Chapter 5
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…”
Chapter 5
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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.
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
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