Chapter 1

I had a compulsive clapback disorder. If anyone said anything to me, I had to snap right back.

The day I was brought back to my biological billionaire family, the fake heiress cooked a lavish feast for me. My parents told me I should be grateful.

I opened my mouth and sneered immediately.

"Cooking a few basic dishes makes her exhausted? I was cooking for an entire abusive household when I was six. This is nothing."

My parents froze, staring at my heavily calloused hands in stunned silence.

On my birthday, the fake heiress received gifts from everyone. I didn't get her anything.

She burst into tears, claiming I was ostracizing her. My parents scolded me for being cold.

I scoffed.

"Crying over birthday gifts? Someone clearly hasn't been beaten enough if she has the nerve to beg for handouts."

The entire family went dead silent. Their eyes landed on the horrific scars covering my arms, and they lowered their heads, wiping away tears of guilt.

Later, our eldest sister flew back from London just to back the fake heiress up. The second she stepped through the door, she scolded me for refusing to give up the master bedroom.

I gave a dry laugh.

"She should be glad she even has a room. Back on the farm where I grew up, girls slept in the barn. Complain, and they broke your legs."

My parents stared in horror at my crooked, poorly healed shin bone. Overcome with heartbreak, they broke down sobbing and held each other.

My older sister tried to argue again, but the fake heiress lunged forward and clamped her hand over my mouth, terrified.

"Please, stop talking! The more you speak, the more Mom and Dad pity you!"

On my first night in the Harrington mansion, my biological parents scrutinized me with cold, evaluating eyes.

The fake heiress, Ashley, walked over with a soft, timid smile.

"Chloe, I'm so sorry. I took up all the closet space in the guest rooms and haven't finished packing yet. Do you mind sleeping on the floor for just tonight?"

She apologized with lowered eyes, looking like a fragile, innocent victim.

Hearing that, our parents immediately pulled their precious golden child into a hug, unable to bear seeing her act so humble.

My younger brother, Leo, glared at me, silently ordering me to agree.

I didn't hesitate to snap back.

"Are you serious, princess? You can't even pack a few boxes? Back on the farm, you would've been whipped raw for being that useless."

The color drained from Ashley's face. She looked at our parents in sheer humiliation.

But Mom and Dad weren't looking at her. They were staring in utter shock at the faint whip marks on my forearms.

"They... they beat you back there?" Dad stammered.

"Obviously. People were treated like livestock. You don't work, you get lashed."

Their lips trembled. Leo gasped in terror.

After comforting a sniffling Ashley, my parents finally agreed to let me take a proper room.

I marched upstairs, walked straight into the largest bedroom, and started tossing everything out into the hallway.

The room was cluttered with useless plushies and porcelain dolls.

Disgusted, I tied them together with an old bedsheet like bales of hay and dumped them outside.

Ashley let out a piercing shriek.

"How could you treat my babies like that?!"

Mom frowned. "Chloe, you can't just bully your sister!"

I looked at them blankly.

"Cleaning out her room counts as bullying? It was an unlivable pigsty. Back where I came from, a mess like this would earn you a backhand across the face."

Ashley stared in disbelief, tears welling up. "You want to hit me?!"

Leo screamed at the top of his lungs, "Mom! Dad! She's threatening violence!"

My parents rushed to intervene, only to see me standing there with my arms crossed, completely still.

"I don't have the right to hit anyone," I retorted coldly. "Back home, only the elders threw punches. And when they did, you had to drop to your knees and take it."

Ashley was still playing the victim, but Mom and Dad barely heard her. Their eyes finally caught the faint swelling along my jawline.

They froze, their voices shaking.

"Did someone hit you... right before you came here? Does it hurt?"

I shrugged. "Just two slaps across the face. Why make a drama out of it? At least my teeth are still intact."

Those words silenced my parents completely.

Ashley stomped her foot, furious that I had taken the master bedroom, but Mom finally snapped at her.

"Enough, Ashley. Your sister suffered in your place for years. Let her have the room."

I claimed the master suite without another word, though I couldn't resist a final jab.

"A bed is just a bed. Making a fuss over nothing."

Ashley watched my arrogant demeanor, nearly fainting from pure rage.

The next morning, a high-pitched scream tore through the second floor.

"Who touched my makeup?! Someone dumped flower pollen into my setting powder!"

At the word 'pollen,' Mom, Dad, and Leo bolted out of their rooms, panicking and ready to rush Ashley to the ER.

Leo hammered furiously on my door.

"It was you! You just got here and everything's ruined! I saw you near Ashley's room this morning!"

Mom and Dad turned to me with widened eyes, while Ashley clutched her red cheeks, sobbing.

"Chloe... why would you do this to me?"