I woke up to the sound of an automobile engine going off the road. I blinked, trying to decipher where I was, and realized I was still in the storage room.

Even though my stomach growled loudly because I hadn't eaten, I mustered all my energy to pound my fist on the door and screamed, "Let me out!"

Were they trying to kill me?

I stopped when I heard footsteps near the room. The small cat-door at the bottom of the door opened, and a tray containing a plate of leftover food and brownish water was dropped inside.

"Eat up! Thank us for still letting you live," Aunt Jezel's voice said.

"Auntie, please, open the door. I won't ever rebel against you again."

But she just laughed and walked away.

I don't know how many days passed while I was imprisoned in the storage room. It felt like forever. I hadn't bathed or seen the sun. They really treated me like an animal.

One day, I was lying on the makeshift bed I'd made when the cat-door on the lower part of the main door opened. The person who left my food spoke. It was Henry.

I quickly scrambled to my feet and peeked through the cat-door to plead with Henry to let me out.

"I can't possibly do it."