Homecoming: The Prince's Legacy by Tull Harrison

Author:Tull Harrison [Harrison, Tull]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tull Harrison
Published: 2019-09-15T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Hooves churned the earth. Delmer could feel Lancelet's tension under him. He wanted to gallop full out, not at the clipped pace they were currently going.

Delmer tried to soothe the anxious horse, knowing that the other horses were too fatigued to go faster. Despite his words, Lancelet remained tense. It was as if he could sense what was going on. Morag was restless too; she often tried to leap from the cantering horse to run on her own four legs.

If Delmer were to be honest with himself, he was in the same mood as his animal companions.

For a few minutes, Lancelet galloped but soon settled into a comfortable canter and then and easy trot. He seemed to know that he was in for a long journey. There was no way Lancelet could have sustained a hard pace for two days.

They swiftly left the hills, but still Delmer feared that he would not make it back to Kingdom Cove in time. The pirates could not successfully sack it without siege equipment, but they could certainly cause severe damage. It had taken him and Rebenna almost three days to reach the village. The fact that his guards had managed to do it in just over two days meant the horses had clearly been pushed to their limits.

Strategies to fight the pirates occupied Delmer's head while he rode. He was still not used to thinking ahead, but he must learn.

Whenever they came to a river Delmer would let Lancelet drink. He would also feed him dry berries and handfuls of old oats. Delmer knew this wasn't good for Lancelet because his bit was in, but he didn't have a choice. They didn't have enough time for him to unbridle the animal. He ate while he was riding, there was no time to stop.

They rode through two nights, being eventually forced to slow down. Lancelet had been bred for speed and endurance, and he managed to keep going with only a few minutes of rest here and there, but there would be a limit to what he could do too.

Finally, the great walled city came within sight. Delmer couldn't tell anything from a distance and forced himself to wait. He couldn't press Lancelet any harder, and two minutes wouldn't make a difference, although the sun seemed to blaze even hotter directly above their heads.

An eternity and then some passed in that time. When they arrived at the gates, Delmer called for the guards to lower it, but nothing happened. The guards did not even ask who he was. The area remained silent, except for Lancelet's panting and Morag's growling.

The situation was graver than Delmer thought. If there were no guards to watch the gate, then the city was in dire straits. There were also holes in the wall which made his heart plummet. He wasn't worried about being able to enter, he could do that easily. He was just worried about the shape he would find it in, once he got inside.

He would have to use the secret tunnel.

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