Olivia was in unbearable pain,but she forced herself to endure it.She reached out with difficulty,trying to find her phone to call for help.
However,the pain from her shattered bones and torn flesh was so overwhelming that she could not even lift her fingers.
In the depths of her despair,she heard Cassie’s low,delighted laughter.
“In one hour,Lucian will be here.Then you can ask him yourself,who matters more?You,his wife of ten years,or me,his first love,the one he has loved and lost?”
Olivia was so enraged she wanted to curse.
The moment she opened her mouth,a sharp,nauseating pain twisted through her chest,her heart,liver and lungs searing as though they were being wrung dry.
Not daring to act recklessly,she lay there,staring blankly at the sky.Even if Lucian cared about Cassie,he could not possibly ignore her.
He was not a fool.He should at least realize that if she truly wanted to act against Cassie,she would not have chosen such a sacred place where any harm to her enemy would only hurt her even more.
Time dragged on.Blood seeped from her wounds,her body growing colder.Lucian finally came.
"Dear..."Olivia struggled to breathe,forcing out a weak plea.
To her surprise,he walked straight past her and gathered Cassie into his arms,his voice filled with panic.“Cassie,are you okay?Are you hurt?"
Cassie’s face was streaked with tears,looking wronged and innocent."That day at the hospital,Mrs.Rhodes asked me if I would come to the operating room to support her.I thought…the surgery is only a few days away…I should apologize if I accidentally offended her that day.”
Her voice trembled as she continued,“So I knelt all the way from the foot of the mountain to the top,buying a peace charm from the famous spiritual store to bless her since I heard she is into that kind of stuff,but I never thought…she…”
Cassie’s delicate hands trembled as she slowly lifted the hem of her wide-leg pants.
The deep red and purple bruises on her knees stood out starkly amidst the scratches left by the jagged stones.
Lucian’s eyes instantly turned red with fury."Olivia!"
Olivia’s hazy consciousness was jolted awake by Lucian’s furious questioning.
She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek,forcing herself to stay conscious."It wasn’t me.I’m not that foolish and I have no reason to do this.”
“Who else could it be if not you?”Lucian snapped,his gaze filled with disgust and impatience.“Don’t think I didn’t notice the torn peace charm scattered all over the ground when I arrived.You’re still angry about what happened that day,aren’t you?That’s why you heartlessly ripped apart the peace charm that Cassie went through so much trouble to get,isn’t it?”
The weight of his accusations crashed down on her like the final snowflake that triggered an avalanche.
Olivia’s bloodshot eyes burned even redder than the blood trickling from the corner of her lips.
She knew.She knew Lucian would never save her.Even if he had the resources and the power to do so,he would not spare a second thought for her life.
Ignoring him,Olivia reached for her phone again.
She refused to sit here and wait for death.
They did not care whether she lived or died,but she did.
If Lucian would not save her,she would find someone who could.
It did not matter if it was the emergency services,Liora,or even the lawyer who had only received a deposit but not the full payment.Anyone was better than pinning her last shred of hope on Lucian.
"What?Nothing to say now?Feeling guilty?"
Before she could grasp her phone,Lucian kicked it aside,his cold,towering presence stinging more than the venom of a scorpion.“Don’t blame me for being heartless,Olivia.You know as well as I do that Cassie wouldn’t tear the peace charm.She wouldn’t lie about something like this.”
Before she could even argue,Lucian had already turned away,carrying Cassie in his arms.
As he walked off,he gave a final command without sparing her another glance."Don’t save her yet.Let her calm down and reflect on what she’s done.”
With the rustling of retreating footsteps,the last person who could have saved her hesitated for a moment,then followed after Lucian.
Olivia was left lying there alone.After a long time,she mustered the strength to crawl on her knees.
Even moving just a few meters felt as if it had drained half her life.
At last,she found her phone,which had been kicked far away.With the last of her strength,she reached for it only to discover in bitter disappointment that the screen had been shattered beyond repair.The device would not even turn on.
A wave of despair crashed over her,but she could not afford to linger.
She feared that Lucian truly would not return,that she would be left here to die.
Gritting her teeth,she forced herself forward,ignoring the sharp stones tearing into her already battered skin.Every movement sent fresh waves of pain through her,but she refused to stop.
Her determination was strong,but her body had reached its limits.
Leaving a trail of blood in her wake,she struggled forward until she became wedged beneath a slightly larger rock.That was when her body gave out completely.She could no longer crawl,nor could she even lift a finger.
All she could do was watch helplessly as the sky shifted from white to dusk,the mountain wind howling around her.Distant cries echoed through the night,sometimes near,sometimes far,as if whispering right beside her ear.
“Am I really going to die here?”
Cold tears slipped down her face.Unable to hold on any longer,Olivia finally lost consciousness.
When she awoke,she was in a hospital ward.
The moment she opened her eyes,Lucian stood up from his chair.His handsome face was clouded with a dark expression as he stared at her.
“Have you thought it through?”he asked.
