I was holding my mother's hand when she sold me.
Her palm was cold, sweaty, trembling but her grip was tight, as if I was the one trying to run away. The alley smelled of cigarette smoke and rain-soaked concrete. Neon lights flickered above us, casting broken colors on the faces of men I had never seen before.
I was eight years old.
I didn't understand why we were there. I only knew my mother had be crying for days, shouting for nights, and drinking something bitter that made her eyes empty.
" Stay quiet, Lisa," she whispered, squeezing my hand harder.
" Just stay quiet."
I nodded.
I was good at being quiet.
A tall man stepped forward. He wore a black coat despite the heat, his face undreadable, hes eyes sharp and dark. When he looked at me, my chest tightened.
" She's the child ? " he asked calmly.
My mother swallowed. " Yes. "
That single word felt heavier than any scream.
The man crouched in front of me, his gaze level with mine. " What's your name ? "
I hesitated, then answered softly. " Lisa. "
He studied me, not like someone looking at a person, but like someone assessing value.
Behind him, other men stood in silence. Their presence pressed down on the air, thick and suffocating.
" She's small," the man said.
" She'll grow," my mother replied too quickly. " She's smart. Obedient. "
Obedient.
I didn't know why that word made my stomach hurt.
The man straightened and turned to my mother. " The debt is large."
" I know ," she said, her voice shaking.
" That's why... that's why I brought her."
Something inside me cracked.
" Mom?" I tugged at her sleeve.
" Are we going home after this ? "
She didn't look at me.
Not once.
The man nodded slightly. One of the others handed my mother a thick envelope. I saw her hands shake as she took it, fingers clutching the edged like it was a lifeline.
" From this moment," the man said , " the debt is settled."
Just like that.
No pappers.
No signatures.
Only me standing between them.
I felt my mother's hand loosen.
" No..." I said, panic rising.
" Mom?"
She finally looked down at me.
Her eyes were red, rimmed with dark circles. She look older than she ever had, smaller somehow. For a moment, I tought she might pull me into her arms.
Instead, she whispered," Be good, Lisa."
And then she let go.
I screamed her name as one of the men lifted me into his arms. I reached out, my fingers grasping at nothing but air.
" Mom! Please ... Mom! "
She turned away.
The envelope was already tucked under her arm.
That was the last time I saw her as my mother.
The car was black and silent, the windows too dark to see through. I sat curled in the backseat, hugging my knees, tears sliding down my cheeks without sound.
No one spoke to me.
No one needed to.
Fear filled every corner of the car.
I expected pain.
I expected yelling.
I expected to disappear.
Instead, the car stopped in front of a massive iron gate. It opened slowly, revealing a large estate hidden behind high walls and trees.
This wasn't an alley.
This wasn't a prison.
It was a house.
No!!
It was a mansion.
The man from before opened the door for me. " Come," he said.
My legs shook as I stepped out.
Inside, the air was warm. Clean.
The floor beneath my feet shone like glass. A woman in a dark dress approached us, her experssion calm.
" She's younger than I expected," she said gently.
Gently.
I flinched
" Get her something to eat," the man replied. " And prepare a room."
A room?
I looked up at him, confused. " A room... for me? "
He meet my eyes. " You won't sleep on the floor. "
I didn't understand what was happening.
I was sold.
Wasn't I ?
As the woman led me away, I glanced back one last time at the door.
My old life was already gone.
But somehow ...
In the house of criminals, on the night my blood betrayed me...
I didn't feel pain.
I felt something far more terriying.
Safety.