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He’s flipping through a glossy brochure from the dealership. “I’m thinking the red one,” he muses, pointing at a sleek car that belongs in his dreams rather than his life. “What do you think, Mia?”
My sister, barely sixteen and already too familiar with our family’s duels with disaster, lets out a noncommittal grunt before turning back to her textbook.
“What about you, Elena?”
Mom nods from near the stove. “Whatever you say, dear.”
The absurdity of the moment tightens something in my chest. “Dad, what are you doing?” I ask, the words sharper than I intend. “We can’t even pay the bills on the table, and you’re looking at new cars?”
The brochure flutters to the table as he meets my gaze, the facade crumbling. “Amelia, it’s all good,” he starts, his voice full of joy. “No more loan sharks circling. All thanks to your wonderful boss.”
He pushes a business card across the table, the name ‘Velvet Whisper’ embossed on its glossy surface. “This is the way out, Amelia. This auction. It can clear everything and give us a fresh start.”
“Do you mean the car auction? What are you talking about?”
Mia’s curiosity is a tangible thing, her eyes wide, but his next words cut her off. “Mia, go to your room, please.” The unspoken gravity in his voice sends her scurrying away.
He waits until her footsteps fade before leaning in, his voice barely a breath. “It’s a virginity auction, Amelia. Tonight.”
Shock numbs me, a cold tide pulling me under as I struggle to comprehend his words.
“What are you talking about?”
“You get up on the stage. The highest bidder gets one night with you and takes your virginity. Tomorrow morning, seven figures will be in our account. All our problems are solved. Isn’t that great? You’re helping your family at last. I knew we had you for a reason.”
Betrayal, disgust, and an overwhelming sense of despair crash over me in waves. “What about the part where you expect me to sleep with a stranger for money?” I ask, swallowing bile as it rises in my throat. “Mom, don’t you have any say in this?”
His hands find mine, his grip trembling. “Please, Amelia. It’s the only way. My debt... it’s to the Russian Bratva. If you go back on this and your boss doesn’t pay them, they’ll kill us. All of us. You have to do this.”
Mom stands beside him, her face pale. “I’m sorry,” she whispers. “If there was any other way…”
The room spins, and I stand, propelled by a force I can’t name. I need space, air, reality. I find myself moving towards Mia’s room, leaving my parents pleading with my back as I close the door on them.
Mia looks up as I sit on the edge of her bed. Pieces from her science kits are scattered on her desk, and posters of famous doctors adorn the walls—a constant reminder of her ambition to heal, to make a difference.
“You look like shit,” she says, glancing up from a textbook three inches thick. “What’s he done now?”
I don’t answer.
“What’s going on, Amelia?” she asks, her voice nervous.
“Dad’s in trouble, Mia,” I start, my voice barely above a whisper. “Big trouble.”
“When is he not? You should have seen the look on Mom’s face when he came home.” She frowns as she examines me closely. “What’s going on?”
“I have to…” My voice fades away before I look at her again. “You love me, don’t you, Mia?”
The question hangs between us, heavy and ominous. I grapple with how to explain the impossible choice our father has laid at my feet.
“Dad…he thinks I should do something bad. Something that can’t be undone.” The words taste like ash, and I can’t bring myself to say more.
Mia’s brow furrows, a maturity beyond her years settling in her gaze. “Will it make everything okay again?”
“It’s the only way to save us from people who want to hurt us.”
She winds her fingers through mine, a small gesture of solidarity in a world that’s crumbling around me. “Can I help?”
I shake my head. “Not with this.” The simplicity of her faith in me, in us, is both a balm and a blade to my heart. I’m torn between the desperation to protect her future and the degradation of my own choices.
