Chapter 219 Saving Her Enemy

Chapter 219 Saving Her Enemy

Olivia immediately froze, not daring to move a muscle. Fortunately, the car only shuddered violently before stopping its descent, though this made their situation even more precarious.

Once the car stopped swaying, Olivia breathed a sigh of relief, only then noticing that her finger had been sliced open by a jagged piece of metal protruding from the seat. Blood seeped from the cut, but she had no time to tend to it.

She finally reached Celeste's side and quickly removed her own jacket, placing it under Celeste's head to protect her from the broken glass scattered on the floor. Then she gently touched Celeste's shoulder. "Mrs. Howard, wake up. We need to go. The car won't hold much longer."

Celeste's eyelids fluttered but didn't open. After two more attempts with no response, Olivia gritted her teeth and carefully draped Celeste's arm across her neck, slowly rising to her feet. She wasn't particularly strong, and Celeste's weight pressed painfully into her shoulder. Each step required her to steady herself, terrified of causing the car to sway more violently.

"Just hold on a little longer. We're almost safe."

Olivia whispered near Celeste's ear, keeping her voice soft.

She could feel Celeste's body trembling slightly—whether from cold or pain, she couldn't tell.

As they neared the car door, a branch suddenly snapped with a sharp crack, and the car plummeted another two feet. Olivia quickly grabbed the door frame, her fingernails nearly tearing off.

"I'm going to jump. Hold tight."

The moment she spoke, she leaped from the car while holding Celeste.

Wind rushed past their ears as they crashed heavily onto the slope below. Olivia instinctively shielded Celeste with her own body, her back scraping against rocks with searing pain.

They rolled down the gentle slope until Olivia managed to grab a cluster of shrubs, finally stopping on the grassy ground near a river.

Olivia lay prone, gasping for several minutes before recovering.

She immediately turned to help Celeste, finding her still unconscious. Quickly checking Celeste's breathing—thankfully, she was still alive—Olivia examined her body. Besides bruising on her chest, Celeste had numerous cuts on her arms and legs.

Olivia retrieved the jacket she had placed under Celeste's head and covered her with it again, then sat beside her, rubbing her own aching shoulder.

"We're so lucky to be alive."

She gazed up at the distant cliff, murmuring. After about ten minutes, Celeste finally opened her eyes. Her gaze was still unfocused, but when she recognized Olivia, her pupils contracted slightly. Her lips moved, "You... saved me?"

"Yes."

Olivia nodded, reaching out to brush away the hair from Celeste's forehead, but stopping mid-air, afraid of touching her wounds.

"You've injured your ribs. Don't move too much. I've covered you with my jacket—try not to get cold."

Celeste looked at Olivia's suspended hand, then at the jacket covering her, still stained with Olivia's blood. She opened her mouth as if to speak, but said nothing, her expression gradually changing. The hostility that had always been there was gone, replaced by a guilt she didn't even recognize herself.

She had always believed Olivia wasn't worthy of Matthew and had targeted her at every opportunity. But just now in the car, Olivia could have easily escaped alone, yet chose not to abandon her.

Just then, Molly's voice echoed from the river, filled with tears, "Help! I can't swim! Someone please help me!"

Olivia immediately stood and ran toward the riverbank. Celeste tried to get up but was stopped by the sharp pain in her ribs, only able to shout anxiously, "It's Molly! She can't swim!"

Olivia reached the river's edge and jumped in without hesitation.

The water was even colder than expected. She shivered upon contact but gritted her teeth and swam toward Molly.

Molly was thrashing wildly in the water. When she saw Olivia, she reached out like grasping a lifeline, trying to grab onto Olivia.

"Don't grab my arms—I won't be able to swim," Olivia said quickly. "Hold onto my clothes, and I'll get you to shore."

Molly obediently gripped Olivia's clothing as Olivia used all her strength to swim toward the bank.

Once on shore, Molly collapsed on the ground, crying and shivering.

Olivia was also freezing, but still helped Molly up first, leaning her against a rock before taking the jacket from Celeste to wrap around Molly.

"Thank you," Molly whispered, keeping her head low.

She had always joined Celeste in speaking ill of Olivia, even scheming to embarrass her.

But just now, knowing Molly disliked her, Olivia had still jumped into the water to save her. Molly glanced up at Olivia briefly before lowering her head again, feeling both guilty and embarrassed.

"No need to thank me. We're all family." Olivia smiled, crouching down to wring the water from Molly's hair. "When the police arrive, we'll be safe."

Molly said nothing but quietly scooted closer to Olivia. Celeste sat nearby, watching Olivia tend to Molly's hair, feeling even more troubled. She suddenly spoke up, "Thank you for saving me. I shouldn't have done those things to you before."

Olivia paused, turning to look at Celeste. "Let's not talk about the past. I saved you both mainly because you're Matthew's family."

Celeste gazed at her with complex emotions in her eyes, finally just nodding without another word.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of a helicopter overhead. A helicopter in the distance was searching for them.

"It won't be long before the police find us here. Someone will come to rescue us soon."

She said happily, and Celeste and Molly also smiled, the tension finally leaving their faces.

But just then, a gunshot suddenly rang out.

Before Olivia could react, she saw blood gushing from Celeste's shoulder. Celeste groaned and collapsed.

"Mom!" Molly screamed, rushing to hold Celeste.

Olivia also ran over quickly, her heart pounding. She looked up toward where the gunshot had come from and saw Scarlett emerging from the woods, gun in hand, her face twisted with a maniacal smile, "You thought you could be rescued? I didn't permit you to live, so how dare you try to leave!"

Scarlett's clothes were covered in dust and blood, her hair disheveled, her eyes filled with vicious intent. She raised the gun again, aiming at Olivia and Molly, "Not one of the Howards gets to live!"