Storm and the Silver Bridle (13 page)

Issie looked back over her shoulder. Sure enough, there were two more of Vega’s
vaqueros
, giving chase. Both of them were on powerful Lusitano stallions, and their horses were already in full gallop and gaining on Issie, their strides chewing up the distance between them.

“Angel!” Issie whispered, rising even higher in her stirrups so that she was resting on her knees with her body low over the grey stallion’s neck. “Angel, come on, boy. We need to stay ahead of them. Let’s go!
Vamos!”

The grey horse was already galloping, but as Issie asked more of him, he seemed to sense the danger and respond
to the urgency of her plea. His stride suddenly lengthened and his frame extended so that the ground was swallowed up by his gallop. Issie bent down even lower and wrapped her hands in the stallion’s mane, gripping tightly in case the horse swerved and she lost her seat. She needn’t have worried. Angel was running as straight as an arrow towards the gorge, following behind Marius and galloping as if his life depended on it. His neck was flecked with foam and his flanks were heaving as he kept lengthening his stride, his pace increasing all the time as he drew further and further away from the horsemen behind him and closer and closer to the horse in front of him.

Issie could see now why Francoise had said that she chose Angel because of his speed. Although the stallion had the powerful muscles of an Andalusian, his gallop was more like that of a thoroughbred. He ran with a lightness and a grace that belied his burly physique. He had stamina too, maintaining his speed as Marius began to tire and drop back.

Marius had been way ahead of Angel, but now the distance between the two stallions had closed up so that the two horses were only a length apart. Angel was gaining more and more with every stride. Issie bent down even lower over the stallion’s withers and kept talking to him,
urging him on. Then Angel pulled up alongside Marius so that the two stallions were neck and neck and Issie and Alfie were next to each other.

As the two horses galloped towards the gorge Angel was powering forward with every stride, getting ahead of Marius and opening up his lead on the other stallion. For a moment, as Angel surged past the dapple-grey, Issie looked over and saw Alfie frantically urging his horse on, trying to coax the speed out of Marius to keep up with Angel. But it was useless.

As they reached the gorge Angel was in the lead, ahead of Marius by nearly two lengths, and the stallion still had plenty of running in him.

Issie cast a glance back over her shoulder. Angel had outrun Vega’s men too. They had given up and pulled their horses back to a trot. They were far in the distance, no longer a threat.

It was then that Issie realised what had just happened. They had come here to get her colt and they had failed, but in the process she had discovered something almost as important. Angel was faster than Marius. The two horses had just been pitted against each other in the race of their lives — and Angel had won.

Even though they had left the
vaqueros
, in their dust back at the entrance to the gorge, Issie still didn’t stop checking over her shoulder until they reached the gates of El Caballo.

“Are you OK?” Alfie asked her as he slid down off Marius’s back and threw the reins over the horse’s neck to lead him back to the stables.

“Uh-huh,” Issie said. She vaulted down from Angel’s back and as she hit the ground she felt the cobblestones beneath her sock foot and realised she only had one boot on. She had come so close to being caught! During the chase everything had happened so fast she hadn’t had time to be scared, but now it was over, she realised that she was shaking uncontrollably.

Going to Vega’s hacienda had been a stupid, desperate thing to do, she could see that now. The others were right — this wasn’t the way to get her colt back. She and Alfie had been lucky to get away — in fact she never would have escaped if it weren’t for Angel. She had never ridden a horse capable of such speed. Angel hadn’t just outrun Vega’s horses — he had raced them into the ground. Not only that, he had beaten Marius. There had been at least two hundred metres separating the stallion from Marius and yet he had caught him up as if Marius was standing still.

Angel’s neck was wet with foamy sweat and his flanks were heaving from the run, yet his nerves were still wired up from his gallop and he didn’t seem at all tired. Francoise had clearly been working on his fitness during her rides around El Caballo. The stallion was race-fit, and the gallop from Vega’s hadn’t exhausted him. In fact, it only served to excite him. As Issie tried to cool him down and bring him back to a walk, Angel kept skipping and dancing, refusing to settle as Issie led him back towards the stables. She spoke to the stallion in a soft, low voice, her tone calming him, as she stroked his broad, glistening white crest.

“He’s fast, huh?” Alfie said as he led Marius up to walk back to the stables alongside her.

“Yeah,” Issie agreed. “Francoise said he’d been bred for speed. I guess she was right.”

Alfie nodded. He didn’t look particularly happy. Finally he spoke again.

“He’s faster than Marius,” he said darkly. “He beat us, back there. I was riding as fast as I could when we left Vega’s and you were way behind me, but you caught us easily.”

Issie knew what Alfie was thinking. She was about to say something, but before she had the chance there was a shout from the stable block and Francoise and Avery came running towards them.

When Francoise saw the state the horses were in she knew immediately what they had done.

“Tell me you didn’t!” she said, aghast, as she snatched Marius’s reins from Alfie. “Tell me you didn’t go to Vega’s!”

“We did,” Issie said, “and we saw Storm.”

“We nearly had him too,” Alfie added, “but Vega’s men woke up and they chased us. We only just got away.”

The look of concern on Francoise’s face turned to anger. “I cannot believe this!” She shook her head in disbelief. “How could you both defy us like this? Alfie, your father told you that it was too risky to face Vega!”

“We weren’t going to face him,” Issie said. “We were going to bring Storm back.”

“Don’t play clever, Isadora,” Avery said. “You know that Francoise is right. Vega is a dangerous man. I can’t believe you two would be so foolish.”

Issie was about to answer back, but when she looked at her instructor’s face she saw something there that stopped her. She had never seen Avery so angry — and she realised at that moment just how deeply worried he must have been when he’d found that both Issie and Angel were missing.

“I’m really sorry, Tom.” Issie bit her bottom lip. “I know it was a dumb thing to do, but I just wanted to get Storm back so badly.”

Francoise shook her head, furious. “It is a miracle that you both escaped. I do not want to think about what might have happened if they had caught you.”

“They nearly did catch Issie, but she got away!” Alfie said.

Issie shot Alfie a look, wishing that he would shut up. She didn’t want Tom to know just how close she had come to being caught by Vega’s men.

“I was at least twenty lengths ahead of her on Marius, and she caught me up,” Alfie continued. “Angel totally outran Marius, I’ve never seen a horse go that fast. We were galloping flat out and he came up behind us like a rocket.”

“Alfie’s right. You should have seen him run,” Issie
said. “Those
vaqueros
, were right behind him one moment and then I asked him to run harder and he did it. He stretched out and there was no way they were going to catch him. He caught up to Marius and he passed him before we’d hit the gorge. He’s fast all right, Francoise, just like you said he was.”

Issie looked at Francoise, her heart racing. “Francoise, how far do you think it is from Vega’s hacienda to the gorge?”

Francoise’s eyes narrowed. She had already guessed what Issie was thinking. “It is about two kilometres, maybe a little more,” she said.

“What are you talking about?” Avery was confused. But the other two knew exactly what Issie was driving at.

“She means the race,” Alfie said. “The Silver Bridle.”

Issie nodded. “Angel totally outran Vega’s horses today. And he was faster than Marius. What if he could do the same in the race?” Issie held her breath for a moment and then she blurted out the words. “I think we should race Angel in the Silver Bridle. I think he can win.”

“Isadora,” Francoise said, “El Caballo Danza Magnifico already has a champion. Marius will be racing for us in the Silver Bridle. It has been decided.”

“But why?” Issie said. “Francoise, you said yourself that Angel has the bloodlines of great racehorses in him. If he’s
faster than Marius, then shouldn’t we race him instead?” Francoise shook her head. “Angel has not been in training as Marius has…”

“… and yet he still managed to beat Vega’s horses by at least twenty lengths!” Issie insisted. “You said you’d been riding him, Francoise, galloping him over the hills. Well, it’s worked. He’s fit and he’s ready to race. Besides, we have a whole week yet before the race. We could train him.”

“
Oui
,” Francoise conceded, “yes, potentially it could be done. What you say is true. Angel is strong and sound but…” she shook her head, “… this is madness. It is not possible for him to race. Alfie is our rider. He is the best in our stables, and you know he cannot ride Angel.” Avery was confused by this. “Why not?” “Because Angel is scared of men,” Alfie responded immediately. And at that moment Issie realised why Alfie looked so distraught when they had been walking the horses back to the stables. Alfie was supposed to ride El Caballo’s champion in the Silver Bridle. But what if Angel were really faster than Marius?

“I can’t ride Angel,” Alfie continued. “Believe me, I’ve tried. He’s thrown me every time I got on his back. Vega using the
serreta
terrified him. It made him afraid, not just of Vega but all men — including me.”

“It is not uncommon, this fear of men,” Francoise said. “I have known many horses to object to having male riders. But in Angel’s case? It is much more than mere objection. His fear of men is absolute. Angel cannot be ridden by a man.”

“Francoise?” Issie said. “Francoise, what if it wasn’t a man? What if it wasn’t Alfie riding him? What if it was a woman?”

“That is impossible,” Francoise said. “In case you haven’t noticed, my arm is broken — and the race is just a week away. And anyway—”

“I didn’t mean you!” Issie said. “I meant me. I can ride him.”

The Frenchwoman shook her head. “No, no! Let me finish. It is not possible for you or any woman to ride. In the history of the Silver Bridle, the riders for each hacienda have always, always been men. Women do not race.”

Issie furrowed her brow. “So are you saying it’s against the rules for a girl to ride?”

Alfie shook his head. “It’s not the rules, exactly. It’s tradition. But traditions are strong here. You know what my dad is like.”

“But your dad would understand. If Angel is the fastest horse then he’d want Angel to run, wouldn’t he? If it’s not
actually against the rules? I mean,
if
I could convince Roberto, if I could get him to let me ride Angel, then they wouldn’t be able to stop me?”

“No,” Francoise admitted. “They wouldn’t be able to stop you.”

“Then we should ask Roberto to let me ride,” Issie said.

“Now hold on a minute,” Avery said. “Issie, I think you need to get a grip. Roberto will never allow this. The Silver Bridle is not just any horse race, it’s a duel on horseback, a contest where horses and men routinely risk their lives to win.”

“Tom is right,” Francoise agreed. “The men who ride this race are battle-hardened. Once they are in that village square and the bell rings to signal the start, they will fight like animals to win.”

“If I could get a good start and ride Angel like I did today then it wouldn’t matter,” Issie insisted. “We’d be out in front the whole way and no one would even have the chance to touch us.”

“This is crazy even to talk about this,” Francoise sighed. “Even if we were all in agreement, what then? You would still have to convince Roberto.” She paused. “This race is of the utmost importance to him. He has focused all his energy on training Marius for this day.
It will be impossible for him to change his mind now.”

“It’s true,” Alfie said. “You’ve seen my father in action, Issie. He’s not a man who is easily persuaded.”

Issie knew this was true. She found the idea of facing up to Roberto scarier than any horse race. Since they had arrived at El Caballo, Roberto had been the perfect host, kind and generous. But there was also something that made Issie nervous around him. Roberto had kept a cool distance from her ever since she arrived. And his conversation in the living room with Avery made it clear that he thought she was… what was the word he used? Impetuous!

To Roberto, Issie was nothing more than a troublesome kid. Convincing him that she was capable of riding in the race was not going to be easy.

“Francoise?” Issie said hopefully. “Will you ask him? Will you tell Roberto that Angel should race?”

Francoise shook her head. “No, Isadora. It would do no good. Roberto thinks you are just a child. If you want him to let you ride, then it is up to you to convince him that you can take on the
vaqueros
, and beat them at their own game.”

“Francoise is right,” Alfie agreed. “My father is a man of honour. You stand a better chance of winning his respect if you ask him yourself.”

“If you want to race Angel, it is up to you,” Francoise said. “Isadora, you alone are the one. You must talk to Roberto Nunez.”

The indoor training school at El Caballo Danza Magnifico was a spectacular space. With its vaulted ceilings and horse tapestries hanging at the entranceways, it had the feel of a grand cathedral — one with an Olympic-sized dressage arena in the middle of it.

This training arena was the very heart of El Caballo Danza Magnifico. All the schooling for the
haute école
horses took place here. The spectacular shows that the Spanish stallions performed around the world required years of training and it all happened right here.