Chapter 1

As far back as I could remember, Mom had been locked in the storm cellar.

Whenever I got too close, she would scream hysterically and beat me.

I never understood why she didn't love me.

Until the year I turned eight, when she suddenly spoke to me in a soft, gentle voice.

She said, "Just help me make one phone call, and I will never hit you again."

My heart leaped at the promise.

I deliberately broke my own arm.

While my father rushed me to the clinic, I sneaked over and dialed the number for her.

In less than half an hour, a fleet of luxury cars tore down our dirt road.

The man leading them beat my father within an inch of his life, dragged the cellar's location out of him, and rescued Mom from the pitch-black underground hole deep in the mountains.

Looking at my battered father, Mom didn't show a shred of pity. Instead, she threw herself straight into the strange man's arms.

As everyone turned to leave, I stumbled after them on trembling legs.

"Mom... hold me..."

Mom spun around violently and slapped me across the face.

"Don't you dare call me Mom! You make me sick just looking at you! The spawn of a kidnapper should just go die!"

My cheek burned like fire. I couldn't understand why she hated me so much.

And I understood even less why, when I was truly on the verge of dying later, every single one of them wept over my body, crying out that I was their real child all along.

My face still stung sharply. I stood frozen in place, clutching my burning cheek.

Mom had clearly promised that if I memorized that number and did what she asked, she would love me.

Yet the way she looked at me right now felt colder than any blow my father had ever landed.

The tall man leading the group only spared me a detached glance before pulling Mom closer by the shoulder.

"Come on. Mind your health. We're leaving."

Mom leaned into his chest, her shoulders trembling slightly.

Right then, the door of a stretched black SUV swung open, and a little boy in a crisp white blazer jumped down.

His hair was neatly combed, and he sprinted straight toward her.

"Mommy! Are you okay? Dad and I came to get you! Did anyone hurt you?"

When Mom saw him, her eyes instantly turned red. She dropped to her knees, wrapped him in a desperate embrace, and choked through her tears:

"I'm fine, baby. It's all thanks to you and your father coming for me."

Her hands stroked his back with agonizing tenderness, as if she were cradling the most fragile treasure in the world.

That was a tenderness I had never experienced—not once in my entire life.

Standing on the sidelines, my chest tightened painfully, mixed with a bitter pang of envy I couldn't put into words.

As if my body were moving on its own, I shuffled forward two unsteady steps, just wanting to get a little closer to her.

Before I could reach her, the boy looked up and shoved me hard.

"Stay away from my mom!"

"Don't touch her with your filthy hands! Get lost!"

Still nursing broken bones and bruises, I crashed straight onto the dirt.

Mom stood up, the disgust in her eyes even harsher than before.

She shielded the boy behind her and said to the man,

"Take him to the car and sanitize him. She's filthy."

The man gave a curt nod.

They turned back toward the luxury cars.

Panic surged through me. Forgetting the pain, forgetting the fear, I scrambled up and chased after them, crying out:

"Mom! Mommy, don't leave me!"

My voice cracked with sobs, but she didn't look back once.

Annoyed by the noise, the man, Julian Vance, stopped and shot a look at two bodyguards in dark suits.

Moments later, an animal transport truck rolled up. The heavy doors swung open, revealing a dark, foul-smelling interior.

Inside sat a massive iron cage holding an enormous, snarling mastiff.

The moment the beast saw me, it bared razor-sharp teeth and barked furiously.

Terror rooted me to the spot; my crying choked in my throat.

The little boy puffed out his chest with smug satisfaction.

"Look, Mommy! I made Dad bring Nero along just to protect you! If that little monster tried anything, Nero would tear her apart!"

Julian didn't say a word. He merely signaled his men to unlatch the iron cage, then reached down and grabbed my arm.

His grip was bruising, digging straight into my fresh fracture.

I twisted and writhed, trying desperately to break free, but I couldn't budge his grip an inch.

"No! Let me go! Mommy, help me!"

I screamed, but he treated my cries like background noise and shoved me brutally into the iron cage.

I slammed onto the frigid metal floor, fresh tears bursting from my eyes from the impact.

The boy leaned against the truck bed, tilting his head with a frown.

"Dad, is that little monster coming home with us too?"

Julian didn't answer. He simply gestured for his men to secure the mastiff back in the cargo hold.

The heavy doors slammed shut, plunging everything into utter blackness.

The stench thickened. Agitated that I was encroaching on its space, the mastiff circled the iron cage, snarling and snapping against the bars. If that metal barrier hadn't been there, it would have ripped me to shreds within seconds.

Unable to hold it in any longer, I curled into a ball, hugging my knees, and wept silently in the dark.