Chapter 1

The day my son was taken by human traffickers, I ran after them like a madwoman.

I never expected the kidnapper to strike the back of my head so hard that my mental capacity regressed to that of a toddler.

From then on, I—once an outstanding university professor—became a crazy woman everyone pointed and whispered about.

I wandered off many times, but my husband always searched the world over to find me and hold me tight.

My son knelt before me in remorse: "Mom became this way because of me."

"Don't be scared, Mom. I'll protect you."

My husband turned down social engagements to teach me how to read, day and night:

"You're the soul of this family! With you here, this house feels like a home."

My in-laws spent their life savings trying to cure my brain, even kneeling before relatives to beg for money.

I thought I would slowly return to normal.

But when I finally managed to write my name in shaky, crooked letters, I accidentally overheard their cries:

"She's not even human anymore... It would have been better if she'd just died back then."

That evening at dusk, I swallowed an entire bottle of pills alone.

The pills were bitter. I touched the family photo and didn't cry.