[Hurog 01] - Dragon Bones Read Online Free PDF Page B

a smart man, or he’d never have survived in his position, given how far apart his ideas and my father’s had been.
    â€œMight shift his stall around,” I said after a bit. “His isdark. Small. I don’t like small places; maybe he doesn’t either.” The sewer today had decided that.
    The stablemen were getting tired, but so was the horse. He’d already had quite a ride. I owed the stallion for his efforts today. I wondered why I wasn’t happier about it.
    â€œThat stall’s the only one we could keep him in,” explained Penrod as if I didn’t know.
    â€œThe big run by the old stables is built to hold stallions,” I said. Then, in case he didn’t understand, I continued, “Have to be careful the side gate’s latch is secure.”
    He stood perfectly still for a moment, ostensibly watching the horse. Then he looked at me. The stallion’s paddock was used for loose breeding and shared a fence line with the mares’ fields. If someone accidentally (or on purpose) left the side gate open, Stygian would breed whatever mares happened to be in season.
    I could have left it there. He’d understood the implications well enough, but I needed him. My uncle would have two years to win my people. I would have to make sure that when the time came, Hurog’s people would listen to me and not my uncle. For that, I needed Penrod to know that I might be more than they’d given me credit for, so I winked at him.
    Penrod stiffened even further, shocked into turning from the horse to stare at me for a moment. It must be hard to change one’s opinion of someone so quickly, but he had the added incentive of the carrot I offered him. He looked at the dark horse again.
    â€œI’ll see that he’s put out in the paddock because you think that, like you, he doesn’t like small, enclosed places.” Underneath Penrod’s bland voice vibrated a taut, fierce joy.
    â€œDark,” I muttered. “Don’t like dark.”
    â€œRight,” he said with a small smile.
    Once he followed my orders to disobey my uncle, he was mine. With him would come the rest of the stablemen.It would mean that eventually everyone would know I was not so stupid, but I wasn’t sure stupidity was still in my best interest. The playing field was changing.
    I frowned at my father’s horse. “Stygian’s too hard to say.” There was a flower in one of Mother’s gardens that was about the same color as Stygian. I had to wait a while longer until my lips quit trying to smile at the thought of what my father would have said before I spoke.
    â€œI’ll call him Pansy,” I said blandly.
    Ciarra pulled away and turned to face me, her expression so incredulous it needed no words.
    â€œMother has a flower in her garden his color. I asked her what it was,” I explained.
    â€œPansy,” said Penrod stiffly, doubtless thinking about how it would look on a pedigree. Then, abruptly, he smiled. He nodded his head at the three tense-faced stablemen holding the stallion. “Hard to be scared of something named Pansy.”
    I nodded abruptly and called to the grooms, “Put him in the round corral, then take off the halter.” I turned to Penrod. “I need a long whip, like the ones we use to train the youngsters. And I need five or six copper pots. You can send someone to the kitchens. And an empty grain sack.”
    I’d had a long time to think about what to do about Stygian . . . Pansy. No sense waiting until my father was cold to steal his horse. Some dark emotion twisted my mouth before I could banish it. I would not grieve for my father. I would not. Instead, I would spend the afternoon making his horse mine.
    Â 
    IN THE TRAINING RING , Stygian stayed as far away from me as he could, which was fine with me for now. Four years wasn’t to be undone in an afternoon—or a dozen afternoons. But I might