Chapter Nine

I was heading down the field, leading the big horse as placidly as a lamb when I saw Mr Manly waving his arms. He had joined the group of men on the other side of a long stone wall which ran between us.

“Well done there, young fellow!” he called out, breathing hard from running. He had no idea who I was, of course, or that just ten minutes ago I had been hiding beneath his load of hay. “It is a great service you have done us,” he hollered over the wall. I gave him what I hoped was a boyish grin, not daring to speak.

“Quite so,” boomed a well-spoken man in pale riding breeches who I assumed must be Squire Gordon himself. “But I am afraid there is no gate down here, lad. You cannot get him home this way.” He pointed to the high stone wall between us. The horse must have jumped it when he bolted. It was sharp and jagged. I glanced at his legs and ran my hand softly along his belly. He was lucky not to have cut himself to shreds on the way over.

“It would be best if you could bring him round by the lane. There is a gate just beyond that little wood in the far corner of the field.” Mr Manly raised his arm, pointing towards a group of trees behind me.

“We’d be most obliged if you could bring him home that way, young chap,” added the squire.

I grinned like a jack-o’-lantern. They had called me lad and fellow and now young chap. They were convinced I was a boy! If I could just bring the squire’s horse home safely, surely I could at least ask about the stable job. . .

“Right away,” I answered, surprised how loud and deep my voice sounded as I tried my best to holler like a farmer’s son.

“He’s a big horse, but he won’t hurt you,” called Mr Manly. “Don’t worry about Black Beauty. He’s as good as gold.”

“Black Beauty!” I smiled, stroking the white star in the middle of the horse’s forehead. “Of course that is your name. It is perfect.”

I turned his head, ready to walk back across the field. I was afraid he might dig his hooves in as I tried to lead him in the opposite direction to home. But he seemed to trust me. I clicked my tongue and he followed without even a tug on the reins.

“Thank you, Black Beauty,” I whispered, glowing inside. “Let’s get you back to Birtwick. We’re going to be the very best of friends, I am sure.”

We walked calmly back across the field and slipped behind the wood, out of sight of the stables.

“Stupid knot!” I must have tugged at the thick rope tied around the gate for at least ten minutes. Still it would not budge. Whoever had tied it had pulled the knot so tight there was no way to get my fingers inside and wiggle it free.

“If only I had a knife,” I groaned, searching the ground for a sharp stone.

Black Beauty jostled me with his nose. It was as though he was trying to tell me something.

“That’s not going to help.” I laughed, but inside I started to panic. Mr Manly and the squire would wonder what was taking me so long. They would think I had stolen the beautiful horse if I didn’t return to the stables soon. I’d wanted so much to be quick, to prove to them that I was reliable – the perfect boy to be a stable lad. Now they’d scold me for dillydallying and send me off with a clip around the ear.

Perhaps if I really was a boy, I would know all about knots. I remember Father telling me once that sailors have at least a hundred different ways to tie a rope at sea. All I knew was how to unpick tangled embroidery . . . and that was only because I went wrong so much.

“Stupid thing!” I kicked the gate and cursed as loud as any sailor. With the gate tied tight, our path was blocked.

“There’s no point fussing.” I sighed. “Our way is barred and that’s all there is to it. What else can we do?”

I turned and stared helplessly across the landscape.

As Beauty shook his head and fidgeted, I had a sudden thought. He couldn’t jump over the gate – especially not on to the hard lane beyond – but where the field rolled away to the left of us, I saw there was a broad ditch at the bottom running along beside the soft ground of the meadow beyond. If we could just get across that, it would lead us straight up to the stables from the other side. Any horse as strong as Beauty could jump it easily.

“What do you think? Will you let me ride you?” I looked up into his eyes and Beauty stopped fidgeting right away and stared back at me. Perhaps it was because my voice was serious all of a sudden, but he seemed almost to sense how desperately I needed his help. I felt a connection between us in that moment – as if we had made a bond.

“All right,” I said. “We’ll do it!”

If I stopped to think about my plan I would lose my nerve. I climbed on to a fallen tree at the edge of the wood and scrambled on to his back from there. The minute he felt my weight, Beauty skittered and swished his tail. He probably wasn’t used to being ridden bareback and I certainly wasn’t used to riding like this either.

“Ready?” I said, gathering up a bunch of his soft jet-black mane along with the reins. “Let’s get you home.”

With one tiny squeeze of my legs he was off – shooting forward so quickly I almost fell right back over his tail. But I clung on tight, gripping his bare flanks with my knees.

As we cantered away across the field, I wanted to shout for joy. If riding stout little Merrylegs felt like being on a rocking horse, clinging to Black Beauty was like flying through the sky on Pegasus. The ground flattened out, and my heart soared as he broke into a gallop, his hooves barely seeming to touch the earth at all.

Thank goodness I had practised riding like a boy. But never before had I ridden bareback. There was a small tight knot of fear right in the pit of my stomach but, more than that, I felt fluttery with exhilaration. My fingertips – and even my toes deep inside the heavy borrowed boots – seemed to fizz with excitement.

The men were shouting as we galloped into view of the stables again. I wasn’t sure if they were yelling for me stop, turn back or carry on. But I paid no attention, blocking out their voices like the cawing of crows.

I had made my choice to bring Black Beauty home this way. It was too late to change my mind. I had to get us both there safely. All my concentration was focused on just one thing. We had to leap the huge ditch at the bottom of the meadow.