Chapter 318

Meanwhile, the Harts were squirming in misery. Caitlin hung up with Olivia, her heart pounding, and raced back to the Hart family estate. The minute she walked in, Olivia’s gut-wrenching cries hit her from upstairs. A maid saw her and dipped her head. “Ma’am,” she said.

“What’s wrong with Olivia? Did you give her anything?” Caitlin snapped, her voice tight.

The maid shifted nervously. “We’re out of meds. I called the doctor, but he’s not coming.”

Caitlin’s breath caught. She didn’t say another word—just bolted up the stairs. She flung Olivia’s door open. The room was dark, thick with a heavy vibe. Olivia was curled up on the bed, gripping her stomach, gasping through the pain.

She’d always been proud, especially of her stunning hair, which she’d shown off like it was her crown. Now it was gone. All of it. Her scalp was bare, not a single strand left from yesterday’s last bits. Caitlin’s chest hurt; her voice was shaky. “Olivia.”

Olivia looked up, her face twisted in pain. “Mom, it hurts. It hurts so much.”

“I know, but…” Caitlin’s hands balled up, useless. Her head was spinning, coming up empty. She grabbed Olivia’s hand, her heart cracking open, raw and aching.

The house had no meds left. Olivia couldn’t leave the country—couldn’t even get out of Long Harbor. She was sick, desperate, with no fix in sight. It didn’t get much worse than this.

“Mom, it hurts so much. I need painkillers—can’t we get some from the hospital?” Olivia begged, her voice thin and scratchy.

Sure, the pharmacy had stuff, but with her this bad off, over-the-counter meds were pointless. It was like popping nothing—zero relief. Worse, without a doctor’s okay, she’d thrown up twice, her stomach flipping like crazy. Her body was already trashed; now it was straight-up torture, every moment a nightmare.

“Stefi still won’t forgive me, will she? Mom, tell her I’ll come clean—I’ll own it,” Olivia forced out, teeth gritted. “Tell her I’ll get better first, then go to jail and face the music, okay?” she added, her voice cracking into sobs.

The pain was tearing her apart, her head getting fuzzy. She’d almost rather patch up and sit in prison—at least it’d beat this slow, miserable crawl to the end.

Caitlin’s heart stopped; her breath stuck in her chest. “Olivia, don’t freak out. I’ll figure something out—I promise.”

“Figure what out? What’s left but begging Stefi?” Olivia shot back, her voice spiking with desperation.

Caitlin didn’t seem to have heard a word she’d said. Anger and fear churned inside Olivia. “Did you see Stefi and mess it up again? Did you not talk to her right?” she pressed, bitterness cutting through.

It had to be that. The more she chewed on it, the more it made sense. People had hearts—real ones. If Caitlin had just buttered Stephanie up a little, Olivia believed that she wouldn’t still be stuck here, trapped in Long Harbor.

Caitlin fumbled, thrown off. “I—I… Don’t worry, I’ll find a way. I will.” She kept saying it, but her voice shook with panic and no answers.

Olivia’s frustration boiled over, trembling. “I might not make it that long—do you even get that, Mom?”

Find a way, find a way—if she could, Olivia wouldn’t still be caged here, hurting like this. Caitlin opened her mouth to answer, but her phone rang, its sharp chime slicing through the mess.

It was the maid at the hospital with Tyler. “Ma’am, they’re saying Mr. Hart has to be discharged today.”

“What? Where’s Chad? He’s not there either?” Caitlin’s voice jumped, sharp and rushed. Her breath hitched, her pulse pounding. Chad had booted her from the hospital—now he wasn’t even there? Panic ripped through her. With the house falling apart, she couldn’t believe Chad left their son alone in the hospital.

The maid sounded lost. “They’re pushing hard here. What do we do? Neither you nor Mr. Hart are around.”

Caitlin froze, floored. Her breathing jammed, fingers clamping the phone tight. Stephanie’s words to her butler popped into her head—she’d set this all up, every bit of it. She’d left Olivia sick with no meds. Now her brother was next.

“Ma’am? Ma’am?” The maid’s voice got louder, begging for something.

Caitlin’s breath shook. “I—I’m coming right now,” she managed, choking on it. She was unraveling, her head a jumbled wreck. Olivia, twisting in pain on one side. Tyler, kicked out of the hospital on the other. She was split, torn to pieces. Her two kids—her heart ached, raw and ripped open. In that instant, the Hart family crashed hard, the house buzzing with wild, suffocating chaos.

Stephanie sat on the bed, gripping the phone tight.