Chapter 2

Olivia POV

The hospital room was suffocatingly sterile and white, the air smelling faintly of antiseptic and despair. The only sound was the steady, rhythmic beep of the monitor next to my bed, counting away the seconds of my ruined life.

I reached for the phone on the bedside table. My hands were shaking violently, but I forced my fingers to dial the number I hadn't called in two years.

"Mom?" I whispered when the line connected, the word feeling foreign on my tongue.

"Olivia?" Her voice was sharp, surprised. Then, hearing the tremble in my breath, it softened instantly. "Darling? What's wrong?"

"He... Michael..." I couldn't finish the sentence. A sob choked me, physically painful in my chest.

"I'm coming," Elizabeth said immediately. Her voice transformed. It wasn't just a mother's voice anymore; it was the voice of the matriarch of the Sterling empire. "Where are you?"

I told her.

Twenty minutes later, the door flew open. My mother didn't just walk in; she swept in, sucking the oxygen out of the room. She was wearing a tailored Chanel suit, her face set in a mask of terrifying calm.

She didn't ask questions. She just pulled me into her arms. I buried my face in her shoulder, smelling her familiar perfume-Chanel No. 5 and steel-and finally let go. I cried until my throat was raw, staining her silk lapel with my tears.

"He brought her to the house, Mom," I choked out. "He has a son."

"Shh," she soothed, stroking my hair with a rhythmic, hypnotic motion. "I know. My investigators just sent me the file. I should have intervened sooner. I respected your wish to marry for love, Olivia. But love doesn't pay the bills, and it certainly doesn't excuse this filth."

She pulled back, framing my face with her hands. Her eyes were hard as diamonds, glittering with a dangerous light.

"We are going to burn his world down, Olivia. Are you ready?"

I nodded, sniffing back a fresh wave of tears. I was done being weak.

"Good," she said. She pulled out her phone and dialed a number, her movements precise and lethal.

"Initiate the scorched earth protocol on Michael Hayes's ventures," she said into the phone, her tone conversational yet deadly. "Pull the funding. Cancel the lines of credit. Call the board members. I want him insolvent by morning. And get the legal team to the hospital. Now."

She hung up and looked at me. "You're coming home, Olivia. To the estate."

The estate. The sprawling manor in the Hamptons where I grew up. It was a fortress, a place where nothing could hurt me.

"I need to use the bathroom," I said, my voice hoarse.

I slowly got out of bed, dragging my IV pole like a heavy chain. As I passed the slightly open door of my room, I heard a familiar voice in the hallway.

Michael.

He was on the phone. I froze, pressing myself against the wall, my hospital gown thin against the cold plaster.

"Yeah, she's in the hospital," Michael was saying. He sounded annoyed, as if my medical emergency was a scheduling conflict. "No, I haven't seen her yet. Look, Serena, calm down. Olivia is soft. She's obsessed with me. She'll cry for a few days, and then she'll beg me to come back. She always does."

I held my breath. My heart was hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird.

"We need her mother's connections for the IPO next month," Michael continued, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial murmur. "I'll play the repentant husband for a bit. Once the company goes public and the money is secure, I'll divorce her and take full custody. You and I will live like kings."

He laughed. It was a low, confident sound, devoid of any warmth.

"She's pathetic, really. She actually thinks I care about her... complications."

The hallway spun. I gripped the door handle to keep from falling, my knuckles turning white.

He wasn't just a cheater. He was a monster. He had never loved me. I was just a stepping stone to his fortune.

I looked down at my stomach. My baby kicked, a strong, defiant thump against my ribs, startling me.

For the first time since the shower, I didn't feel like crying.

I felt cold. Ice cold.

I walked back to the bed, my steps steady. My mother was watching me, her gaze assessing.

"Did you hear him?" she asked softly.

I nodded. I sat down and placed my hand over my belly. My eyes were dry.

"Mom," I said, my voice devoid of the tremor that had been there minutes ago. "I don't just want a divorce. I want him destroyed."

Elizabeth smiled. It was a terrifying smile.

"That's my girl."