I had a brother called Kody Buckley, who was five years older than me.

He was my mother's precious child, while I was the unwanted and unloved one.

When Kody wanted to buy a house, my mother made me drop out of school and work in a factory.

When Kody was caught driving under the influence and killed someone, my mother wanted me to be the scapegoat.

...

On New Year's Eve, there should usually be a joyful family celebration.

Yet my mother couldn't afford to buy a coffin for Kody.

***

I lay on the hospital bed, barely clinging to life.

Besides the sounds of the machines, all I could hear was my breathing.

Suddenly, someone pushed open the door.

"Jakayla, are you going to get married or not?"

My mother grabbed my arm, trying to pull me up.

"No, it hurts!"

I couldn't help but frown and moan in pain.

A nurse passing by the door quickly came over to pull my mother's hand away.

"What are you doing?

"With the patient having multiple fractures, this could easily cause further injury."

I lay on the bed unable to move, overwhelmed by pain, tears flowing uncontrollably.

Of course, my mother knew it.

Because my injuries were caused by her and Kody. They had beaten me so badly that I almost died at that time.

They beat me up for I refused to act as the scapegoat for Kody.

A few days ago, Kody had a DUI accident.

He fled the scene, and the victim died.

The victim's family demanded two million dollars in compensation, or Kody would have to serve prison time.

Kody didn't want to go to jail.

My mother was unwilling to part with two million dollars.

So they decided that I should be the scapegoat.

I refused, and my mother slapped me.

Kody was also very angry.

They beat me for over ten minutes. If they hadn't been worried about me dying and no one else to replace Kody in jail, they wouldn't have called for an ambulance. Even my expenses at the hospital were paid by myself.

I barely survived and had just opened my eyes.

My mother immediately started talking about marriage.

The prospective groom was a relative of the victim, rumored to have just come out of fifteen years in prison, looking fierce, and twice my age. It was a choice between paying money or offering a daughter.

My mother didn't want to pay money.

So she pushed me out as compensation.

"I won't marry him."

I was only twenty, and of course, I didn't want to get married at such a young age.

As soon as I finished speaking, my mother's hand had already swung towards me.

With a heavy slap, a clear handprint appeared on my pale face.

"Say that again?

"If you don't want to marry him, then go to jail."

My mother spat out these harsh words and turned to leave.

Half a day later, she appeared in the ward again.

The first thing she said was still about marriage.

"This is my daughter. It's none of your business.

"Her life is given by me. Even if I make her crippled, what can you do about it?"

My mother turned and cursed at the nurse.

She pointed to the door and told the nurse to get out immediately.

The nurse tried to persuade her but was pushed out by my mother.

In an instant, only my mother and I were left in the ward.

"Jakayla, I'm not here to ask your opinion. I'm here to inform you that you're being discharged. After that, pack your things and go to their place immediately."

Before I could leave the hospital...

My mother had thrown my belongings into the man's house. To make me give up, she took it upon herself to call the teacher and handle my withdrawal from school.

While I was unconscious, she deleted all my school-related contacts, preventing me from continuing my education.

I only learned about this on the day I was discharged.

To get my belongings back, I cried as I went to the man's house, only to be locked up there.

"Why are you always crying?

"You've brought misfortune to this house with your tears."

The man was rough.

He stood by, watching me for a while. He couldn't hold back and started hitting me.

I covered my face and fell to the ground. My cries of anguish stopped abruptly; I dared not cry out loud and could only bite my lip tightly.

There was no wedding or joyous celebration.

I was sent to the man's house by my mother. That day, Kody was very happy.

"Mom, please don't abandon me."

I clung to my mother's clothes, pleading with her not to leave me behind tearfully.

Before I could finish speaking...

I was thrown to the ground.

"Jakayla, don't be so shameless.

"You should be grateful that he's willing to marry you. Otherwise, you would spend your whole life in prison."

My mother was fierce. If she weren't holding a letter of forgiveness in her hand, her slap would have landed on my face.

Kody stood aside, laughing loudly.

He folded his arms, looking at me like I was a clown.

"Jakayla, enjoy your last laugh. If it weren't for the urgency, do you really think you could easily escape from us?"

Hearing this, my mother also started laughing.

"To be honest, we found a man for you half a month ago, a man of seventy years old. He won't live long and is quite rich.

"His bride price is one hundred thousand dollars!"

One hundred thousand dollars.

That was the price of selling a daughter.

I shook my head in disbelief, demanding answers.

"It's impossible. You paid for me to go to college, so you must be lying. I don't believe it."

I cried and gasped for breath.

Just a few days ago, I was lying on the hospital bed, and now I felt pain everywhere, my entire body uncomfortable.

My mother had planned to leave.

Hearing this, she turned back to look at me.

"It's one hundred thousand dollars after all.

"Sending you to college was just a delaying tactic."

My mother and Kody left laughing.

They left me in the house of a stranger.

The man was rude. He immediately grabbed my hair and dragged me into the house.