Chapter 2

Olive felt as though the world had stopped, frozen in the moment of her husband's revelation. Her jaw dropped, her eyes wide with shock and horror.

The tears that damped her cheeks felt like acid on her skin, burning and stinging. "What? No..." she whispered, the breath leaving her lungs in a rush.

"It's true," he said, his tone dismissive. "Adeline's carrying my child. She's the one I want to build a life with, not you."

Olive's heart shattered, the pieces falling to the floor like shattered glass. "You..."

Adeline only rolled her eyes in boredom while she pressed her head on Joshua's chest.

"I've made my decision, Olive," Joshua said, his voice hard and devoid of emotion. "There's no need to drag this out. Sign the divorce papers and get ready to attend our baby shower. Adeline and I are moving on, with our new baby, this baby will prove to everyone that the fault is from you and not me!"

Olive's body felt numb as she listened to his cruel words. She felt like she was watching the scene unfold in slow motion, like she was in a nightmare she couldn't escape. "You're monsters, both of you," she managed to choke out. "I can't believe you could do this to me, to our family."

"Sign the papers!" Joshua shouted and Olive sniffed her snots before she grabbed the pen and signed with shaky hands. After that, Joshua snatched the papers from her.

Adeline's cold snot echoed after her earlier statement "Shut the crap, my parents know about this. Just get lost" She faced Joshua "Babe,let's go, I don't want my baby getting infected by her"

Joshua nodded "Of course" he turned to face Olive "For your information, Your few luggage are waiting for you in the basement so go pick them up after you're done here" with that, Adeline and Joshua left the ward.

Olive watched in a daze as Joshua and Adeline walked out of the room, hand-in-hand, their heads held high. The door clicked shut behind them, leaving Olive alone in the ward.

Olive's body was wracked with sobs. Tears poured down her face like a waterfall, mixing with the angry, heartbroken sobs that escaped her throat. She clutched at her chest, her agony was like a physical wound, one that throbbed.

She curled in on herself, her arms wrapped protectively around her body as if to shield herself from the pain. She didn't know for how long she stayed there but the ringing phone caught her attention.

She sniffed in her snot before she reached out to her phone but her eyes fell when she saw that the caller was a nurse in her mother's ward who was to call her only during emergencies...

"Hello.." her weak and cranky voice came out as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand and the nurse's rushed voice came from the other side.

"Madam Anderson, there is an emergency and your mother's illness just had another episode and she needs urgent surgery in less than eight hours!"

As if a bomb dropped on her head, Olive turned even more pale, her lower lips were caught in between her teeth as she bit on it. She said to the nurse "I will come with the money soon" The call ended after that.

Her eyes shrieked, she didn't know where to get the money from, she didn't have a job because Joshua's mother banned her from working, saying a good wife waits at home for her husband to return from work and Joshua also agreed so she had to step back.

Now she was in a pathetic situation because of this. She has no funds to turn to and she doesn't have Joshua beside her anymore. Everything was so bad for her.

She only has one option left, her uncle....Adeline's father and her mother's younger brother.

With a new resolve, Olive shoved her glaring problems to the back of her head, as she made to leave.

She pulled the IV drip from the back of her hand, her eyes were red but she managed to maneuver her way out of the bed, she staggered away from the bed and that was how she left the hospital and boarded a taxi to her uncle's house to ask for financial assistance.

The taxi stopped in front of the huge mansion that belonged to her uncle and she let out a deep breath, hoping for a better result.

She was allowed into the house by the serving maid and fortunately, her uncle and his wife were both sitting in the living room, drinking from their mugs.

His uncle, Mr Brown Anderson furrowed his brows when he saw her. He eyed her as she was still in her hospital dress.

Left with just a little strength, Olive immediately fell on the floor, her knees to the ground, she clamped her hands together as she begged weakly.

"Uncle," Olive said, her voice shaking with emotion. "Please... My mother is dying. She needs treatment."

Her uncle regarded her with a cold, detached expression. "That's not my concern."

Olive sank to her knees before him, tears streaming down her face. "Please, Uncle. I beg you. I just need a little bit of her confiscated properties so I can sell some to pay for her medical..."

A resounding slap followed before she could complete her statement and Olive crashed on the floor, her left cheek tinged due to the slap her uncle landed on her face.

"Do not ask me for any of those properties!! They are all mine now! You shouldn't be ungrateful, I raised and took care of you for your sick mother for ages before you came of age and her properties are only a way to repay my kindness" he glared even more as he belittled her "Now. Get out of my house!"

He stood up, facing the bewildered and sad Olive who was on the floor "Before I come back, I want you gone from here!" With that, he stormed off towards the stairs, anger oozing out of him.

His wife, Maggie who has been watching silently stood up from the chair and walked towards Olive.

Olive who was stunned and devastated stood up from the floor, her whole body shook, the thoughts of losing her mother made her unable to react too quickly, and her body grew numb. Her hopes are dashed.

Her teary eyes met with Maggie's clear ones and she couldn't help but blink multiple times, expecting cruel words from her too because she was never a nice lady. She was filled with deceptive words.

"You need the money for your mom's surgery?? Well, I can give it to you but on one condition though..."A wicked gleam sparkled in her eyes, the corners of her lips curling into a devious smirk. She folded her arms across her chest, evil intent flashed in her eyes.

Olive knew this was a trap, one of her schemes that always turned out bad but this time around, Olive had no choice. She would take every risk to make sure her mother undergoes that surgery and survives.

With a heavy heart, Olive eyed Maggie a little warily "What's your condition?" She asked skeptically. Expecting nothing good.

Maggie immediately jumped on the opportunity "Simple. You just have to bed one of the men I and your uncle have been trying to pitch in as an investor in the company..."