Mom Abandoned Me to Save Herself Chapter 01

Mom Abandoned Me to Save Herself Chapter 01 The Chains and the Iron Cage
When I was seven, I came down with a high fever. Father took me to the town clinic for the very first time. With the nurse standing there, I recited the phone number my mom had made me memorize a thousand times over. The next day, an endless line of vehicles rolled into the mountains. Men with chainsaws cut the iron chains that bound Mother. They broke Father’s hands and feet right before my eyes. I stared blankly as Mother stepped past me and threw herself into the lead man’s arms. Everyone got ready to leave, and they left me behind. Timidly, I called out, “Mom.” She kicked me hard onto the ground. “Don’t you dare call me Mom! The sight of you disgusts me! Just go die!” I froze where I stood. Hadn’t Mom said I would get a reward once I memorized that number? The lead man steadied the distraught Mother. His eyes never left her, and he acted as if I didn’t exist. “Hesper, don’t wear yourself out. Let’s go home.” A boy in a neat little suit climbed out of one of the cars. He ran over and clung to Mother’s leg, staring at me warily. He looked at me as though I were some sort of monster. The lead man waved his hand. Two men in black stepped toward me. They reached out to grab my arms. Mom suddenly screamed hysterically. “Don’t touch her! Her blood is filthy!” The men in black froze. One of them fetched a large metal pet cage. A pet feeding trough hung on its side, reeking of urine. They pried open the cage door, seized me roughly, and shoved me inside. The little boy pointed at me trapped in the cage and asked. “Dad, is this monster coming home with us too?” The cage door clanged shut right in front of my face. Treated like an animal, I was tossed into the trunk of an SUV. The convoy rumbled along the rough mountain road. My head banged repeatedly against the metal bars. My forehead wound split open. Blood mixed with sweat streamed into my eyes, stinging and burning. My stomach churned violently, and I threw up all over the cage floor. The convoy stopped halfway for a rest. A driver popped open the trunk and saw me inside the cage. Moved by pity, he twisted open a water bottle and held it out toward me. Here, have some water. A hand shot out and stopped him. It was Silas Faul. He shot the driver a frigid glare. “Who told you to meddle?” The driver instantly pulled his hand back, not daring to utter a single word. The trunk slammed shut. The last sliver of light vanished. I had no idea how much time passed before the vehicle finally came to a halt. I was dragged out of the trunk, and the metal cage crashed heavily onto the ground. Before me stood a mansion grand enough to look like a palace, unlike anything I had ever seen. The little boy, Marcel Faul, held Mother’s hand with pride. “Mom, welcome home! Dad and I cleaned your room spotless for you!” He glanced back at me, his voice brimming with triumph. “There’s no more stench of those bad people inside!” Everyone crowded around Mom and filed into the bright villa. The huge front door closed slowly in front of me. Locked inside the cold metal cage, I was left forgotten out in the yard. Night fell deeper, and the cold grew sharper.