once more to their work.
The heat and the siesta would work in her favour, Issie realised. There would be no need to talk her way round the men at Roberto’s stables and convince them to let her take Angel out. The men were crashed out asleep on their cots in the bunkhouse. There would be no one at the stallions’ stable block to stop her.
Angel was standing at the back of his stall in the shadows as always, but the stallion came forward without hesitation at the sound of Issie’s voice.
“Hey, boy.” Issie couldn’t help feeling pleased that Angel was responding to her already. She reached out and ran her hand down the stallion’s noble face, finding herself filled with pity all over again as she felt the ugly scar tissue that Vega had inflicted.
She thought of Storm now, in the hands of Vega. Shecouldn’t bear the thought of the
serreta
being used on him. Well, she thought, as she snatched the bridle off the hook in Angel’s stall, she didn’t need to worry about that for much longer. She would saddle up now and ride to Vega’s hacienda. Vega’s men would also be having their siesta when she arrived. She would be able to slip in and take her colt back in broad daylight, before anyone even realised she had been there. All she had to do was saddle up before anyone noticed her and—
“Going somewhere?”
A voice behind her made her jump. She spun round and saw a man standing there, wearing the traditional
vaquero
costume of El Caballo. In the darkness of the stable she thought at first that it was Roberto Nunez. Then the man stepped closer and she could see his face.
“Alfonso!” Issie said. “You scared me half to death! Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
“Taking Angel for a ride?” Alfonso said.
“Uh-huh…” Issie began to try and think of a fib she could tell him, something he would believe, but she could see by the look on Alfonso’s face that he wouldn’t be fooled.
“Let me guess,” Alfonso said. “You’re going after the colt. You’re going to Vega’s stables to bring him back, all by yourself?”
“No! Well, yes, but…” Issie tried to stay cool, but instead she found herself babbling. “Alfonso, I have to do it! He’s got Storm. I need to get him back before Vega uses the
serreta
on him. I know you can’t understand how much he means to me—”
“Hey! Hey!” Alfonso cut her off. “Calm down, you’ve got me all wrong. I’m not trying to stop you.” He reached out and took the bridle off the hook outside Marius’s stall and then turned to her and smiled. “I’m trying to tell you that I’m coming with you.”
Chapter 10
Galloping together across the sunburnt fields of the El Caballo, the two great grey stallions, Marius and Angel, made an impressive sight. “Alfonso, you don’t have to do this, you know,” Issie shouted out. “Your dad will be furious when he finds out.”
Alfonso was ahead of Issie, but now he pulled Marius up so that the two of them were riding together. “First of all, you must stop calling me Alfonso,” he shouted back at her. “My friends all call me Alfie — OK?”
Issie nodded.
“And second,” Alfie continued, “my dad is not as bad as you think. He’s a pussycat once you get to know him. Right now it’s all ‘honour this’ and ‘tradition that’. He’d never agree to let us steal the colt — but you watch, whenwe bring Storm back home, he’ll be totally on our side.”
Issie had her doubts about this, but she wasn’t going to argue. She hadn’t argued with Alfie either when he’d insisted on coming with her. After all, as he pointed out, he knew his way into Vega’s stables and she didn’t. With him on her side, Issie stood a fighting chance of getting her colt back.
The two riders slowed down to a trot as they neared the gorge, and it was easier to talk as they rode side by side. “Your dad and Tom have known each other for a long time, huh?” Issie said.
“Yeah, twenty years. They met before I was
The heat and the siesta would work in her favour, Issie realised. There would be no need to talk her way round the men at Roberto’s stables and convince them to let her take Angel out. The men were crashed out asleep on their cots in the bunkhouse. There would be no one at the stallions’ stable block to stop her.
Angel was standing at the back of his stall in the shadows as always, but the stallion came forward without hesitation at the sound of Issie’s voice.
“Hey, boy.” Issie couldn’t help feeling pleased that Angel was responding to her already. She reached out and ran her hand down the stallion’s noble face, finding herself filled with pity all over again as she felt the ugly scar tissue that Vega had inflicted.
She thought of Storm now, in the hands of Vega. Shecouldn’t bear the thought of the
serreta
being used on him. Well, she thought, as she snatched the bridle off the hook in Angel’s stall, she didn’t need to worry about that for much longer. She would saddle up now and ride to Vega’s hacienda. Vega’s men would also be having their siesta when she arrived. She would be able to slip in and take her colt back in broad daylight, before anyone even realised she had been there. All she had to do was saddle up before anyone noticed her and—
“Going somewhere?”
A voice behind her made her jump. She spun round and saw a man standing there, wearing the traditional
vaquero
costume of El Caballo. In the darkness of the stable she thought at first that it was Roberto Nunez. Then the man stepped closer and she could see his face.
“Alfonso!” Issie said. “You scared me half to death! Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
“Taking Angel for a ride?” Alfonso said.
“Uh-huh…” Issie began to try and think of a fib she could tell him, something he would believe, but she could see by the look on Alfonso’s face that he wouldn’t be fooled.
“Let me guess,” Alfonso said. “You’re going after the colt. You’re going to Vega’s stables to bring him back, all by yourself?”
“No! Well, yes, but…” Issie tried to stay cool, but instead she found herself babbling. “Alfonso, I have to do it! He’s got Storm. I need to get him back before Vega uses the
serreta
on him. I know you can’t understand how much he means to me—”
“Hey! Hey!” Alfonso cut her off. “Calm down, you’ve got me all wrong. I’m not trying to stop you.” He reached out and took the bridle off the hook outside Marius’s stall and then turned to her and smiled. “I’m trying to tell you that I’m coming with you.”
Chapter 10
Galloping together across the sunburnt fields of the El Caballo, the two great grey stallions, Marius and Angel, made an impressive sight. “Alfonso, you don’t have to do this, you know,” Issie shouted out. “Your dad will be furious when he finds out.”
Alfonso was ahead of Issie, but now he pulled Marius up so that the two of them were riding together. “First of all, you must stop calling me Alfonso,” he shouted back at her. “My friends all call me Alfie — OK?”
Issie nodded.
“And second,” Alfie continued, “my dad is not as bad as you think. He’s a pussycat once you get to know him. Right now it’s all ‘honour this’ and ‘tradition that’. He’d never agree to let us steal the colt — but you watch, whenwe bring Storm back home, he’ll be totally on our side.”
Issie had her doubts about this, but she wasn’t going to argue. She hadn’t argued with Alfie either when he’d insisted on coming with her. After all, as he pointed out, he knew his way into Vega’s stables and she didn’t. With him on her side, Issie stood a fighting chance of getting her colt back.
The two riders slowed down to a trot as they neared the gorge, and it was easier to talk as they rode side by side. “Your dad and Tom have known each other for a long time, huh?” Issie said.
“Yeah, twenty years. They met before I was
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