Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I woke up to the sun hitting my eyes. Although it took me a few seconds to understand where I was, everything soon came rushing back. There was no way to forget or brush it off as a minor incident. I hadn't been able to think clearly the night before due to the shock, but I had finally found the answers to the questions I'd been waiting years for. Now that I had slept and woken up, I could think more calmly. Why had they left me? Because I was a girl. Why had I been left all alone? Because they didn't want me. Even if my questions changed, the foundation remained the same; weren't the answers the same too? They hadn't wanted me because I was a girl, and now that I had the answers, I didn't want them either. And I never would. If I was their daughter, why did they find me after 22 years and bring me here? The way I was brought and locked in this room didn't make me think they were particularly eager to have me. What had happened that I needed to come here? What did they want from me? I would wait. I would be patient, find the answers to my questions, and then get the hell out of here. I would leave all this nonsense behind and continue my life where I had left off. Even though it started out terrible, I had a beautiful life now, one that was finally on track. A job, school, and dreams. In the midst of all this, I didn't need an extra family. A family that didn't want me, that wanted to get rid of me just because I was a girl, and that had graciously dropped me off at an orphanage as if it were a better option. I didn't need any of them anymore. I wasn't the little girl hiding in the corners of the dormitory out of fear. They had ignored me until now; what had changed, what had happened that I was so important, and why was I here? At least, terrible possibilities like rape or murder had been ruled out; that was better than nothing.

While I was lost in these thoughts, the key in the door turned, and it opened. One of the men who had brought me here was at the door—or at least I thought so, as they all looked so much alike it was hard to tell them apart. He came to me and grabbed my arm; apparently, it was time to go. I stood up, and without waiting for him to drag me, I headed for the door and stepped outside. I took a deep breath. Being locked in the room was suffocating. I straightened my posture and held my head high. For a moment, I let the sun, whose warmth I could finally feel, wrap around me. I was in better shape than when I had been brought here. This was who I really was. I wasn't one of those fragile girls who feared everything; life had taught me lessons by dragging me through the dirt, and I was grateful for it. We went into the garden and headed toward the gate; we were apparently leaving the house. When we stepped onto the street, there were three cars lined up; I couldn't tell if they were empty or full due to the tinted windows. The man beside me directed me to the car at the back; I didn't resist. This time there were three people inside the car; one beside me, two in the front. We were driving on a dirt road again. From the windows, only house doors appeared from time to time as we passed. I had actually wanted to memorize the places we passed, thinking it might come in handy, but everywhere looked the same. Another thing that surprised me was that there was no one on the streets; let alone adults, there weren't even small children.

After about 20 minutes, we stopped in front of a gate. This gate was bigger and flashier than the first one; ignoring the dust, it looked like large, carved palace gates. Its grandeur made it stand out immediately on the long street. Since my life wasn't in immediate danger anymore, I could remain a bit calmer. When I got out of the car, I stood tall. As I looked around, others got out of the other cars. There were men standing in the courtyard in front of the gate, and quite a few people guarding them. When they reached the gate, it opened slowly as if they were being expected. As we entered, they gave me a cursory glance. I, however, met every eye that turned toward me with a direct and disgusted look.

When we passed through the gate, we were in a garden again. This place was a mansion like the first house, but larger and better maintained; apparently, the economic status of those here was better than the others. Upon entering the house, the first thing that caught my eye in the garden was a child on the ground who looked beaten to a pulp, and beside him, a girl whose eyeliner had run from excessive crying. Even though she was trying to hold the boy's head up, she seemed to have no strength left. It seemed like very heated and exciting hours had passed here. The garden was quite crowded. There were about five people standing over those on the ground, while others were scattered around.

On the first floor, there were four men with dark gazes, one of whom was elderly; this time there were no women on the other floors. These four men filled the entire mansion with their presence. The old man was in the middle, his hair completely white, and in his hand, as far as I could see from below, he held a black cane with a silver head, likely designed specifically for him. On his right side stood a very burly man. He was probably the older brother of the other two, as grey hairs had crept into his hair too. To their left stood a young boy. His gaze was excited, as if he was waiting for things to happen immediately; one hand was behind his back at his waist. He was standing on alert. Beside him stood the man I guessed to be the middle son. He was the angriest of them all. He was literally radiating fire with his eyes. He didn't show it overtly, but I was sure his hands were trembling with rage. His fists were clenched at his sides, and he was barely holding himself back. It felt as if the apocalypse was about to break loose from him, and I wouldn't have been surprised if it had, given those angry looks.

When silence fell in the garden, both sides were probably waiting for who would speak first. Finally, the man with the greying hair must have realized the absurdity of it, as he leaned slightly forward.

"Kenan, have you made your decision?" he asked, his voice clear and demanding a definitive answer. When he said that, the boy whose eyes were spitting fire stepped forward a bit, but he didn't pass his brother. Even in this state, he was respectful. What decision was this man questioning? For God's sake, what was happening here? I was watching what was going on with curiosity. Something was afoot, but what did it have to do with me?

The man whose name I had learned at the previous house stepped forward a few steps. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the child on the ground first, then raised his gaze upward.

"Our decision is a Marriage Agreement!" he shouted. The atmosphere suddenly froze; the air was even more tense than when we first arrived. Not a sound came from anyone; those in the garden looked at each other with wide eyes. Everyone was surprised, and a "heh" sound was even heard from the young boy upstairs. Even the injured child on the ground must have been surprised by what he heard, because despite his heavy condition, he suddenly lifted his face and looked at the man called Kenan.

The boy I guessed to be the middle son spat toward the garden and leaned far forward from the courtyard.

"Which of your daughters are you going to use for this Marriage Agreement, Kenan? What kind of nonsense are you babbling?" he shouted. He had especially emphasized the name Kenan and drawn it out a little. I saw him spit into the garden, but the real spitting happened as he spoke Kenan's name.

His voice had the effect of thousands of speakers in the garden. He had shouted so loudly that I felt the urge to plug my ears for a moment. It was clear he could no longer control his temper. From the talk about the Marriage Agreement, I understood that the child who had been beaten in the garden had kidnapped the girl beside him. He was apparently Kenan's son, and the girl must have been the sister of the boy shouting here. Now the pieces had fallen into place for me. This guy hadn't brought me here because he wanted me, but because his son had kidnapped a girl and he was afraid of his son being killed, so he had forcibly brought me here. He was a complete scoundrel; as if dropping me at an orphanage wasn't enough, he was now sacrificing me for his son without batting an eye. But there was one little thing he was wrong about: I wasn't the one-month-old baby he had left behind anymore. I stayed silent this time, waiting for Kenan to speak, and eventually, I would speak and avenge all this lost time.

Kenan pointed at me. "The girl," he said, in a manner as if he wanted to get this business over with as soon as possible. While even the man's appearance was enough to drive me mad, the fact that he said "the girl" as if he were spitting made my nerves flare up. I stood tall while Kenan took a step toward me. "This girl is mine; the Marriage Agreement will be carried out with her," he said with great self-assurance.

Everyone in the mansion suddenly looked at me. While everyone was stunned by what they had heard, all eyes were on me. This was natural as no one knew about me; even I hadn't been able to digest the fact I had just learned. Ignoring the gazes of those in the mansion, I kept my eyes only on Kenan. If I could have killed someone with my eyes right now, it would definitely have been Kenan. Everyone seemed to be looking at me and questioning my authenticity. The first one to recover from this shock was the white-haired man upstairs. He also stepped forward like his sons and said with a booming voice, without dragging it out too much:

"It is accepted. The Marriage Agreement will be performed with Julian."

At that moment, I wanted to laugh from anger. Nobody had even bothered to ask me. Behind me, there was a wall that reached my knees or something similar. I took a step or two back, sat on it, and crossed my legs. With a slightly mocking tone, I said:

"If you are talking about me for the Marriage Agreement, don't get your hopes up too much."

Then, I pretended as if there was something on my fingernail and started fiddling with it. I wanted to show that I didn't care about them. The place froze again; apparently, nobody expected me to speak. When I turned my eyes to Kenan, I started to enjoy the state of his face.

His face was bright red and he was looking at me with angry eyes...