Chapter 5
Just as Olivia was about to reach out to Ethan, he showed up. "Dr. Quinn, my friend just has a scrape on her calf. Can you check on her first?"
Dr. Quinn hesitated, looking conflicted. "But this woman is seriously injured. She needs urgent care first"
"My friend's been crying in pain. She can't wait any longer," Ethan pressed.
Olivia couldn't believe it. After Ethan left her for dead at the zoo, now he was trying to pull her doctor away too.
She fought to keep her anger and hurt in check, her voice trembling. "Ethan, you said Vanessa just had a minor scrape, nothing serious. But my leg is infected. If I don't get surgery now, I might lose it!"
"Vanessa's a dancer. A scar would ruin her leg," Ethan said coldly.
"Dr. Quinn will be back for you right after Vanessa's wound is taken care of. And without my signature, you're not getting that surgery, period."
Every word from Ethan was like a knife, shredding Olivia's heart. Even breathing felt like swallowing blood.
"Ethan, I won't let you!" Olivia shouted.
He didn't even bother to acknowledge her, just dragged Dr. Quinn away.
Olivia watched Ethan walk away and just lost it, sobbing uncontrollably. She wished he'd never saved her that day, then maybe she wouldn't have fallen for him in the first place.
How could I have fallen for someone so heartless and shameless?
The infection in her leg spread faster than Olivia expected. It wasn't long before she could barely breathe, and eventually passed out on the hospital bed.
When Olivia finally came to, it was already the morning of the third day.
The nurse by her side said, "Dr. Quinn spent four hours yesterday just to save your leg, but the surgery was delayed too long. Now, every time it rains, your leg will ache and throb."
"Hey, isn't Mr. Sterling your husband? How come he hasn't even bothered to check on you?" the nurse gossiped, unable to stop herself.
"You've been out cold since the surgery, and Mr. Sterling hasn't shown up once. He even booked out an entire floor just so Miss York could rest, and he's been personally feeding her meals..."
Olivia sat there, expressionless, barely listening, and finally asked in a tired voice, "Is the baby alright?"
"Don't worry, the baby's perfectly healthy," the nurse replied.
Staying in the hospital, Olivia kept counting on her fingers, anxiously waiting for the last days of the divorce cooling-off period to pass.
One day, the ER was short-staffed, so the nurse who'd been looking after Olivia had to go help out. To keep her wound from getting infected, Olivia had to change her own bandages and apply the medicine herself.
Suddenly, the door to the room swung open, and Vanessa walked in.
When Vanessa saw the gaping wound on Olivia's leg, she let out a mocking laugh. "The doctor said the tiger bit right through your bone, and you still managed to keep your leg? Olivia, you're tougher than a cockroach."
"I only pulled your hand off me at the time," Olivia said, her voice icy as she stared at Vanessa.
"You dragged me into the tiger enclosure on purpose, and then shoved me from behind so the tiger would go for me."
"Olivia, I'm just helping you wake up to reality," Vanessa said, looking down at her with a mocking smile.
"Mrs. Sterling might hate me, and the Sterling-York families might be at each other's throats, but Ethan? He only cares about me. I just have to crook my finger and he'd do anything for me. So what if you married him? You're nothing to him, just a ghost."
"Yeah, I get it now," Olivia replied, expressionless.
"I've already filed for divorce. I'll be free from Ethan soon. Hope you two live happily ever after."
Vanessa blinked, surprised for a moment.
Just then, Ethan walked in. "Who's getting your best wishes?"
"I just brought Olivia some fish soup and had a quick chat," Vanessa said, skipping over the question with a smile as she poured out the steaming soup from the thermos.
"Come on, drink up. It'll help your wound heal," Vanessa urged.
"No, thanks," Olivia replied.
Ethan's face turned cold in an instant. "Olivia, you pushed Vanessa into the tiger enclosure and nearly got her hurt. She's generous enough not to blame you, even brings you fish soup, and you're acting cold toward her?"
After Ethan dropped the charges last time, Olivia knew that even if she told him the truth about Vanessa pulling her in on purpose, he'd never believe her anyway.
To him, Vanessa was sweet and innocent. How could she ever hurt anyone?