The Gates Of Troy by Glyn Iliffe Read Free Book Online Page B

of the animal’s lips and gestured for the youngest of the three grooms, who were watching him with fascination, to join him.
    ‘Even in Troy it’s said Spartans are the best horse-breeders in Greece,’ he announced, making the boy grin with pride. ‘But this girl’s special, even by your country’s standards. What’s her name, lad?’
    ‘Lipse, my lord. After the wind goddess.’
    ‘A good name,’ Paris nodded. ‘But if you want her to live up to it, you need to feed her better. Put more corn in her food and give her plenty of treats – my own horse likes grapes. Most importantly, you need to exercise her on the plains, not here in the palace courtyard. She needs her freedom, even if it’s only for a short while every day. Give her that and you’ll soon see the sort of horse she can really become.’
    He gave the groom’s shoulder a squeeze, before leaning over and offering the palm of his hand to the pure-black mare. She nudged it gently with her soft nose.
    ‘Sir?’ said one of the other grooms tentatively. ‘Sir, how do you make the animals love you so much?’
    ‘Make them?’ Paris replied, arching his eyebrows slightly and shaking his head. ‘No man can make a creature love him – he must earn its love through kindness and trust.’
    ‘But you’ve only been here a few moments, sir, and already the horses act as if they’ve known you all their lives.’
    Paris lowered himself onto his haunches and beckoned the boys to come closer. ‘I can see there’s no fooling you three,’ he conceded, looking into their eyes as they sat before him. ‘Well, I’ll tell you my secret, but you’re not to share it with anyone, do you understand?’
    They nodded eagerly, and with a conspiratorial glance over his shoulder, Paris began the strange tale of his childhood. On the day he was born, he told them, a prophecy decreed that he would bring about the ruin of Troy. Though loath to kill his own child, King Priam was eventually persuaded to give the task to his chief herdsman. But Agelaus did not have the heart to run the baby through or drown him, so he abandoned him to his fate on the foothills of Mount Ida. When, five days later, he found the baby still alive and being suckled by a she-bear, Agelaus decided to bring him up as his own. Whether it was something in the beast’s milk, or simply a gift of the gods, Paris grew up with the ability to gain the trust of any creature. The sheep in his flocks loved him dearly and followed him everywhere, and no wolf, lion or other wild beast would ever attack them so long as Paris was nearby. This same skill gave him the ability to train fighting bulls, for which he became famous throughout Ilium. When Priam himself ordered Paris to bring his best bull to sacrifice at Troy, the boy’s nobility was impossible to disguise and Agelaus was forced to confess that Paris was the king’s son. Having been wracked by guilt ever since ordering the infant’s death, Priam ignored the old prophecy and welcomed Paris back into his family. He was made a prince, second only to Hector, the king’s eldest son.
    ‘But I’ve never lost the power to win the love of wild creatures,’ Paris concluded, standing and smiling at the enthralled grooms. ‘Be they horses, wolves, or even the birds of the air. I must go now, but I promise you I’ll come again. And don’t forget what I said about Lipse.’
    He turned and walked further along the lines of restless horses. Every animal in Menelaus’s stable was alert to his presence, each one pressing up against the wooden bars of the pens as he walked by. The rich odour of straw and dung filled his senses and reminded him of Troy, but his ever-present longing for his homeland was tempered by an unexpected reluctance to leave Sparta. It was now the third day since his arrival, and though he had no love for the austere city and its hostile people, their queen had cast a spell over him that had thrown his thoughts and emotions into turmoil.