31
“That’s the last one,” Rinaldo said as he led Michaela up over the rise toward the tenth corral in the distance.
It was afternoon now, and the day still felt unusually mild. A strong warm wind had been blowing from over the top of the pass since morning, like a last gasp of summer before the cold weather truly took hold.
Rinaldo walked on Michaela’s left side, the horse Rune on her right. Michaela kept her hand resting gently against Rune as he slowly shambled along.
The horse had seemed weary from the start. He had already climbed up the steep trail to reach the encampment that morning, carrying his heavy load, and now each extra step seemed to exhaust him more. He stumbled sometimes on stones or some unevenness in the ground, and each time Rinaldo could hear Michaela’s sharp intak
