“Look!” a human shouted, pointing down the length at the park.
At the very back—where cement barriers had been erected to keep the riders and mounts from crashing into the park and making them bottle neck in the stretch—a black horse jumped the barrier.
A second followed, then a third, and a fourth, and a fifth.
She couldn’t have pulled this off—not with a monster attack. It’s impossible.
And yet, that impossibility—mounted on the back of a dappled night mare—jumped the cement barrier.
Six night mares streaked across the park, fast catching up on the unsuspecting Lord Umer like wolves closing in on prey.
If she catches up with him, he’s going to attack her.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Leila
“Line up!” I shouted to my night mares.
They pulled out of their scattered formation, forming a long, horizontal line with the faster horses—like Eclipse and Blue Moon—holding back to keep pace with the slower horses—like Solstice.
The line broke in half as we closed ranks on Lord Umer and his sun stallion, with me and Blue Moon and Nebula pulling up on either side of him.
When Lord Umer saw us, he cursed. He slipped his foot out of the stirrup and tried to awkwardly kick me, but Blue Moon nimbly dodged him.
Next he leaned out of the saddle and grappled with me, trying to yank me from my saddle. Apparently Lord Umer didn’t give up easily.
Nebula, running shoulder to shoulder on the other side of Lord Umer’s sun stallion, bit the fae on the thigh, making him jolt in his saddle and yell.
I took the opportunity to swoop down and yank the stirrup off his foot, straightening just in time to avoid being smashed when Blue Moon and Nebula shoulder checked the sun stallion.
Moving in tandem, they cut in front of the golden horse, cutting it off.
It reared up, and Lord Umer toppled over the side with a yelp.
I wanted to shout some kind of taunt—like he should have worn a helmet, or I hope he landed on his head—but the night mares took off after we passed him, bearing down on the finish line within seconds.
“Hold the line!” I shouted. “Hold it!”
Up and down the line the night mares held, and together, with all six mounts, we crossed the finish line as one.
The humans who had cheered for me at the start of the race must have hopped in cars and looped around to the finish line, because they were screaming and cheering for me and the night mares as we thundered down the open stretch of the park, slowing down and eventually stopping.
“Night Court, Night Court!”
“All hail the queen!”
“No one crosses the demon horses!”
The night mares, elated with the win, shrieked and reared up, pawing at the sky.
I laughed as I clung to Blue Moon, who tossed his head and pranced with the rest of them. “You were amazing!”
At the very end of the park I slipped off Blue Moon. Instantly I was crowded by six night mares, pressing in on me.
I laughed and kissed their scratchy muzzles and cooed words of praise to each one of them. I lingered over Eclipse, stroking her neck—which was whole and unharmed without a single mark.
How the heck did that happen? Do they have healing powers I don’t know about?
