Chapter 4

My head was spinning.

The beating I had taken earlier had left me incredibly weak. I didn’t want to keep fighting with them, so I cried and pretended to agree before escaping to my room.

I stared at my swollen eyes in the mirror and felt utterly devastated.

People always said that children who weren’t loved feared the holidays most.

It was painfully true.

If things continued like this, being sold off was only a matter of time.

How could I fight the family who had raised me?

After making up my mind, I picked up my phone and forced myself to message my mother again.

“Mom, I was wrong. What I said today was out of line. Aunt Melissa wants to marry me off to her nephew. Can you please save me?”

I waited a long time after sending the message.

There was no reply.

I told myself that maybe she was still angry. Maybe I had said too much.

Once she calmed down, she would help me.

After all, how could a mother not love her own child?

For the next few days, I tried to make myself invisible.

Things were peaceful enough.

I looked forward to going back to school. At least then I wouldn’t have to walk on eggshells every second of the day.

But what happened next only made me more determined to escape that family.

On the sixth day of the holiday, Grandpa suddenly suffered a brain hemorrhage and was rushed to the hospital.

He needed a huge amount of money for surgery.

But Grandma and Grandpa had spent nearly all their savings supporting me through school.

My aunt definitely didn’t want to pay.

She got into a huge fight with my mother at the hospital.

“Claire, if you don’t pay, who will? We’ve been taking care of your bastard this whole time!”

My mother complained that she had no money.

She said everyone else’s parents bought them cars and houses and found them jobs. She had received nothing, so why should she be responsible now?

She really had the nerve to say that.

Grandma’s face went dark with anger.

“Why did I even have you? Do you have any idea how hard your father worked to raise you kids?”

My mother only became more furious.

“If you didn’t have money, why did you have children? Did I ask you to give birth to me? Did any of you get my permission? You enjoyed yourselves once, and that was all it took…”

Grandma nearly fainted after hearing that.

My uncle slapped my mother across the face.

“Daniel, how dare you hit me? Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning. You want to marry Riley off to your nephew and keep the money for yourselves. That money belongs to me! I’m her mother. I want at least three hundred thousand dollars. Not a cent less.”

My heart shattered.

I had waited so long for her to help me, only to hear those words.

“Mom, stop…”

My aunt rolled her eyes and sneered.

“Aren’t you always calling yourself a modern woman? Why are you suddenly so attached to money?”

Then she continued with complete confidence.

“Riley isn’t exactly beautiful, but she’ll still have to have children once she gets married.”

“If the child takes the father’s last name, three hundred thousand dollars is only fair.”

The nurse looked at me with pity before turning angrily on them.

“Don’t you people care about the patient? How can you stand here arguing about this nonsense?”

My mother flushed with embarrassment, then immediately turned her anger on the nurse.

“Watch your mouth! I’ll report you!”

I finally snapped.

I shoved her back toward the window and screamed, “Are you done yet? You’re so determined to destroy my life that I might as well die with you!”