All Chapters of Canvas of a Short Life: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

My soul clung to the pearl earring Mom had given me, and it was shoved into the refrigerator along with my head.It was freezing. I realized that extreme cold could burn my skin like searing fire. I couldn't see anything around me. The utter darkness and excruciating pain were unbearable.I was terrified. I pounded weakly on the refrigerator door, struggling to scream, "Is anyone here? Can someone come save me?"I was so cold, in so much pain, and so frightened. In the depths of my despair, I even thought of Mom. Even though she was the one who pushed me into this nightmare, I wondered if she would come for me once she noticed I was missing."Mom… Help me… Mom…"…Perhaps my prayers truly worked. In a daze, I actually heard Mom's footsteps. Her steps had always been hurried. She took out her keys, unlocked the door, and stepped inside.My frozen fingers trembled with excitement. Mom was here. Mom came to save me!The moment the lock clicked, her voice rang out. "Beatrice Anders

Chapter 2

Mom required our home to be completely free of dust and water stains. We had to wash our hands three times using the seven-step technique, and we had to strip and disinfect ourselves before entering the house. Even the trash can had to stay completely empty.Once she started cleaning, she wouldn't stop for hours.I grew frantic and shouted, "Mom, stop cleaning! Grayson will be back in five hours! Once he returns, you'll never be able to save me."Unfortunately, no matter how loudly I yelled, Mom stayed busy with her chores over there.After a while, I heard her grumbling in confusion, "What is this junk in the sink? It's stuck, and I can't pull it out."My eyes lit up instantly. That wasn't junk; those were my fingers that Grayson Moore had snapped off by force. Before killing me, he had chopped them into pieces with a kitchen knife right before my eyes and flushed them down the drain just to break my spirit.Mom was a doctor, so she would definitely be able to tell that those we

Chapter 3

Mom's face had flushed red as she barked in anger, "Why do you have to compare yourself to me at every turn? It was because I couldn't cook that your dad despised me and wanted a divorce."I suffered for it, so you need to learn your lesson and make your marriage work! I'm already divorced. If you end up divorced too, how am I supposed to face anyone?"I wanted to tell Mom that Dad hadn't divorced her because she couldn't cook. It was her obsessive need for control and her paranoid personality that suffocated him and drove him away. But I lacked the courage to say it.I lowered my eyes and followed Mom home submissively, admitting my mistakes to Grayson to protect her pride. That night, he beat me again.Life was truly unfair. Grayson and I were both only five feet and four inches tall, yet he was so much stronger than I was. He had beaten me so badly that I couldn't get out of bed.When I called Mom to tell her, she spoke with utter disdain, "Beatrice, if you're going to lie, at

Chapter 4

"Hey, how can you talk like that? What do you mean by saying I'm unreasonable?" Mom said over the phone.I no longer knew how to feel about Mom.Back then, Grandma looked down on me because I was a girl and urged Mom to have a son. Mom argued that having a second child would cost her her job. She believed her life was meant to shine in the medical field, and she would never let herself be trapped in pregnancy again.But when it came to me, she told me, "Your dad divorced me because we didn't have a son! You must give Grayson a boy!"Her life was split in two. She kept the best for herself and left all the hardship to me. I was a fool to see through her only when it was already too late.…After finishing the call, Mom went out in high spirits. Before long, she returned, carrying several large bags.She muttered to herself, "This bag of acidic ingredients is for Grayson, and this alkaline one is for Beatrice. Within six months, they will surely give me a precious grandson."I fo

Chapter 5

Once Mom and Dorothy clearly saw the object on the ground, their screams erupted one after another. Both of them were nearly scared out of their minds, yet their eyes were locked on the object, unable to look away until it rolled to a stop in front of the trash bin.A severed head rested silently against the green trash bin. The face was covered in blood and grime, eyes wide, frozen in the terror of its final moments. The features had long been beaten beyond recognition.Mom trembled as she walked toward me and, in disbelief, reached out to remove the pearl earring. After she recognized it, she let out a gut-wrenching wail. Her vision went black, and she collapsed.…The overwhelming shock triggered a heart attack in Mom. By the time she regained consciousness, the investigation had already concluded. She lay in the hospital bed, staring blankly at the withered leaves outside the window.A police officer stood by her bedside, briefing her on the details of the case.He informed h

Chapter 6

Grayson said, "You're worse than the cheapest prostitute. Your mom is the most disgusting person. Because she couldn't hold onto a decent man herself, she forced you to find someone who fails at everything."Even I felt I wasn't good enough for you in any way, but your mom insisted on making you marry me. Do you know why?"He answered his own question. "It's because your mom's such an evil bitch! She couldn't stand the thought of you living a better life than hers! It's hilarious that such a mother actually exists in this world."I wanted to argue back, but I didn't know how. All I knew was that it wasn't true. Mom would never think that way. When I was a child, she loved me so deeply.She bought me beautiful dresses and enrolled me in expensive extracurricular classes. She taught me life lessons about being upright, brave, and kind. Whenever I had a fever, she would rush home from the hospital to hold me, singing "Hush, Little Baby" to me through the night.It was clear that she

Chapter 7

Mom tilted her head playfully and gave a soft scoff. "Is that so? What if I sign a family forgiveness statement?"A sudden gust of wind howled outside, sweeping away the final withered leaf from the tree. The room fell as deathly silent as the barren branches outdoors.The police officer flew into a rage. "Grayson is going to prison even if you sign that statement!"Mom remained composed. "I'm a psychiatrist. I can prove that Grayson suffers from a severe mental illness and lacks full legal capacity."A series of faint crackling sounds echoed through the dry air. I listened intently and realized that it was the sound of my heart shattering into dust.…Mom truly was a professional. The psychiatric records she forged for Grayson were flawless. A medical report, a forgiveness statement, and testimony about infidelity allowed Grayson to swagger out of the detention center after nearly eight months of being detained.Mom went to pick him up, bringing along some sage to burn for good

Chapter 8

In a split second, Grayson's sweat soaked through his clothes. He stammered, "M-Mom, what are you trying to do?"Mom pretended to be confused. "Hmm? Can't you tell?"Grayson's breath hitched, and he swallowed hard. A pool of urine spread out beneath him.Yes, he realized it—and so did I. Without even noticing, my face was already drenched in tears.Oh, Mom… She had orchestrated such an elaborate trap. She had endured agonizing heartache to sign that forgiveness statement and forge the medical records, all to personally execute the monster who murdered her daughter.She had felt that lethal injection would be too merciful. If Grayson died quietly, she believed that my soul could never find peace. She wasn't going to let him suffer only what I endured—she wanted him to feel a pain a thousand times more intense than mine.She had prepared for this day for a long time. She renovated the house and installed thick soundproofing materials. She gathered the exact tools Grayson had used o

Chapter 9

Mom acted as if she hadn't heard Grayson. "Why is this so difficult to sever?"She jumped up and stomped on Grayson's fractured bone, trying to break his lower leg with her body weight. After two heavy lunges, it finally separated completely.Veins bulged across Grayson's strained body. Unable to withstand the pain any longer, he lost consciousness.…Mom revived Grayson.Grayson spoke through clenched teeth. "You bitch! If you don't kill me now, I'll murder you one day. I'll make sure you die even more miserably than that whore Beatrice!"Mom ignored him entirely. She calmly found a tourniquet and bound the mangled stump tightly."Kill me! Just kill me!" Grayson shouted hysterically.Mom grew irritated. "Don't get so worked up. Look, once you shout, the bleeding won't stop."She looked troubled as she remarked, "Now, what should I do about this?"Suddenly, a spark lit up her eyes, and she clapped her hands. "Right! Cauterizing it with a hot iron will stop the bleeding!"Mom

Chapter 10

"I told you to stop talking!" Mom shouted.She brandished the nail gun and pulled the trigger. With a loud bang, the nail drove straight into Grayson's temple. Moments later, he stopped breathing.Mom crouched helplessly and cried in silence. She was on the edge of losing control.I walked over to her and gently patted her back. Even if she couldn't feel it, I still wanted to comfort her as much as possible.After Mom cried for a while, she suddenly raised the nail gun and aimed it at her own temple. I was stunned by her abrupt movement and hurriedly reached out to grab the gun. "No! Mom, don't!"I watched powerlessly as my hand passed right through the gun.Mom muttered to herself, "This was my fault. I treated your dad's divorce as the greatest humiliation of my life. I even cast aside my pride and knelt to beg him, yet he still insisted on divorcing me. "I chose someone who was inferior to you, thinking he would cherish you. But when a good person is kind to a monster, the m

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