I ignored the pain on my face, tears streaming as I cried out,
“It wasn’t me! Walter, I didn’t poison her! I don’t know why my food was tainted—you have to believe me!”
But Walter’s hatred deafened him.
“Still denying it? Do you even know what kind of poison Grandma was given? Who else but your mountain town could have it?”
He was right—our family’s toxins were traditionally used for hunting, and few elders even made them anymore. They were never shared with outsiders.
But why would it appear in my food?
When the hot iron moved toward me again, I screamed and tried to turn my face away.
Walter ignored my plea and pressed it to my skin until he was satisfied.
Then he planted one foot hard on my chest, crushing me under his weight.
He knew my heart was weak, that even a shock could send me into painful spasms—and yet he pressed down mercilessly.
“Now you’re scared? Where was that fear when you poisoned Grandma?”
Without hesitation, he pressed the iron against my forehead. Smoke curled up as I lost consciousness, my body too weak to fight back any longer.
Just before I blacked out, I vaguely saw Carmen walk in. She rushed to Walter’s side, clutching his arm, her eyes wide with disbelief.