November Harlequin Presents 1(54)

‘In the churches?’ Carrie looked at her in astonishment.

‘In many churches, all over the city.’ The woman beamed. ‘And now you and I shall go to my family’s quarters.’

‘Oh, no, I…’ Carrie didn’t want to go anywhere but to Nico, but the woman insisted on dragging her along and was in no mood to listen.

When they arrived Carrie was relieved to find that the ‘quarters’ of each family was simply a place in the square marked by a flag. Tables at least forty yards long were lined up and each of them was loaded with food and jugs of wine.

‘This is our rehearsal for the victory celebration,’ the elderly woman told her now, seeing Carrie’s curiosity as she stared at the people already eating and drinking. ‘The Palio is blood, noise and hysteria, for which we need plenty of fuel.’

As she cackled her approval Carrie blenched. She had seen the track with its hair-raising turns. She had come to accept that she couldn’t change Nico, and maybe she shouldn’t try, but this was far too dangerous.

‘Jockeys have been known to be killed…horses, too…’

‘Killed…’ Where was he? Carrie wondered in an agony of concern as the old lady continued her litany of doom. Nico had to pull out of the race. He had to…She stared around desperately. There seemed to be more people than ever in the square, and Princess Laura had explained that more than thirty thousand would crowd into the city that day.

Carrie was sure they were all here now, pressing in on her. A wave of nausea swept over her…a warning. The heat was stifling. And on top of that there was the raging inferno of competition. The noise, the barely suppressed violence…Carrie could identify the rival families by the different colours they wore, and the atmosphere was growing more aggressive by the minute. She was jostled as some members of the crowd started heckling, while their opponents cheered their favourites…But Nico…where was Nico?

Heated words were exchanged right next to her as several jockeys rode past. Carrie’s heart was thundering with fear. She should never have done this; emotion could turn so quickly to blows. But she was trapped in the crowd, trapped by desperation to find Nico before it was too late. Determined to keep her baby safe, she squeezed her way through to a quieter spot behind some barriers. She could see the riders streaming past…But she couldn’t see Nico…She shivered to see the expression on the faces of the men. They all looked the same, like tough, hard, fighting men who would show each other no mercy.

And then, by some miracle, he was right in front of her. She thrust out her arms and cried out his name to attract his attention, but he rode past without seeing her. His mount was skittish, jibbing from the howls of the crowd, and it was taking all his concentration to prevent it from rearing up. He looked darker and more forbidding than she had ever seen him. Naked to the waist, his face grimly set in an expression of absolute determination. His thighs were like a steel vise around the stallion’s flanks, and Carrie didn’t have the slightest doubt that Nico was more than a match for the other men. But the fact that he was here at all and taking part in such a ferocious, unforgiving battle terrified her. She called out to him again and waved her arms frantically in the hope he might see her, but the crowd was too noisy and he didn’t turn around, and she could only watch in desperation as he rode away.

‘Three times round the race track…’

‘What?’ Carrie clutched her throat as she turned to face the elderly woman at her side.

‘Three times round the race track. You must come with me,’ she insisted, ‘so we can be at the winning post to cheer him on.’

The whole crowd was moving and Carrie found it impossible to resist the flood of humanity at her back. She was glad of the older woman’s hand on her arm, directing her, but who knew where…

Using elbows and determination they finally reached the winning post and secured a prime position. ‘When will the race begin?’ Carrie said, taking advantage of a rare hush. But her companion’s answer was superfluous; the roar of the crowd told her everything. Noise exploded into the silence with such ferocity it shook the ground beneath her feet. Shutting her eyes, Carrie knew the only thing left to her was to wish Nico safe with every fibre of her being.

Two minutes, fifty-two seconds…that was the record; she’d seen it in the archives kept at the palace. One hundred and ninety-two seconds, and she already knew that each one of them would feel like an hour.

Leaving the shelter of the elderly woman’s side, Carrie pushed her way to the front of the crowd. She had to see him…She had to be the first to know that Nico was safe…She had to count the horses in one by one…She didn’t care if Nico won, or if he came last, she just wanted to see him cross the line safely….