Chapter 244
Isolde let out a short, mocking laugh. She snapped the reins and spurred Tempest forward, leaving Grayson and Belle standing in a cloud of dust.
The beginner’s ring was a small, enclosed oval covered in soft sand.
Isolde stood by the wooden fence, watching Effie sit atop a small, gentle white pony named Snowball. The instructor led her in slow circles while Effie giggled with pure joy.
The peace was shattered by the heavy thud of large hooves.
Kaiden rode into the ring atop a tall, expensive brown gelding, a private coach walking beside him and holding the lead rope tightly. The moment Kaiden spotted Effie, he yanked on his reins and steered his horse toward her.
“Look at what you are riding!” Kaiden yelled, pointing and laughing loudly. “It looks like a fat rat! My horse is a real horse! Yours is garbage!”
Effie’s giggles stopped instantly. She shrank back in her saddle and looked toward Isolde with wide, frightened eyes.
𝘋о𝗐𝗻𝗹оa𝖽 𝘗𝘋𝖥𝘀 f𝗿е𝖾 𝗼𝗇 𝘨𝗮𝗅𝘯о𝗏𝖾ls.с𝘰m
Isolde’s jaw locked. She stepped away from the fence and walked into the ring. She reached up and patted Effie’s leg gently.
“A horse’s value is not in its size, Effie. It is in the bond it shares with its rider. You are doing perfectly.”
Kaiden scowled — he hated that Effie wasn’t crying. He kicked his heels into his horse’s sides and aggressively yanked the right rein. The brown gelding sidestepped sharply, its heavy hooves kicking up a spray of wet sand directly onto Effie’s pristine white shirt.
Isolde’s eyes went completely dark.
She didn’t yell. She didn’t scold Kaiden. She simply turned and whistled sharply.
Tempest, tied to a post just outside the ring, snapped his lead rope with a violent jerk. The black horse trotted into the ring and stopped directly behind Isolde. She pointed at Kaiden’s horse.
Tempest took two aggressive steps forward, lowered his massive head, and let out a deafening, terrifying snort.
Kaiden’s brown gelding panicked. It whinnied in fear and scrambled backward, nearly tripping over its own hooves. Kaiden lost his balance, slipped sideways in the saddle, and screamed in terror as he dangled by one stirrup before the coach caught him.
Kaiden burst into loud, hysterical tears.
“What are you doing?!”
Belle came running into the ring, her riding boots sinking into the sand. Grayson was right behind her, his face dark as a thundercloud.
“Isolde!” Belle shrieked, pulling Kaiden off the horse and hugging him. “You purposely scared a child! You are psychotic!”
Isolde stood perfectly still, her hand resting on Tempest’s neck. “Teach your child basic equestrian etiquette. If he acts like a thug in the ring, the ring will teach him a lesson.”
Grayson looked at Kaiden’s tear-streaked face, then at Effie, who sat calmly on her pony. A muscle feathered in his jaw.
Belle, desperate to regain control of the situation and save face before the gathering crowd of club members, stood up and pointed a finger at Isolde. “If you are so brave, Isolde, race me,” she challenged loudly. “Three laps around the main track. Right now.”
The surrounding club members began to whisper, sensing the drama.
.
.