Page 5 of A Twisted Gift

Of course it is.Kind people don’t purchase humans. Even I know that, and Marissa’s horror only confirms it.

As a chill seeps into my bones, my tears slowly dry, and I find myself staring out my window. Snow blows across the sky, and I watch numbly until sleep overtakes me.

Just before my eyes finally close, I swear I see a figure standing on top of the stone wall that keeps me trapped here, but in the next moment, it’s gone.

Chapter two

Raina

Thirteen years ago, age seven

Playing outside by yourself is no fun.

I kick my ball, watching it bounce off the fence surrounding our house. It rolls to a stop a few feet away, and I sigh, trudging up to it.

In the summer, my half-siblings are home, and they’ll usually play with me. Sometimes Danny and Benjamin refuse because I’m too little, but Marissa always wants to do things with me.

But now school has started again, and I have to wait until the weekend. That’s when Marissa will be able to stay home, and we can play dolls or catch or hide-and-seek as much as I want.

“Why can’t it benow?” I grumble, kicking the ball with more force this time. I gasp when it lands under Lydia’s rose bush.

Groaning, I drag myself toward the bush. I wish I had someone to play with. It’s soboringhere by myself. Father is always busy, Lydia won’t even look at me, and the staff all have jobs to do.

Getting on my hands and knees, I squeeze myself under the branches. There are thorns everywhere, and one of them scratches my arm.

If Marissa was here, she’d get the ball for me. She says it’s her job as my big sister to make sure I don’t get hurt. But now I’m all by myself.

Grabbing the ball, I toss it back into the grass and then wiggle my way out from under the bush. But halfway out, my hair gets caught on a branch, pulling tight, and I yelp in pain. I try to get free, but my hair only ends up more tangled, and I prick myself on a thorn.

“Ow,” I cry.

“I can help you.”

I gasp at the voice. It’s coming from behind me, and I can’t turn to see who it is.

“Here, hold still.”

It sounds like a boy, maybe around Danny’s age. Where did he come from? I’ve never seen anyone outside the fence before.

I whimper when he pulls on my hair, but I try to stay still. If he can’t get me free, I’ll have to call for help, and then Father will get mad at me for playing in Lydia’s rose bush again. The last time I touched her roses, Father locked me in my room for two whole days. No matter how much I heard Marissa crying, he still wouldn’t let me out.

“There.” He pats my shoulder, and I realize I’m free.

Spinning around, I stare at the boy on the other side of the fence, my jaw dropped. He has light skin just like I do, but he’s taller than me. Probably older, too. Benjamin’s age, I think. But where Benjamin’s hair is blond, this boy’s is as dark as night.

“Here, let me help you out.” He lifts some of the branches that he can reach through the fence. “Go on.”

Ducking my head, I crawl out the rest of the way. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. What’s your name?”

I bite the inside of my cheek. Father told me I’m not allowed to talk to strangers. He said they’re dangerous and that they all want to hurt me. I’ve never encountered one until now, though, and this boy doesn’t seem dangerous at all. Still, I don’t think I should give him my real name, just in case.

“Rose,” I lie, glancing at the bush beside me. “What’s yours?”

“Erik.”

“Are you dangerous?”

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