Chapter 4

"Are you mentally unwell?"

Behind me, Jacob, who had been silent ever since getting slapped first thing in the morning, finally couldn't take it anymore.

I said bluntly, "I'm afraid of snakes, and I'm afraid of pigs."

Thalia lay on the floor crying, the snake heads drooping from her hair, their hissing noticeably weaker.

Dwayne was sprawled on his back, flailing all four of his limbs three times before finally managing to get up. He looked just like a slaughtered pig lying helplessly on its back.

I stared at the sight of the snake lady and pig tangled together on the floor. Then, my stomach churned again.

Lorraine's demonic face came closer. "Ruthie! Why did you push Thally?"

I took a step back and said, "I didn't push her. She lost her balance herself. I just dodged the snakes, and she fell."

Lorraine shrieked, "How dare you still argue? Snakes? What snakes? Where are they? What kind of nonsense are you talking about?"

Another face came closer.

I turned around and saw a man with a pig's head.

He slammed his hand on the table and shouted at me, "Ruthie, what kind of attitude is that? That's your mother!"

I stared at him for two seconds, mentally comparing that face with the photograph I'd seen in the family album.

"Who are you?"

"I'm your father!"

"My father is a pig?"

Harold Levine's pig face instantly turned deep purple. His nostrils blasted out thick, rapid breaths. He opened his mouth but couldn't say anything for a long moment. His hooves pounded against the table with loud thuds.

"You… You…"

"Don't point your hoof at me. It looks just like a ham."

Another person appeared at the entrance to the dining room. Well, I assumed it was a person, even though I saw a black goat.

"There's a goat in this family too?" I muttered.

The goat froze and asked, "Are you calling me a goat?"

"I didn't call you a goat. You are a goat," I explained innocently while pointing at his head.

I added, "Look at yourself. Black fur, two pairs of curved horns, and a tuft of hair on your chin... Oh, wait. That's your chin hair. Sorry, I got that wrong."

The goat's face contorted, and the tips of his horns nearly poked the chandelier.

Furious, he kicked the doorframe. "Has something gone wrong with your brain?"

Lorraine hurriedly grabbed him. "Jack, don't get angry. She's gone crazy today. Don't take it personally…"

"I'm not crazy." I took another half step back until my spine touched Chester's elbow.

He suddenly asked, "What do you think I look like?"

There was no anger in his voice. Instead, there seemed to be a hint of amusement.

I tilted my head up and carefully studied him for five seconds.

A soft golden halo wrapped around his entire body. Everything from his shoulder blades to his fingertips seemed to glow. Tiny stars sparkled at the tips of his eyelashes. His nose was sharp and straight, and his thin lips were curving slightly upward.

There wasn't a single flaw in his face.

I sniffed and said with absolute certainty, "An angel. You're definitely an angel. This isn't hell. This is heaven, right? You're the one who came to take me away."

The corners of Chester's mouth finally curled all the way up, and the corners of his eyes curved a little.

The pig-headed man finally got back on his feet.

Dwayne charged over and grabbed my wrist with his hoof. His five fingers dug into my flesh.

He roared, "What the hell are you doing, Ruthie? Come here! Take a good look at me and see who I am!"

His pig snout moved closer. Hot breath blasted onto my face, blowing that foul, gamey smell right into my nose.

My whole body jerked, and my hand rose before I could control it.

A smack rang out, loud and sharp.

My entire palm tingled.

A bright red handprint appeared on the pig's face, stretching from his cheek all the way to the corner of his mouth.

I darted behind Chester in three steps and buried my entire face in his back, leaving only one eye exposed as I peeked out.

My voice was trembling as I cried, "Don't come near me! You're terrifying! I'm about to throw up! You've even got drools hanging from the corner of your mouth. Can't you see it?"

Dwayne's hand froze in midair. His pig face turned red, then green, then purple. The five-finger mark stood out brightly against his skin.

I pulled Chester half a step forward. He shifted to the side and blocked me completely with his body.

Lorraine stared at me, her fangs clicking together as her trembling voice rang out, "Rue… Do you really think he's a pig?"

"Of course." I poked half my head out from behind Chester and glanced at her with one eye.

I continued, "You're a demon. He's a pig. She's a snake lady. He's a frog, and that's a black goat."

Dwayne clutched the hand I'd slapped away. The handprint on his pig face was bright red, and he couldn't get a single word out.

Suddenly, a burst of frantic footsteps came from the kitchen.

A sunfish wearing an apron came running out. "Mr. and Mrs. Levine, this is bad! Something bad happened!"

Everyone turned around.

The sunfish waved something frantically in her hand, shouting in a panic.

I couldn't make out what she was saying, but the angel standing in front of me suddenly turned around. His expression was grim as he grabbed my arm.

He seemed to be saying something, but I couldn't hear him.

In my fading vision, the angel seemed to grow taller and taller. My strength slowly left me. I slid to the floor and lost consciousness.