The Wild Freedom I Choose

Blood and Betrayal

"You're done with horseback riding. From now on, you stay home and wait for Celia to have the baby. If you keep this up, that ridiculous equestrian competition will end in disaster sooner or later!"

I suddenly felt drained, too weary to keep fighting with Cyran.

"We're getting divorced. You don't have any right to control me."

…

A few days later, during the championship round, I spotted Cyran and Celia in the stands. Their presence alone soured the air around me.

Acorn cleared a few obstacles, then gave a sudden shudder. His rhythm faltered, and one mistake tumbled into another.

When he leapt the final fence, his foreleg caught. The massive weight of his body crashed down, pinning me beneath him.

The officials stopped the competition at once. Cyran and Celia hurried down with the staff.

Acorn's leg was shattered. He thrashed helplessly on the ground.

A stabbing, tearing pain spread through my lower abdomen.

"I warned you this would happen—that riding would land you in trouble. But you never listen!"

Cyran's voice dripped with scorn, as if he had been waiting for this moment.

"This damned horse again. Last time it nearly made me miscarry. Now, it's crushed Elara. It doesn't deserve to live another day!"

Celia waddled closer, clutching her swollen belly. She crouched beside Acorn, raised her hand, and struck his broken leg.

"Stop!"

Her scream tore through the arena at the same time as my desperate cry.

In agony, Acorn lashed out. His hoof drove straight into Celia's stomach. A gush of blood erupted instantly.

Chaos erupted around us when one of the staff shouted in fury, "Who did this? Who put a long needle under the saddle?"

The words froze me. Rage and grief shot straight to my head.

And right then, Celia let out a wailing scream, twisting the moment to her advantage.

"Elara! You wretched woman! This is all your fault! You insisted on riding, you provoked Cyran, and that's why he slipped the needle under the saddle! My baby could be in danger because of you! You dragged me into this—it's all your fault!"

I stared at Cyran, utterly stunned.

In an instant, terror, fury, and betrayal crashed over me like a storm.

He shifted uneasily, holding Celia close, guilt flickering in his eyes. But just as quickly, he hardened, speaking with self-righteous indignation.

"I only did it because you refused to give up riding! We've been married six years and you still won't give me a child. Haven't I been patient enough? Now, Celia's child is in danger because of that beast you insist on keeping. Are you happy now?"

I looked at him, and suddenly he was a stranger.

Six years. And yet I had never seen the darkness, the cruelty, and the pettiness coiled inside this man.

Fine then. Some secrets didn't need to wait for the divorce to be spoken aloud.

"Cyran, don't act so heartbroken. Whether her baby survives or not—what does it matter to you? It isn't even yours."

Celia, who had been on the verge of fainting, snapped awake at once, her eyes wild. "You vile liar! How dare you slander me!"

Cyran glared at me with nothing but contempt.

"Even now, you can't resist throwing filth on someone else's name."

I sneered and told him to call my lawyer.

Cyran scolded me at first, insisting I was talking nonsense, but when he saw the panic on Celia's face, he still made the call.

A few minutes later, the phone went dead. His face had turned a stormy, iron-gray.

By then, the medical staff had dragged me out from under Acorn.

My white riding pants were soaked through with blood.

Cyran's eyes fell on me, and his expression shifted instantly. He lunged to the ground, trembling as he scooped me into his arms. "Elara! You're bleeding so much… Don't scare me like this!"

Pain and blood loss blurred my vision.

In the last fleeting moment before consciousness slipped away, I managed a bitter smile and whispered another secret. "Cyran… I'm pregnant."