Chapter162 He Protected Her
Just as Miranda was about to check again for any broken bones, the little boy finally moved.
Slowly, as if in slow motion, he lifted his right hand that had been tightly clenched.
Then, in front of Miranda, he slowly opened it.
In his tender palm lay a tiny snail.
The shell was somewhat cracked, probably crushed during the rolling, but it was still stubbornly waving its antennae.
"Miranda!"
Urgent footsteps approached.
Castillo didn't even bother tying up her horse. She jumped down and rushed over.
Seeing Miranda sitting disheveled on the ground, her eyes instantly reddened, her voice clearly tearful.
"Are you insane! Do you know how dangerous that was!"
Castillo rushed over, wanting to check her injuries but not daring to touch her halfway. "Did you hurt any bones? Can you move?"
That scene just now had nearly scared her to death.
Watching Miranda jump off a horse running at high speed, at that height, that speed, she could have easily broken bones, or been paralyzed in serious cases!
"I'm fine."
Miranda took a deep breath, forcing herself through the pain to move her arms. "I don't think I broke anything. Just surface wounds. My back hurts a bit."
Hearing this, Castillo's heart, which had been in her throat, finally settled slightly, but tears still fell.
"You scared me to death."
She wiped her tears while turning to look at the "culprit."
She wondered how there could be a child running around on this closed track.
Miranda was about to say something when she suddenly heard noisy voices and footsteps from behind.
"Hale! Hale!"
Miranda instinctively turned around.
From the edge of the distant woods, a group of people was charging toward them aggressively.
Leading them was a woman in a haute couture suit, her makeup exquisite, but her face currently full of anxiety and fury.
Behind her followed seven or eight burly men in black suits and sunglasses, clearly not ordinary security personnel.
"Hale!"
The woman's shrill voice cut through the air.
Hearing this name, Miranda clearly felt the little boy in her arms, who had been like a wooden block, stiffen slightly.
He didn't turn around, but those empty eyes blinked rapidly several times, his lashes trembling.
Miranda's heart jumped, her gaze moving between the little boy and the woman.
Before she could think further, the woman had already reached them.
She shoved aside Castillo who was standing in front of the boy, her strength surprisingly fierce.
The woman rushed over and snatched the boy from Miranda's arms, holding him tightly as if protecting some priceless treasure, afraid someone would steal him away.
Then she suddenly looked up, her eyes like knives cutting toward Miranda and Castillo.
"Who are you!"
The woman demanded sharply, her voice shrill and piercing. "What did you do to my son? Why did you bring him to such a dangerous place?"
She didn't give Miranda a chance to speak, turning to roar at the bodyguards behind her. "Surround them. Don't let either of them leave."
With a whoosh.
Seven or eight bodyguards instantly spread out, surrounding Miranda and Castillo in a circle, their expressions hostile.
Castillo was shoved and nearly fell. Her temper immediately flared.
"Hey! What's wrong with you!"
Castillo pointed at the woman and cursed. "You're the one who didn't watch your own child. He ran onto the track and nearly got trampled by a horse. We saved him, and instead of thanking us, you're accusing us?"
"Saved him?"
The woman laughed coldly, her gaze contemptuously sweeping over Miranda's clothes covered in dirt and grass.
"I think you were trying to kidnap him for ransom!"
While checking Hale's condition in her arms, she made vicious assumptions. "This club is so big. How did Hale just happen to run into you? And in this deserted place?"
"I think you clearly planned this all along, trying to use my son as leverage! Let me tell you, if Hale loses even a single hair, I'll make your entire families pay."
Miranda endured the severe pain in her body and slowly stood up with Castillo's support.
She looked at the unreasonable woman before her, her eyes turning cold.
"Ma'am."
Miranda's voice was clear and cold. Despite her disheveled state, her presence was in no way diminished. "This is a VIP track with full surveillance coverage. Whether we tried to harm him or not, you can check the cameras and find out."
"Rather, as a mother, you let a small child appear alone in a high-risk area like an equestrian club."
Miranda stepped forward, looking directly into the woman's eyes.
"If I hadn't jumped off my horse just now, he could be seriously injured right now."
"Is your current behavior covering up your failure as a mother?"
The woman's face instantly turned ugly, panic flashing in her eyes, but it was quickly covered by even more arrogant fury.
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
The woman shrieked. "How could I possibly harm my own son?"
"It's you people. I think you're the ones who wanted to harm my son."
She pointed at Miranda's nose and ordered the bodyguards, "Arrest these two women who tried to harm the young master. Take them to the police station. I'm charging them with assault and kidnapping."
At her words, the bodyguards immediately moved forward to take action.
On the distant second-floor balcony in the shadows, Celeste held binoculars, watching the scene unfold at the track.
Though too far to hear, seeing those black-suited bodyguards surrounding Miranda, she couldn't suppress her smile.
Given Sofia's temperament, she definitely wouldn't disappoint.
This crazy woman was notoriously protective in their social circle and completely unreasonable.
Now that Miranda had crossed her, there would be no good ending.
"Ha, saves me from having to do it myself."
Celeste hummed pleasantly, turned on her high heels, and elegantly left the balcony.
Her lips curved, thinking how wonderful it felt to have someone else deal with Miranda for her.
By the track.
Just as the bodyguards' hands were about to reach Miranda and Castillo...
Hale, who had shown no reaction at Sofia's side, suddenly moved.
He abruptly broke free from Sofia's embrace, moving incredibly fast.
That small figure shot forward like a cannonball, running directly in front of Miranda.
He stood very straight, positioning himself between Miranda and those bodyguards.
This happened so suddenly that everyone froze.
The bodyguards' outstretched hands hung awkwardly in midair, not knowing whether to grab or retreat, looking embarrassedly toward Sofia.
"Hale?"
Sofia stood frozen in place, the fierceness on her face instantly replaced by shock.
She looked in disbelief at that small back standing in front of the strange woman.
Since that illness two years ago when he was diagnosed with autism, Hale had closed himself off from the world, unresponsive to everything, rarely even responding to her embraces as his biological mother.
But now, he was reacting for a strange woman?
Miranda hadn't expected this action from the child either, but she quickly calmed down, her gaze turning to Sofia.
"Ma'am, my friend and I were racing normally. Hale suddenly appeared from a blind spot in the bushes. If you don't believe me, check the surveillance now."
She paused, her eyes becoming sharper.
"Besides, it would be very difficult for Hale to reach this deep area alone. Are you sure you want to waste time instead of pursuing whoever is really behind trying to harm your son?"