This despite the fact that he was a terrible rider. Before coming to Riat, he’d never been on the back of a horse. He’d ridden a mule once, and it was an experience he did not care to repeat. But Lucien had insisted that he learn to ride. It was one of many skills Marius was receiving a rapid education in, along with reading, writing, mathematics, history, languages, and tumbling. That last was supposed to be swordplay, but so far there were no swords involved, just a lot of rolling and calisthenics and footwork. Lucien had provided him with a quiet bay gelding named Gambler, who was now permanently stabled at the villa alongside Drusus’s gray stallion. Gambler, despite his name, was predictable and steady. His best feature was that he had a habit of stopping and waiting patiently when Marius lost his balance. Marius and Drusus rode side by side up the never-ending switchbacks to the imperial palace. The higher they ascended, the more Marius’s stomach twisted. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Lucien and Vitala.
