Chapter 4

Arthur said, "Call him right now. Tell Eric to send back every single container that hasn't been touched.

"And for the ones that have been opened, he pays back the full price."

Olivia looked like she'd been stepped on. "Are you crazy? Are you really going to charge your own brother for this? His family's already struggling."

Arthur said, "Alright, I'll deal with it myself. I'm coming back right now, booking my ticket as we speak. I'll be home in two hours."

Olivia's face went completely pale. She dropped her voice to a whisper, "Why are you coming back? All this for a few boxes of soup?"

Arthur spoke, enunciating every word. "For my wife. For my daughter. And to make it clear, this isn't a house where the weak get pushed around."

My finger hovered over the phone. For a moment, I didn't want to hang up.

Olivia locked her eyes on me, her stare intense with both anger and panic.

Arthur spoke again. "Claire, keep the speaker on. Don't hang up. Mom, I'm only going to ask you one thing.

"Did you decide to give those postpartum meals away yourself, or did Eric tell you to do it?"

Olivia's fingers clenched tightly around the hem of her shirt. She didn't answer right away.

On the other end, Arthur didn't rush her. The silence was even worse than any shouting match.

I slumped at the dining table, my incision tightening in waves of pain.

Sophia let out a soft whimper from the bedroom. Instinctively, I tried to stand up.

Arthur heard the noise and jumped in right away. "Don't move. Stay where you are. Let Mom check on Sophia."

Olivia's face darkened. She muttered her protests, but still headed for the bedroom.

She took a couple of steps, then stopped. "Why should I do what you say? It's not like the baby's going to die from crying a little."

I pushed myself up from the table, using it for support.

Arthur's voice dropped, cold and heavy. "Olivia Cherry."

It was the first time he'd ever called her by her full name.

Olivia froze, her whole body going rigid.

I was stunned for a moment, too.

Arthur said, "If anything happens to Sophia because of your negligence, I won't let it go as if Claire were mistreated. I'll hold you responsible.

"Don't push me to say something you really won't want to hear."

Olivia's lips turned ghostly white, fear and panic written all over her face.

She went into the bedroom. Not long after, Sophia's crying stopped.

I slumped back into my chair, my hands clammy with cold sweat.

Arthur lowered his voice, speaking softly now. "Claire, are you in pain right now?"

I said, "I'm fine."

He paused for a second. "Don't say you're fine."

My nose stung, and I could feel the tears welling up.

Since this morning, I'd been toughing it out. What scared me most wasn't the empty fridge or Olivia calling me spoiled.

What really terrified me was that if I spoke up, all I'd get was another round of "family comes first."

But Arthur didn't say any of that. He said, "I've already told my assistant to book the soonest flight home.

"Don't try to get out of bed again. I'll call the postpartum nanny right now. If she can come today, let her in."

I whispered, "Olivia won't agree."

Arthur said, "This isn't about whether she agrees or not. This is our home. This is where you and Sophia need to recover."

Just then, Olivia came out of the bedroom, holding Sophia.

She was holding the baby stiffly, her face full of barely contained anger. "Arthur, you've really made something of yourself.

"You're willing to turn your back on your own mother for a woman?"

Arthur said, "She's not just any woman. She's my wife. She had my baby.

"If you can't even give her that basic respect, then don't bother talking about being my mother."

Olivia's eyes flushed with anger. "I went through hell raising you, and now you're lecturing me about respect?"

Arthur didn't let her change the subject. "I'm asking about the postpartum meals. Does Eric know those postpartum meals were made by Claire's mom for Claire?"

Olivia paused for a moment. "Of course he doesn't."

I watched her. She answered way too fast. Arthur noticed it too.

"Then call Eric right now," Arthur said. "Put it on speaker."

Olivia's voice rose sharply. "Are you seriously going to grill your brother now?"

Arthur said, "If he doesn't know, I'll set him straight. But if he does, that's a whole different story."

Olivia's hand trembled as she held the baby.

I reached out right away. "Give Sophia to me."

She shifted away. "You can barely stand on your own feet, and you still want to hold the baby?"

Arthur said coldly, "Mom, put the baby back in the crib."

Olivia gritted her teeth. She put Sophia in the crib in the bedroom and hurried back out.

Olivia scrolled through her contacts for a while, hesitating. Her fingers were trembling as she dialed the number.

The phone rang for a long time before someone finally picked up.

A man's groggy voice came through. "Mom, what's up?"

Olivia shot me a look. "Eric, Arthur wants to talk to you."

Eric paused for a moment. "Arthur?"

Arthur's voice was cold. "Eric, was it you who told Mom to take those postpartum meals from the fridge?"

Eric was silent for a couple of seconds. "What postpartum meals?"