Chapter 603

Nathan, do you choose Mom or Dad?

Olive, suddenly strangled, gasped for air, her pretty face reddening. Elvis’s long, narrow eyes blazed with bloody hostility; a fierce storm brewed beneath them, threatening to consume her. This woman! She needed aphrodisiacs with him, she’d said. He was terrible in bed, his filth repulsive, every moment sickening. These words stabbed at his heart, reopening a wound that never healed.

Elvis glared, his eyes bright red. Her neck was in his grasp; a little force would snap her delicate neck. He wanted to kill her, to strangle the life from her. “Olive, do you want to die?” Each harsh syllable sent chills down spines.

Olive’s slender back pressed against the cold wall. She felt his fingers tighten, the air thinning. Was this death? No. She had work to do. She pushed him. “Elvis… Elvis, let go!”

His terrifying form was a harbinger of violence. A demonic voice whispered, “Elvis, squeeze harder. As long as she disappears, you’ll be free!”

His handsome eyes narrowed. His head throbbed, his body felt like it was splitting. “Olive, I shouldn’t spoil you. You’ve tortured me with your love. I’ll make you disappear now!” He clenched his hand.

Olive’s pupils dilated, then constricted. She clawed at his arm, her fingernails drawing blood. She was dying.

Then, a child’s voice cut through the tension: “Dad, let go of Mom!”

Lil’ Nathan had arrived. Elvis’s tall, handsome body trembled; his scarlet eyes cleared. “Dad, Mom can’t breathe! Let go!” Nathan’s bright eyes and firm tone commanded, “Stop! Now!”

Elvis looked at Olive’s blood-red face, her pupils losing focus. What was he doing? He released her.

Olive’s body slumped, and she gasped for breath. A tear choked her.

“Mom! Mom, are you okay?” Nathan patted her back.

Olive felt she’d escaped death, narrowly avoiding hell at Elvis’s hands. Then, Nathan’s voice: “Mom… Mom…”

Olive’s eyelashes fluttered. “Nathan, you… what did you just call me?”

Nathan realized his mistake. His worry had been evident. “Mom, I know you’re not Miss Fairy. You’re my Mom!”

Olive gasped, unprepared for his revelation. Her heart softened. “Yes, Nathan. I’m your Mom!” She pulled him into her lap.

Mother and son embraced. Elvis’s face darkened further. Olive, pale and red, bore the marks of his violence. His hands trembled. This was the woman he loved, yet he’d hurt her. But remembering her actions, his heart hardened. She'd asked for it.

“Nathan, come here. She’s not your mom. She doesn’t love you!”

Olive hugged Nathan tightly, fearing Elvis would snatch him away. “Elvis, can we not discuss this in front of Nathan…?”

“Afraid? Olive, what are you afraid of? Afraid I’ll tell Nathan about your heartless actions three years ago?”

Olive shook her head, tears welling. Three years of torment, the ordeal of giving birth to triplets after nearly dying… “No, that’s not it. Elvis, you don’t know anything!”

Elvis’s gaze was cold. “I know enough. Stop pretending.”

“I’m not, Elvis! Did you know that for three years, I…” She was ready to confess.

But Elvis cut her off, unwilling to listen. He turned to Nathan. “Nathan, I give you a choice. Dad or Mom?”

Olive’s pupils constricted. She hadn’t expected this. Elvis’s lips curled into a cold smile. “Olive, you wanted a son with me, didn’t you? Am I fulfilling your dream now?”

He’d seen through her. Olive took a breath. “Elvis, you’re young, you’ll have a wife. I don’t want Nathan to live with a stepmother.”