Olivia’s POV
I held my breath, waiting. Sothing about the way he said that na - with so much pain and longing - made realize just how much I needed to know who this mysterious Olivia was.
"Olivia was... she was my childhood best friend," he mumbled, his words slurring together. "We were inseparable. I trusted her with everything... loved her more than anyone in the world..."
My chest tightened with emotion. I’d never heard Maxwell speak with such vulnerability before. Even in his delirium, the raw pain in his voice was heartbreaking.
"But she betrayed ," he continued, his voice turning bitter even as a few tears dropped from his eyes. "She destroyed everything... broke my heart into pieces and left with nothing. And I swear... I swear I’ll make sure she suffers for what she did."
I stilled completely, my blood turning to ice. The venom in his voice, even weakened by illness, was terrifying. This poor woman - whoever she was - must have really hurt him badly for him to harbor such a vengeful desire toward soone who shared my na.
"Where... where is this Olivia now?" I asked carefully, my voice barely a whisper.
He chuckled drowsily, a sound that held no humor whatsoever. "After years of looking for her... years of searching... I finally found her. And now I’m going to make her feel exactly the sort of hurt she made feel. I’ve started already, but I’m going slow for now. I want to enjoy it for a long ti."
My heart ached for both of them - Maxwell, clearly carrying this pain from his childhood, and this unknown woman who had no idea what was coming for her. Whatever had happened between them as children, Maxwell’s adult obsession with revenge seed deeply unhealthy.
But then, how could he claim to love her, but still want to punish her? It was all so confusing.
"You said you love her," I pressed, desperate to understand. "How can you hurt soone you love?"
Maxwell’s fevered smile was chilling. "Oh, I have my ways. Love and hate... they’re not so different, you know. Two sides of the sa coin. The deeper the love, the sweeter the revenge..."
That was the last coherent thing he said before his head lolled back and he lost consciousness completely. His breathing beca even more labored, and no matter how much I shook him or called his na, he wouldn’t respond.
"Maxwell! Maxwell, stay with !" I pleaded, panic rising in my throat.
Just then, the hospital ca into view, and I practically jumped out of the moving car before it had fully stopped.
"Help!" I shouted, running toward the ergency entrance. "I need help! My boss collapsed with a high fever!"
Two nurses and a doctor imdiately rushed out with a wheelchair, followed by security personnel. Within seconds, they had Maxwell out of the car and were wheeling him through the automatic doors.
"Sir, we need you to fill out so paperwork," one of the nurses called to as they rushed Maxwell toward the treatnt area.
"I don’t know his dical history," I said frantically, jogging alongside them. "He’s my boss, not family. I just found him like this in our hotel room."
"That’s okay, we’ll get what we can from you," the doctor said, examining Maxwell’s fevered face as they wheeled him down the hallway. "How long has he been like this?"
"I don’t know. I woke up this morning and he wouldn’t respond. His fever is extrely high."
They reached a treatnt room, and suddenly I was shut out as dical personnel sward around Maxwell. Through the small window in the door, I could see them hooking him up to monitors, taking his temperature, drawing blood.
A nurse approached with a clipboard. "We need whatever information you can give us. Full na, age if you know it, any dical conditions or dications..."
I provided what little I knew about Maxwell Wellington the boss, but realized I knew almost nothing about Maxwell Wellington the person. Did he have allergies? Chronic conditions? Family history of illness?
"Is there anyone we should call?" the nurse asked. "Family mbers? Ergency contacts?"
I thought for a mont - his aunt Cassandra was here in Chicago but I didn’t have her number, I also didn’t have Damien’s as well. The only contacts in my phone was Gabriel’s and Alex’s. And Alex was definitely my safest option.
"I can call his best friend, Alex. He might know more about Maxwell’s dical history."
The nurse nodded. "That would be helpful. Any information about allergies, previous illnesses, dications - anything could be important."
I pulled out my phone and scrolled through until I found Alex’s number. The phone rang several tis before he finally answered.
"Oh, thank God." I said with relief, "Alex, this is Oliver."
"Oliver? What’s wrong? It’s pretty early for Maxwell to have you calling ."
"Alex, it’s an ergency," I said, my voice filled with worry. "Maxwell collapsed this morning with a high fever. We’re at the hospital in Chicago - he has pneumonia."
"What?" Alex’s voice imdiately beca serious. "Is he okay? How bad is it?"
"The doctors say he’s stable, but his fever hit 104 degrees. They need to know about any dical history, allergies, dications - anything you might know that I don’t."
There was a pause, then Alex’s voice ca back. "Oliver, Maxwell doesn’t have any dical conditions. No allergies that I know of, no dications. The man’s annoyingly healthy - never gets sick, barely even gets colds. In all the years I’ve known him, I don’t think he’s ever been to a hospital for anything. Hell, he detest hospitals."
"Really? Nothing at all?"
"Nothing. His family doesn’t have a history of major illnesses either. This pneumonia thing... it’s really out of character for him. Are you sure that’s what it is?"
I relayed this information to the nurse, who looked surprised but noted it down. It seed Maxwell’s sudden, severe illness was as much of a mystery to his best friend as it was to everyone else.
The nurse nodded sympathetically. "We’ll do our best with what we have. Why don’t you have a seat in the waiting area? The doctor will update you as soon as they know sothing."
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