Swapped for Debt After Coming Home

The day after my parents finally find me and bring me home—18 years after my abduction—they announce their bankruptcy and plunge into massive debt. Over the next two years, I'm forced to drop out of school and work three jobs a day to pay off the family debts. I even lose hearing in one ear after a brutal beating from a debt collector. Through it all, Mom and Dad hold me close in the middle of the night, weeping and apologizing for failing me. Foolishly, I believe them. I tell myself that as long as our family is together, I can endure anything. Desperate to hear again, I buy a used hearing aid on a secondhand goods platform for 9.90 dollars. The comments section congratulates me on snagging a rare steal. But the seller replies indifferently, "This is something my housekeeper doesn't want anymore. I'm just giving it away as charity." Swallowing my pride, I travel to a massive luxury villa to pick it up. After taking the hearing aid from the young woman, I bow my head in deep gratitude. But as I look up, my gaze catches Mom and Dad in the garden behind her. They were calling out to her, saying, "Stephy, hurry back after meeting with that peasant. And be careful not to get your hands filthy." Chapter 1 When I returned to my cramped rented apartment, my parents, Claire Perez and Derek Coleman, were already home. Mom was crouching on the ground, sorting through a pile of plastic bottles and cardboard boxes she had collected that day. "How much did you earn today? Hand it over," she demanded. But the moment she saw the few crumpled bills I pulled from my pocket, her face twisted into a scowl. She snatched them out of my hand. "You only got 30 dollars today? You know, if we hadn't found you and taken you back, we never would have had this extra mouth to feed." The air froze instantly. Dad quickly stepped in, trying to smooth things over. "What are you saying? We finally found our daughter after all these years…" Then, he handed me a bag of stale pastries and said, "Your mom and I found this, and we purposely brought it back for you. We couldn't bring ourselves to eat it." If this had been in the past, I would have accepted the bag with tears in my eyes, deeply moved by their sacrifice. But now? I could sense their disgust with me. Two years ago, I thought I finally had a real home after the police found my biological parents for me. I'd been abducted for 18 years, and my foster parents always scolded and beat me up at home. On the day of our reunion, Mom had hugged me so tightly, sobbing uncontrollably, while Dad swore with bloodshot eyes that he would make it all up to me. Yet the very next day, Dad's company went bankrupt, and we were forced to move into this suffocating 100-square-foot apartment. To help pay off their debts, I worked three jobs a day, driving myself to such extreme exhaustion that I could fall asleep standing up. However, it wasn't until this afternoon, when I went to get the hearing aid from that massive villa, that I found out about Mom and Dad's other home. If that young woman was their daughter, then who was I? I had even heard that woman complain coaxingly as I walked away, dispirited. "So, when are you going to tell that peasant the truth?" Dad had laughed and said, "Don't be so impatient, Stephy. We need to make sure she never bullies you. We're going to keep up the 'broke' act with her for just a few more days." At that moment, it felt as though I had been plunged into an icy abyss. I had to bite my lip to keep from sobbing out loud. Mom and Dad had even hired an actor to assault me, an incident that permanently deafened my left ear. They could have just told the truth right then. They could have taken me to the hospital to save my hearing. Instead, they chose to keep playing their roles, dragging out the lie until it was too late. I wanted to question them about why they were treating me like this. What had I ever done wrong? But I was so thoroughly disappointed in them that I didn't even care enough to expose their lies anymore. Just then, the apartment door was violently kicked open, sending a loud bang echoing through the apartment. Three burly thugs appeared at the door, blocking the way. The leader had a thick gold chain around his neck and an IOU in his hand. "Derek Coleman! If you don't pay back the two million dollars you owe us by today, I'm breaking both your legs!" Mom and Dad were so frightened that they threw themselves into each other's arms. "But we're completely broke! Please just give us a few more days!" they begged, weeping hysterically. It was a flawless performance. Yet, as they wailed, I noticed their eyes subtly darting toward me, gauging my reaction. They were waiting, expecting me to do what I always did—throw myself on the floor and beg the creditors for mercy on their behalf. Instead, I stood up and approached the bald leader, looking at them calmly. "You can take me as compensation to settle the debt. Would that work for you?" Everyone was shocked. The bald leader's next line caught in his throat, and for a moment he didn't know whether to continue acting. I turned back to look at Mom and Dad, whose jaws had dropped. "Mom, Dad," I said softly. " Just sell me to pay off your debt. That way, we're completely even from now on." Chapter 2 Dad's face darkened instantly. He rushed forward, grabbed me by my wrist, and told the bald guy, "Don't listen to her. She's just spouting nonsense. She's not in her right mind!" Sensing that the situation had spun completely out of script, the hired actors hastily made an excuse and scrambled out of the apartment. Mom immediately berated me. "Are you out of your mind? How could you offer yourself to the creditors? Don't you know what would be in store for you if you really went with them? They'd sell you off to the black market!" Dad glared at me with great displeasure. "I've found a job for you. A rich young lady is looking for a personal maid. The pay is pretty high." Early the next morning, Mom and Dad ignored all my protests and dragged me back to the very same villa I had visited the day before. "Listen carefully, Allison Baker. We're only doing this for your own good. Working as a maid is much better than killing yourself working three jobs a day." The person who opened the door was the same young woman from the day before. She gave me a look of contempt and said, "Come in." Without a word of goodbye, Dad shoved me through the threshold and turned to leave. The young woman introduced herself as Stephanie Coleman. She leaned back against the couch and tilted her chin up at me. "Do you know why I let you come work for me? "It's because I wanted to see exactly what the biological daughter my parents hate and abandoned looks like." A cold tremor rippled through my chest. So, she knew everything. Stephanie gave me a once-over, before sticking her tongue out in exaggerated disgust. "I purposely lured you here yesterday, hoping you'd get into an argument with them. I honestly can't believe you actually put up with the humiliation and just walked away. "I mean, you can't blame Mom and Dad for abandoning you. You're deaf, ugly, and stupid. It's only natural they want nothing to do with you. "You never should have come back. Mom and Dad adopted me to make up for the pain of losing their real daughter. But now? The only daughter they love is me. You're nothing." Over the next few days, I was forced to live as her personal maid. She forced me onto my knees for hours, ordering me to scrub the floor tiles with a toothbrush. When she complained her soup was too hot, she didn't hesitate to fling the boiling liquid directly onto my bare hand. Watching agonizing blisters bloom across my skin, she threw her head back and shrieked with laughter. The torment didn't stop when the sun went down. When I went to bed, she slipped into my room while I slept, pinning me down as she shaved all the hair from my head. Then, she tore the clothes from my body and took nude photos of me. When I finally broke and tried to run away, she simply ordered her bodyguards to go after me and dragged me back to the villa. One afternoon, Mom and Dad called her on FaceTime and asked about me. I had still harbored a bit of hope, thinking that they would take me away if they knew about my treatment at the villa. Stephanie's door wasn't shut properly, and her voice floated down the hallway. "Mom! I feel revolted every single time I look at that peasant's face! Why the hell does she have to look so much like you? "You know, I made her kneel all day today, and it felt so good. "You're taking her away tomorrow? But I'm not done playing with her yet! I want her to obey me forever!" So, they were only Facetiming her to check if I was being a good, obedient maid to Stephanie. Tears welled in my eyes, but I fiercely wiped them away just as Stephanie pushed the door open and walked into my room. "I'm throwing a birthday party here tomorrow, and Mom and Dad are coming. Don't you dare speak a word to them during the event." I ignored her gloating and took out an old, shattered phone to send a text message. "Sir, I was serious about selling myself to repay the debt." The reply came almost instantly. "I'll come get you tomorrow." Chapter 3 It was Stephanie's birthday party today, and Mom and Dad rushed toward her as soon as they stepped through the door. Mom wrapped her arms affectionately around Stephanie's shoulders and handed her the property deed to a villa, saying, "Happy birthday, my darling Stephy!" Dad also smiled and pulled out a diamond bracelet—worth at least several million dollars—and gave it to her. I stood far off in the shadows of a corner, dressed in my old, faded clothes. Watching the three of them share this picture-perfect family reunion, a bitter realization settled deep in my chest—my presence was just a joke. As Stephanie hugged Mom back, her eyes swept over the crowd until they landed precisely on me. A mocking grin tugged at the corners of her lips. She leaned in, whispering something into Mom's ear. Mom followed her gaze. When she finally spotted me lurking in the corner, the radiant smile on her face froze instantly. A short while later, Mom and Dad walked toward me. "We will make ourselves clear with you now, Allison. We were never bankrupt. We only wanted to train you and test your resilience so you wouldn't act like a spoiled brat once you started living a life of extravagance. "We adopted Stephanie after you went missing, and she was the one who grew up by our side in your place. We'll never allow her to suffer or feel pushed aside. Therefore, we are introducing Stephanie to the public as our biological daughter. You'll be introduced as our adopted daughter. Don't you dare expose us." I looked at their self-righteous, unyielding faces. I made sure my voice was steady, enunciating every single syllable. "But aren't I your biological daughter after all?" Dad's brow furrowed in deep impatience. "Why must you be so difficult and unreasonable? Stephanie was raised to be poised, elegant, and cultured. You are deaf in one ear and didn't even manage to graduate high school! How could you ever hope to compare to her?" Mom sighed heavily, patting my shoulder with patronizing condescension, as if comforting a child throwing a tantrum. "Stop being so stubborn. Do you have any idea how few abducted children ever actually make it back to their parents? You should be grateful that you returned to a family that puts food on your table and a roof over your head. What more could you possibly want from us?" The back of my scalded hand was still raw, the blisters weeping and bleeding, but neither of them cared. They genuinely believed they had already bestowed the ultimate act of charity upon me just by letting me come home to them. But they were the ones who had lost me at the amusement park 18 years ago. Everything Stephanie had should have been mine. I let out a long, slow breath, letting go of the heavy weight in my chest. "I don't need your love anymore." Dad's face went purple with anger. "You damn ingrate! We spent two years trying to mold you, and you're still the same pathetic, low-class wench you were when we found you!" Mom pointed a finger directly in my face, her voice rising to a shrill hiss. "Stephy was right. You're just playing hard-to-get, thinking it'll make us feel sorry for you!" Before she could finish her tirade, a sudden, loud murmur rippled through the room. I turned around and saw a series of photos come vividly into view on the big screen. They were the naked photos that Stephanie had forcefully taken of me the night she slipped into my room. My blood froze at the sight. I opened my mouth to speak, but Stephanie's driver beat me to it and exclaimed loudly, "This bitch is Ms. Coleman's personal maid! She wormed her way into the family's good graces and convinced Mr. and Mrs. Coleman to adopt her! "She might look innocent, but she's been stealing Ms. Coleman's jewelry behind her back. She even sent me these explicit photos, trying to seduce me into sleeping with her!" Stephanie walked up to me and spoke in a low voice, "Did you really think you could just stroll back home and become the next Coleman heiress? In your dreams. "You're just trash that Mom and Dad threw away. You aren't even worthy to lick the dust off my shoes. Get lost if you know what's good for you, Allison Baker." The guests all shot me nasty, condescending looks. Mom and Dad looked at me with a complex emotion in their eyes, but neither of them uttered a single word to defend me. I dug my fingernails into my palms so hard the pain went entirely numb. Then, I walked onto the stage under the shocked gazes of the guests. I said loudly, "I was abducted and gone for 18 years because of my parents' negligence. But since coming back two years ago, all they've done is despise me for being ugly, uneducated, and classless." I turned to Mom and Dad. "You give Stephanie Coleman a two-million-dollar monthly allowance. Yet you claimed you were too bankrupt to buy me a proper hearing aid. "But since you refuse to acknowledge me as your flesh and blood anyway, I will gladly grant your wish. I am selling myself to your 'creditors!'" After saying that, I left the villa without another backward glance and got into the car waiting for me at the entrance. Panicked, Mom and Dad sprinted out after me, pounding on the car window. "Are you crazy, Allison Baker? We don't have any creditors! "You damn ingrate! If you dare to leave us now, we'll disown you permanently! You'll be entirely on your own!" Yet, the bald man who once played their creditor stopped them and said, "Mr. Coleman, Ms. Baker here has already signed an agreement with me. So, from now on, she belongs to me."