Chapter 1 

Chapter 1 

My parents‘ enemies had kidnapped me. 

The kidnappers? 

Bold as hell. 

They were streaming the whole thing live. 

Twelve hours in, they’d chopped off all but one of my fingers. 

The comments were rolling fast: 

[I can’t take it anymore! This kid’s screams are breaking me!] 

[Didn’t they say the parents just need to call in to save her? Where are the parents?!] 

[Is this kid even theirs?] 

Even the kidnappers were getting impatient. 

One of them ripped the tape off my mouth. 

I was about to defend my parents–explain that they were elite cops often sent on dangerous missions. 

They probably just couldn’t get away right now. 

Then my phone buzzed. 

It was a vacation photo. 

From her. 

“Hey, sis! Mom and Dad and I just landed in Miami~” 

“Mom said having you around would ruin the vibe, so they’re spending my 18th birthday with just me!” 

In the picture, my parents were on either side of Lila, grinning from ear to ear. 

She looked so smug. 

And in the background? 

My aunt, uncle, cousins, and even my gray–haired grandma. 

All smiles. 

So, while I was being tortured live, my entire family was blissfully unaware. 

07:12 O 

Fingerprints of Betrayal 

0.0% 

Chapter 1 

One of the kidnappers gave me a suspicious look. 

“Call them,” he barked, shoving a phone into my hand. 

When my mom picked up, her voice was already full of irritation. 

“I knew it! I knew you’d call to ruin this!” 

“Ever since we brought you back from that hick town, this family hasn’t had a single peaceful day!” 

“Lila hasn’t even had one proper birthday because of you!” 

“This time, no matter what, we’re not putting Lila out just for you.” 

I swallowed the lump in my throat. My voice cracked. 

“Mom… I’ve been kidnapped…” 

She cut me off, disgust evident in her tone. 

“Charlotte! You’re so dramatic!” 

“When you’re dead, call me then. I’ll come collect the body.” 

Then she hung up. 

A moment later, I got another text. 

“Mom really hates you, huh? After she hung up, Dad blocked you.” 

“Oh, and they told me not to talk to you, either. LOL.” 

My chest tightened. 

It felt like my heart was being squeezed until it would burst. 

This pain was worse than losing my fingers. 

Everything became a blur. 

I felt like I was sinking, fading away… 

SPLASH. 

A bucket of cold water hit me square in the face. 

“Not so fast!” one of the kidnappers sneered. 

“You don’t get to pass out. Your parents don’t call in, you keep suffering.” 

“You’ve got one finger left. When that’s gone, we’ll start on your toes.” 

07:12 

Fingerprints of Betrayal 

0.3% 

Chapter 1 

“And when those are gone, maybe your ears.” 

The livestream chat went crazy: 

[These guys are monsters! How can they do this to a kid?!) 

[Forget the kidnappers, where the hell are the parents? This kid didn’t deserve any of this.] 

[Cowards! If you’re gonna hurt someone, hurt the parents, not their child! 

No matter how outraged the chat was, it didn’t stop the knife. 

My last finger was gone. 

The pain was so intense I wanted to die. 

I screamed–shrill, raw, unending, 

People watching on their screens flinched and covered their cars. 

Even the flood of comments froze for a moment. 

Then one big, bold message lit up the chat: 

[Connect with me! I’m Roger Quinn, captain of the SWAT team!] 

The name hit me like a bolt of lightning. 

Dad. 

Dad had found me. 

He was going to save me.