Empty-Headed Revenge

I was the illegitimate daughter my family kept hidden from the world. My brother, Ken Lawson, hated the way my almond-shaped eyes looked so much like my mother's. During a family Christmas gathering, I shoved my adopted sister, Anne Lawson, away when she tried to use the cushion my mother had made for me. Ken slapped me across the face. "You’re so young, yet you're already as vicious as your mother. What can you two do besides steal and get into fights? “You little tramp! Keeping you in this family is asking for trouble. “You should be sent away to a convent and learn some discipline before you grow up and start sleeping around, bringing shame to the Lawsons!" I was soon sent to a convent where only nuns lived. Three years later, Ken brought me down from the mountain for Christmas, hoping to earn some good karma for Anne. Seeing my lifeless expression, Ken sneered. "What? Did spending three years up there turn you stupid? You don't even remember how to greet people?" I stared at him blankly. I soon collapsed to the ground and started rolling around. The dirt and grime on my clothes stained the expensive carpet. Ken covered his nose. "How disgusting! Have you been up there so long that you've forgotten how to act like a normal person?" I felt no shame. My mind was hazy and empty as I murmured, "I'm sorry, Ken. My head feels empty." Chapter 1 I tightly clutched my head with both hands and lay helplessly on the Persian carpet. The world around me kept spinning, and my eyelids fluttered uncontrollably. Foul-smelling vomit dripped from my mouth. My older brother, Ken Lawson, looked condescendingly at me. His almond-shaped eyes, a bit similar to mine, were filled with disgust and contempt. "Jane Lawson, cut the act out. Don't try to pull your tricks on me." He took a handkerchief from his suit pocket and covered his mouth and nose. "It's been three years since we last met. You haven't learned anything, and you've even become even more skilled at lying to gain sympathy? “I called you a blockhead, and you really are one. Is your head really empty?" I numbly raised my head, but my gaze could not focus. Ken was right. Maybe I really was an idiot. I felt like my brain was missing a few pieces compared to everyone else's. Whenever I made large movements or got emotionally excited, I could not help but feel dizzy and vomit. "Disgusting." Ken kicked my hand away. His leather shoe scraped hard across the back of my hand. "Mary! Where the hell are you? Drag this filthy thing away and wash her off! It's Christmas. Don't let that grime on her ruin Anne's good luck!" Mary Zigger, the family’s head maid, ran out of the kitchen. Upon seeing the vomit on the floor, she said in an exaggerated voice, "Ms. Jane, you're in your 20s. How can you still have the bad habit of making a mess wherever you go? Now we have so much to clean up. You're just giving us extra work!" She grabbed my arm and yanked me forcibly toward the guest bathroom. As she dragged me along, her thick arm banged against my head, and I shook uncontrollably. "I won't go! Don't touch me! Don't touch my head!" During all those years on the mountain, the nuns would strap me to a bamboo bench every day, then drag me to the stream behind the mountain and let me thrash around in the water until I nearly drowned. "No! No!" I struggled desperately, my fingernails leaving a red scratch on Mary's arm. Slap! The slap across the face cut off my scream. Ken withdrew his hand and looked at me coldly. "Jane, I brought you down from the mountain to earn some good karma for Anne, not so you could come back here and act like a lunatic. “If you cause trouble again, I'll have you sent right back. You can spend the rest of your life living like an isolated nun up there!" 'Send me back?' I thought as my whole body went rigid and my breathing became ragged. 'No, I absolutely can't go back,' I thought. I stopped struggling and let Mary drag me into the bathroom. As the icy water pounded against my body, I huddled in the corner, shielding myself tightly with both my arms. "Are you done yet? What a nuisance." Mary roughly tossed a set of old clothes onto my head. "Hurry and put them on! Ms. Anne is waiting outside to talk to you." I hurriedly pulled on the old clothes, which were obviously a size too small. The outfit was so tight that it was hard for me to breathe. I shuffled out of the bathroom with my head down. A new carpet had already been laid out in the living room. My adopted younger sister, Anne Lawson, trotted over immediately. "Jane, you scared me to death earlier. How come you can't even stand properly? “Are you feeling unwell? Should I have Ken call a doctor for you?" "Calling a doctor? I think she's just faking it!" Ken shot me a look of disgust. "What kind of trouble could she get into in a secluded place like that? “She probably couldn't stand the loneliness up on the mountain, wandered off somewhere, and got a minor injury. She'll be fine in a few days." I opened my mouth, but not a sound came out. "Jane, why aren't you saying anything?" Anne leaned in to me, looking innocent. I looked up at her innocent, angelic face. Three years ago, that same face had wept as she collapsed into Ken's arms, pointing at me and claiming I had pushed her. I instinctively took a step back and sank to my knees on the hard floor. "T-thank you, Ken." Ken frowned as he watched me kneeling there submissively. Chapter 2 "You have no idea how to stand or sit properly. How did the Lawsons give birth to someone as disgraceful as you?" He pulled Anne back onto the couch. "Enough, stop wasting time on her. Anne, didn't you say you wanted those peach tarts from South District? I'll have someone buy them right away." "You’re the best, Ken!" I knelt on the cold floor, watching this scene. My empty head started throbbing again. The dinner table was filled with all sorts of delicacies for Christmas Eve. I was seated at the end of the table, with only a pair of lonely cutlery in front of me. "Jane, you must have eaten very simply up there for the past three years." Anne picked up the serving fork and placed a piece of bloody, medium-rare beef into my bowl. "Try it! This is the top-grade beef Ken specially had delivered back from abroad. It's really tender." The blood on the meat stained the potatoes red, and its strong smell rushed straight into my nose, making my stomach churn. It was the smell of countless nightmares I had had in the past three years. The suspended baskets and the raw meat hanging from them became an unshakable shadow that haunted me. “Blargh!" I covered my mouth and bent over, violently vomiting. I then swept the expensive beef onto the ground. Thud! Ken slammed his fork down on the table and pointed at my face. "Jane! You're picking a fight on purpose, aren't you? Anne served you some food out of kindness. Why did you react like that? Did you think it was dirty? “Just look at yourself. You don't know how to appreciate the finer things in life!" I retched so hard that tears streamed down my face. I could not utter a single word to defend myself. Anne hurriedly rubbed Ken's back to soothe him, her eyes welling up with grievance. "Ken, don't blame Jane. “M-maybe it's because Jane spent so long up on the mountain living a vegetarian, prayer-filled life that she can't stand the sight of meat. It's my fault. I shouldn't have put the beef on her plate." "You're just too kind!" Ken looked at her with tender concern before looking at me more viciously. "Vegetarian and prayer-filled? If she's that devoted, she wouldn't have pushed you off that cushion three years ago!" The incident from three years ago was mentioned again. I straightened up, wiped the sour bile from the corner of my mouth with the back of my hand, and looked at Ken. "I didn't push her. My mom left me that cushion. She was the one who insisted on snatching it—" "Shut up!" Ken grabbed a side plate and hurled it at me. The plate grazed my temple and shattered against the wall behind me. "How dare you bring up that slut? Your mother was nothing but a shameful mistress. How dare you call her ‘Mom’ under this roof? “Anne was doing you a favor by using that cushion, yet you were ungrateful enough to lay a hand on her. It seems those three years on the mountain didn't teach you a thing!" The blood trickling from my temple blurred my vision. I did not wipe it away, only looking at him numbly. "If the sight of meat bothers you that much, then don't eat it." Ken sat back down and picked up his fork. "Go kneel in the family chapel. You can get up once you've sorted out your thoughts." I was sent out of the dining room and into the cold family chapel, where I sat on the hard cushion as usual. As soon as my knees touched the floor, the chill cut deep into my bones. I curled into a ball, clutching my throbbing head tightly with both hands. "How pitiful." Anne stood in the doorway, smiling down at me. "Jane, don’t you see? With just a word from me, Ken kicks you out. Do you know why he sent you to that convent?" She crouched in front of me and lowered her voice. "It was my idea." I glared at her. "You did it on purpose?" "Of course." Anne covered her mouth and giggled. "Coolwater Convent has a terrible reputation. Jane, your time there must have been... quite an experience." Chapter 3 On Christmas Day, Ken called me out of the family chapel. I was so dizzy that I could not even stand up properly. Ken immediately grabbed two ropes and tied my feet tightly, forcing me to stand straight. I dared not say a word because I could not get my voice out. The living room was filled with relatives and friends. Anne was dressed in a festive red outfit, moving among the crowd and making everyone laugh heartily. I huddled on the single couch in the corner, trying to minimize my presence. "Is this the Jane that the Lawson family sent to the mountains for a spiritual retreat?" Flora McAdams, a distant aunt of the Lawsons, looked me up and down, clutching her chest. "Oh, she lost so much weight. Her complexion looks so pale and sickly too. It's honestly a little creepy. Ken, did this girl not eat properly up on the mountain? Why is she standing... all crooked? Was she not getting enough to eat?" Ken paused for a moment while pouring coffee, but he still maintained a smile. "Aunt Flora, you must be joking. Jane was doing a spiritual retreat on the mountain and had a simple diet. It cannot compare to the pampered, comfortable life she had at home." "Spiritual retreat?" Flora curled her lip. "More like she's made herself into a fool. She didn’t even greet her elders. She has absolutely no manners. Anne's more sensible. She's more obedient and much prettier." "Exactly. We watched Anne grow up. She's sure to marry into a good family one day." Anne lowered her head shyly, though she cast a triumphant glance at me out of the corner of her eye. I listened blankly, feeling nothing at all. Suddenly, Anne walked over carrying a fruit platter. She ‘tripped’ and pounced right at me. "Ah!" The heavy crystal platter slammed straight into me, crashing hard against my head. "Ahh!" I curled up in pain and instantly broke out in a cold sweat. "Oh! My hand!" Anne wailed, clutching her wrist. "Jane, why did you push me? I just wanted to bring you some fruit!" Everyone's gaze turned toward us. Clutching my head, I struggled to catch my breath and could only shake my head weakly. "I-I didn't..." "You didn't?" Ken strode over to help Anne up. "Anne's hand is all red! Jane, how dare you lash out like that in front of so many elders? Do you have a death wish?" "Did she really push her? That's just vicious." "She was so quiet earlier. I thought she was just a quiet girl, but it turns out she's full of malice." "That's the upbringing of an illegitimate child for you. It’s impossible to raise them right!” The surrounding discussion drowned out my incoherent protests. With a dark scowl, Ken grabbed me by the collar and dragged me into the study on the second floor. As the door closed, he released his grip, and I fell clumsily to the floor. "Ken, I really didn't push her. She fell on her own—" Slap! Another slap left my ears ringing. "How dare you make excuses! Anne is so kind-hearted. Would she frame you over something like that? “You’re the one who’s been twisted since childhood, always jealous that Anne was the favorite!" Ken glared at me, gasping heavily. "Jane, it seems those three years up in the mountains didn't teach you a thing. You can't change what's rotten in your core, can you?" He walked over to the desk and picked up a ruler. The ruler blurred into a multitude of images before my eyes. It instantly looked as if hundreds of rulers were standing right in front of me. I shuddered and instinctively curled into a ball. "Don't hit... Don't hit my head... Please don't hit my head..." My head had already suffered severe trauma, and parts of it had been surgically removed. If it suffered another blow, I would be doomed. "Your head? Do you think I'm an idiot like you? Hitting you there would just kill you!” The nuns at the convent loved to whack my head. They claimed it would beat the evil thoughts out of my head, allowing me to become the well-behaved child Ken wanted. The ruler in Ken's hand lashed viciously across my back. "You're afraid people will find out you snuck off the mountain to play, aren't you? Why won't you ever learn? Why are you so bad?" "I didn't! I wasn't being bad! I'm very obedient!" I screamed. My back was burning with pain, yet I dared not let go of the hand protecting my head. "You didn't? Why are you acting so guilty?" Ken struck even harder. "How did the Lawsons end up with someone as hopelessly stubborn as you?" He whacked a dozen times before finally stopping. He tossed the ruler aside and straightened his shirt. "Alright. Stop playing dead. “Go hide in a corner and stay out of sight. Remember: if you embarrass the Lawsons again, I'm sending you back to Coolwater Convent." Chapter 4 "I'll have those nuns there set up a special treatment session for you. They'll give you a thorough 'rehabilitation'." His words struck my heart like daggers. I trembled violently all over, my teeth chattering. Ken sent me to an isolated corner. "Hey, isn't this Jane Lawson?" Several young men in fancy suits approached with wine glasses in hand. The leader, Chad Jordan, had pursued me before and was resentful after being rejected. Now he was Anne's simp. "I haven't seen you in three years. How did you end up looking so terrible?" Chad sized me up unabashedly. "I heard you went to be a nun in the mountains? I guess you've been cooped up there for too long, so you wanted to come down and have some fun with men?" There was a burst of laughter from the group. I bit my lip to dodge him, but Chad grabbed my wrist and pulled me into his arms. "Don't go! Why are you acting so innocent? You were the heiress of the Lawsons, so I used to have some respect for you. “Now you're just an unwanted tramp. Even Ken despises you. Why don't you come with me? I promise I'll give you a good time..." His hand wandered toward the back of my ear. The moment he grazed my scar, I froze completely, and the last thread in my mind snapped. "Don't touch me! Go away!" I screamed and shoved Chad away hard. Chad staggered back, and the red wine splashed all over my chest. The dark red liquid trickled down my skin, looking exactly like blood. "Blood... blood..." Looking at the red liquid on my chest, my pupils dilated instantly. I clutched my head and crouched on the ground. "Don't kill me... Don't cut my head... I'm sorry... Sister, I'm sorry..." Chaos erupted instantly. Ken walked over grimly and reached out to grab me. "Jane! What the hell is wrong with you?" Anne stepped in right on cue, pointing at Chad's soaked suit. "Ken! J-Jane tried to seduce Mr. Jordan. When that failed, she attacked him! Mr. Jordan kindly offered to buy her a drink, yet she... How could she be so shameless?" "I didn't... He touched me... He wanted to cut open my head..." I knelt on the ground and shook my head frantically, tears and snot streaming down my face. However, no one believed me. Ken glanced around at the people staring and whispering. He grabbed a handful of my hair and forced me to look up at him. "Enough! Jane, I gave you a chance. Since you're so ungrateful and insist on humiliating me, you can just get out of here!" He gritted his teeth as he spat out, "I'm getting the car ready to take you back to Coolwater Convent! You will never set foot off that mountain again! You can rot and die there!" Something inside my head shattered completely. "No... Ken... Please... Don't send me back..." I frantically banged my head against the floor. Thud! Thud! Thud! My forehead slammed heavily against the marble. Blood streamed down my forehead, blurring my vision. "I'll be good! I'll behave! I'll never eat meat again! I'll never speak again!" I clung desperately to Ken's legs, my fingernails digging deep into his trousers. "Ken! Just look at me! It's Jane! I really can't take it anymore... That convent is no place for a human being—" Ken instinctively tried to kick me off. "Let go! You lunatic! Let go of me!" "I won't! I'm not going back! Ken, they aren't nuns... They're demons..." I tilted up my blood-streaked face, my eyes hollow and vacant. "They suspended me in a basket and used me like a ball... They tied me up on the mountain behind the convent and kept throwing me down..." Ken froze. His kicking leg stopped in mid-air. "What did you say?" Anne screamed and rushed over, trying to cover my mouth. "Shut up! What nonsense are you spouting? Ken! She's lost her mind! She's slandering the nuns! Drag her away!" I could no longer feel her tugging at me. The violent head-banging had caused the wound on my forehead to burst wide open. Splurt... Warm liquid suddenly gushed from my eyes, nose, ears, and mouth.