Chapter 1

"You're a man, who did this to you?!" My parents screamed, their voices frantic.

I looked at them and a laugh unexpectedly escaped my lips. "The kidnappers."

My parents and Cassie froze, their faces draining of color.

I continued softly, "Don't you remember? The kidnappers demanded a ransom. You only offered to save your other precious son, saying I needed to learn a lesson."

My mother collapsed onto the sofa. "That's impossible… We just wanted you to learn a lesson, to tell you to stop bullying Leo. I never… We never thought…"

I walked over to my mother, bending down to look at her. "You never thought the kidnappers would humiliate me like that, did you?"

Without waiting for her reply, I rolled up the sleeve of my left arm.

A winding scar, like a centipede, coiled across my skin, stretching all the way to my elbow.

"Knife wounds, burns, fractures." I pointed at each mark. "They broke two of my ribs and burned seven cigarette marks onto my back. I had all these when I came home. Why did none of you ever ask me about them?"

My mother opened her mouth, but I cut her off. "You didn't come to rescue me. You just took Leo."

"You didn't come for a day, then two days, then a whole month…"

"Do you really think the kidnappers would still believe they could get a ransom?"

Well, it's too late now. I'm going to die.