Chapter Four - Her Punishment (1)

Buying another phone wasn't an option. She simply couldn't afford it.

Just then, her stomach growled loudly.She wrapped an arm around it, hoping it would ease the ache.

It didn't.

Yesterday's breakfast had been the last thing she'd eaten. She swallowed hard, trying to ignore the hunger gnawing at her stomach. Going downstairs wasn't an option.

If her parents found her...

She closed her eyes tightly. She'd rather sleep hungry than get beaten again. She slowly lay down on the thin mattress, her body exhausted and her stomach painfully empty. Sleep came only after several minutes of tossing and turning.

*********

Early Morning [Vanessa's Room]

Morning came quickly. Golden rays of sunlight streamed through the bedroom window, falling across the figure sleeping peacefully on the small bed.

Vanessa.

For the first time in a long while, she looked at peace, completely unaware of what awaited her.

Suddenly—

Splash!

Ice-cold water drenched her from head to toe. She shot upright with a gasp, her heart pounding wildly.

"W-What..."

Laughter echoed through the room.

Vanessa looked up.

Standing beside her bed were her twin sisters. Mira and Anna. Mira, the blonde-haired twin, held the now-empty bucket, while Anna, with her striking red hair just like Vanessa's, folded her arms across her chest. The only difference between them was the color of their hair. Both wore identical mocking smiles.

"Aww... the princess is finally awake," Mira sneered.

"So you finally decided to come back after running away?" Anna added with a smirk.

"I don't even know why you bothered coming back," Mira said, as she tossed the bucket aside. "You know you're only going to keep suffering."

Before Vanessa could react, the twins lunged at her. One grabbed a fistful of her hair while the other seized her arm.

"W-What are you doing? Let go!" Vanessa cried, struggling against them.

They ignored her. Together, they dragged her out of the room. Her bare feet scraped against the floor. When they reached the staircase, they didn't stop. They dragged her down the stairs without the slightest bit of mercy.

Thud!

Her shoulder slammed against the edge of a step.

Bang!

The back of her head struck another. Her knees scraped painfully against the rough wood as they continued dragging her downward. Fresh bruises bloomed across her body. Vanessa tried pushing them away. They didn't budge. Instead, Anna drove a hard kick into her side.

"Agh!"

Mira immediately followed with another kick to her head. Before Vanessa could recover, Anna planted her foot firmly on her stomach.

Vanessa choked violently. Blood spilled from the corner of her lips, dripping onto the staircase and staining the polished wood crimson.

Now Vanessa felt weak, unable to move. She just lay motionless where her sisters had left her at the bottom of the stairs. They didn't even bother looking back at her. They simply walked toward the backyard.

Vanessa remained there, trying to lift herself up, but she couldn't move at all. She felt sore, too drained, and helpless. This was what she went through every single day, receiving such horrible treatment from her own family. She couldn't help but think it was simply her bad luck. She lay there for about twenty minutes before trying once again to get up.

"Hmm..." she groaned in pain as she used the wall to support herself. Finally standing, she remained there, lost in thought, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"No food in the kitchen. So who's going to do the house chores? Me?" A woman's voice broke the silence.

It was the twins' mother.

The twins stood beside her, looking like exact replicas of their mother. They had inherited her brown eyes too. The three of them stood together like models, each with a figure anyone would envy. They looked at Vanessa with nothing but mockery while she stood there, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You know I don't like repeating myself, Vanessa. And when I do, you know what comes next," Mrs. Brown said, looking at her with so much hatred—nothing close to a mother's love. No one would believe they were related if not for the slight resemblance between them.

"I was... about to, Mother," Vanessa replied, trying to compose herself.

"That's a lie, Mother. She was asleep when we went to her room. She looked so peaceful," Anna smirked, making sure to get Vanessa into even more trouble.

"Is that so?" Mrs. Brown asked, raising an eyebrow.

Vanessa wanted to defend herself, but she couldn't. With the twins around, anything she said would only make things worse. Mrs. Brown walked towards her. Vanessa instinctively stepped backward, but the wall behind her left her nowhere to escape. Mrs. Brown grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked it hard, glaring at her with disgust.

"House chores are supposed to be done before everyone wakes up. But guess what? None of them were done." She pulled even harder.

"In addition to your chores, you're going to wash everyone's laundry—including the security guards' uniforms—wash every single car outside, and prepare lunch before the end of today."

She paused, her lips curling into a cold smile.

"And if you fail..."

She didn't bother finishing the sentence. Vanessa already knew what awaited her. Mrs. Brown shoved her away before suddenly remembering something.

"Oh... and you're not going to work today."

Without another glance, she walked out. The twins went upstairs together, laughing amongst themselves.

Vanessa was left standing alone.

Another day off...

At this rate, I'll lose my job.

And I still can't find my phone...

Ignoring the pain all over her body, she hurried to the kitchen to prepare lunch before starting the rest of her chores.