Chase strode into Laci’s room gleefully, head held high and palming a tray of food in his hoof. She stood waiting for him, having been unable to sleep longer than a moment. There were tracks on the floor where she had been walking in circles all night, and the toes of her shoes had been worn dull and short already.
“Good morning to you too, Laci! I thought I’d be polite and bring you breakfast in bed. You’ve got a busy day ahead of you,” Chase taunted.
She was stiff as a board when he walked over to her, except for her soft licking and chewing that turned her lips crimson. Her stomach felt like it had been dug out, hunger gnawing at her like nothing she’d ever felt before. She swished her tail and her ears quivered, but she would not go any closer to the tray until Chase had left and locked the door behind him. She trotted over to the dish, which was finer than anything she’d eaten in weeks. Impossibly sweet orange syrup bloomed out from the center of spongy, bright yellow cakes. A mug of strong tea hot enough to sting had been prepared for her, teeming with the intoxicating scent of honey.
Sultan rushed over to her side. “Laci, wait. Not yet.”
She looked at him in utter confusion. “I thought you told me I should eat.”
He dipped his nose down toward the food and took a long breath. He threw his head up in the air, dancing backwards and squeezing his nostrils shut, baring his front teeth. The Flehmen.
“What did you smell?” she gasped.
“Sedatives. Do not eat that,” he said.
She leaned against the wall and whimpered softly. “I’m going to starve.”
“No, you won’t. They’ll feed you something else eventually. We’ll find a way around it,” Sultan promised.
“You’re certain it’s sedatives?” she said, inhaling and trying to find the drugs. She smelled none, but the citrus scent was overpowering.
“Yes. I wouldn’t lie to you. I’ve been in your place before,” he said.
Her stomach turned on its side and purred loudly. “Maybe I should just take the sedatives. It would make this easier.”
“Laci, don’t say that. Do you know what sets you apart from every other horse in this building?” Sultan said.
“I’m a hotblood,” Laci answered.
“That’s right. Your fire doesn’t just burn in your magic, Laci. It burns in your soul too. They want to kill your spirit. With medicine, beatings, and exhaustion. It’s all an elaborate scheme. But hotbloods don’t break. We bend,” Sultan reminded her.
She stared down at the oozing cakes. “He’s going to know I didn’t eat.”
“Get rid of the evidence,” he suggested.
Laci felt like her heart was being stabbed repeatedly as she flushed the food down the toilet. She could still smell the sweet syrup long after it was gone.
It didn’t take long for Chase to come back. He was still infested with joy.
“Come along, Laci. You’ve got work to do,” he said, swinging a halter impatiently.
Percy was absent, so another rider, Fennec, had come to take his place.
“Fennec! Ever ridden a hot horse before?” Chase called out across the ring.
Laci raced in circles around Chase, and he never took his eye off of her for even a moment. He had put her on a long line and tied her chin to her chest with draw reins so she couldn’t fight him. Her heart thundered in her chest, and her anxiety felt like lightning bolts crawling across her skin.
“I’ve ridden plenty of tough horses, Chase! I work here,” Fennec said.
Chase flicked the whip at Laci to hold her attention. “Maybe you’ll be a better fit than Percy. He’s got the mettle, but he hasn’t got the finesse for a picky horse like her.”
She lined up with the mounting block, and Chase released the draw reins. She stretched her head down, relieved. Her neck was sore from being bent backwards like a swan’s. Fennec quickly gathered the reins up and choked her head back again.
“Steady when you swing over. She doesn’t stand to mount very well,” Chase said. He had his whip stuck right in front of Laci where she could see it, and let it wave as a warning.
Fennec sat on Laci swiftly but smoothly, and found his stirrups straight away. She felt the cold touch of spurs grazing her sides, and jumped a little, but didn’t dare take off. Chase slowly pulled his whip away and let Laci step forward. With a touch of Fennec’s calf, she was trotting off at a quick pace, pushing strongly against the reins.
“She’s sensitive,” Fennec commented, tapping her side with a boot and watching her slip sideways seamlessly.
Chase nodded. “Almost too much so. Without that wire pelham in her mouth, she’d plow right through you.”
Alissa strode in with Isabel by the reins, and marched her over to the round pen with frustration. Isabel was frightened and tossed her head.
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“For Epona’s sake, Isabel! I’ve had it with you,” Alissa shouted.
At the sharp sound of Alissa’s voice, Laci spooked and galloped out of control. Fennec hauled back on one rein to stop her. Her mouth fidgeted with the bit noisily, forced shut by the strangling noseband. She tucked her ears back and panted with agitation. Fennec pushed her forward again with his leg.
“Quit that,” he said firmly.
Chase watched with approval. Laci was really starting to look good-she might be ready for showing earlier than he had anticipated. There was plenty of time in the next two weeks to prepare her. He could get her looking really nice for the sale ring.
Alissa sent Isabel around her absentmindedly, focus fixed on Laci. With Fennec astride her, she trotted around like a proper sport horse, tucked in a neat little frame.
She called Chase over to talk to her. “I think you should pop her over some jumps. She’s a sporty little thing.”
He looked at her quizzically. “I know she’s jumped, but I want her to be good and fit first. She probably hasn’t practiced since she escaped from Norfolk.”
“After your little skirmish, she jumped that six foot round pen with no effort. I bet you she’s ready now,” Alissa pointed out.
He watched her float over the ground poles like they weren’t there, and decided he’d take a chance. “Fennec! Are you up for some jumping?”
“Hell yea,” Fennec said. “This mare is a nice piece of horseflesh.”
Chase put the jumps up to five feet. For any other horse, it was an ambitious first move, but if Laci wanted to prove herself useful, she may as well start at the top. Chase knew she wouldn’t sell for at least the first few rounds with her hot and wild temperament. If she wanted to earn her value, she had to at least have talent. They’d have to track down a buyer who was crazy enough to gamble on a horse with her history. Skilled horses made it easier to push the envelope.
Fennec circled her around a few times at a swift canter, holding her back as best he could. When the jump was ready, he took her straight through to the center of it. She tried to lengthen her strides and find the distance, but it was impossible with Fennec’s death grip on the reins. When she reached the jump, she ducked out to the inside. No way she was throwing herself over an obstacle with her chin stuck to her chest.
“She’s bluffing. She’s jumped much higher than this before,” Chase said.
Sultan stalked Chase furiously, snapping his jaws and flicking his tail. “He’s insane. Testing you like you’re his toy.”
Fennec gave her a smack with the crop and spurred her forward again, circling back to the jump once more. He drove her faster with all his might, but she lost her confidence at the last moment and refused again. He slipped sideways in the saddle but recovered his position quickly.
Chase had seen enough. He walked over to the side of the jump and held his whip out to block her from escaping. On the other side there was a wall, so there was no way out. Fennec gripped her sides hard and jabbed her with the spurs, which made her fight him all the more. Red froth poured from her lips, and her tail wrung anxiously. She tried to get control of her head so she could jump properly, but Fennec’s hand was rough and unforgiving. They flew toward the jump at a blinding speed, and she stopped hard right in front of it, throwing Fennec right over the top. She tried to turn and run, but Chase caught her too quickly.
He popped the reins a few times and slapped her with the whip, making her yelp in pain. Fennec climbed back aboard and took her around again, but this time she refused to even go near the jump, circling away from Chase and pulling on the reins. He trotted over to her and grabbed the reins himself, then walked her over.
“If you refuse one more time, I am not letting you get away with it,” he hissed into her ear.
She looked down at his whip and remembered last night. Her head was pounding painfully, and she whined softly. Fennec sent her off again at a strenuous pace, punting her sides with his spurs over and over to get her going still faster. Chase smacked her croup with the whip as she came up to the jump, and she tossed herself over it, knocking down the top two poles completely. She scrambled to her feet on the other side and trotted off, jerking her head from the stinging in her legs.
Chase picked the poles back up. “That’s a start. She’s clearly just not trying.”
Fennec panted with exertion. “I thought I was going to hit the dirt.”
“She can do better. Let’s get her going around again,” Chase said.
Laci worked over the jump until her body was foaming and dripping with sweat. Her legs were shaking with overload; her eyes were listless and dull. She had managed to clear it more than ten times, but that wasn’t enough for Chase. He always found a way to nitpick her performance. She took off too close or too far away, added a stride, left one out, bascule was sloppy, landing was messy. He was impossible to please.
“I think we should leave it there,” Fennec gasped. “The last one wasn’t bad.”
Chase lifted her head by putting his hoof under her chin, but she dropped it when he pulled it away. “She has one more left in her. Take her around again.”
Laci could barely feel the ground underneath her, between the copper shoes and her roasting hot muscles. The world sounded like it was underwater as Fennec goaded her into the fence. She leapt over it with all her might, but Chase was still unsatisfied.
“The approach could’ve been better. She was leaning to the left,” he said.
Sultan shrieked in irritation. “What is wrong with him? Of course you can’t jump well with that thing dragging you around.”
Laci wandered around the ring, vision drizzling. Her muscles were tightening and screaming in pain with every step she took. Fennec and the saddle felt like an elephant sitting on her back. She had practically stopped sweating from dehydration, and she felt sick to her stomach. She dragged her feet along the sand, barely conscious.
“Easy, little dove. Nice and slow. Don’t push it,” Sultan said softly. He never left her side, walking along with her and massaging her neck slowly.
Finally, Fennec slid down from the saddle and handed her off to Chase. “She’s a good ride. She’ll be ready to go in no time.”
Laci finally reached her room again after being practically dragged up the stairs by Chase, and collapsed onto the floor. Her breaths were unsteady and her mouth was dry and sticky. It felt like she might never get up again.
“Come on, Laci. We’ve got to get you washed up. You can sit and rest in the shower, but you need to cool down,” Sultan encouraged.
She pulled herself into the bathroom using just her forelimbs, barely able to lift her head off the ground. She managed to climb inside the shower, and leaned back against the wall. Her heart was still slamming around inside her ribcage, making every beat ache. Sultan pet her shoulder gently, trying to get her to relax.
“That’s it,” he comforted. “Breathe. You’re okay.”
The ice cold water felt like magic healing to her muscles. Laci let out a long breath and let all the tension drain out of her. She passed out in the bottom of the shower, legs melting into the tile like jelly.
