True Heart Read Free Page B

again.
    The best thing to do was to stay between the other travelers.
    At first it was easy.
    It got harder.
    Every little lane that joined the High Road had a few people on it.
    There were more little roads all the time.
    Like creeks joining a river, each town road carried a current of people and wagons.
    By midmorning the High Road was full, a tangle of carts and crowds.
    The unicorns pretended that Heart was leading them along.
    People stared at Moonsilver for a moment, then went back to talking.
    These people were farmers and villagers, Heart realized. They were interested in the fancy armor. But they didn’t know or care how Heart should be dressed.
    Heart made sure the unicorns walked at the pace of the crowds around them.
    She was careful not to meet anyone’s eyes.
    The countryside was rocky and steep as the road continued upward. Then, finally, at midday it began to descend, going downhill at last.
    They passed more towns.
    By afternoon Heart and the unicorns were squeezed between a wagon full of caged pheasants and six chatting women.
    The women carried bulging bags over their shoulders. Heart knew what was in them. She could smell fresh-baked bread.
    Kip could too.
    He dropped back.
    He walked beside one of the women, looking up at her.
    She bent down to pat his head. He gave her a wet doggy kiss on the cheek.

    The woman laughed aloud.
    Heart kept glancing over her shoulder.
    She couldn’t let go of the unicorns’ halters. People had to think they were horses—that they needed to be led along or they might stray.
    Kip was bowing now, Heart saw. He was using his Gypsy-show tricks to charm the women.
    â€œLook at that!” the woman said, getting her friends to watch Kip too.
    â€œKip!” Heart called. “Come!” She met the woman’s eyes. “I’m sorry he’s bothering you,” she said politely.
    The woman smiled widely at her. “No bother at all!”
    â€œKip!” Heart called again.
    This time he came, his ears and tail lowered.
    He walked beside Moonsilver, sulking.
    â€œDon’t be so friendly,” Heart scolded him in a low voice. “What will I do if they start asking questions?”
    â€œBeautiful horses, dearie,” the woman calledout to her. “And such a lovely little dog.”
    Heart nodded without turning.
    â€œIs your master in Bidenfast for the festival?”
    Heart glared at Kip. He whined and lowered his head as though he understood why she was angry.
    â€œThat’s where we are going,” Heart said carefully. “I have friends there.”
    The woman nodded pleasantly. “Well, if you like dog tricks, be sure to see the Gypsy show.”
    Heart turned. “Gypsy show?”
    The woman nodded. “There might be a horse trained to act like a unicorn, people are saying. And they have wirewalkers and balancers and music—and two or three trained dogs.”
    â€œIt sounds grand,” Heart said as evenly as she could. “Are you sure they will be there?”
    The woman nodded. “My cousin’s wife’s friend is a guardsman. He says the young lord’s uncle wanted them there.”
    Heart turned away, glancing at Moonsilver and Avamir.
    They looked like bored horses, their heads andtails low, their eyes half closed as they walked.
    â€œHe’s a bad one,” the woman whispered. “The uncle. He takes shares off his villages’ crops till the folk nearly starve.”
    â€œHush yourself,” one of the woman’s friends warned. The woman’s eyes widened, and Heart saw her glance toward Moonsilver.
    â€œI mean, I heard that once,” she said quickly. “I’m sure it wasn’t true.”
    She dropped back to walk with her friends, her cheeks flushed.
    Heart knew the woman thought she was a stable page—some low-ranking nobility—because of Moonsilver’s armor. Heart wanted to explain that she was a villager too.
    But she didn’t