Chapter 1

My stepson begged me to borrow Zephyr, the gentlest horse in my club, for just one day.

He said he was dating a sweet college girl, and she really wanted to learn how to ride.

To support his relationship, I personally brought this multimillion-dollar stallion to the track.

But as soon as the ride started, Zephyr suddenly let out a sharp, agonizing shriek.

I rushed onto the track, only to find someone had maliciously hammered pushpins into the crevices of his horseshoe!

As blood poured out, my eyes went red with anger. I demanded answers from the girl who had just dismounted.

Instead of answering, she pinched her nose in disgust, took a step back, and pouted to my stepson.

"Babe, who is this smelly stable woman? How dare she yell at me!"

I had always given my stepson, Ethan, whatever he wanted. I considered myself a decent stepmother.

But his new girlfriend made my stomach turn.

I looked at the girl clinging to Ethan, then turned to Zephyr, who was huffing in pain. My anger flared.

I bred Zephyr myself. Even the senior trainers at the club didn't dare push him too hard.

And today, some brat had jammed pushpins into his hoof.

Suppressing my rage, I glared at Ethan. "Ethan, is this what you promised me?"

"You said she just wanted to walk him slowly. You swore she wouldn't hurt him."

Before Ethan could speak, Clara, his girlfriend, rolled her eyes and piped up.

"Who even are you? Just a low-level worker at this club, and you dare yell at Ethan?"

Clara tugged Ethan’s sleeve, her voice sickeningly sweet.

"Ethan, the staff here are so rude. She just started shouting at me out of nowhere."

"And this stupid horse suddenly went crazy. It almost threw me off! I think I sprained my ankle."

Ethan immediately looked down to check her ankle, his eyes filled with worry.

"Clara, are you okay? Do we need to go to the hospital?"

Once he made sure she was fine, Ethan looked up at me with sheer annoyance and disdain.

"Vivian, didn't I tell you not to wander around when I bring my friends here?"

"Take this beast and get out of here. You're ruining our day."

*Vivian.* He called me by my name like I was some hired help.

I let out a cold, angry laugh, staring at the ungrateful leech I had raised for eight years.

My name is Vivian Sinclair. I am the founder of this elite equestrian club, and I am Ethan’s stepmother.

To protect his fragile pride, I rarely showed my face in public at the club, choosing to manage everything behind the scenes.

When he wanted to borrow a horse, I didn't hesitate to bring out Zephyr—the most expensive, gentlest stallion in the stable.

And now, just to play the big-shot in front of a girl, he was treating me like a lowly stable hand.

"Ethan, what did you just call me? Say it again."

I took a step forward, looking him dead in the eye.

Ethan flinched slightly under my gaze, but he quickly puffed out his chest.

"I called you Vivian. You're just a worker here. Do you actually think you own this place?"

"This club belongs to my dad. You do what I tell you to do!"

The college students watching began to jeer.

"Exactly. She’s just a stable maid, who does she think she is?"

"Ethan gifted this horse to Clara. You didn't even take care of it properly, and now you're making a scene?"

Hearing the flattery, Clara raised her chin even higher.

She pointed at Zephyr's bleeding hoof, her voice dripping with malice.

"Ethan, this horse has a terrible temper. We should just send it to the slaughterhouse before it hurts anyone else."

Zephyr seemed to understand. He nervously scraped his uninjured hoof against the ground, letting out a soft, pained whimper.

My heart ached. I knelt down to examine his hoof.

The pushpins were hammered in deep. Blood was seeping out around the horseshoe, staining the sand red.

These were heavy-duty pushpins, the kind only found on the bulletin board in the club's lounge.

Zephyr was always gentle. He would never attack anyone.

The only explanation was that Clara had deliberately jammed them in before mounting.

"Clara, you did this, didn't you?"

I stood up and grabbed her wrist.

"You're not leaving until you explain this!"