Is it my fault?

The second Violet woke up, it was the smell around her that assailed her nose from all sides. Her eyes flickered open to see metal bars in front of her, and she immediately scrambled off the ground at the sight of them. But just as she got to her feet and took two steps, her head pounding, she felt herself being jerked back by an invisible force.

Looking down at her feet, she saw the chains. They bound her to the wall, so tightly that she couldn't even approach the bars.

Fear began to claw at her chest, threatening to overwhelm her, as fragments of memory came flooding back. The events that led her to this cold, damp cell replayed themselves in her mind: how her parents and siblings had completely turned their backs on her.

How many times do they have to hurt you before you realize they don't love you? she asked herself, swallowing hard to push down the urge to cry. Slowly, she slid back to the ground, resting her back against the wall.