Because the hunters were all drunk, Garinor had allowed himself to wrap himself tightly in the horse blanket. He slept deeply and was awoken by the crowing of a rooster. The slumbering hunters awoke with a start and moaned against headaches and the like. It took some time for them to gather their wits about them and to get moving.
Perhaps twenty minutes later they finally made their way into the house for food. It seemed like Lorrel’s mother had outdone herself with breakfast, for the morning air was saturated with so many different aromas that Garinor’s mouth watered. He wished he could swipe a few scraps of the feast that must have been laid out for them.
With everyone in the house, this was his chance to escape the barn and stow himself inside the wagon. He clambered down the ladder and dropped to the ground, heading for the barn door. He peered outside and was ready to sneak outside and dash behind the plow again when the house door opened.
Lorrel appeared and he strode directly to the barn. Garinor didn’t have time to climb back up the ladder. In a panic he dove into one of the empty stalls, then wondered idly if Lorrel hadn’t come to clean up the blankets he and his mother had set down the day before. There was a pile of hay in the stall and he thought of trying to cover himself in it, but there wasn’t nearly enough. He needed to be ready to jump, then, and catch Lorrel off guard and maybe tackle him before making a run for it.
The young man entered the barn and walked over to one of the horses. He spoke in a crooning voice. “Easy now, Yorra. That’s a good girl. I’ve some work for you today.” He set a harness on the horse and led her outside. A deep sigh fell from Garinor’s lips as he watched Lorrel through a crack in the beams. He was leading the horse over to the wagon. Apparently the horse would be pulling the wagon instead of the other hunters.
Garinor wasn’t sure where he should wait. He doubted he would be able to sneak out of the barn unseen now. Lorrel had obviously eaten early, but the others would surely filter out of the house before long. He didn’t know what he was going to do. There was another horse here, but he didn’t like the prospect of stealing it. Of course, he wasn’t exactly sure he could ride it, either. He couldn’t innocently knock on the door and ask for help, especially since Lorrel had told his mother of the evil boy on the loose. He had probably shown her the drawing as well.
While he debated this, he saw Lorrel finish with the horse and then return inside, probably to tell the others the wagon was ready. Now was his chance to climb aboard. Without hesitating, Garinor sped out the door and crouched behind the old plow. He was ready to make a run for the nearby trough to hide behind, but movement alerted him.
Over by the wagon, something was moving. He scolded himself for being silly. There was a horse there now, and of course the horse would be moving. But it was more than that. The horse wasn’t just pawing at the ground. It was struggling a little and it was straining. As he watched, the horse moved full out, pulling the wagon along with it.
A tree blocked his view, but then he saw a hobbled middle-aged man brandishing a carrot, egging the horse on to follow him. Once the horse was moving, the man threw the carrot aside and sprang onto the horse’s back, grabbed the reins, and slapped the horse with them forcefully. With a lurch, the horse and wagon sped away.
There was a huge commotion from the house as all nine hunters came racing out. Eight of them ran after the horse in vain. One of them, Lorrel, collapsed, his arms over his head in dismay. He was joined soon after by his irate mother. She swung an angry hand at the back of his head and he cried out in pain. Then she started screaming at him to get moving. Frenzied, Lorrel ran to the barn again and grabbed the other horse, saddling it quickly. He hoisted himself upon its back and set off after the stolen wagon.
Garinor watched him go and then remembered that his own life was in danger. The other hunters wouldn’t likely run forever after a stolen horse and wagon, and even if they did, once Lorrel ventured past them on horseback, they wouldn’t have reason to continue on foot. Garinor would have to wait out these events in the barn.
Scurrying back inside and up the ladder, Garinor munched on an apple, wondering what else was in store for his day.