast that didn’t know Pride of Lebanon, and Laci was his only child.

  “My only concern is reliability,” Fennec said. “She’s not suited for most riders.”

  Chase laughed. “She only needs to look good enough to get sold. After that, she’s not my problem.”

  Fennec reeled back on the reins and stopped her. “Chase, I know she’s come a long way, but if we sell her tomorrow, what are the odds she’s going to hurt somebody?”

  “If they’re smart, they won’t let it happen. We have to trust my training, and their judgement,” Chase said.

  The truth was, he couldn’t wait around for her to be perfect. He knew she never would be. His only goal was to make her palatable to someone who could take her off ERUJ’s hands. He could only hope that they would be competent.

  Gabriel poked his head in the gate, and Chase rolled his eyes. “What are you doing here? I told you to go through her paperwork with Nathan.”

  “I did. We got a few phone calls. Things you should know,” Gabriel said.

  Chase didn’t take his eye off Laci. Fennec was practicing lead changes again, and she was reaching the end of her rope now that they had been going for two hours. She was soaked in sweat from head to toe, even though it was breezy in the ring. She ground the bit in her teeth and stuck her long ears sideways.

  “You may as well tell me now,” Chase sighed.

  Gabriel flipped through the pages on his notepad. “We got two more offers for her, they’re coming to the show. Oh, and they spotted this black stallion that was associated with her. They said we should keep an eye out.”

  At those words, he had Laci’s full attention. Her flat eyes sharpened, and her ears shot up in interest.

  “They what?” Chase roared. “Where did they find that son of a nag?”

  Gabriel squirmed uncomfortably. “Pritchett’s Pass. They suspect he’s on his way to us.”

  “He made it through Pritchett’s Pass by himself?” Chase barked.

  “No, there were three other horses,” Gabriel said.

  Chase grabbed Laci by the reins, startling her. “Fennec, get off. I need to get to the bottom of this.”

  Fennec slid to the ground, and Chase thrust the reins toward Gabriel. Gabriel stepped back nervously.

  “For Epona’s sake, Gabriel. Stop being a colt for once and take her to her room,” Chase said.

  Hesitantly, he took the reins and black whip from Chase. Her blood ran down his vanilla arm in streams where he held her, a rushing flow from her nose and mouth. Instinctively, his hoof was drawn to the faintly glowing spot on his crest where she had bitten him the day Lilith escaped. Eerily, she only struck him once, though she could have torn him to pieces if she wanted to.

  They walked down the hall together, Laci blowing softly next to him. He glanced at her foaming shoulders and decided she could use a rub down. Her stark blue eyes had a blank stare to them, emotionless, pitiful. He felt a pang of sympathy for her.

  “Come here,” he said quietly, bringing her up to the wash rack.

  Her shoes tapped the tile loudly, and she jerked her head at the sound, not wanting to step into the water pooled into the bottom. Gabriel laid a towel on the floor to soften her footsteps, and she slowly strode in. He tried to tie her, but she howled and reared up when he pulled.

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  “Easy. That’s alright. Just stand still,” he said.

  He carefully unbuckled her saddle and flipped the sweaty pad to let it dry. She jumped back and squealed sharply when he sprayed the water down her legs.

  “Steady,” he soothed, putting a hoof to her shoulder.

  She arched away from his touch and screamed again, louder than before. Gabriel backed up and reminded himself to breathe, then began filling up a bucket with cool water. He took a lock of her mane in one hoof to steady her, then soaked her with the sponge. Her head lowered almost immediately, and the bleeding from her nose slowed dramatically. He carried on washing her, and she sighed deeply, tension slowly fading from her tight muscles.

  “That’s it. Easy,” Gabriel whispered.

  She leaned into Gabriel’s touch, breathing steadily. It reminded her of her mother, always an arm wrapped around her. She was there in a moment when little Laci couldn’t sleep, blanket over her arm, weary but never resigned. Cradling her head…

  “I have to get out of here,” she gasped.

  Gabriel’s ears pricked up in shock, and he took her rope but did not pull it. “Whoa. You’re alright. Don’t go anywhere,”

  Sultan rushed to her side. “Stick to the plan.”

  “There is no plan. I’m not doing it,” she said. “Gabriel, listen to me. If I get sold tomorrow, I will be forced to kill again. Sultan is going to get loose-”

  Sultan screamed and hissed in her face, and she panicked, trying to run away. The line went taught, and Gabriel held her tightly. She only made it about a foot closer to the doorway, screeching loudly.

  “Easy now. Calm down,” Gabriel whispered.

  “What are you talking about? That was our plan to get out of here!” Sultan exploded. “Stop talking to him. You can’t trust him.”

  Gabriel took the sponge of cold water and pressed it to her neck, right near her jugular. She breathed sharply with surprise, but then began to steady herself.

  “Everything will be okay,” Gabriel told her. “Shhh.”

  He shushed long and low like the ocean. She could feel her feet in the wet sand. Dancing along the waves freely as a seabird. She closed her eyes for a moment, ignoring Sultan shouting in her ear. If she could stay calm and brush him off, she could hold on until Orion came. Then no one would get hurt.

  “I can’t get sold tomorrow,” she mumbled.

  Gabriel paused his washing. “You will be fine. You’ll be free of Chase.”

  He walked her back down the hall toward her room. She had her head hung low and quiet, and he held her on a loose line. Alissa walked past, and nodded to Gabriel.

  She felt Laci’s shoulder with a hoof. Her skin shivered back. “So Chase really did tame the beast?”

  Gabriel pushed her arm down gently. “Go easy on her. She’s had a long day.”

  “What? Keeping her all to yourself? I’m just curious,” Alissa said. “How’d he do it? I could’ve mistaken her for a kid’s horse the way she just walked over here.”

  Laci lifted her head slightly, and her eyes flickered open. Gabriel was tempted to choke up on the lead line, but didn’t.

  “She’s not a toy. Leave her alone,” he said firmly.

  Alissa raised her brow and snorted. “Fine. I think I figured out why Chase doesn’t like you.”

  She walked on down the hall, and Gabriel breathed a sigh of relief. He walked her into her room, and when she came into the dim lighting, she stopped in place and nearly fell asleep right where she was. He gently led her in and put her to bed, patting her shoulder softly. He reflected on Alissa’s words. She was right about one thing. Anyone could mistake her for a tame horse, but he knew she wasn’t.

  “Good night,” he said. He wished he hadn’t as he walked away. Surely he was a fool. She wasn’t sane.

  “Good night,” she murmured back.

  He closed the door, and Sultan paced up and down in front of Laci’s bed, enraged. “What has gotten into you? You don’t want out now, do you? Do you want to be a tame horse and get pushed around by rabbits day and night?”

  “Sultan, go away. I’m not hurting anyone if I don’t have to,” Laci said.

  He sighed and knelt down by her side. “You have no choice. They’re killing your spirit. You said it yourself. If they sell you, you’ll only destroy more.”

  “Orion is coming for me. He’ll know what to do,” she said.

  Sultan’s ears shot back. “Orion doesn’t know a thing. He’s being paraded around by Onyx like a puppet on a string. What they have for you is no better than here.”

  Laci pulled the blanket further up over her shoulders. “That’s not true.”

  “They don’t want you to be what you are, Laci. They want you to be cured of my blood,” Sultan said. “Orion is kinder than these horses, for certain-but he does not know what’s best for you.”

  She rolled over and pulled the covers over her head. Only a few more hours.