Chapter 1

The day of my dad’s birthday, I found the car charm I’d spent a week meticulously crafting tossed in the trash.

I put away the car keys I was planning to give him and went to confront him, only to be met with a harsh slap across my face.

“I raised you this big, and this is all you give me? You complain constantly that we favor your brother and give him all the money, but have you seen the pure gold bracelet Kevin gave me? You still have the nerve to freeload in our house!”

“Get out! If you cause any more trouble, I swear I’ll disinherit you!”

It was pouring rain, and I was kicked out of the house in my pajamas.

I turned around and saw my dad post on SnapChat: “Raising a daughter is worse than raising a dog.”

When I saw the gold bracelet on his wrist, I froze.

Wasn’t that the same gold-plated bracelet I’d bought him when I got my new car?

On my dad’s sixtieth birthday, I had an expensive gift ready for him early that day.

I drove my newly purchased car downstairs, then went up with the car keys in hand.

The moment I stepped through the door, I found they’d already finished eating.

I paused, a flicker of annoyance crossing my face. “Mom, didn’t we agree you’d wait for me to celebrate since I’d be home late?”

Before my mom could answer, my brother, Kevin, sneered from the side. “Who do you think you are? You come back empty-handed and still expect a meal?”

We’d never gotten along, so I shot back immediately, “No matter what, I don’t constantly drain Mom and Dad’s pockets. Besides, who says I didn’t bring Dad a gift?”

I started to pull out the car keys as I spoke.

My dad’s car was a decade-old used Honda. It had no AC in winter and no ventilation in summer, but he’d never brought himself to replace it.

I’d recently made a decent chunk of money from my business, so I meticulously picked out a brand-new SUV worth a good fifteen thousand dollars as his birthday gift.

Before I could finish, Kevin scoffed. “You ungrateful brat. I bought Dad a gold bracelet this year. And you think *that* pathetic thing is a gift? I’ve never seen anyone so shameless.”

“Dad thought it was trashy to hang in his car! He tossed it ages ago.”

The specific color I wanted for the car wasn’t available at the local dealership; it needed a few more days to arrive.

Afraid I’d miss the birthday, I had specially made a car charm in advance and gave it to Dad.

My craftsmanship wasn’t perfect, and that charm took me a solid week to make, leaving several holes pricked in my fingers.

Kevin’s words made me laugh, but it was a bitter, angry laugh. “Mom, Dad, did you hear what Kevin just said?”

My gaze fell on Mom’s evasive eyes, and my expression hardened.

“Dad, did you really throw away my gift?”

A flicker of guilt crossed Dad’s face, then vanished as he bellowed at me. “Who taught you to talk to your father like that? Are you *questioning* me?”

I ignored him, just staring him down. “Dad, I’m just asking you one thing: where’s the gift I gave you?”