"I'm not forcing you. You're the one forcing your sister to die, forcing your father and me to die! If you won't agree, then I'll kowtow to you. I'll keep going until you say yes."
Thud. Her forehead hit the floor with a dull, sickening sound, and it might as well have been a hammer striking my chest.
I slumped forward and grabbed her arms. My mind was screaming, clawing at the walls, but all I felt was a crushing helplessness.
In that moment, I wished I'd been born from a crack in the earth rather than from the flesh and blood of these two people.
Finally, I let out a long breath and made my decision.
"This is the last time. But you have to leave me two million. I need to go abroad for treatment."
I'd also made up my mind to accept the company's overseas assignment. Once the treatment was done, I wouldn't come back for a while.
After all these years of being bled dry, plus this eight million, it would be more than enough to repay the debt of being raised.
But the second Ethel heard my terms, she exploded. "Like hell! Every last cent of that ten million is mine. You don't get a single dollar!"
"She's right," my father chimed in. "You're only helping your sister pay off a fraction. How is that any different from not helping at all? Besides, you're already wrecked. That kind of damage doesn't heal. No point throwing money away on a lost cause."
"Help your sister now," my mother added, "and her children will take care of you when you're old. Wipe your chin, change your bedpan, the whole deal. All you're doing is spending a little money for a lifetime of returns. Isn't that a good trade?"
I watched their mouths open and close, every word dressed up like concern, every word a blade twisting between my ribs.
A bone-deep chill washed over me. I knew there was no reasoning with them. I went straight to my room, locked the door, and called the police.
The dispatcher said they'd be there within fifteen minutes. I hung up and barely had time to exhale before the door was kicked open.
My parents' faces were a twisted mess of panic and fury. They lunged at me, clawing and shoving. "You actually called the cops? You ungrateful wretch, are you trying to get Ethel killed?!"
Ethel herself planted a kick square in my stomach, sending me crashing to the floor. But there was no fear on her face. She was grinning, wild and triumphant.