{"id":3989,"date":"2011-03-16T09:20:05","date_gmt":"2011-03-16T13:20:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thegreathorse.com\/?p=3989"},"modified":"2017-06-01T12:58:03","modified_gmt":"2017-06-01T16:58:03","slug":"61-leaving-ancient-rome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/2011\/03\/61-leaving-ancient-rome\/","title":{"rendered":"#61- Leaving Ancient Rome"},"content":{"rendered":"

The following excerpt is from Eclipsed by Shadow<\/strong><\/em>, the award-winning 1st Book of “The Legend of the Great Horse<\/strong>” trilogy.
\n\"Ancient<\/a><\/p>\n

Heavily-scented guards pressed around Meagan. No wonder claustrophobia is a Latin word,<\/em> she thought as they jostled her. This was happening too quickly. \u201cOf course I will visit you, Horace. Do I have to go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could escape.\u201d The baritone voice was husky as he leaned close. \u201cI have family in Lazio. We could be married. We could\u2026\u201d Horace stopped himself, seeing her head shake slowly.<\/p>\n

Meagan was surprised by the matter-of-fact proposal. She had not until that moment fully realized she was of marriageable age. Of course she would be considered mere property in the arrangement, but the offer touched her. \u201cHorace, I can\u2019t. It\u2019s not my choice. I \u2026 I don\u2019t belong here. Please understand, I cannot.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Horace raised his gaze to the sky and recited softly, \u201cHer voice rings through me like a song on a lyre, yet it is only an echo on the wind.\u201d<\/em> He looked down again, his expression carefully composed. \u201cDoes it sound like the great Horatius,<\/em> even a little? It is mine, for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tear streaked down Meagan\u2019s face. \u201cPlease, Horace …\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou make me think of the dog of my boyhood, Highest Lady. I always thought my Hercules was very stupid because he chased birds. Now I know why.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHorace,\u201d Meagan smiled as she wiped her eyes. \u201cAs advice, never tell a girl she reminds you of a dog.\u201d<\/p>\n

The expression on his ruined face was soft. \u201cIt is to see them fly.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tightness grew in Meagan\u2019s chest. \u201cYou saved me,<\/em> Horace. Don\u2019t forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was only my destiny. I will remember you.\u201d Horace stepped forward and kissed her forehead. He bowed as guards pushed her on.<\/p>\n

A cleared space followed Meagan like a spotlight as she was escorted through the tight crowd. A beaming Master of Horse called warmly, hurrying closer. \u201cThere she is, Excellency! My assistant!\u201d<\/em> The man\u2019s voice was familiar but his manner was not: he was being nice. \u201cAre you well, sweet child?\u201d the man doted. \u201cI hope you had no trouble with the Blue fans!\u201d<\/p>\n

Seated on the high bench was a smiling Emperor. His voice was gentle. \u201cBring the slave closer, Cornelius.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, the award-winning first volume of “The Legend of the Great Horse<\/strong>” trilogy. <\/a> (Hrdbk pg. 172)<\/p>\n

Book II: The Golden Spark<\/strong><\/em> is available! Book III announcements coming soon…<\/p>\n

Read the 1st Chapter<\/a> (free) online!<\/h4>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2008 John Royce<\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The following excerpt is from Eclipsed by Shadow, the award-winning 1st Book of “The Legend of the Great Horse” trilogy. Heavily-scented guards pressed around Meagan. No wonder claustrophobia is a Latin word, she thought as they jostled her. This was happening too quickly. \u201cOf course I will visit you, Horace. Do I have to go?\u201d … Continue reading “#61- Leaving Ancient Rome”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[118,219,85,70,165,222,223,208,217],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3989"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3989"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3989\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15116,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3989\/revisions\/15116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thegreathorse.com\/book-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}