"Umm, well... I don't know if he's dead, but he's just gone to... slaughter." Lucy stuttered, struggling to speak.

I'm not going to lie, this spelled doom.

Just as I was about to scream at Lucy, Rebecca slammed into me from behind. "Oh I'm sorry! You have to come with me! And quick!" Before I had time to reply, Rebecca grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the stables and into the car park. "Rebecca what is this all about!?" I huffed, before hopping into the passenger set.

"The slaughter people offered to sell survivor to me for $1000!" She panted. The car rattled into life and sped down the road. "Rebecca your speeding!" I yelled over the roaring engine. "I only speed when it's an emergency!" She replied.

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I mouth dropped wider than ever before.

We were at the slaughter auction! I hurried after Rebecca, swinging on my crutches, into the crowd of bidders.

The first horse led into the yard was a small 1.2 yr old strawberry roan Carthusian. One man raised his sweaty hand to bid $1000. Rebecca looked at him and then her hand shot up like a rocket. "Why are you bidding? That horse is going to that man, not slaughter." I whispered into her ears. "Look at his top, he's buying horses for slaughter." I peered at the mans top, sure enough, on the sleeve was a logo saying Horse Slaughter. "But horses that aren't bought here are sent to slaughter, so why do they need their own bidders?" I speculated. " because they want ALL the horses! Most of them are bought before slaughter so they don't make enough money! Now hush so I can listen!" She replied obviously getting irritated by all my questions, but I couldn't help it, this is the first slaughter auction I had ever been to!

We watched as five more horses were bought by people with enough money to outbid the slaughter men.

As the sixth horse was led away, five men dragged a grullo stallion into the ring. "That's Survivor!" We syncronized.

I raised my hand to be the first bidder, and as expected, the man from slaughter bided higher. "$500" Rebecca bellowed to the auctioneer. For more than five minutes we bided against the man. I was about to lift my hand to reach for the sky when Rebecca whacked my hand down. "We can't bid that high!" She looked at me with pain and sorrow as the man claimed survivor for $1,150."

I cried into Rebecca's shoulder as we watched helplessly as the men carelessly yanked Survivor into the second, already crowded slaughter truck. The truck coughed clouds of smoke as it awoke from its slumber and began its slow journey back to the Kill Yards. At lest we had been able to save Sprinkles, the young roan filly.

Desperation for Survivor nearly drove me crazy! I surged forward after the last slaughter truck, I didn't come all this way to see my precious boy be sent to die now did I?!!

Rebecca ran back to wards the car and pulled it up beside me. "Get in! We're not done yet!" She demanded, leading Sprinkles into her double float. She turned the car into gear and sped down the rode after the slaughter trucks.

Survivors POV

Where am I? Where's Elisabeth? She's meant to be here, to comfort me and keep me safe. What is happening to me? These new two-legs smell of death. They crowd us into what they call horse-tucks or something. With every turn this, horse-tuck makes we are thrown into each other.

Suddenly the horse-tuck screeches to a halt.

The two-legs slip ropes around our necks and lead us into crowded pens. Fearful, sweating bodies press up against me from all angles. Every few minutes another horse is roped and lead into the huge building. My eyes are nailed to where the horses enter, hoping, waiting.
But not one of them returns.