riders and racers. She counted louder, trying to keep her lion focused as they waited for the first two races to finish.
Other riders on their racers began to fill the holding area around her. She heard excited whispers and tried to ignore them. As the second heat finished, she heard Silar’s name called: second place! She felt a burst of happiness for her friend and leaned forward to whisper to the lion, “We’re next.”
“You want some advice?” the rider next to her offered.
Startled that anyone was speaking to her, Raia shot him a look.
And then stared at the rider.
He was, in a word, beautiful. High cheekbones, black eyes with thick lashes, perfect bronze skin. He wore red sleeveless leather, showcasing his muscles, and his hands were folded casually on the standard rider’s whip. He was riding a kehok that looked like a silver spider.
It took Raia a moment before she realized that he was the one the others were whispering about. He didn’t seem to notice, either because he was oblivious or because he was used to it. She guessed the latter. “Sure,” she said belatedly. “Advice would be great.”
“Don’t run.”
“What?”
He flashed a smile at her, showing off his perfect teeth. “It would be a shame to see a girl as pretty as you damaged out there.”
Okay, he was now far less beautiful.
“I’ll be fine.”
“It’s your first race, isn’t it? Pity it’s against me.” Leaning closer, he added, “Someone should have told you you’re not going to win.”
Motionless beneath him, his kehok watched her with liquid-gold spider eyes.
“You’re trying to get into my head and shake my confidence. It won’t work.” She had already doubted herself far more effectively than this stranger ever could, and she wasn’t letting any of it stop her.
His eyes widened as if in genuine surprise. “It’s fact, not opinion. I’m Rider Gette.”
As if she was supposed to recognize his name.
“Nice to meet you, Gette. I’m Raia, and I’m going to win.”
She nudged the lion ahead so she couldn’t hear his response.
At last, the track officials scurried out and began beckoning the riders, shouting at them to get to their starting gates. Raia and the lion walked forward with all the other competitors onto the racetrack. In the stands, the spectators cheered.
Raia had a moment of panic—she didn’t know which gate was hers. But then she saw Trainer Verlas in the stands. She was holding up eight fingers.
Gate eight.
She guided the lion into the gate and was relieved when he didn’t fight her.
“All we have to do is run,” Raia said. “Just this moment. Just this race. Stay on the track. Cross the finish line. Be faster than everyone else.” Reaching forward, she stroked the cool surface of his mane. It felt as smooth as glass beneath her fingers. “We are faster than all of them. I know we are.” She’d run with her lion across the desert so fast that she’d felt as if they were flying. She knew he could be fast out in the desert. He just had to be fast now, in this moment. They both needed to drown out the distractions and just look forward. And then the future would follow.
Pressed against the front of the stands by several layers of other trainers and assistant trainers, Tamra studied the racers as they entered the track. The winged lizard—he’d be fast but hard to control. The rhino-like kehok—dependable but slow. The cheetah-hyena—quick in short bursts. It would need a rider who knew how to pace it, and its rider was a kid who looked like an overeager jackrabbit. They’ll run out of speed before the last lap, Tamra judged. Certainly the petulant child Fetran wasn’t a threat. So far, Raia’s only real competition was a blue lizard. Its rider was older and calm, and she guided her kehok into the starting gate without any theatrics. We can outrun them, though. Then she studied Raia and the black lion.
Maybe.
The key wasn’t whether he could be fast; it was whether he would run fast here and now, when it mattered. That was what a rider needed to do: unleash her monster’s speed at exactly the right moment.
And Raia hadn’t learned how to do that yet.
She hadn’t had time to learn much of anything.
Still, it was possible. The lion had the raw speed, and Raia had the determination.
Around her, all the spectators surged to their feet as the final rider and racer took to the track. She recognized him instantly: