5 Chapter 5  The fatal crash happened on Thanksgiving weekend. (1  At first, my mother would still try to reason with me. “Be a good girl, Layla. We’re helping …

4 Chapter 4  4 Chapter 4  Getting back to the United States was a harrowing ordeal. Soon after, the harassing  phone calls started. It was Omar. He had found my…

Chapter 3  “Not bad, not bad,” he said with a grin, showing off his tobacco-stained teeth. “Layla’s all grown up. She looks strong. She’ll definitely give me a son.”  The…

Chapter 25  Two years later, at the employee recognition ceremony, a small celebratory dinner was held in an unused section of the  factory to honor Evelyn.  The moment people heard…

Chapter 24  Leonard stood pinned against the rough brick wall, swallowed by the crowd.  The screaming, the curses-sharp as needles dipped in poison-lashed across his face, his chest, his soul. …

Chapter 23  Leonard had been held in the factory’s security office for three full days.  By the time he was released, the late afternoon sun was glaring overhead. He squinted…

  Chapter 22  “You think you can just walk away from me?” Leonard completely lost control, veins bulging across his forearm. “Evelyn, you’re coming home with me! Whatever it is-we’ll…

Chapter 21  Evelyn let out a soft, bitter laugh.  There was a time when Leonard had desperately wanted a divorce. Now that it was real, he couldn’t seem to accept…

Chapter 2: Chapter 2 My parents never saw my good grades. They never saw me at all. Soon, my mother found me a job at a fast-food restaurant. “Work hard…

Chapter 1: Chapter 1 My parents drag me to court to harvest my heart and save my adoptive sister. A neural scanner will extract my memories live on camera. 100…