Lair of the Lion

successfully fought off every enemy, but they will continue to try to take our lands."
    "Are you worried about something in particular?" She felt a sudden tightness in her chest, a sudden knowledge. She saw too many horses for this to be simply a training exercise. "Is this because Don Rivellio has sent his men along with mio fratello to the valley? Is the holding in danger because of us?"
    He smiled at her gently, a superior male smile meant to reassure her. "No enemy will get through the pass into the valley and live to talk of it. They will be buried here, and no one will go back and tell the tale. Thus we add to the legend of the valley."
    Isabella could see the wisdom of his words. She had grown up listening to the mysterious stories of the DeMarco valley. No one knew whether to believe the tales, but the power of the unknown gave the don and his soldiers a tremendous advantage. Most armies already feared attempting to take over the holding. "Does it slow the horses down to wrap their hooves?"
    He shook his head. "We take care to train them in the use of the wraps, and they become comfortable with them." He turned her around, leaning across her to point to the far side of the field. "Those are the younger, inexperienced horses. You can see they're having a harder time. Some are stumbling. The blinders are to keep them from balking at the sight of the lions."
    "I don't see any lions," she said, looking around. Her heart beat faster at his words. She didn't think she'd ever get used to seeing the beasts up close.
    "They're near enough that the horses pick up their scent, but we won't bring them closer until the younger horses settle down a bit," he explained.
    "How do you control the lions? How do you keep them from attacking men and horses?
    Surely they have the inclination to eat your trainers." She shivered, rubbing her hands up and down her arms, remembering the utter terror of seeing one such beast up close, its eyes fixed on her.
    " Don DeMarco controls the lions. Their behavior is his responsibility."
    What a tremendous burden Nicolai had. And how terrible to live with a single failure.
    One misstep and a friend might die a death of pure horror.

    A wild yell distracted her thoughts. "Captain Drannacia!" Alberita waved wildly to get his attention. She lifted her skirts and sprinted toward them, a flash of color, hair streaming wildly.
    Isabella heard Sergio Drannacia's involuntary sigh of exasperation, and a long-suffering expression of impatience crossed his face fleetingly. As the servant girl came close, however, he smiled, his white teeth gleaming, his gaze running quickly over Alberita's curves as she halted, her breasts heaving beneath her thin blouse.
    "What is it, young Alberita?" he asked kindly.
    Apparently the mere fact that he had remembered her name and looked at her with recognition and approval had her breathless and staring up at him with utter devotion.
    Isabella again saw clearly it was in Sergio's nature to respond gallantly to women no matter what their station or his interest. He flashed the exact same smile on anything female, though his gaze didn't trail after them as it did after his wife.
    "Betto said to give you this missive from Don DeMarco." Alberita dropped a curtsey toward Isabella and squared her shoulders, looking important. "Sorry, signorina, but it's secret, to the captain only." She drew a small piece of parchment from the folds of her skirt, started to hand it to the captain, drew it back to her as if she couldn't let it go, and then nearly threw it at him. It left her fingers before he could snatch it, and a gust of wind sent it spiraling away from them.
    Alberita shrieked in horror, a high-pitched sound that hurt Isabella's ears, and raced forward, plowing into Sergio as he turned in an attempt to catch the willful missive. He caught Alberita's arms to steady her while Isabella pounced on the fluttering parchment as it landed in a nearby bush.
    "Signorina!" Alberita wrung her hands, clearly distraught. "It's secret! It bears the DeMarco seal."
    "I've got it behind my back, so I can't possibly look," Isabella assured her. "Captain," she continued soberly, her eyes meeting Sergio's with shared laughter, "you'll have to walk around me to retrieve your wayward message, as it must be of great importance. Grazie, Alberita. I shall tell Don DeMarco of your loyalty to him and the service you performed.
    You must go to Betto at once and tell him it is done. The missive is safe