Prologue

Prologue: 

The horse charged across the vast prairie, her hooves thumped against the packed dirt and small mammals fled before her. Foam bubbled in the corners of her mouth, crusting around the bit, and dripped down her lean neck to splatter the ground. Dust flew and stained her pitch-black flanks while pebbles and small stones scraped her legs. 

On her back, Alexander grew weaker with each passing moment. His eyelids fluttered and his pulse jumped wildly. One hand gripped the reins while he held the other to his chest, about an inch or so beneath his heart. The brim of a battered slouch hat kept the upper half of Alexander’s face veiled in shadow while a red bandana tied around his neck hid the lower half. Slowly, his head began to droop until his chin touched the collar of his dress shirt and black Duster. Sweat poured down his spine, trickled along his temples and beaded at his forehead. Barely conscious, Alexander mustered enough strength to drop the reins and pull the bandana away. His hand moved clumsily, however, and left a bloody smear across his cheek.

Opening his eyes, he looked down at his other hand. Blood dribbled from between his fingers and soaked into his Duster. The left side of the front was already drenched and Alexander could feel the blood steadily soaking through his other clothes. It would not be long now until he slipped from the saddle, he had lost too much blood. Spittle crusted the corners of his mouth and his dark eyes were glazing over even as his vision began to turn to black. 

Alexander had long since lost the feeling in his legs and only knew that Dodger was out of control from how the harsh winds scoured his skin and threatened to steal his hat. In a last ditch attempt to die with dignity, he yanked the reins back hard. Beneath him, Dodger reared up and shrieked, kicking the air in front of her with unbridled maliciousness. When her hooves touched down, Alexander slumped forwards. He became a dead weight, tethered to the saddle with his face pressed into Dodger’s coarse mane. 

Instinct told the horse that her rider was dead, that she was alone out on the prairie, and she plodded onwards, striking out for the lake.