Chapter 8

Anna's POV

"Arthur and his family have been pushing for more say in the company ever since the accident."

Patricia let out a quiet sigh. Worry was etched into her face, as though she'd been carrying this burden for a long time.

Her fingers tightened around the stem.

"If Edward doesn't recover, I'm afraid I won't be able to protect everything we've built."

I stared at her.

"Edward's the one who made Sterling Group what it is. What did Arthur ever do for the company?"

"Arthur never put much into the company. But Edward's my only child, and they've already written him off. They're watching everything our side of the family has. They just need an opening."

She sighed again.

A surge of anger rose inside me. Edward was still lying unconscious in bed, yet Arthur's people were already circling what they hoped to claim from him. It was despicable, even by the standards of the world I had come to know.

"Anna, I need your help."

Patricia turned to face me directly. Her eyes held the desperation of someone clinging to her last hope.

"You have to do everything you can."

"I..." I didn't know what to say.

The doctors hadn't been able to wake Edward. What could I possibly do?

"Just as you suggested, stay close to him. Talk to him. Let him hear a familiar voice. Sometimes that kind of stimulation can reach someone, even when they can't respond. It might be enough to bring him back."

I didn't answer immediately.

How long had Edward and I even known each other? The things I'd told Patricia at the hospital had been nothing more than words I'd come up with in a desperate attempt to save myself. I hadn't actually believed I could make a difference.

"If that still doesn't work..."

Patricia tightened her grip on my hands. Her palms were cool against mine.

"Then have a baby with him. Edward would have an heir, and Arthur couldn't count on everything passing to his side of the family. Do you see why that matters to me?"

I went rigid.

For a moment, my mind went completely blank.

So this was what she'd been leading up to. She wanted me to have Edward's child.

When I'd agreed to this marriage, all I'd been thinking about was survival. I needed somewhere safe to hide from Julian and the Hartwells. I hadn't imagined that Patricia would expect something like this from me.

Now that she'd said it outright, I realized I couldn't accept it.

"Anna, I know I'm asking a great deal of you. But we don't have many options left. If we lose the company, neither of us will have an easy future."

I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

Just then, the housekeeper stepped into the room.

"Mrs. Sterling, the Hartwells are here. They'd like to see Anna."

My entire body stiffened.

My fingertips went cold. All I could think of was how often I'd heard those voices in the house and gone running to meet them.

I wanted nothing more than to jump up, rush to the door, tear away their carefully maintained masks, and make them pay for everything they'd done to me.

"The Hartwells?"

Patricia raised an eyebrow and glanced at me.

"Anna, do you want to go back with them?"

"No."

My answer came without hesitation.

Going back to the Hartwell house now would be like walking straight into a trap. Their plan to force me into surgery had failed, but I knew they wouldn't simply give up. They would find another way to get what they wanted.

That house had never been a home to me. It was a place I'd spent years trying to escape.

"All right."

Patricia gave me a brief, reassuring look before turning to the housekeeper.

"Show them in."

Harold and Vivian followed the housekeeper into the living room. The moment they spotted me sitting beside Patricia, their expressions changed.

Harold looked from me to Patricia. Vivian's smile had gone. For eighteen years they'd expected a say in everything I did, and now I'd come home married without telling them.

Harold cleared his throat and forced a polite smile.

"Mrs. Sterling, I apologize for the intrusion. I've come to take my daughter home."

"Mr. Hartwell."

Patricia's tone remained calm and courteous, but there was no mistaking the firmness beneath it.

"Anna has a home of her own now. You're welcome to visit whenever you like, but she won't be leaving with you."

Harold and Vivian exchanged a glance.

Judging by their reactions, Julian must have told them that I'd married Edward Sterling. They seemed to be struggling to accept that it was actually true.

I could tell from their expressions that they weren't convinced the marriage meant anything beyond convenience. The Sterling family and the Hartwells had never been close, and Edward and I had barely crossed paths before all this happened.

They probably assumed I'd simply latched onto the Sterling family as a way to escape the surgery. If they could get me back to the Hartwell house, they might still be able to put everything back the way it had been.

"Mrs. Sterling, with all due respect, Anna is engaged to Julian Vance."

Vivian forced a smile.

"Our families have understood that for quite some time."

Minutes ago they'd wanted me back at the hospital. Now Harold was volunteering to throw me a reception.

Patricia's expression didn't change.

"I have nothing more to add."

The fists I'd been clenching slowly relaxed. As I watched Patricia handle them without losing her composure, some of the anger inside me began to settle.

I let Patricia talk. With Harold this close, I wanted to tell him what I knew. I'd have a better chance of getting back what he'd taken if he went home still wondering how much I'd found out.

"But Anna and Edward barely knew each other," Harold pressed, his question sounding more like an attempt to probe for information. "How did they end up getting married so quickly?"

"I knew him before."

The answer slipped out before I had time to think.

It was true, in a way. I'd known who Edward was, at least. I wasn't even sure he remembered me.

"Anna."

Vivian's voice went up on the last word.

"Why have you never mentioned this to us?"

I almost laughed.

Judging by her reaction, I suspected she was already regretting the way she'd handled things. If she'd known I had some connection to Edward Sterling, would she ever have wasted her time pushing Julian on me?

Even a small share of the Sterling family's wealth would have been enough to keep the Hartwells comfortable for the rest of their lives.

Vivian exchanged another glance with Harold. His attitude changed almost immediately, and his voice softened into something far more accommodating.

"Well, in that case, we certainly have no objections. As your family, we naturally want what's best for you. Of course, a marriage like this deserves a proper celebration. We should all sit down and discuss the arrangements..."

A cold, humorless laugh escaped me.

Just minutes ago, they'd come here intending to drag me back for surgery. Now they were calculating what they might gain from my marriage.

"There won't be a wedding."

My voice was flat and firm.

"The marriage is between me and Edward. There isn't anything for you to work out."

Vivian's expression faltered, but she quickly forced another smile.

"Anna, what are you saying? Marriage is one of the most important events in a person's life. There are proper ways to handle these things..."

"Called you?"

I looked straight at her.

"So you could tell me what a good idea it was to go back into surgery?"

Then I said what I'd wanted to say for a very long time.

"You're not my mother, Vivian. You have no right to tell me how to live my life."