Sent to the Devil's Village My Parents' Darkest Betrayal

The day my billionaire parents came to claim me, the whole village lined up to see me off with tears in their eyes.

The moment I walked through the front door, they told me I'd be donating bone marrow to my sister.

I ripped out her oxygen tube on the spot.

They locked me in a room to "reflect."

That night, I climbed out the window while they slept and turned on the gas on my way out.

Too bad they caught me before the valve was even fully open.

That was the last straw. They blindfolded me, threw me in a car, and dumped me at the infamous Devil's Hollow.

The second we reached the village entrance, my father leaned in close.

"Everyone here is dangerous. A kid like you—three days, and there won't be enough left to bury."

My mother put on a show of gentle persuasion.

"Sally, just donate the marrow and you're still our good daughter. Stay here, and this is where you die."

I shook my head.

Her face twisted. She ripped the blindfold off and shoved me to the ground.

I looked up at everything around me.

Nobody ever told me the village I'd grown up in for twenty years was called Devil's Hollow.

Well. We were all here now. Nobody was leaving.

——

I lifted my gaze and spotted Chief Harmon standing not far away. My eyes lit up.

I tried to call out but no sound came. My cheeks burned like they were on fire.

My mother leaned against the car door with a smug little smile.

"New product from the company's lab. That ought to keep you quiet."

My father pressed in beside her.

"Do as you're told, or you'll regret it."

I curled my lip.

Like hell.

They couldn't force me. That was the whole reason I was here.

Every time they tried to drug me or drag me to the hospital, I turned it around on them.

Big-shot billionaires, terrified of a scandal. Me? I had nothing to lose. Lay a finger on me.

I'd kill them.

When I didn't answer, my father shoved a phone screen in my face.

He dug his fingers into my jaw and forced me to watch.

"Think carefully. Refuse, and there's a spot waiting for you in there."

On screen, people lay in a pigsty, wallowing in a cesspit, cramming rotten fish and shrimp into their mouths.

I rolled my eyes.

Idiot.

There was plenty in this world I feared. Chief Harmon was not on the list.

Though when exactly had he picked up the hobby of keeping people like pigs?

Traffickers like the ones in that video—the Chief dealt with God knows how many every year.

At first, I'd believed I was one of their victims too, snatched away by strangers.

Night after night I'd prayed for heaven to send word to my real parents, begged them to come bring me home.

But every uncle and aunt in the village treated me well, and bit by bit I let go of the thought.

Still, when news finally came about my biological parents, my heart skipped.

Mom and Dad would be different from the uncles and aunties. They had to be.

So I caught the first train out before dawn.

Now, looking at them, I wished they were dead instead.

I pressed my lips tight, headbutted the phone out of his grip.

Struggled to my feet and ran toward Chief Harmon.

The last scrap of calm drained from my father's face. He grabbed a fistful of my hair and wrenched me back.

His open hand cracked across my face, again and again.

"You really don't learn until it hurts, do you."

My vision went white. I crumpled to the ground.

Blood ran from my nose down over my lip.

He recoiled, let go at once, and pulled out a handkerchief to scrub the blood from his fingers.

My mother glanced at her watch.

Tugged his sleeve.

Not to stop him. To tell him to hurry up.

"Jean needs her medicine soon. If we're not there she'll throw a fit."

My father shot me one last glare, the thick muscles of his jaw rigid.

"Jean can't stand the smell of blood, and this little curse got it all over me on purpose."