Roke made a lunge for her but Elli evaded him. She was about to dash to the other side of the training ring when a fruity, familiar voice remarked,
“Well, a rather disappointing show, I must say, I’m afraid.”
Whirling around, Elli saw the Crown Prince strolling towards them. He was using a golden walking stick that looked expensive enough to buy Elli’s entire village back home and his golden velvet frock coat glimmered in the weak sunshine.
“Your Majesty!” she gasped, keeping one eye on the Prince and one on Roke, who had straightened up but still looked ready to grab her and run.
“Most disappointing,” the Crown Prince repeated, scowling. “Tell me, my dear, did you simply exaggerate your skill with zorels or was everything you said to me an outright lie?”
“I didn’t lie or exaggerate!” Elli lifted her chin high. “But your grooms drove Demon into a Fury! That was why he flamed up and killed the man who was shocking him. But I can still tame him, once he calms a bit.”
“That man was our best groom,” the Crown Prince said dryly. “He was also—according to the other servants working in the stable—Demon’s ‘favorite’. Now tell me, my dear, how do you expect to do anything with the beast when he’s willing to kill his favorite groom?”
“His Majesty has a point,” Roke growled.
Elli wanted to stamp her foot in frustration. She knew how things looked to the untrained eye—a murderous, savage zorel who was completely out of control and a little slip of a girl who was claiming she could train him despite his violent actions. But the very fact that Demon had gone into a Fury proved to her that he was like the other zorels she had worked with on her father’s ranch. She could train him if only they would give her a chance!
“Look, Your Majesty,” she said, speaking directly to the Crown Prince and ignoring Roke who was glowering behind her. “I know how bad this looks, but zorels are like people—they have their limits. And unfortunately, your grooms pushed Demon past his. As soon as he calms down and the Fury passes, he’ll feel sorry for what he’s done and be easier to reason with.”
The Crown Prince snorted.
“Easier to reason with? You can’t reason with a beast like that! The only thing you can do with such a creature is break him to your will—and I am seriously beginning to doubt that you can do that, my dear Lady Ellilah.”
“You haven’t really given me a chance yet, Your Majesty,” Elli protested. “If I can just look Demon in the eye, I can communicate with him. I know I can!”
“I don’t think—” the Crown Prince began but his words were interrupted by a high, mournful keening coming from the training ring.
Looking over, Elli saw that Demon was nosing at the burned remains of the dead groom, who lay in a twisted heap at the far end of the ring. Delicately, with one foreclaw, the big zorel turned the limp form over and sniffed it. Upon seeing no signs of life, he lifted his great black head and keened again.
It was a high, lonely sound filled with grief. It raised goosebumps on the backs of Elli’s arms—well, on the arm which hadn’t had all the little hairs singed off it anyway—and sent a chill down her spine.
The sound of the zorel’s grief seemed to unsettle the Tenebrian nobles as well. They were glancing with apprehension at the training ring and muttering among themselves.
But to Elli, this was a good sign—it was exactly what she’d been hoping for.
“You see?” she demanded, pointing to Demon. “The Fury has passed and he realizes what he’s done. He’s sorry now—ashamed of himself. I’ll be able to deal with him much more easily now.”
“And how do you propose to do that?” Roke asked, frowning. “How are you going to get close enough to him to look him in the eyes without him clawing you or burning you to death?”
“He is extremely tall…” Elli said, frowning. “Which makes catching his eye a problem…”
Cocking her head to one side, she considered the situation. Her eyes lighted on the top of the wooden training fence and she had an idea.
“I know!” She turned to the Crown Prince. “Your Majesty, please have one of your servants run back to the palace and fetch me a ladder and a bowl full of those delicious pink fruits—krispers I think they’re called—and bring it back here to me at once.”
“Well…” The Crown Prince frowned and then shrugged. “All right—I suppose I may as well give you one more try. After all, if you die in the attempt, it’s your own fault. You there—boy!” he shouted to one of the stable hands.
The Tenebrian boy turned absolutely purple at being addressed by the Crown Prince himself but he rushed over at once and threw himself on his knees before the monarch.