OLIVIA
Chapter Twenty-Two

Olivia paced anxiously around the confines of her sitting room, her dress fluttering the flowers on the nearby table every time she passed by them. All of the windows were open, and thankfully a breeze was coming in to infiltrate the warm air of the room.

She was ready for whatever was going to transpire between herself and Cal. She would know the truth, regardless of what that truth was. If she were going to survive this marriage, then she was going to know one way or the other where she stood and how it was going to be. She was tired of living in limbo and never knowing what her position was. Hoping…praying…wondering…guessing…she was tired of it. She wanted answers, and she intended on getting them before this day was done.

A quiet click told her that he had entered the suite. She turned to face him, her stance firm and unyielding. This time she would not be caught off guard, nor would she cower down.

"There you are, darling. I was wondering what was keeping you," she said acerbically. "After all, you’re the one who demanded I be here waiting for you."

Cal stared at her, one cocked eyebrow his only reaction. He lifted the telegram he still held in his hand. "You may want to read this."

Confused at his manner and the way in which he spoke, she frowned at him and the slip of paper he held in his hand. She was taken off guard for a moment. As she stared down at the telegram, she wondered why he wanted her to read it. What could possibly be in it that would concern her?

When she didn’t move, he stepped over to her and held it up. "Read this, Olivia."

Seeing that he was serious, she slowly reached for it. A sense of dread washed over her, mainly because of Cal’s behavior. Obviously, something had happened. She looked down at the paper, her eyes falling upon the words.

MR. CALEDON HOCKLEY
PHILADELPHIA

DEAR SIR. STOP. IT IS MY UNFORTUNATE DUTY TO INFORM YOU OF YOUR SISTER-IN-LAW’S CURRENT UNKNOWN WHEREABOUTS. STOP. SHE HAS DISAPPEARED. STOP. WE ASSUME SHE HAS RUN AWAY. STOP. I HAVE DONE AS YOU REQUESTED AND KEPT YOU INFORMED OF THE SITUATION. STOP. WHEN WE HAVE ANY FURTHER NEWS, I WILL CONTACT YOU IMMEDIATELY. STOP. SINCERELY, LILLIAN MASTERSON, HEADMISTRESS, EDENBROOK SCHOOL FOR GIRLS. STOP.

Olivia scanned the small slip of paper several times before she finally realized what it meant. Emma had disappeared or run away, as the case may be. She should have known. They all should have known that Emma was desperate enough to try something like this. Now, God only knew where she was or what she was doing.

"It seems your sister has taken it upon herself to leave the school. I immediately made several telephone calls and finally spoke with this Miss Masterson. The connection was rather bad, but I did manage to get the gist of what happened," he told her, scorn lining his voice.

She looked up at him, waiting for him to tell her what her sister had done. He moved to one of the chairs and made a motion for her to sit across from him in the other one.

"Apparently, Emma was a problem from the beginning. She refused to participate in any activity or be involved in any way. She mainly kept to herself until the night she fled," he told her. Then he shook his head, his brows furrowing together. "The last anyone saw of her was a local. She was in the company of a young man. An American, the same as her."

"An American?" Olivia’s eyes snapped up to Cal’s. "Oh, no…Joshua."

His face scowled angrily. "Of course. Who else could it be? He apparently helped her escape, and now they’ve fled to God only knows where. I should have had that piece of filth taken care of that day at the train station."

As Cal ranted on, a thought suddenly occurred to Olivia. She stared down at the telegram in her hand. "Cal." She said his name, catching his attention. "Why is this Miss Masterson sending you a telegram concerning Emma?" She looked up at him as she asked the question. "It says here she’s keeping you informed, as you requested."

For a moment, he looked taken aback at her question, but quickly regained his composure as he linked his fingers together in front of him and leaned back in the chair. "Yes. What of it? I felt it my duty as your husband to keep up with your sister. It was for your sake, of course."

"My sake? How is it for my sake when I knew nothing of it?"

"Don’t ask ridiculous questions, Olivia," he said, dismissal lining his voice. "It’s a good thing I did, because what I thought would happen did happen. I didn’t for one minute believe that this Harris character would disappear that easily."

Twice in one day, Olivia had been dealt blows that she neither wanted nor asked for. She lifted her eyes and glared at him, her demeanor strong in her frustration. "Was it also for my sake that you got me pregnant again, or was it for your own?"

He turned his head ever so slightly towards her. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Just what I meant. Was it for your sake that I’m pregnant again?"

He smiled. However, it was anything but pleasant. He lifted his hands against his mouth, his eyes never leaving hers. "Would like you explain what you are referring to? Is that what you were keeping from me downstairs?"

"What I want to know is simple, and I only want the truth from you," she answered him firmly. "Did you receive ten million dollars for marrying me?"

His features immediately darkened at her question. "What kind of question is that to ask?"

"I want the truth, Cal. Did you?" she asked again, her voice stronger this time.

"My personal business is none of yours, my dear. Your only concern is being my wife and the mother to my children."

"To your sons?" she threw out resentfully.

"Yes," he answered, his voice dangerously low. "To my sons, heirs to the Hockley name. We’ve already had this discussion."

"You forgot one thing in our discussion, Cal." She stood and faced him, her breathing coming hard now. "Like the fact that every time I deliver a son, you receive five million dollars."

Cal stood as well, anger emanating from his body. "You are being presumptuous in your accusations, my dear wife. Don’t speak of things of which you have no knowledge."

"Then tell me, because I must know the truth! Did you marry me for money?" she nearly screamed at him.

"This conversation is preposterous and I will not continue to discuss this with you!" he snapped, and turned to walk away from her.

"No!" She grabbed his arm. "You will discuss this with me right now! Did you ever care for me? Did you? Or was it a nice little deal between you and your father, just to please him? Tell me the truth!"

"Stop it, Olivia!" He gripped her wrist, trying to break her hold on him. "Stop this now! Do you hear me?"

"No!" she cried, tears streaming down her face by now. "It’s true, isn’t it? You married me for money. For money!"

Cal looked at her as if she had gone mad. Before he could even react, she began hitting him on the chest, her fist pummeling him as she screamed in pain. "Why? Why? Don’t you know that I love you? And now I know you’ve never cared for me!" she accused him bitterly. "You used me!"

"Olivia, for God’s sake, calm down," he ordered as he grabbed her flailing arms. "This is insane. You’ve got to stop!"

Suddenly, she flung herself away from him and ran to the door. "I hate you, Caledon Hockley! I don’t want to ever see you again!" she screamed as she ripped the door open and ran through it.

"Olivia!" she heard him scream behind her. "Olivia, come back here!"

Olivia ran as fast as she could. She saw McBride coming up the stairs, and so she ran towards him, not slowing down in her efforts to get to him. Just as she reached the landing, however, she lost her balance and fell forward. The next thing she knew, she was tumbling down the stairs, her body screaming in pain with each roll.

"Olivia!" she heard somewhere above her. She heard a snap in her ears and felt a burning pain in her leg. Over and over again she rolled, unable to stop herself. Then, suddenly, she landed with a hard thud against the tiled floor in the hall on her stomach. The only thing she was aware of was the swimming in her head and the taste of blood in her mouth.

She heard commotion above her and voices swarming in her head. "Oh, God! Oh, God! Olivia!"

"Mrs. Hockley! Dear God in heaven. What’s happened?"

"Don’t move her. Get Dr. Covington immediately!"

Olivia heard them, but she couldn’t answer. She was lost in a fog of pain and fear.

"Get away from her! Get back!" She heard Cal above her. "Oh, my God. Olivia, can you hear me? Please, answer me, darling."

She flinched when she heard his voice, but the only thing she could do was whimper. She felt a hand on her cheek, stroking it caringly. No! she cried in her mind. Don’t touch me! But again, she was unable to vocally respond. She felt her body begin to throb in pain and her whimpering became louder. She wasn’t sure how long she had lain there when she finally heard Dr. Covington’s comforting voice.

"Olivia, I’m going to turn you over now. I have to examine you and I promise I will be as gentle as I can."

She felt herself being turned over. Pain roared through her body at the movement they made. She cried out, still tasting the blood in her mouth. As if in a dream, she felt Dr. Covington moving his hands over her body, feeling her arms, legs, torso, and neck.

"Let’s get her upstairs. She’ll need to be lifted as gently as possible," Dr. Covington said.

"I’ll do it." McBride’s voice drifted to her ears. She felt him above her when he leaned over her. She managed to open her eyes slightly to look into his concerned green eyes. She suddenly felt safe and not afraid.

"Mrs. Hockley, I’m going to pick you up now. If you can, put your arms around my neck. I promise not to hurt you anymore than I have to. Do you understand?"

Nodding slowly, she felt his hands go under legs and behind her back. Slowly, he lifted her, sending shafts of shooting pain through her. She cried out as he stood and cradled her body against his. The pain was too much for her to bear, and by the time he reached the top of the stairs, she was nearly unconscious. She must have blacked out for a moment, because the next thing she knew she was being laid down in her bed.

Dr. Covington went right to work. She was barely aware of most of it, going in and out of consciousness throughout his examination of her. Then, her head was lifted and she was given a drink so bitter she nearly gagged on it.

"You must drink this, Olivia," Dr. Covington told her. "It will help with the pain."

It must have been so, because it wasn’t long until she began to feel as if she were floating. She felt warm, and the pain was ceasing. Then someone took her hand beside her. Barely managing to open her eyes, she tried to focus on his face. She smiled…it was McBride.

"It’s okay, Olivia," he leaned over and whispered to her. "It’s okay now. You just rest. Everything will be all right."

Nodding slowly, she squeezed his hand. She trusted him. Why, she didn’t know. She relaxed then and let herself slowly sink into the warm sensation the medicine was creating in her. Blackness swamped her, taking her away from her reality. With one final thought, she slipped into unconsciousness, still holding on tightly to McBride’s hand.

Chapter Twenty-Three
Stories