The Ivory Road: A Walk in the Sand Read Free

get out of here, it has to be now.”
    Iliana took advantage of Crowe’s distraction to jog to the gray horse and pull its reins free. She’d be damned before she stuck around for whatever he claimed was coming.
    “Bloody hell, woman.” Crowe advanced on her and she turned to face him with one hand on her sword. She suspected she wouldn’t have a chance against a man who’d recently filmed a gladiator movie. But she’d make him regret grabbing her. “Have you no honor? You said you’d help if I needed it. We need it now.”
    “You're not going to stop playing, are you, Mr. Crowe?” Iliana shook her head. “Fine. Play your little game, but I’m done. I don't need this and I'm outta here.” She swung onto the gray horse and settled her weight in the stirrup-less saddle. She turned the animal’s head toward a gap in the trees and urged the horse into a trot.
    “By all the Gods!” he shouted in frustration at her back.
    “I told you women were faithless.”
    Ahmad’s voice made her fury burn brighter, but she’d dealt with trolls in Hollywood. This guy was only a run-of-the-mill heckler. The gray horse lengthened its strides as they passed the edge of the oasis, and she did her best to ignore the corpse, still lying in the glaring sun. If it really is a dead body and not a dummy.
    She stopped the horse and tried to decide which way to go. All directions looked pretty much the same. Well done, now you’re out here alone with no idea which direction is west. At least she now had a horse. Iliana glanced down to the sand below to try to determine which way their shadow pointed. She frowned. Had she gotten here in the morning or afternoon?
    “I don’t think he’s accustomed to being spoken to like that.”
    She froze and looked around. No one stood near her. She sat alone on the horse.
    The horse huffed an indignant sigh and turned his head to eye her.
    Iliana swallowed hard. “Did you say something?”
    “Yes, I said, I don't think he’s accustomed to being spoken to like that.”
    The voice echoed in her ears, but the horse’s lips had remained still. That’s it. I’ve gotten sunstroke. “I’m going crazy.”
    “That remains to be seen, but we’re still having this conversation anyway.” The gray snorted and tossed his head.
    “Is this some sort of cosmic joke? Horses can’t talk.” She snapped her mouth shut and shook her head. “And now I’m arguing with an animal.”
    “Only because you can’t seem to accept I can speak, and well enough for you to understand, young lady.”
    Iliana scrubbed her hands over her face. “No, no, no. This isn’t possible. There is no magic in the world except what Hollywood conjures. I must be dreaming this. I’m on a solo hike in New Mexico, minding my own business. This is just a dream from sunstroke…” She glanced around uncertainly. “Except the sand is golden and Taggart Crowe has shown up.”
    “The man you left behind is named Brandon Crowe and you’re in the Karobis Desert, which is in the country of Knalland.” The horse stretched a leg forward and rubbed the side of his muzzle against his knee. “The continent on which this desert stretches is called Absentia.”
    “Are you part of the script, too? When did this become a fantasy story?”
    The horse snorted. “What makes you think you’re in your desert? Have you seen any equipment from your home world? Have you seen any people beyond Crowe’s raiders?”
    Her stomach sank, but she rallied gamely. “And I suppose the planet has a completely different name as well?”
    “Actually, in this world the planet is called Earth.”
    “No. No way. I so don’t need this right now.” She pinched her thigh, but the world around didn’t change. “I know I didn't do the best in school, but I did pay attention a little. There’s no such thing as other worlds. That’s a science fiction thing. And talking horses are straight out of fantasy novels. I must have lost my mind.”
    “Not in the