Read Online Nightblade: A Book of Underrealm (The Nightblade Epic 1) by Garrett Robinson - Free Book Online Page B

swaddled in cloth.  
    What could be so valuable that Damaris would hide it from the constables? Something outside the King’s law, no doubt, but Loren had not the faintest idea of what that could be.
    Annis tried walking with her, but soon she tired. “I don’t know how you do this for hours and hours,” she said, cheeks puffing in and out with each breath. “I can scarcely keep pace with the wagons.”
    “The drivers hardly touch their reins.”
    “The horses seem not to need it,” said Annis. Soon, she abandoned Loren and retired to her carriage.
    After some hours had passed, Damaris emerged and mounted a horse brought by Gregor. She rode beside the caravan, sometimes spurring to a gallop and ranging ahead at the edge of eyesight, occasionally content to walk beside the wagons. Wherever she went, Gregor came close behind on his steed. Loren watched with interest.  
    After some time, Damaris turned her horse toward Loren. She reined in a few feet away, while Gregor sat behind her, his eyes never leaving Loren’s face.
    “You seem quite interested in our horses,” said Damaris.
    Loren flushed. “Where I come from, no one owns a steed. I have seen them only rarely, though I always dreamt of owning one.”
    “Would you like to ride?”  
    For a moment, Loren could not speak. “I . . . I am afraid I would only embarrass myself. I have never sat a saddle.”
    “It is not so hard. And you wear the right clothing. You need not ride sidesaddle, as I do.” Damaris slid from the horse’s back and drew its reins into one hand as she approached.
    “I . . . you do not look . . . ” Loren’s heart raced as the horse neared, staring at her with wide and gentle eyes, like great pools of ebony water.
    “Come,” said Damaris. “He is gentle, I promise. Give me your bow.”
    Loren unslung the bow from her back and handed it over, never taking her eyes from the horse.
    “Raise your foot.”
    Loren obeyed without thinking. Damaris rested her boot in the stirrup and set Loren’s hand on the saddle horn.
    “Now step up. Imagine you are climbing a rock. The horse will remain as steady as that.”
    Loren took a deep breath and pushed. She swung her leg up and over. Before she knew it, Loren had gained the saddle. She sat there, both hands wrapped around the saddle horn, too terrified to budge.
    “Your other foot,” said Damaris.
    Loren looked down. Her right boot hung loose. Flushing, she placed it in the stirrup. “Thank you,” she said in a small voice.
    “Come now. I will walk with you.”
    Damaris tugged on the reins and walked forward. Loren did not anticipate the sudden motion and nearly pitched backward, but somehow she held her balance. The saddle bounced uncomfortably against her rear. She feared that if the horse sped its pace even a little, it would send her flying. And yet Loren rode atop a horse for the first time in her life.
    “You sit too high and work too hard for balance. Bend your back somewhat to lower your weight, and cling tighter with your thighs. Do not fear to hold the horse’s neck. It will not mind unless you tug too hard on the mane.”
    Damaris pushed Loren’s leg to demonstrate and hunched her own body lower to show her how to sit. Loren tried it and felt the saddle’s impact lessen. Unbidden, a grin spread across her face.
    “It is so gentle! I thought it would be harder.”
    “Well, you are only walking, after all.” A smile had crept into Damaris’s words. “Travel at this speed grants little benefit, other than freedom from your burdens.”
    They walked that way for a while, Gregor close to Loren’s right, Damaris walking to her left. She felt more comfortable with the rolling motion of her mount’s back with every passing moment. But after a time, she felt a soreness creeping up her legs, the muscles growing tense and knotted. Her bottom felt bruised.
    “I thank you greatly, my lady,” said Loren earnestly. “But perhaps I shall walk again. If I stay here too long, I