The Price of a Daughter

[Rose's POV]

"You're awake?"

 A cold voice.

 It wasn't the man from last night.

My head throbbed like it was splitting open.

My body felt like it had been run over.

Every bone hurt.

The light was too bright.

I couldn't open my eyes fully.

I squinted and saw a man standing by the window.

He was wearing a sharp suit, facing away from me.

That figure...

My heart sank hard.

It was him.

Alistair Black.

My biological "father".

 I remembered how much he used to love me when I was a little girl.

 Because of the rose-shaped birthmark behind my ear, he named me Rose.

 Every time he came home from work, he would pick me up and kiss my cheek.

 He used to call me "my little Rose."

 Lilith and I are twins, but back then, he loved me more.

 He said a rose was a symbol of love.

 He said I was the symbol of his love with my mom.

 But everything changed when I turned seven.

 A fortune teller said I would bring down the Black Corporation.

 That same period, he made some bad investments. The company almost went bankrupt.

 He believed the fortune teller.

 Overnight, the father who loved me disappeared.

 The way he looked at me changed—from love to disgust.

 He wanted to give me away. He said I was a jinx.

 My mom didn't agree. They fought over it so many times.

 In the end, they divorced.

 My mom took me. Lilith stayed with him.

 After that, I only saw him in financial news reports.

What was he doing here?

 "Your clothes are on the sofa. Get dressed and come out."

 He said it, then walked out.

 I sat there, frozen.

I had no idea what was going on.

I pushed my aching body to sit up.

 Sharp pain shot through me from down there.

 That pain reminded me—

 Everything from last night really happened.

I looked down, stiff.

 Warm, sticky liquid ran down my thighs.

 There was a bloody smell.

 The white sheet had a bright red stain.

 Watermarks were everywhere.

 My stomach turned.

I wanted to throw up.

I felt sick, ashamed, and furious.

I couldn't breathe.

 My body shook as I climbed out of bed and dragged myself into the bathroom.

The girl in the mirror didn't look like me.

My face was pale.

My hair was a mess.

 My neck, collarbone, and shoulders were all covered in bruises and hickeys.

 Anyone could tell what happened.

I turned on the hot water and scrubbed my body.

The skin turned red, but I didn't stop.

I wanted to wash it all off—what happened, what I remembered.

But it didn't work.

The more I washed, the colder I felt.

The more awake I became, the more hopeless it felt.

I put on the dress from the sofa.

It fits perfectly.

Of course, it did.

 Everything had been arranged.

 Alistair was sitting on the couch when I came out.

 He didn't even look up.

 "Sit," he said, nodding at the sofa across from him.

 I didn't move.

 I stared straight at him.

 He gave me a scornful look.

 "The man from last night… he's someone your kind could never reach in a lifetime."

 "He thought you were Lilith. Do you know what you've done? Your filthy behavior ruined your sister's reputation."

 My head buzzed.

 So it was true.

 He mistook me for Lilith.

 "But don't worry," he said.

 "To protect the Black family's name, Lilith will take the blame. People will think it was her last night."

 I let out a cold laugh.

What a great father.

What a lovely sister.

 From the moment I entered that bar to waking up in this room, everything was planned.

"It was you," I said in a hoarse voice.

 "You're the one who put me here. What do you want from me?"

 His eyes flickered.

 I hit a nerve.

 "Nonsense," he said.

 "I just got back from overseas. I came here to clean up your mess."

 He looked annoyed, like I had embarrassed him.

 "Why can't you be more like your sister? Why must you always cause trouble?"

 My heart went cold.

 "All these years… did you ever think about me and mom?"

 I finally asked the one question I'd buried for so long.

 "Why would I care about you two jinxes?"

 And just like that, something inside me snapped.

 Something inside me snapped.

 Hurt?

 No. I was long past that.

 I only felt cold.

 A kind of cold that spread from my chest to my whole body.

All these years, except for some worthless child support, he never cared whether we lived or died.

 It was Mom who raised me—working multiple jobs to get us by.

 I started working part-time in my teens just to survive.

And now he stood there, looking down on me like I owed him something?

 My mind had never been so clear.

 "I don't care what you say," I stared at him and said slowly.

 "You got something out of this, didn't you?"

 "Then pay me."

 He laughed like it was a joke.

 "You think you're in any position to ask me for money?"

 "I can find him," I said, stepping closer.

 My voice was calm.

 My eyes didn't flinch.

 "You said he's powerful. There aren't many like him in this city. I'll find him."

 "I'll tell him he slept with Rose, not Lilith."

 I paused and watched his face freeze.

 "I'll also tell him it was all you did. What do you think he'll do to you?"

 His fake confidence shattered in an instant.

 He was scared.

 "Don't you dare!" he shouted.

 I gave a cold smile.

 "Try me."

 I pulled out my phone.

 I opened my banking app and showed him the screen.

 "Pay me. One million. The price of your daught. So cheap."

 "Or I will go find him and tell him the truth."

 "I don't care what happens to me. I've got nothing to lose."

 His eyes were full of anger and hesitation.

I could see him struggling.

 My heart was pounding, but I stood my ground.

 I didn't step back.

 A few seconds later, he gave in.

 He lowered his head and tapped on his phone with stiff fingers.

 Ding!

 I heard the notification sound.

I saw the amount.

I gave a cold smile, put away my phone, and walked toward the door.

At the door, I stopped.

 I didn't turn around.

 I just said:

 "We're even now. I hope we never see each other again."

 "And by the way, my name is Rose Lang."

 "I'm only Celeste Lang's daughter."

 Then I walked out of that disgusting place without looking back.