Golden Cage Mommy Mutiny (Elyse) novel Chapter 57

Grandma from Dad’s side sniffed the air, and the wrinkles between her brows deepened.

“What’s that smell in here? Did something go bad?”

“You’re overwhelmed trying to juggle two kids, aren’t you? Do you want me to start coming over tomorrow and help out?”

She was still asking when Mom’s legs suddenly gave out. She nearly collapsed to the floor.

My grandma on Mom’s side noticed something was wrong first and stepped closer, her voice turning sharp. “Where’s the child? We haven’t seen Penny since we walked through the door. Where did she go?”

Tears flashed in Mom’s eyes. Her hand trembled as she pointed toward the washing machine.

“Penny… a couple of days ago she let Jamie choke on purpose. I lost my temper and locked her in the

washer.”

“Mom… Penny’s at your place, right? She’s still mad and doing this on purpose, isn’t she? That’s why you keep saying she’s not there. She just wants to see us panic, right?”

Mom grabbed her mother’s hand, but my grandma from Mom’s side yanked it away hard.

“You… this is what you call being parents? How could you put a child that young in a washing machine?”

My dad’s mom’s eyes went bloodshot in an instant. If anything–anything at all—has happened to my granddaughter, I will never forgive you.”

Everyone rushed over to the washer in a panic.

Nearly a full week had gone by, and finally someone crouched down and really looked inside.

Behind the round glass door lay a tiny body curled up tight, her limbs twisted at impossible angles.

Everyone went rigid. Mom slapped a hand over her mouth and dropped to the floor in shock, her entire body shaking uncontrollably.

“How… how could this… how could this happen…”

My body inside the washer had skin that was bluish white. Because of the high temperatures, it had

bloated to an almost grotesque size, and the stench of decay hit anyone who got close.

My hair was a matted mess stuck to my forehead and cheeks, and the curved glass door of the washer still showed the scratches I’d left behind when I fought to get out.

All four grandparents burst into tears.

Chapter 5

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Grandma from Dad’s side slapped Dad hard across the face. “How could you do this to a child? How could you be so cruel? She’s your daughter.”

“We never pressured you to have a second baby. We told you from the start–if you couldn’t keep things fair between the two kids, you should let us raise our granddaughter. But you… you…”

She pounded her fists against her own legs as she sobbed, while my grandma from Mom’s side cried and called them murderers.

Dad stood frozen, the red imprint of Grandma’s hand burning on his cheek, his eyes locked on the

washer.

“Penny… didn’t she run out of the house on her own?”

“We never even turned the washer on. How could this have happened?”

Mom just kept shaking her head as she cried. Suddenly she flung the washer door open, trying to pull me out.

But the wave of rotting stench that rushed out made everyone double over, gagging.

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