Tears fell directly down the cheeks of the thirteen-year old girl, as she was munching the sandwich that Aunt Sarah generously offered her.

"Oh, Julie! Why are you crying? Is the sandwich not up to your taste?" asked Aunt Sarah with concern leaking from her voice.

No one knew about the abuse that she suffered to face every day at her house. His violent outbursts and verbal abuse seemed to have worsened after her mom left for the business trip. Wiping her cheeks, Julie gave a cheery smile to Aunt Sarah, after all, she was the only one who ever cared about her wellbeing.

"The sandwich is extremely delicious. I just miss mommy a lot," Julie said with her eyes downcast. A gloomy look was evident on her face, with tears bundling up in her eyes.

"As long as I'm alive, I would take care of you whenever your mommy is not in town. So don't worry my kitten," she replied and engulfed her in a big warm hug.

Sarah had lost a lot in her life, ranging from her divorced husband to two miscarriages there were not many happy moments in her lonely life. The occasional warm happiness came into her life with Julie's brief visits. Her warm innocence and vibrant personality made her desolate house feel like an actual home.

Julie slowly detached from the hug and gave a small smile. She knew her time was up, and with the dusk gradually approaching her daddy might be home any moment.

"Thanks for the sandwich Aunt Sarah, I need to leave now. Time flies when I stay here," she gave a pleasant smile and hastily packed her bag.

"Visit me tomorrow, child. Also, don't forget to eat the dinner that I have packed for you," Aunt Sarah replied and gave a peck on her forehead.

(Caution: Trigger warning. The content ahead contains mentions of abuse. Hence, continue to the next note in bold letters, if you wish to skip this)

With a small wave towards her only well-wisher, she took brisk steps and limped along the short passage that connects to her house. Last night, her ankle was badly twisted and stomped upon by her father, leaving it with an ugly bruise and swelling all around it. She wished, that she got accustomed and numb to the abuse as the years passed, but her heart kept echoing along with tiny hopes that maybe one day her parents would open their eyes and love her.

As she inched closer to the house, her heart was beating fast, along with the palms sweating profusely in trepidation of what her father kept in store for her that night. Weekend nights were generally the dangerous ones, as he brought along his friends and a few females to the house, all of whom relished in her pain and suffering.

'Oh please, Let daddy be late today. Let him not be early,' she made small prayers as the small back door came into view. Silently she pressed the keys into the lock and made her way inside the house with cautious steps.

Moving past the kitchen, her heart dropped as she saw her daddy and his friends seated on the couch next to the stairs seemingly drunk, with their drooping eyes and loud laughter.

As she tried to move stealthily back to the kitchen, the bulky friend who sat to the right of her daddy turned and gazed at her with a creepy grin on his face.

"Look who is here, Igor? Your lovely daughter. Ah! And check the time out, it's already past five, seems like your daughter had been hanging out with someone" he got up from the couch and made his way towards Julie with the same creepy grin on his face.

His fingers grazed on her cheek as he came close to her, leaving a trail of his touch all over her face. Julie was shivering under his touch like a withering leaf. Memories of this man trying to kiss her, resurfaced in her brains as her hands immediately moved to his chest and tried pushing him away.

"Where have you been, and why is my dinner not on the table still?" a low grumble was heard from her daddy as she scrambled to the kitchen away from the grimy hands of her predator.

"When is the little princess going to be sold? Don't you think if not for this princess and her mother; our kingdom would still be flourishing," the slurred hostile voice of her predator echoed along the walls of the kitchen.

"The scum princess would be dealt with soon enough. But, my queen stays with me. After all, she has been working extremely hard recently," Igor replied with a nasty smile on his face.

On the other end of the house, Julie had been preparing a quick dinner, while attempting to keep her past painful memories at bay.

'It's okay, you will be alright soon. You just need to serve the food and lock your room door tonight.'

Mumbling silently, Julie was giving herself a pep talk and slowly carried the dinner to the living room with wobbly fingers.

"Ah! There is my lovely disobedient girl," her daddy looked at her with a smile as he pulled her onto his lap. "Today you need to get punished for your disobedience, don't you agree with me?" he probed her, wickedly. Julie replied with a slight nod. Replying or talking back to him would invariably end in punishments, and she didn't want a repeat of last night.

"We will discuss your punishment and repercussions after dinner," he said slyly as his steady hands grazed along her inner thighs.

Julie knew not to squirm or protest. But her body couldn't help but squirm uneasily as his filthy hands grazed on her body. With each squirm, his hold on her kept getting tighter.

'Is this how a family behaves? Is it how my family would always be?'

Multiple thoughts ran inside her brain, as the prime definition of family and father seemed muddled and foreign to her. Memories of her mother supporting all of her father's actions when he whipped and punished her for arriving late from school, flashed in her mind further confusing the concept of family.

'Is the warmth and love described in the children storybooks nothing but a myth or tale?'

"Your girl seems too welcoming. Look at her enjoying the attention and touches silently," her father's other friend commented, as he harshly clutched her face in his hands and pressed her jaw leaving an imprint on her cheeks. A sickening smile grazed on his face, as he glanced at the other two with a meaningful look in his eyes.

"Yes, I made sure to train her well. Isn't it right princess," her dad threw a question on her mockingly as his friend trailed his fingers down her arms. "The date of selling her is already drawn with Nyx, and they promised to provide any help in our battle as part of the exchange treaty. So, let's not cause any outward harm to her. But anything internal and unnoticeable is fine," commented her dad coldly as he took a huge gulp of alcohol from the bottle.

Few tears freely fell from her eyes, as she heard the word sell. She was accustomed to the cold behaviour from her parents, but she never knew they would stoop so low and be heartless enough to sell her.

'Sell me? To whom? But, why? Am I just an object to them?'

Her internal turmoil grew so much, to the point her feelings were starting to grow numb. All those lonely nights wishing for things to get better seemed like a mockery now.

As her father's friends picked and shifted her to the spare room, she struggled.

As they injected the drug into her body for the fifth time this month, she struggled.

As her clothes were torn apart, she struggled.

As her father followed them with a blank unbothered look in his eyes, she resigned.

After all, she was never capable to escape from their hell.

Her eyes slowly closed off, to escape from the torment that would surely echo in her nightmares for long.

(Trigger warning ended)

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Julie was sitting in the first-hour class, with much difficulty as her body was screaming with pain all over. Due to her 'unique' condition, she wasn't fit to have any medicines for her body pain and fever. The sole option that remained, was to go to an actual hospital which would instead cause more chaos than solve her problems.

'Only if I could just escape from this world or become invisible. I am tired, Tired to go through this routine. I need to escape from my house though before they manage to sell me. Or maybe I deserve this, I should merely stay and accept whatever they have planned for me. But, is it right?'

She zoned out with her thoughts, all the while staring blankly at the class.

"Ms. Juliette Domanav, report to the principal's office immediately," strict voice of the head admin staff echoed along the halls of Miles Public school, startling her immensely.

A slow confusion was noted on her face, as she pondered why the principal had called her in. Moaning in pain softly, she raised from her seat and moved out of the class.

"Do you require help getting to the principal's office Julie? You are limping," her homeroom teacher questioned while looking at the broken ankle with concern in her voice.

"It's just a scratch mam. I'll be fine," she replied politely and remained oblivious to the worry on her teacher's face. With a slight nod, she left the class and walked with occasional limps towards the principal's office.

-Knock-

"Here she is Mr Rhodes; this is Juliette Domanov," he introduced politely to the man sitting on the couch whose features along with the official cop uniform resonated power and authority in the room.

"Hello sir," she greeted him softly, "If I may ask, why was I called here?" she blurted the question to her principal, as her mind was full of panic.

'Father will annihilate me if he ever sights me in the vicinity of a cop. Oh my God! What do I do?'

"I am Senior Chief officer Robert Rhodes. Earlier today, your father had been arrested for being involved with an underground crime organisation. I'm sorry to inform you, but his case files look severe with years of imprisonment ahead of him," he informed as he kneeled and placed his palm on her shoulder with a look of pity in his eyes.

"I understand, with one of your parents dead, and the other in jail things might be difficult for you. But not everything is lost, child. Your brother's lawyer approached half-hour earlier with DNA tests and documents confirming you as their biological sister, and further offering a favourable response to adopting you."

Julie's eyes widened, and her entire body froze with the news she heard.

"I.. think.. You..have got the wrong.. person officer. My mother is still alive...she just went.. on a busin..ess..trip. And, I.. don't.. have any sibling," she stuttered as her breathing came out laboriously.

The principal and the officer exchanged cautious looks as pity filled their eyes while looking at the unfortunate girl. The officer moved closer to Julie and tried to soothe her down. But with every step he took, her breathing intensified.

"Calm down. Have a glass of water," the principal held out a glass of water to Julie.

As she reached out to grasp the glass, black dots swarmed in her vision, and the next moment her body slumped completely on the floor.

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(1935 words)

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