Horse Horror

The fear of a horse is unlike any other.

Rare, sought-after,

panthers slaver for it,

wolves rally for it,

breeders select for it,

those thrumming pearls of hot blood.

Like every grazer, a horse is a soothsayer.

He knows he is one broken leg

one burst tendon

one wicked black lily

one tangled length of gut

one burden too many

from a bullet between the eyes.

His rider calls him out to the field

and ends the day with a sugar cube

but it is hard, damned hard,

the hardest thing in the world

to fool a prophet.

His rider calls him out to the field

and every time he wonders:

Will today be the day?

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