The valet hurried in. “Yes, my lady?”
“Jeffers, I found another route, Rockford needs to know immediately.” She put it in a long leather cylinder. “It’s critical Rockford knows about this immediately. He’s the closest to the route.”
Jeffers nodded as he took the cylinder. “Leave it to me. I’ll get this information to him.”
The valet had barely ridden off when Lora began to worry. She absentmindedly picked up Rockford’s glove and paced the study. Her eyes flicked to the mantel clock with increasing anxiety. Every tick seemed louder, a relentless reminder of the precious minutes slipping away.
“Rockford won’t reach the private roadway in time, especially if he doesn’t even know it exists. If she didn’t act now, it might be too late,” she muttered as she paced, her mind racing for solutions but at each turn facing imminent failure. Another glance at the blasted clock only heightened her anxiety.
She threw the glove onto the desk and hurried out of the study, bumping into James, the footman. Her footsteps echoedsoftly against the marble floors as she rushed down the hall. Her heart pounded with each step as she left the house, fear and fierce determination driving her forward.
She reached the horse barn and scanned the area for Astra. Her horse nickered and tossed her head. The mare sensed she was anxious.
“Easy girl,” the groom said, trying to calm her as Lora approached. The groom turned toward her. “Can I help you, my lady?” a young girl stood ready to help her.
Lora stared in disbelief. “Are you the groom?” The young girl, about her size, nodded.
“Yes, my lady. I’m Amy Burn, milady.”
“You certainly may help me.” Lora allowed herself a brief smile for the first time in the last hour and a half.
Moments later, Lora rode Astra out of the barn, the borrowed groom’s clothes making her nearly unrecognizable. She leaned forward, determination hardening her gaze. Astra, sensing the urgency, pinned her ears and surged forward the moment they cleared the manor gates. The world blurred into streaks of green and gold as they raced toward the woods. Astra’s hooves pounded in rhythm with Lora’s racing pulse, closing the distance to the woods.
They cut across open fields, the tall grasses whispering against Astra’s legs. Dew sprayed up, but Lora didn’t have time to savor the coolness. She had to get to the private road.
Reaching the stream that fed Sommer River, she guided Astra across without hesitation. The mare plunged into the shallow water, the chill splashing up and dampening Lora’s legs. The current tugged at her mount, but Astra’s stride remained strong and sure as they went downstream, cutting more time off their mission.
Climbing out of the river on the far bank, they pressed onward. The countryside stretched in front of them in apatchwork of rolling hills and meadows, but Lora’s gaze remained fixed ahead. Time was slipping through her fingers like sand, and every moment counted.
Lora gently squeezed her legs, asking for more speed. Astra responded to her rider’s request, her muscles bunching and stretching with each powerful stride. Every jolt, every shift in Astra’s gait, was felt keenly by Lora, her connection to the horse as strong as ever.
Ahead, a series of fences and low walls dotted the landscape, the remnant of old boundaries that had challenged them in the past. Lora’s throat tightened as apprehension welled up. She could feel the horse’s muscles tensing beneath her, picking up on her unease.
“Steady, Astra. We’ve done this before,” she murmured, leaning forward slightly, her fingers threading through Astra’s mane for reassurance.
Astra’s ears swiveled back, listening. The mare surged forward, her stride lengthening as they approached the first fence. Lora rose slightly in the stirrups, her body moving in harmony with the horse’s motion.
They sailed over the fence with graceful ease, the wind rushing past them. Lora’s heart soared, and a triumphant smile spread across her face.
A laugh of pure exhilaration escaped her. “Brilliantly done, my girl!” Lora’s gloved hand patted Astra’s neck. But the path ahead still stretched long and uncertain. There was no time to linger in their success.
As they galloped onward, the familiar silhouette of the old stone fence emerged from the mist. Memories of past attempts flickered in Lora’s mind, the hesitation, the stumble. Now, there was no room for doubt.
Lora’s grip on the reins tightened ever so slightly. She could feel Astra’s heartbeat, fast and strong, mirroring her own. “We’re going to soar like birds over the wall,” she whispered.
As they drew nearer, the world seemed to narrow until only the wall and their path to it remained. The sounds around them faded, replaced by the thunderous rhythm of hooves and the rush of blood in Lora’s ears.
The wall loomed in front of them as they rushed toward it. Lora adjusted her seat. Astra appeared to be instinctively aware of when to jump. Astra ran faster without the need for further urging, her powerful legs eating up the ground. Lora lowered herself closer to the mare’s neck, the coarse hairs of the mane brushing against her cheek. They moved as one creature, their wills united.
Lora stared ahead at the rapidly moving ground and visualized the spot where Astra needed to begin the jump. This wall was high and wide. If they were going to get past this obstacle, starting the jump too soon or too late would be disastrous.
Astra ran faster still, her powerful legs devouring the ground beneath them. “Steady. Wait. Just. A. Bit. Longer.” Her voice could barely be heard above the rush of wind.
“Now!”
Astra launched herself into the air. For a breathless instant, they soared, suspended between the earth and sky. The world seemed to hold its breath as it passed beneath them. Time stretched, the sensation of flight exhilarating and terrifying all at once.
Gravity reclaimed them. Astra landed firmly, her hooves striking the earth with a solid thud, vibrating up through Lora’s legs. Astra immediately found her stride without so much as a stumble, and they continued on.
