Chapter 5

Jules was a sweet boy, and he quickly became attached to me, following me around like a shadow.

Back when I had a home, I had read a lot of storybooks, so I could make up all kinds of tales to entertain him.

He loved it. But he had a bizarre quirk—he insisted on hearing scary stories before bed.

Sometimes, out of mischief, I would intentionally add terrifying details just to scare him so he would cling to me.

"I'm scared, Chloe," he would whimper.

He loved to sleep with his arms and legs tangled around me.

At first, I hated the lack of personal space. But over time, I got used to it. In fact, if he wasn't next to me, I found myself lying awake in fear.

"Chloe, will you stay here forever?"

His chubby face turned to me, his big, bright eyes shining in the dim light.

"Of course I will, Jules. Now go to sleep."

I lulled him to sleep, gently tracing the scar on his forehead.

But even as I promised him I would stay forever, I knew I couldn't. I had been here for almost two months.

A social worker, Officer Miller, had visited the ranch earlier. She told me that if I wanted, she could help Grandpa Thomas legally adopt me.

But if I didn't want to stay, she could arrange for me to go to a foster agency in the city.

They didn't know my real name. Back home, my name was Maya, but I was terrified the loan sharks would find me if I used it.

So, I lied and told them my name was Chloe—the name of a popular girl from my old preschool.

I secretly went to see Officer Miller on my own. I intentionally made myself look as miserable and pathetic as possible, making it clear that I wanted to be adopted by a wealthy family in a big city.

My old home was in Seattle. Officer Miller told me that this ranch was over three hundred miles away from there.

She spread out a map on her desk to show me the distance.

I pointed to Chicago, which was in the opposite direction and even further away.

The further I was from Seattle, the harder it would be for those dangerous men to track me down.

"I want to go there. Can you help me?"

Officer Miller was taken aback by my calculating request, but she eventually nodded and promised to look into it.

A few weeks later, she came back to the ranch to find me.

"Chloe, I reached out to an agency in Chicago. There's a very wealthy, respectable couple looking to adopt a seven-year-old girl. Would you like to meet them?"

Without a single second of hesitation, I replied, "Yes. Take me there."