Chapter 2

I tried again, but no matter what I did, I couldn't leave town.

The cold night air made me shiver and helped clear my mind.

If I was trapped here, I had to find out why. Otherwise, my whole life would be ruined.

I gathered my courage, went back into the cellar, and found the merit ledger.

I took a deep breath and opened the first page.

"April 7. I'm pregnant with this child. She is destined for great academic success, but she's bound to face major hardship. She needs blessings to get through it and succeed in school."

I turned a few more pages.

"August 3. I caused a car accident on purpose and killed our neighbor, Mrs. Shaw, to trade her life for Lindsay's health."

As I stared at those words, I suddenly remembered something.

When I was eight years old, I became seriously ill. The doctors said there was nothing they could do.

But three months later, I miraculously survived.

I kept turning the pages, growing more horrified with every entry. Every record matched something that had happened to me.

The early admission, scholarships, and advantages I gained from winning academic competitions were things I thought I had earned through my own hard work.

In reality, they had all been paid for with human lives!

I turned more pages, but the page numbering suddenly jumped. Several pages had been torn out.

That meant Mom had killed far more people than these.

When I reached the last page, a line of red writing caught my eye.

"Anyone who receives these blessings must repay the debt within 49 days. Otherwise, they will suffer the consequences."

My hands started shaking uncontrollably.

Was this why I couldn't leave town?

How was I supposed to repay all these blessings? If I suffered the consequences, would I still be able to go to college?

As dawn approached, I was afraid someone would find me, so I quickly took pictures of every page with my phone and quietly went back to my room.

I lay in bed, unable to sleep. My mind was a mess.

One moment, I pictured Mom's gentle smile. In the next, I imagined her killing someone.

Half asleep, I suddenly heard someone calling me from outside. "Lindsay! Are you home?"

It was Walter Shaw, Carla Wright's son.

"Come on. Come have a meal at my place. I've got to celebrate with you." Walter gave me a warm, eager smile.

Without thinking, I almost refused, but I changed my mind at the last second.

I remembered that Mom's merit ledger had mentioned Carla's accident.

Maybe I could learn something from Walter.

"Okay. Let me change, and I'll be right there," I replied.

A little while later, Walter and I sat across from each other at the dining table.

"You really are the pride of our town!" he said excitedly. "If Mom were still here, she'd be so happy for you."

"Mrs. Shaw…" I hesitated. "What exactly happened to her?"

Walter's expression darkened. "A drunk driver hit her from behind. I still have his statement."

I found myself looking at the sheet of paper covered in the driver's statement.

The driver said he never drank. For some reason, he had gotten drunk that day without knowing why.

Walter didn't notice my reaction and continued talking. "Oh, Susan helped us a lot back then. She even paid the medical bills for us. She's such a kind lady. I've never met anyone so willing to help."

I thought about it. The more I did, the stranger it seemed.

The driver never drank, yet he drove drunk. Mom barely had any money, yet she was willing to pay Carla's medical bills.

While I was lost in thought, I blurted out, "Walter, have you ever heard of killing someone to earn blessings?"

Walter froze for a moment, then doubled over laughing. "Lindsay, did studying for college fry your brain? Where did you hear that? How could killing someone ever earn blessings? It would only bring retribution!"

"I saw it written on a merit ledger." I reached for my phone, wanting to show him the pictures.

But the moment I opened my photo album, my heart sank.

Every picture I had just taken was gone!