14la Ave‘? go o
What about my parent? The whole family?
If they’re will in town, how could they not see the livestream?
How could they not come to save me?
I didn’t care about the kidnappers looming behind me.
1 clawed at the ground, dragging myself over to where my phone lay.
With my mangled fingers, I opened the photo Lila had sent–the one of their supposed trip to Hawaii.
1 zoomed in.
Then zoomed in again.
And there it was.
Clear as day,
The buildings in the background weren’t in Hawaii.
They were right here.
The city beach.
From behind me, one of the kidnappers let out a twisted laugh.
“Ha! Your parents never went anywhere. They’re hiding, like the cowards they are!”
“They don’t want to save you. They don’t care about you!”
I felt something snap inside my head.
The truth hit me like a freight train, so terrifying I couldn’t dwell on it for even a second.
With whatever strength I had left, I crawled to the phone still broadcasting the livestream.
My blood and tear–streaked face filled the screen as I screamed into it:
“Dad! Mom! It’s me, Charlotte! Can’t you see me?!”
“My fingers are gone. I’m in so much pain. I’m dying.”
“Are you really not going to save me?!”
08.12
0.7%
Fingerprints of Betrayal
Chapter 3
“I’m your daughter! Your real daughter!”
The comments exploded.
[This is breaking my heart. I can’t take it.)
I’m her dad now. You sick bastard, let the girl go! I’ll pay the ransom!]
[I’m her mom! Take Lila instead and let her go!]
[We’re ALL her parents! Name your price and let her go!]
The internet was full of strangers claiming to be my parents.
But my real parents?
They never showed up.
From the day I returned to their house, all they’d ever given me were cold stares and disdain.
If I was happy, they’d scold me for stealing from Lila.
If I was sad, they’d say I ruined the mood.
And yet, the pull of blood ties still made me yearn for their love.
I was foolish enough to believe, deep down, they loved me too.
The kidnapper ended the livestream with a click, sealing my fate with a cruel finality.
“Your parents aren’t coming for you, kid.”
I clamped my hands over my ears, shaking my head.
My voice was barely a whisper.
“No… They just haven’t seen it yet…”
The kidnapper yanked me by the hair, shoving my phone in front of my face.
His tone was mocking
dripping with pity.
“Pathetic. You really are. A kid nobody wants. Face it, kid–this is your life.”
Then my phone buzzed.
It was a new video.
From Lila.
In the video, my family was on the beach, lighting fireworks.
08:12
Fingerprints of Betrayal
0.8%
Chapter 3
Under the glow of the sparklers, they laughed and clinked their glasses together, toasting Lila’s birthday.
And in the corner of the shot?
Tossed carelessly on the table was a phone playing my livestream.
My cries, my suffering, echoing faintly in the background.
No one paid it any attention.
Lila quickly deleted the video, but not before sending me one last message:
“Oops, wrong video! Dad told everyone to pretend they didn’t see you, though.”
“So just do the same, kay?”
“Oh wait, doesn’t matter if you see it or not. You’re nothing but a filthy little rat, Charlotte.”
“And you’re going to die in the gutter where you belong.”
I collapsed onto the floor, trembling so violently I could barely breathe.
Blood poured from my severed fingers, pooling beneath me.
But no tears came. My eyes had run dry.
The kidnapper crouched down next to me, his voice low and coaxing, like a devil tempting a soul.
“Why don’t you hate them?”
“Look at them, having the time of their lives while you’re here, bleeding, suffering alone.”
“If I were you, I’d drag every last one of them down to hell.”
He shoved a remote into my trembling hand.
“All it takes is one press of this button,” he said, his eyes glinting with fury.
“And the footage of Roger Quinn torturing and killing my daughter will be uploaded everywhere.”
“His career, his life–gone. He’ll regret every second of ignoring you.”
The kidnapper leaned in close, his voice almost a growl.
“I want Roger Quinn to die. And I want it to be at the hands of his real daughter.”
08:12
