Chapter 160: A MISPLACED SMILE
KEISHA’S POV
I tightened my grip on the reins and pulled back, trying to steady the horse before its uneven gait became something worse.
Instead of responding, the animal jerked its head violently, its muscles tightening beneath me as though every command I gave only agitated it further.
"It’s alright," I whispered more to myself than to the horse. "Easy... easy..."
This wasn’t easy.
The horse ignored every attempt to calm it. It tossed its head again, snorted loudly and broke into a faster run around the enclosed field, forcing me to cling tightly to the saddle as the world blurred past, wind whipping past my face.
The riding instructor reacted almost instantly.
He shouted something I couldn’t properly hear before sprinting after the horse, another attendant close behind him with a lead rope in hand. "Slow it down!"
"I can’t!" The wind swallowed my voice almost as quickly as the words left my mouth.
I kept trying to guide the horse toward the inside of the track where the attendants would have a better chance of reaching us, but every pull on the reins seemed to make the animal more unsettled. Its injured leg faltered every few strides, yet instead of stopping, it pushed itself harder as though driven by panic rather than reason.
People stepped away from the fence and stable hands rushed forward as someone hurried to open a side gate.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Nadia racing along the boundary, her face pale with fear as she called my name over and over again. Even from that distance I could see the panic written plainly across her features.
Then my eyes moved again and I saw as Vera stood near the fence exactly where we had left her.
For the briefest moment... I could have sworn she was smiling.
No. She was not smiling. She was laughing.
That couldn’t be right. It didn’t make sense.
The horse surged forward again, and my attention was ripped away before I had the chance to look properly. By the time I managed another glance, Vera looked exactly as I would have expected— standing still with both hands clasped together, concern written clearly across her face.
Had I imagined it?
The horse had been moving so quickly and my vision had been blurred. Perhaps I had mistaken the movement of her mouth.
That had to be it.
There was simply no reason Vera would laugh while I was struggling to stay mounted.
Determined not to lose control completely, I shifted my weight carefully and loosened the reins just enough to stop fighting the horse’s movements. The instructor had shouted something similar only moments earlier, and after several long, terrifying laps around the field, the horse’s frantic pace finally began to slow.
Its breathing grew heavier and its strides shortened.
The animal stumbled to an unsteady halt and relief washed through me and I eased my grip without thinking.
Suddenly, the horse jerked one final time, throwing its head sharply to one side.
Before I could recover my balance, the sudden movement pitched me sideways, throwing me off the saddle.
I landed awkwardly, the impact knocking the breath from my lungs as pain shot through my ankle. For several seconds I could only lie there, staring at the bright afternoon sky while my body struggled to remember how to breathe.
The first face I saw was Nadia’s. She reached me almost immediately, dropping to her knees beside me with obvious panic. "Keisha!"
"I’m okay..."
At least, I hoped I was.
My ankle protested the moment I tried moving it.
Oh shit.
Vera arrived only moments later, visibly shaken. "Oh, Keisha..." She crouched beside me, her expression filled with guilt as she carefully examined me without trying to move me too quickly. "I’m so sorry. This was my idea. I never should have suggested riding."
"It’s alright," I managed, though my voice came out weaker than I intended.
"No, it isn’t." Her eyes immediately dropped to my stomach. "The babies..." The worry in her expression looked genuine. "Do you feel any pain?"
I instinctively rested a hand against my abdomen before slowly shaking my head. "I don’t think so."
"I don’t think isn’t enough." She stood almost immediately. "We’re seeing a doctor."
The attendants apologised repeatedly while helping us back toward the waiting vehicle, promising they would investigate how an injured horse had been assigned to riders in the first place. Vera barely acknowledged their explanations as her entire attention remained fixed on me throughout the drive, asking every few minutes whether I felt dizzy, uncomfortable or had noticed anything unusual.
By the time we reached the mansion, she had already arranged for the pack doctor to meet us.
Despite the doctor’s calm demeanour, I couldn’t stop imagining every possible outcome while waiting for the results. The room remained almost completely silent until the examination was finished.
Finally, the doctor smiled reassuringly. "The babies are perfectly fine."
The breath I had been holding escaped all at once.
"So is the pregnancy," the doctor continued. "Your ankle has taken the worst of the fall. You’ll need to rest it for a few days, but otherwise everything looks reassuring."
Nadia visibly relaxed and Vera thanked the doctor several times before he excused himself.
As everyone began preparing to leave, my eyes drifted toward Vera. For just an instant... Something flickered across her face — disappointment.
The expression vanished so quickly that I questioned myself immediately afterward.
She noticed me looking and smiled as warmly as ever.
Perhaps I was overthinking again.
Back in my room, Nadia helped me settle onto the bed before disappearing briefly and returning with a small bowl of ice wrapped inside a towel.
She carefully rested it against my swollen ankle. "I’m really sorry."
I looked up and frowned because she sounded genuinely miserable. "You don’t have to apologise."
"If I’d insisted we skip the riding..."
"Then we’d probably be apologising for missing out on the afternoon instead."
She sighed. "I’m serious."
"So am I." A small laugh escaped me. "It wasn’t exactly how I imagined today ending, but... I’ve survived worse."
She looked at me in disbelief. "You’re calling this an adventure?"
"I suppose every adventure needs one dramatic moment."
Despite herself, Nadia laughed.
The easy conversation came to an abrupt halt when the bedroom door swung open with enough force to strike the wall and Callum strode inside, his expression tight with worry.
His gaze swept over me so quickly that it seemed he was checking for injuries before he’d even fully entered the room. "I came back as soon as I heard." His eyes settled on the towel wrapped around my ankle. "What happened?"
Before I could answer, Nadia glanced between the two of us and let out an amused sigh.
"You know," she said, unable to hide the smile tugging at her lips, "I’m starting to think Father worries more about Keisha than he ever worries about me."