LOGINIt was only at that moment that I finally understood that Mom had never loved me.To her, I was nothing more than a bargaining chip at the gambling table.She had essentially put me on the table and was betting on how much Dad would pay to save me.Time passed, but Dad’s transfer still hadn’t come through.No matter how many times Mom called to pressure him, his answer was always the same.“I need to see my daughter alive with my own eyes before I’ll give you the money.”The thugs nearby were growing impatient and beginning to doubt Mom’s story.“Lady, are you telling the truth?“Are you deliberately stalling us? Don’t try anything funny!“You know the rules. If you dare to play us, you’ll be chopped into pieces and dumped into the open sea for the fish!”Terrified, Mom collapsed to the floor and stammered,“I-I don’t know what’s wrong with him today. He usually transfers the money right away…“Just give me a little more time!”The thugs had completely run out of patience.
I was taken to one of the private rooms in the underground casino.A middle-aged man with a fat, greasy face and a thick gold chain was sitting on the sofa.I was thrown directly in front of him, landing on my knees.The man leisurely lit a cigar, took a puff, and blew the smoke straight into my face.The harsh smell of cigar smoke made me cough violently, but the man burst out laughing, his teeth stained yellow and black.“Good! I like them untouched!”With that, he grabbed my chin and leaned close to me, asking with a lecherous grin,“Tell me, are you still a virgin?“If you are, I’ll be gentle with you later.”I nearly passed out from his foul breath, and goosebumps instantly covered my entire body.I summoned all my strength and slammed my forehead into his nose.“Get away from me! Stay the hell away!”His nose broke instantly, and blood gushed from it.He flew into a rage and kicked me hard in the lower abdomen.I doubled over in pain, unable to breathe, and curled u
By the time I got home, it was already daylight.Not long after, Mom came back too. She looked extremely anxious.But the moment she saw me, she immediately took out her frustration on me.She grabbed an empty beer bottle from the floor and hurled it at me, shouting,“Didn’t I tell you to get back to work? Why are you still here?“You’re nothing but bad luck! Just looking at you makes me sick!“No wonder your father abandoned you! I don’t want you anymore either!”I shifted slightly to the side, and the beer bottle smashed against the wall behind me, shattering into pieces.For the first time, I abandoned my usual submissive attitude and asked coldly,“Did Dad really abandon me back then?”Mom froze for a moment. A flicker of guilt flashed across her eyes, but anger quickly concealed it.She stormed toward me, grabbed me by the hair, and dragged me outside.Then she threw me into the hallway.“You shameless freeloader! How many times do I have to answer you?“Get the hell
I called Dad at three in the morning, and by four-thirty, he had already arrived at the place we agreed to meet.The two places were a two-hour drive apart, so he must have driven as fast as he could the entire way.We agreed to meet at a small park not far from home. The moment Dad got out of the car, he ran toward me.“Amelia! It really is you!”Dad pulled me into a tight hug, his voice trembling as he spoke.It was a long while before he finally let me go. His eyes were red, and tear tracks stained his cheeks.“How did you get so thin? Are you still as picky about food as you were when you were little?“From now on, how about I bring you home for dinner every day? We have a private chef at home who can make all your favorite dishes.“Your mother told me you were sick?”I immediately became alert and grabbed Dad’s hand.“You didn’t give her any money, did you?”Dad froze, looking completely confused. He shook his head.“Not yet. You told me on the phone not to send her an
Mom kicked me out of the house, leaving me with only one thing to say.“Go work and make some money! I don’t want to see you!”The bus back to campus had already stopped running for the night, so with nowhere else to go, I could only curl up in the hallway and spend the night there.But sometime after midnight, I suddenly heard a door opening.I peeked through the fire door and saw Mom quietly leaving the building in the middle of the night.A bad feeling immediately washed over me.I quietly followed her, wanting to see where she was going.After making several turns, she walked into a private game room and disappeared down the hallway.Strangely, the place was completely silent. It was the middle of the night, and everyone should have gone home to sleep. There was no one else inside.What had she come here for?I tiptoed toward the end of the hallway, only to discover that it was a dead end.Mom had vanished into thin air!Then I noticed a raised switch in the corner.I
He’s been looking for me all these years?How could that be possible?I could hardly believe my ears.Ethan didn’t notice the change in my expression and continued talking.“I told you, I actually have an older sister! But I’ve never met her.“Dad says she’s a really sweet and well-behaved girl. But more than ten years ago, Dad’s ex-wife took her and ran away.“Dad has been looking for her all these years, but he still hasn’t found her.”My mind went completely blank.There were so many questions.Why had Dad said that Mom had taken me and run away? He was the one who had left behind divorce papers and disappeared.Mom had fallen apart because Dad had abandoned us without a word.So who was lying?When Ethan saw that I wasn’t responding, he pulled me into another room and pointed at the beautifully decorated space.“This is the room Dad kept for my sister! He said she’d have a room waiting for her if she ever came back.“Dad also said orange is her favorite color, so he m







