The
first touch of his rider's weight sent the stallion mad, not blind with
fear as most horses go, but raging with a devilish cunning like that of
an insane man, a thing that made the blood run cold to watch. He stood a
moment shuddering, as if the strange truth were slowly dawning on his
brute mind; then he bolted straight for the barriers. Woodbury braced
himself and lunged back on the reins, but he might as well have tugged
at the mooring cable of a great ship; the bit was in the monster's
teeth.
Then a whisper reached the rider, a universal hushing of drawn breath,
for the thousands were tasting the first thrill and terror of the
combat. They saw a picture of horse and man crushed against the barrier.
But there was no such stupid rage in the mind of the stallion.
At the last moment he swerved and raced close beside the fence; some
projecting edge caught the trousers of Woodbury and ripped away the
stout cloth from hip to heel. He swung far to the other side and
wrenched back the reins. With stiff-braced legs the stallion slid to a
halt that flung his unbalanced rider forward along his neck.
Pages:
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28