Semua Bab Sold Me Like Goods—Now He's Paying the Price: Bab 1 - Bab 7

"Mom, don't scare her." Finn put on a fake show of stopping Connie, then turned back to me, softening his tone. "Rosaline, I really have no other choice. That money… They'll make sure I'll never get back on my feet."The drug was slowly wearing off. Feeling returned to my limbs; my tongue finally started to move. I drew in a deep breath and forced out a hoarse but clear sentence. "Get the hell away from me!""What did you just say?" Finn's expression instantly darkened.He abruptly grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked my head up. "I'm warning you, Rosaline—think carefully before you open your mouth."My scalp burned with pain, but I stood my ground. "I said, I'm not agreeing to this. What you're doing is a serious crime, and I'll call the cops on you."His palm cracked across my face. My vision went white. A roar filled my ears, and the metallic taste of blood spread across my tongue."Give you an inch and you really think you're something, huh?" He gritted his teeth and glare

The air seemed to freeze.Uncle Wesley suddenly lowered his head, his gaze locking onto the gemstone necklace. He'd personally sketched the design and had it custom-made as a gift for Mom's 20th birthday.He slowly lifted his head. This time, he really looked at me. His eyes moved from the loose strands of hair on my face, down to my lips, pressed tightly from the pain.Finally, he looked straight into my eyes. His voice carried an obvious tremor when he spoke. "…Rosaline?"I tried to answer, but all that came out of my throat was a broken whimper.Donald took a step forward, a fawning smile on his face. "Mr. Olson, this woman kept insisting she's your niece. I've already dealt with her for—""Dealt with her?" Uncle Wesley slowly turned his head, his eyes so cold that they held no trace of warmth. "What exactly did you do to her?"That look made a chill run down Donald's spine. He said weakly, "I-I just made her drink a little and broke one of her fingers… Women like her won't l

The dull ache in my finger eased a little more each day. The burning in my throat slowly faded, too, though talking was still hard. My voice was so soft that it barely sounded like my own.On the morning of the fourth day, the bedroom door opened. Uncle Wesley walked in, holding a stack of papers. His expression was calm, but there was a quiet finality in it, like the dust had already settled."It's all taken care of," he said, setting the documents down in front of me. "They've signed. They'll be sent away tonight."I picked up the papers and slowly flipped through them. The contents weren't complicated. Finn and his family had voluntarily signed a long-term overseas labor agreement, agreeing to work at a mining project under Uncle Wesley's name.All wages would go toward repaying their debt until the 500 thousand dollars in principal and the corresponding interest were fully paid off. The pay scale was written out in black and white, calculated according to the local minimum wage