A Twisted Gift

1. Chapter 1

Chapter one

Raina

My breath fogs up the glass as I stare out the window, looking over the backyard of my father’s mansion. The Christmas lights the staff put up every year are already shining in the evening’s fading light, sparkling against the cloudy sky.

I always wondered what the mansion looked like from a distance. Like a castle, maybe? Similar to the ones I’ve read about in my books?

With a sigh, my gaze moves upward, searching for the light that’s become my only company after dinner. At the top of the hill behind Father’s estate is a dark house—not as large as this mansion, but not small, either. Something happened there when I was a child, but no one will tell me what. It’s sat empty ever since, except for the groundskeeper who maintains the property.

Until two weeks ago, that is.

Now, every evening, a single light turns on, and I find myself drawn to the yellow glow. The house is too far away for me to see anything inside, but my mind has made up countless stories about who’s living in the house now.

Is it him? Has he come back for me?

There’s a soft knock on my bedroom door, and the sound of the deadbolt unlocking comes a second later. Quickly, I shove my candy cane out of sight. I’m not supposed to have them, and Father will be furious if he finds out I have a hidden stash.

Marissa slips into my room, dressed in dark jeans and a gray sweater. She’s holding two coats—hers and mine. “We have to go,” she whispers. “I need you to pack a bag.”

“Pack? For what?” I ask.

Marissa knows the rules. I’m not like her and our brothers. Lydia was their mother, but she wasn’t mine. I’m the result of an affair, a dirty secret that has to be kept hidden at all costs.

I don’t exist. And that means I can’t ever leave.

“I’ll explain in the car. Right now, we need to move quickly.” She opens one of my drawers. “We’ll pack the essentials for now, and I can buy you other things later.”

Standing, I stare at her. She’s pulling out socks and underwear, shirts and pants. But there’s nothing to put it all in.

“Mar, I don’t have a bag.”

She has one, of course. Multiple. A purse, her overnight bag, her suitcase for when she comes for longer visits. But I’ve never needed one.

Smacking her forehead, Marissa mutters, “I knew I was forgetting something.”

I watch as she glances around the room, her eyes narrowed. Crossing to my bed, she grabs one of my pillows and yanks off its case.

“We’ll use this. I promise I’ll get you a real bag as soon as I can.”

“Will we be back for Christmas?”

It’s my favorite time of year. Now that we’re all grown up, the holidays are the only time my siblings come home—the only time Father is kinder to me, so I can pretend I’m not different from everyone else.

“You and I will have Christmas together.” Marissa’s smile is thin, her eyes worried. “I promise it’ll be fun.”

My hand wraps around her wrist, stopping her from shoving my clothes into the pillowcase. “You’re scaring me, Mar.”

“You should be scared.” Her voice is barely above a whisper, but it’s fierce. “What he has planned—god, Raina, just pack .”

I help her, grabbing some of my favorite shirts and shoving them into the pillowcase. She bundles me up in a hat and gloves, and then my coat. None of it has gotten much use lately. There’s no one to go outside with, and when I’m by myself, the backyard is full of too many painful memories.

“Are we running away?” I ask as Marissa peeks out the door and into the hallway.

“I’ll explain once we’re in the car,” she repeats. “Now stay quiet.”

A car? My stomach flips in giddy excitement. I’ve seen plenty of them in the driveway, but I’ve never been inside one.

We tiptoe through the house, and it feels like we’re kids again, playing hide and seek with Danny and Benjamin. Except this time, the stakes feel much, much higher.

The boys are drinking and watching football in the living room, so we slip past them with ease. We have to take the long way through the house to avoid Father’s office, and when we get to the garage door, Marissa breathes a sigh of relief.

“How are we going to get past security?” I ask quietly. Father always has at least two guards at the gate and then two more who patrol the perimeter.

“I’ll tell them I’m going out to visit friends from high school.” She winces. “You’ll have to be in the trunk, otherwise they’ll see you.”

High school. It’s one of the many things I was always secretly jealous of Marissa for. When we were younger, she would teach me what she learned in school, but by the time we were teens, she was too busy to make the time. And then she left, off to college and then California, where she lives now.

“I don’t understand. Why do I have to leave?” I ask.

“You want to stay?” She gives me a bewildered look.

“I… I’m not sure.”

Truth be told, I’m not sure what’s outside of the walls I grew up in. I’ve read books about what the world is like, but Father always says they’re unrealistic and that’s why he’s so selective about what he lets me read and watch. He says the real world is too dangerous for a girl like me.

Staying here, though, means spending my nights locked in my bedroom and only having the staff to talk to. No friends, only the occasional visit from Marissa, and enduring Father’s hateful glares whenever he’s home.

Could whatever is out there possibly be worse than that? Thinking about it has me faltering. Father has told me what it’s like. It’s not safe.

Marissa’s hand slips into mine. “Do you trust me?”

“Of course.”

“Then come with me.”

After hesitating, I nod. She’s my older sister. I really, truly do trust her.

I follow her out into the garage. It’s large, housing all of Father’s cars, plus my half-siblings’ vehicles. Marissa drags me to hers and helps me into the trunk, throwing my pillowcase in, too. Just as she’s shutting me in, though, Father’s voice echoes throughout the garage.

“Marissa? What’re you doing?”

She slams the trunk shut, and I have to strain to hear their conversation.

“Nothing. Just headed into town for drinks with a few friends. We all wanted to catch up.”

“What’s in the trunk?”

“Presents.”

“Didn’t look like presents to me.”

“Well, what else would I—”

“Open the trunk, Marissa.”

“No—no, Daddy, please —”

The trunk pops open, and I curl myself up into the tightest ball possible, praying that if I make myself small enough, he won’t realize it’s me. But his hand wraps around my arm, yanking me up with such force that it feels like he’s going to tear my joints apart. I hit my head on the car, and Marissa cries out in worry.

“You’ll hurt her! Daddy, stop!”

“What the hell were you planning on doing with her?” Father demands. “You know we need her for tomorrow night.”

Tomorrow night. Father’s annual Christmas party. Lydia used to plan it before she passed, and now he holds it in her memory. But why would they need me for it? I’m never allowed to attend.

The door to the house opens, and Danny and Benjamin burst through.

“We heard yelling. What’s going on?” Benjamin strides over, his gaze bouncing between me and Marissa. “What’s she doing outside of her room after dinner?”

“Marissa decided to play hero.”

Father shoves me into my brothers, and they both grab me, their grips firm. As if I’d run. As if I have anywhere to run to .

Marissa pulls at her hair, her eyes wild with desperation. “You can’t sell her! She’s not an animal.”

Sell me? What’s she talking about?

But Father shrugs, unbothered. “What else am I going to do with her? She’s a useless expense.”

“Just let her go,” Marissa begs. “Let her live her own life. She can come stay with me, and I can help her find a job. I’ll make sure she gets settled. No one ever has to know she’s yours.”

Father sighs. “I knew doting on you as a child would come back to bite me in the ass. I never should’ve let her live, but you wanted a sister so badly. And now look at you.”

“I know you love her,” Marissa says, her voice wobbling in the way it always does when she’s trying not to cry. “I know you do. So please don’t do this. You’ll regret it.”

“She served as a good companion for you during your childhood, I’ll give her that. But she’s worthless in that regard with you living in California now.”

“No! She can be my companion again. She can come live with me. I love her. I miss her. I want her with me.”

“Marissa, Marissa, Marissa.” Father shakes his head, looking down on her with disappointment. “I thought you were smarter than this.”

Marissa sniffles, and I step toward her, wanting to put my arms around her. I hate it when she cries. But Benjamin and Danny hold me back, their hands tightening on my arms so much that I whimper.

“Careful,” Father snaps at them. “We can’t have her bruised for tomorrow.”

“But if you do this, everyone will know that you cheated on Mom,” Marissa says. “You’ve been hiding it for years because you were ashamed.”

Father laughs. “No, my dear. It was your mother who was ashamed, not me. She couldn’t stand the thought of people viewing her as undesirable. But looking back, her embarrassment was a blessing. This was always meant to be. Keeping Raina a secret but letting rumors of a bastard child fester. Never letting anyone see her until the right moment. It’s perfect.”

“W-what are you talking about?” Marissa asks, but she must’ve figured out something that I haven’t, because she looks horrified.

“What, you can’t see it? A beautiful girl, kept locked up and innocent her entire life. And then, to top it all off, she’s the Montgomery family’s dirty little secret. It only adds to the intrigue.”

“She’s a human being,” Marissa says flatly. “Not some spectacle at a circus.”

“Never underestimate a man’s desire for power, Marissa. Not just to have it, but to feel it.” Father nods toward me. “Being the man who wins her and gets to own her for however long he likes? That’s power.”

Hearing Father lay this all out in such plain terms has nausea spreading through my stomach. I’ve always thought that he might change someday—that he’d soften toward me.

Stupid girl.

“I don’t want to be sold.” It’s a pointless thing for me to say, but I do anyway.

Everyone ignores me.

“It’s not too late to change your mind,” Marissa begs. “You don’t have to do this.”

“My dear, what aren’t you getting? This has been the plan since the day I dreamed it up years ago. Do you have any idea how much girls like her go for at auctions like these?”

Marissa lets out a horrified noise. “What do you mean, auctions like these ? These have happened before?”

“All the time,” Benjamin answers smoothly.

“Went to one over the summer,” Danny says, so casually that it feels like he’s talking about the weather. “Didn’t get the girl, though. Bidding got out of control. Sold for almost two mil.”

Marissa chokes out a sob. “You what ? That’s disgusting. How could you do that? How could you—”

“Enough,” Father snaps. “Raina has been a burden to me her entire life. This is her opportunity to finally make something of herself and pay me back.”

“No!” Marissa grabs me, pulling against Danny and Benjamin’s hold on me in vain. “I won’t let you.”

“Should I auction you off instead?”

Marissa freezes, her face going pale. “You wouldn’t.”

“If you keep acting like this, that could change. Don’t make me install a lock on your bedroom door, too.”

She gasps, the hurt on her expression so strong that it makes my heart pang. “If you do this, I’ll never visit you again. You’ll be dead to me.”

“Don’t forget that my name is still on all your accounts, my dear. All it’d take is a single phone call, and you’d be ruined. Financially devastated in a matter of minutes.”

Her hold on me goes slack, and she steps away, hanging her head.

Father turns to my brothers. “Take her upstairs. I’ll inform the guards at the gate not to let Marissa out until after the auction.”

She sputters. “What? But—”

“Quiet,” he shouts, the harsh word echoing through the garage. Father rarely yells, and I’ve never seen him direct any amount of anger at Marissa. Is it possible I’ve just missed it in the past?

Danny and Benjamin pull me away, but not before Marissa mouths I’m sorry in my direction.

Upstairs, Danny sighs as he leads me into my room. “If you wanted to escape, you really should’ve come to us, Raina. Not Marissa.”

“W-what?”

“Dad trusts us more. Come on, you know that,” Benjamin says.

“Wait, are you saying—are you saying you’ll help me?”

“You think we’d let Dad sell you? Seriously, Raina? We’re not monsters.”

“Oh, thank you!” I throw my arms around Benjamin’s neck. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don’t want to be auctioned off. I—”

The words die in my throat as I realize Danny is laughing. A second later, Benjamin joins him, and I rip myself away from him.

“Stupid, naive Raina. Always so trusting, aren’t you?” Danny rolls his eyes. “C’mon, let’s go.”

Tears fill my eyes, but before I can get a word out, they slam my door. The lock slides into place a moment later, and their laughter seeps through the walls as they head back downstairs.

With a sob, I throw myself onto my bed. I cry into my pillow to muffle the sound, scared that if I make too much noise, Father will come in and yell at me—or worse.

Not for the first time, thoughts of putting my hands around his neck and squeezing the life out of him fill my mind. It used to be more of an idle pastime, an escapist fantasy, but sometime in my teens, the idea took hold of me.

I’m not stupid enough to try it. Father is too strong, and what would I do if I managed to kill him?

Maybe I could find Erik.

But he’s gone. After Father tore us apart, I never saw him again. By now, he’s all grown up, and he probably forgot about me years ago. Besides, I’d never survive out there on my own.

Years ago, I attempted to run away. One of Father’s men caught me trying to climb the wall and dragged me back inside. Once Father found out, he scolded me, saying the woods are full of wild animals that’d tear me to pieces.

We’re in the middle of nowhere for a reason, you stupid girl. Even if you managed to get out, you’d be dead before you ever found someone who’d help you— if you could find someone willing to take you in.

Hopelessness seeps into my thoughts until they’re as dark as the night sky. He’s selling me. Father is actually selling me. Does that mean I’ll be taken from here? It’s the only thing that makes sense, I think.

My stomach turns as I realize that I might never see Marissa again. That I could be bought by someone even more cruel than Father.

Is it too naive to hope I’m sold to someone kind?

Of course it is. Kind people don’t purchase humans. Even I know that, and Marissa’s horror only confirms it.

As a chill seeps into my bones, my tears slowly dry, and I find myself staring out my window. Snow blows across the sky, and I watch numbly until sleep overtakes me.

Just before my eyes finally close, I swear I see a figure standing on top of the stone wall that keeps me trapped here, but in the next moment, it’s gone.