Chapter 4 - Shadows in the Night
The barn was pitch black, smelling of sweet hay and old leather. Lily moved like a ghost, her bare feet silent on the hard-packed dirt.
When she reached Eclipse’s stall, the stallion was already pacing violently. He could smell the hostile men outside. He snorted, kicking the heavy wooden door, splintering the pine.
"Shh, boy. It's me," Lily whispered, slipping through the bars.
Eclipse stopped. He lowered his massive head, pressing his velvet nose against her chest. Lily didn't bother with a saddle or a bridle. There was no time. She grabbed a simple rope halter and slipped it over his ears.
Outside, she could hear Arthur shouting. "You have no jurisdiction here, Vance! Get off my property!"
"The bank owns this property as of midnight, Arthur!" Vance shot back. "Boys, check the barn!"
Heavy footsteps crunched on the gravel, heading their way. Flashlight beams cut through the cracks in the barn walls.
Lily's heart hammered in her throat. She led Eclipse to the rear loading doors, but they were rusted shut. She pushed with all her might, but they wouldn't budge.
"In here!" a voice shouted. The main barn doors were kicked open. Two of Vance's thugs stepped inside, their flashlights sweeping the darkness. When the light hit Eclipse, the men froze.
"Easy now, monster," one of the men sneered, shaking a heavy chain. "We're gonna teach you some manners."
Lily felt a surge of protective rage. She didn't think; she just acted. With a burst of agility, she scrambled up the wooden side of the stall, grabbed a handful of Eclipse’s thick black mane, and swung herself onto his broad back.
"Hold on!" the thug yelled, lunging forward.
Lily leaned over the horse's neck. "Fly, Eclipse!"
The stallion didn't hesitate. With a sound that was half-whinny, half-roar, Eclipse exploded out of the stall. He didn't run away from the men; he charged straight at them.
The two thugs screamed and dove into the dirt as a thousand pounds of black muscle leaped directly over them. Eclipse hit the barn doors with his shoulder, shattering the remaining wood, and burst out into the moonlit night.
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"Stop them!" Vance screamed from the porch.
But it was too late. Girl and horse were a single shadow, moving faster than the wind, disappearing into the vast, unforgiving expanse of the canyon.
