Chapter 67: Chapter 67: A Horse Racing Accident

The stable always kept a change of riding clothes for Jessie.

Although Jessie was only an amateur, she preferred classic riding attire, nothing too flashy.

When she emerged from the changing room, her freshly styled hair was completely tucked into a black helmet. Classic white breeches paired with black knee-high boots accentuated her straight, slender calves.

Lynn Jennings was sitting in the front row of the stands. The equestrian center had been cleared for them today, so besides their own group, there were no other spectators.

The moment Lynn saw Jessie emerge, she put her fingers to her lips and whistled. The gesture gave her a roguish air.

Standing nearby, Cheryl Stuart shot Lynn a surprised glance. In truth, from the moment she had accompanied Brianna Hudson and met Jessie Sterling and Lynn Jennings, nothing had gone as she’d expected.

And the impromptu competition between Brianna and Jessie—along with the prize, or more accurately, the stakes—was a real eye-opener for her.

In the entertainment industry, she had always cultivated a “rich girl” persona.

Her family was indeed comfortably well-off. Her parents ran a clothing factory that employed about a hundred people.

At the very least, her family could afford her art studies without any trouble.

But it was only after getting together with Mason Walsh that Cheryl saw what truly wealthy people were like.

She had assumed an heiress like Lynn Jennings would be just like a character from a novel—unapproachable and perpetually elegant.

She never expected to see her whistling at someone like that.

Even she had been taught by her elders since childhood that such things were for hooligans and delinquents; it was unladylike behavior.

But now…

Cheryl looked at Lynn’s bold profile. Even though Lynn was still in her business attire, Cheryl inexplicably felt that *this* was what a true heiress was like.

’Who would be putting on airs all the time?’

Lynn sensed Cheryl’s gaze and turned her head, about to ask something, but Cheryl quickly looked away.

Lynn was completely baffled.

However, she quickly put the small incident out of her mind, because she saw Jessie vault onto her horse down on the field.

They had both been riding since they were children, so their movements were naturally graceful and precise.

A beam of late afternoon sun, around four or five o’clock, pierced through the clouds and seemed to envelop Jessie entirely, making her glow.

Before the race officially started, Jessie rode a warm-up lap.

She needed to get a feel for the horse’s condition and let the horse get used to her.

Brianna, on her end, was already set. She was very confident in the thoroughbred mare she was riding, a champion from last season. Seeing Jessie approach on the chestnut horse, Allen, she couldn’t help but press, “I’m all set. Jessie, are you ready yet?”

As Brianna spoke, Jessie rode up to her.

She arched an eyebrow, a smirk playing on her lips. “I hope you’re this eager when it’s time to sell me your Sanctum shares.”

Brianna retorted instinctively, “Not a chance!”

Jessie just smiled without a word.

Brianna couldn’t stand Jessie’s nonchalant attitude, as if she were already guaranteed the win. “This horse I’m riding is named Alice. Do you have any idea what her story is?”

Jessie made a show of listening intently.

Brianna began, her voice full of pride, “This is a champion horse! On the track, Alice has beaten stallions. When she won the championship, she was even in the local papers. She’s a bit of a celebrity horse, you could say. So, don’t feel too bad when you lose today.” As she spoke, Brianna patted the horse’s flank.

Listening to Brianna go on and on, Jessie was momentarily at a loss for words.

Her gaze was drawn to Alice’s belly.

According to Victor Morgan, the horse was in the early stages of pregnancy, so it wasn’t showing yet.

’The seller had deliberately hidden it. Wasn’t a careless person like Brianna the perfect sucker?’

A mare in the early stages of pregnancy might not be slower, but the seller had offloaded her because a pregnant mare’s hormones can be unpredictable, leading to all sorts of potential accidents during a race.

For a racehorse, an accident is a risk, and a businessman wouldn’t tolerate such a high potential for error.

“Congratulations, then?” Jessie said, tilting her head. “Since you were kind enough to introduce me to Alice, how about I offer you a word of advice in return?”

“Hmm?”

Jessie said, “Don’t push the pace too hard during the race. If something unexpected happens, it could be hard to control.”

Hearing this, Brianna’s expression turned strange.

“Jessie, are you trying to concede already?”

Jessie shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

Of course, Brianna didn’t listen.

She was counting on winning Jessie’s company, Shiyuan Yi, today. How could she possibly hold back?

The moment the race began, Alice shot forward.

The celebrity horse’s burst of speed was indeed impressive, and her reaction time was swift. Jessie fell behind by half a length.

Leaning against the stand’s railing, Lynn couldn’t help but feel a pang of anxiety for Jessie.

Jessie wasn’t too worried. As they rounded the first turn, Allen began to accelerate, closing the distance on Alice.

The two figures on the track were a blur of motion, racing neck and neck, their forms almost overlapping.

Finally, at the third turn, Jessie didn’t slow down. She just lowered her center of gravity, leaning into the curve. As they entered the final straightaway, Jessie stared intently ahead. She could feel Allen’s muscles tensing, every fiber straining. Even through her boots, she felt a burning heat against her calves.

Fifty centimeters. Ten centimeters. Zero—

The next second, Allen pulled completely ahead of Alice, taking the lead.

As Allen’s head crossed the finish line, the tension on Jessie’s face finally melted away, replaced by a relieved smile.

Jessie was about to turn and wave to Lynn in the stands when she caught sight of Brianna behind her. Brianna’s face was pale, and the horse beneath her, Alice, was charging wildly toward the nearby stands—

The staff at the finish line had already noticed something was wrong, but one of them couldn’t get out of the way in time. Alice kicked him squarely, and he let out a pained scream.

Brianna was terrified by the sudden turn of events. She could only scream, her mind a complete blank.

“Hold on to the reins!”

One of the trainers, who normally handled the racehorses, yelled out the order, blowing his whistle as he tried to direct Brianna.

But Brianna had already lost her nerve the moment Alice went out of control. All she could hear was the rushing wind and the abnormal THUMP-THUMP of her own heart. The trainer’s words didn’t even register.

To Jessie’s horror, she saw a figure thrown from the horse’s back.

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