 You smelled of an enemy of mine, he told her. Evren scrunched up her face in confusion and disgust. Who could he possibly be talking about? The desert herd was not one known for often straying out of their home, and reclusive as they were, she could only assume this stallion had made an egregious error.
“What are you talking about?” she demanded, shaking her head in dismay. With the roiling sea at his back and his amber eyes flashing in anger, the tall, well-built stallion was an imposing sight, and despite her own sense of injustice at her situation - and despite the fact Evren was a horse who was rarely afraid - right then she felt the cool fingers of dread trickling down her spine. It prickled like the very cold itself, threatening to spread through her body and leave her helpless. She felt her knees begin to shake.
She dared not show fear in the face of her captor, of course, so she steeled herself and met his intense glare with her own, unwavering stare. Her stony expression nearly crumbled when he dropped Vita Nova’s name, though, and it took her a few moments to process the reality of her situation. So her sibling had been out and about and ruffled a few feathers. That made sense - she could remember hearing about the ordeal from Nova afterward.
When she finally spoke, her voice was low and clipped. “You speak of my brother, Koray. He is… troubled, but I can assure you he has never laid a hoof on Nova.” This stranger didn’t need to know that Evren could not say the same about herself. She still bore the scar from Koray’s teeth, hidden away in the tangle of her mane. “What could you possibly hope to achieve from taking me against my will? From my home? How does that make you morally superior?” she continued, her voice rising and her lip curling.
“I may not know your name, but you’ve already proven yourself to be a complete moron.” She took one brave step closer to him.
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