Chapter 1
My horses, Mosi and
Oni, took the lead. I could taste victory—sweet victory. They could run like
gazelles when I let them. Just one more lap. I heard the roaring crowd chanting
my name.
“Run!” I shouted. We
passed Tariq, and a scowl covered his brow. He slapped the reins at me in a
last-ditch attempt to yank me off the chariot, but I was a seasoned racer now.
No chance of that happening.
We rounded the first
turn, and I kept my distance. I didn’t want any more trickery or sleight of
hand—like Tariq sawing off my wheel. The other racers had been knocked out or
given up. Only Tariq was left, but dropping farther behind. The finish line
called my name.
Less than a minute
later, I threw up my hands triumphantly. I flicked the reins to slow the
horses, and the people drummed their feet in the stands. Celebratory flowers
littered the Hippodrome as the fickleness of the spectators never ceased to
amaze me. The Romans believed I was a criminal and a Jewish one at that. Now
that I was the winner—making risky gamblers wealthy—the crowd was on my side.
Besides, everybody loved an underdog.
I relaxed for a moment in all the accolades. The Roman authorities wouldn’t dare arrest me. The last thing Pontius Pilate wanted was a riot on his hands
and be called back to Rome.
Now was my turn for
sweet revenge. What had Tariq done to my father? And that time traveler who
terrified Shale at the inn, Tariq must know who sent him.
I searched for my
betrothed and Shira behind Pontius Pilate and his entourage, but I couldn’t
find them. Out of nowhere, I saw Much-Afraid scurrying across the racetrack.
What was Shale’s dog doing here? Horses and chariots were everywhere. Fear that
she might get trampled made me panic.
As I was scheming
how to help her, a mysterious cloud settled over the racetrack. Amid the
fanfare, I heard someone whisper, “Daniel, the race isn’t over.”
Of course, the race
was over. I looked around. Who said that, but I couldn’t see anyone in the fog.
The noise of
squeaking wheels and cheering fans began to fade into the distance. When the
haze lifted, I saw an open scroll, and Tariq and I were racing again—this time
among the stars.