Chapter 1

My sister Daphne framed me for a crime she had committed, and I took the fall for her. I spent two years in jail, sharing a cell with a wealthy woman who had been in an accident while driving drunk. Her leg was severely injured, but I used my grandfather's secret bone-setting recipe to heal her. After my release, she sent me $10 million as a token of gratitude.

I called my parents, but they thought I was lying. When I got home, Daphne greeted me with a sarcastic smirk. "You've ruined my life. Because of you, the rich families don't want anything to do with me."

She wanted to cut ties with me and told me to leave. My father said, "You should have known better than to come back. From now on, you're on your own." My mother added, "Maybe we should put an announcement in the paper stating that you're not our daughter anymore."

My heart trembled with disbelief. I had gone to prison for Daphne, yet they treated me like a curse. They wanted me gone as soon as possible.

Holding back tears, I thought of my grandmother, who always cared for me. I called out for her. She came out, forcing a smile. "Valentina, you've suffered enough. Your parents and sister have always been like this; don't take it to heart."

She held a feather duster in her hand, and I wasn't sure what she intended to do. Maybe my parents and sister were just joking around, I thought.

"Valentina," my grandmother said, "since you've been in prison, according to our village's customs, I need to pour water over your head to wash away the bad luck and hit you a few times on the back so that you'll behave and stay out of trouble." She signaled to my mother, who then poured cold water over me in the dead of winter.

Daphne sneered at me. "Grandma is too old to hit you good, so I'll do it for her." She took the feather duster and started hitting me.

I was furious beyond words. I was the scapegoat; she was the real culprit. How could she act so shamelessly?

I wanted to fight back, but my parents and grandmother grabbed my wrists immediately. I glared at Daphne coldly; she seemed a bit scared. I threw the feather duster from her hand onto the ground and decided to go to my room to dry off.

When I opened the door to the small storage room that served as my bedroom, I found it had been turned into a cat room. Two cats stared at me from their cage.

"Why is my room now a cat room?" I asked.

My father replied, "We didn't prepare a room for you. If you want to stay here, you'll sleep on the floor." He said I was a burden and not as obedient as Daphne; they even planned to renovate her room further.

It became clear that their affection had always been fake. They only loved Daphne; I was treated worse than a servant.

My heart sank. Remembering the $10 million card in my pocket gave me some confidence; at least I wouldn't be homeless.

"Fine, I'll sleep on the floor," I said.

"Then you'll lie there without blankets or cushions. You know, we aren't wealthy enough for that," my mother said as she threw an old slipper at me for dirtying the floor.

Just as I was about to put it on, Daphne threw it out of the window. "You should be barefoot," she sneered. "And if you stay here, you'll handle all your meals and do all the housework."