Helena gripped Samuel's sleeve, her voice tuned to faux concern. "How can you speak to a child like that? Look how frightened Olivia is!"
Samuel snorted, the contempt hot in his tone. "She thinks she's all grown up now."
Olivia didn't say anything, words lodged in her throat like stones. She had learned long ago that defending herself whenever she was scolded only earned her harsher looks and even harsher consequences from her father. So she kept silent and let them speak.
Helena's hand slid possessively along Olivia's arm, a show of false tenderness. "Olivia, are you managing all right?" she asked with feigned concern.
Olivia pulled her arm back carefully as if removing it from a snake's grip. She forced a quiet, even voice: "I'm fine."
Helena's smile widened, "You married well. Look at the prestige of the Donovan family, and at Master Donovan's power..."
Married? This was not marriage, it was an exchange, a girl sold to pay debts. And the fact that her father looked unremorseful nor showed a trace of concern made her chest tighten.
Helena had spent years shaming her mother and calling Olivia a stain, and now, at the Donovan house, she clung to Olivia as if she were a beloved child. The hypocrisy made Olivia's skin crawl.
"If it's really such a wonderful arrangement, why didn't you arrange for Vivienne to marry Master Donovan instead?" Her voice was cold yet soft as she spoke.
Helena's smile froze for a heartbeat. Samuel's reaction was sharper than she expected, "What are you saying? How could an excellent girl like your sister marry that devil?" he barked furiously.
Olivia's eyes narrowed. "Father, you are in the Donovan household." Her father's guts were laughable, he was standing inside the very property of the man he was calling a devil. He could marry her off to that devil but the thought of his beloved child being in the same situation repulsed him.
How evident was the difference of their positions in his heart? She was his daughter too, yet clearly in his eyes she was nothing more than low trash.
Samuel's face hardened. "You'd better know your place," he warned strictly hiding the slight fear that had slithered down his spine after being reminded of the fact that he was indeed within the devil's territory.
Helena stepped forward with the smile of someone playing a benevolent hostess, cutting through the tension between father and daughter. "Enough, Samuel. Watch your tone with Livie."
Livie? Such an endearing nickname her stepmother had suddenly chosen to call her. Olivia was instantly alerted of the fact that the woman had a motive.
She turned to Olivia and poured on the sweetness. "Livie, your father is only angry. Forgive him. After all, we've waited a long time."
Forgive?
Forgive the family who sold her away like a cow they'd raised until it was old enough to be purchased for a hefty amount?
She had no intention of pretending to be grateful. After what her father did she had nothing she owed them.
She kept her face placid. "Just tell me why you're here." Her voice was soft, but the chill beneath it was evident. She knew they didn't come here to see their beloved daughter, they were here for themselves. The glint in her stepmother's eyes said as much.
Helena's practiced mask cracked subtly upon hearing the detached tone Olivia spoke in.
What happened to that pathetic girl who would repeatedly beg for affection?
Was she actually upset because she was married off to the Donovan's?
How dare she refuse such an opportunity.
Helena discarded pretense, no longer putting up her facade. "Since you've entered the Donovan household and actually managed to survived, you must be resourceful. Speak to Master Donovan, ask him to get Vivienne into Crown University."
Olivia was shocked to hear the woman's unreasonable demands.
Crown University, the place of scions and heirs. Admission meant guaranteed success and a window to great connections, powerful friends, and bountiful opportunities.
Olivia felt something small and bitter laugh inside her chest.
So they sold her off just to buy Vivienne that ladder. Her father had traded her like a check cashed for another daughter's future.
Vivienne's smile was an unfiltered picture of the disdain she truly felt towards Olivia.
"Don't be resentful, Livie. Your mother was a mistress. Your existence in our family is only due to my mother's kindness, otherwise you'd never have been accepted into our family. Shouldn't you repay that kindness now?"
Olivia's hands tightened.
Why should she be used as a pawn to secure someone else's future. She recalled how much ridicule she'd had to endure from Vivienne.
The same person who used to step on her, was actually using her to gain a bright future? How ridiculous.
"And what if I refuse to do it?"
Samuel snapped back, furiously. "How dare you! You must—"
Helena cut in smoothly, like a blade sheathed in silk. "I've already arranged for the Donovan household to invite their Madam on your behalf. Livie, be smart. You know what you stand to lose if you refuse. You better choose wisely."
Helena leaned close and whispered in a tone only she and Olivia could hear, "Don't forget, your grandfather is still in the hospital. I can make arrangements so he never leaves."
The words struck Olivia. Her grandfather who had raised her, taught her herbs and medicine, lovingly took care of her when her own father rejected her, was the last warmth she had ever felt. The idea of losing him felt extremely unbearable. She'd come this far for her grandfather's sake, there was no use giving up now.
Helena's fingers smoothed Olivia's hair with fake tenderness. "Be a good girl, Livie," she murmured.
A hush suddenly fell over the entire parlor as the elder matriarch of the Donovan family entered, the older woman's white hair bound in a careful bun. The Madame's aura radiated authority, that made everyone cautious the minute she appeared. Samuel and Helena who had been so bold moments before, went small and muted in her presence.
Madam Donovan's eyes traveled the hall, finally settling on Olivia with thin interest. The old woman's face was carved in a stone cold expression , untouched by warmth, evidently showing someone used to commanding others but never taking any herself. Only one thought seemed to move across her features as she stared at Olivia, Is this girl useful?
Madam Donovan's voice was cool. "Young lady, Why did you come to see me?" she asked.
It was funny how she didn't even know Olivia's name, she merely knew her as the bride she'd bought for her grandson and nothing more.
Olivia's skin stung as she felt the pinch Helena had given her arm, the woman viciously tightening her nails into Olivia's skin as a sign that she should speak.
Olivia inhaled deeply, feeling helpless from deep within.
She hated the fact that she had to give in to all of her stepmother's demands, her grandfather was the only person she cared for in her whole life, and his life was something she would never toy with.
This will be the last time. Once her Grandfather was free, she would never be forced to do everything they said ever again.
"Madam Donovan," she said, her voice low and measured, "I would like to ask for your help to enroll my sister at Crown University."
She spoke with every ounce of courtesy she could produce.
Madam Donovan's gaze was unreadable. She gave Olivia a brief, contemptuous look.
This girl had only arrived yesterday, and already she was asking favors. But then...If she survived staying with her grandson last night, that only means that perhaps she's useful.
Immediately that thought registered in the older woman's mind, Madam Donovan's interest in Olivia seemed to deepen.