Chapter 332

The sharp pain shot through Olivia's arm as she scraped against the jagged edge during her desperate climb. Crimson droplets trailed down her pale skin, each throb reminding her of the urgency.

Her teeth sank into her lower lip hard enough to draw blood. The metallic taste grounded her as she forced herself upward, hand over trembling hand.

The window ledge finally came within reach. Olivia hauled herself onto the narrow perch, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

No balcony. No fire escape.

Just a sheer three-story drop onto unforgiving concrete below.

Vertigo gripped Olivia as she peered down. Her stomach lurched violently. But then Isabelle's laughter echoed in her memory - that sweet, bell-like sound that had kept her going through every hardship.

Isabelle had been her miracle child. The doctors had called her survival against all odds a medical marvel after the traumatic birth that left Olivia unable to conceive again.

That made every moment with Isabelle infinitely precious.

Olivia had made countless mistakes in her life. She'd been naive, trusting, weak. But she'd sworn her daughter would never suffer as she had.

This vow had driven Olivia to build her business from nothing, to claw her way up from poverty's grip. Yet now, despite everything, danger had still found Isabelle.

The coppery taste of blood filled Olivia's mouth as she bit down harder. The pain cleared the fog of fear. She should have anticipated this. Should have taken more precautions.

No time for regrets now.

The window ledge creaked ominously under her weight. Olivia squeezed her eyes shut, whispered a prayer, and pushed off.

The world spun violently as she plummeted. Then - impact. The grassy slope absorbed some of the fall, but white-hot pain still exploded through her right ankle.

Cold sweat drenched Olivia's body as she fought to remain conscious. Every nerve screamed in protest as she forced herself upright.

Footsteps.

Olivia barely had time to drag herself behind a towering hedge before two uniformed staff members rounded the corner.

"...important guest arriving tonight," one murmured. "The master's pulling out all the stops."

Olivia pressed a hand to her mouth, stifling her ragged breathing. She was deep in Frederick Kensington's territory now. One wrong move could be fatal.

The servants' voices faded as they continued down the path, oblivious to the bleeding woman hiding mere feet away.

Olivia counted to thirty before daring to move. Every step sent fresh agony through her injured leg, but she couldn't stop now.

Not when Isabelle's life hung in the balance.