Chapter 1

When I returned to my cramped rented apartment, my parents, Claire Perez and Derek Coleman, were already home.

Mom was crouching on the ground, sorting through a pile of plastic bottles and cardboard boxes she had collected that day.

"How much did you earn today? Hand it over," she demanded. But the moment she saw the few crumpled bills I pulled from my pocket, her face twisted into a scowl. She snatched them out of my hand.

"You only got 30 dollars today? You know, if we hadn't found you and taken you back, we never would have had this extra mouth to feed."

The air froze instantly.

Dad quickly stepped in, trying to smooth things over. "What are you saying? We finally found our daughter after all these years…"

Then, he handed me a bag of stale pastries and said, "Your mom and I found this, and we purposely brought it back for you. We couldn't bring ourselves to eat it."

If this had been in the past, I would have accepted the bag with tears in my eyes, deeply moved by their sacrifice. But now? I could sense their disgust with me.

Two years ago, I thought I finally had a real home after the police found my biological parents for me. I'd been abducted for 18 years, and my foster parents always scolded and beat me up at home.

On the day of our reunion, Mom had hugged me so tightly, sobbing uncontrollably, while Dad swore with bloodshot eyes that he would make it all up to me.

Yet the very next day, Dad's company went bankrupt, and we were forced to move into this suffocating 100-square-foot apartment.

To help pay off their debts, I worked three jobs a day, driving myself to such extreme exhaustion that I could fall asleep standing up.

However, it wasn't until this afternoon, when I went to get the hearing aid from that massive villa, that I found out about Mom and Dad's other home.

If that young woman was their daughter, then who was I?

I had even heard that woman complain coaxingly as I walked away, dispirited. "So, when are you going to tell that peasant the truth?"

Dad had laughed and said, "Don't be so impatient, Stephy. We need to make sure she never bullies you. We're going to keep up the 'broke' act with her for just a few more days."

At that moment, it felt as though I had been plunged into an icy abyss. I had to bite my lip to keep from sobbing out loud.

Mom and Dad had even hired an actor to assault me, an incident that permanently deafened my left ear. They could have just told the truth right then. They could have taken me to the hospital to save my hearing. Instead, they chose to keep playing their roles, dragging out the lie until it was too late.

I wanted to question them about why they were treating me like this. What had I ever done wrong?

But I was so thoroughly disappointed in them that I didn't even care enough to expose their lies anymore.

Just then, the apartment door was violently kicked open, sending a loud bang echoing through the apartment. Three burly thugs appeared at the door, blocking the way.

The leader had a thick gold chain around his neck and an IOU in his hand.

"Derek Coleman! If you don't pay back the two million dollars you owe us by today, I'm breaking both your legs!"

Mom and Dad were so frightened that they threw themselves into each other's arms.

"But we're completely broke! Please just give us a few more days!" they begged, weeping hysterically.

It was a flawless performance. Yet, as they wailed, I noticed their eyes subtly darting toward me, gauging my reaction. They were waiting, expecting me to do what I always did—throw myself on the floor and beg the creditors for mercy on their behalf.

Instead, I stood up and approached the bald leader, looking at them calmly.

"You can take me as compensation to settle the debt. Would that work for you?"

Everyone was shocked. The bald leader's next line caught in his throat, and for a moment he didn't know whether to continue acting.

I turned back to look at Mom and Dad, whose jaws had dropped.

"Mom, Dad," I said softly. " Just sell me to pay off your debt. That way, we're completely even from now on."