Fairless Daughter

Planning Our Escape

Kai’s POV

He was just like our father; they were both selfish, evil people who didn't deserve my love or care. I also vowed that day that all three would pay for what they’ve done to us. When Father finally came home, I begged him to bring Cha home. I even showed him her letter, and he said she was lying. He said Cha's husband told him she was fine and that she only wanted us to feel sorry for her. Mother started crying again, but I didn’t. I sat through dinner with a blank expression, and I didn’t say another word to him after he gave me that answer. From that day, I stopped talking to James and only spoke to my father when he asked me questions. I had already planned to get Cha away from Yeong, and the three of us would disappear from this place. After I get them to a safe place, I will come back to take revenge on all the people who abused us.

Another year went by, but nothing changed. James was still getting into trouble, and our father bailed him out at every turn. He had become a drunken playboy with no interest in running the family business. All he did was party and get in trouble; he was a disgrace. Our father started coming home much later over the last few years, but I didn’t care. At least he wasn’t in the house sucking what little life we had left. I would keep Mom’s company until it was time for bed. Whenever he is around, I keep quiet and study my books. I was determined to turn our situation around, and I refused to give up on the idea of bringing Cha back home.

I have also been teaching my mother to read in secret. Now that I am seventeen, I am sure that he will try to marry me off as well. But, I will surprise him and any so-called future husband. Over the last few years, I have worked with one of my teachers to set things in place for our escape. My teacher, Mrs Nguyen, was also raised in an abusive home. Her father was a drunk who gambled away their family's money; he would beat them whenever he lost a lot of money gambling. He had sold one of her sisters to a loan shark to pay off his debt. Her mother had to take her and two younger sisters and run away from home. She understood what we were going through and was happy to help us.

Since my father ignores me, I have also worked after school and on weekends. He had stopped staying at home on the weekends, so he didn't know or care what we were doing. I make sure to be home whenever I know he will be there. Over the years, we realized he had a schedule for how much time he spent at home. Once we got the hang of it, we knew how to manage our time and secrets. Mrs Nguyen was the one who taught me how to use a computer when I was fourteen. We both realized that I had a talent for computers, and she kept helping me nurture my talent. My favorite thing to do was coding. I also developed a knack for hacking. I mainly did this for my father’s company to learn more about the business.

My teacher also helped me open a bank account, and I have been saving all the money I have earned in that account to aid our escape. Mother has also taken some of the money father has been giving her to take care of the household for the last three years to save in the account. I deposited our money into the account, so Father wouldn’t know what we were planning. I wish we had more time to save money, but we needed Cha back. She has lived in hell with Yeong and his family for too long. James got an allowance monthly, but I wasn’t that lucky. One night, James came home drunk and passed out in his car in the driveway. My father ordered my mother and I to take James into the house and clean him up. James was heavier and taller than Mom and I, so taking him into the house was really hard. We struggled for a long time, and when we finally did, we were completely drained. While removing his clothes, a wad of cash fell out of his pocket and onto the floor. Mom and I looked at each other, and then I picked up the money and took it straight to my room.

I was late for school the following day but didn’t care. I went directly to the bank with the money that fell out of James' pocket last night. I didn’t know how much money it was until I stood at the bank teller’s desk. When I finished counting it, I discovered it was five thousand dollars. I was shocked and thrilled at the same time. This money will go a long way to helping us leave. I hope he comes home drunk again with a lot of money in his pocket. I went to school after leaving the bank, and the rest of the day went great. The rest of that week was boring. James did come home drunk, but he didn’t pass out in his car again. He also never asked about the money from that night, so we pretended it never happened.

I started spending a lot of time in the school library, learning about business and computer coding. At first, I didn’t know how vital computer coding was, but after much research, I understood how it could change our lives if I got better at it. I have been learning how to hone my skills to improve. I bought a cheap laptop that I hid inside my mattress in case my father searched my room one day. I applied for small coding jobs online and started making more money than my part-time after-school job. I kept both jobs because I wanted to ensure we had enough money to support the three of us. After we escape this hell, I will focus more on computer coding. The money is perfect, and I can do multiple projects for different people simultaneously, being an independent contractor.