chapter 7

"Get up, and go make breakfast." The woman with short hair grabbed Elena's hair and yanked her down.

So, Elena fell off the bed, her knee hitting the bed frame. The sheer pain of it nearly caused tears to stream down her face.

Still, she went to the kitchen at the end of the cell block and saw that someone was already preparing ingredients.

"New here?" A fat woman pointed to the potatoes in the corner. "Peel those."

Elena picked up the peeler, but as soon as she started to peel a potato, she cut her finger.

A drop of blood instantly fell on the potato before she could quickly put her finger in her mouth.

"Useless." The fat woman gave her a disdainful look and snatched the potato from her hand. "Go start the fire."

The flames on the stove shot up high. When Elena added wood, sparks splattered on her hands, leaving a few small red marks.

She recoiled her hand but continued to add more wood swiftly.

By the time breakfast was ready, it was just dawn.

She carried the food back to the cell, but as she turned the corner in the corridor, someone bumped into her.

The food spilled all over the floor, and soup splattered on the other person's prison uniform.

"Are you blind?" The person grabbed her collar and raised their hand to hit her.

"Don't hit..." Elena quickly raised her hand to protect her face. "I'll compensate you... I'll make it up to you."

"Compensate? How will you compensate?" The person pushed Elena's hand away and slapped her across the face.

Elena covered her face again as blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.

At that moment, Gloria walked over. She looked at the mess on the floor and then at Elena. "What's going on?"

"She spilled my food!" the person shouted.

Gloria didn't say anything and just continued staring at Elena.

Elena then bit her lower lip. "I'll make it up to her."

"Make it up?" Gloria chuckled. "The rule here is: if you break something, you'll be punished."

She then pointed to the mop in the corner. "Mop the corridor ten times. Do it now."

Elena picked up the mop, but after just two steps, the pain in her waist made it impossible to stand up straight.

She leaned against the wall, gasping for air. Still, after a moment, she continued to mop.

By the fifth time, she couldn't bear it any longer, leaning against the wall and sliding to the ground.

The wound on her forehead reopened, and blood flowed down her neck.

"Dare to slack off?" Gloria's voice came from behind, and Elena turned to see Gloria holding a wooden stick.

Then, without warning, the stick hit Elena's back, causing her to tremble in pain.

"I wasn't slacking off," she choked out. "I really couldn't bear it anymore..."

The daily abuse was becoming unbearable, and Elena didn't know how much longer she could endure this. She couldn't see any hope in sight.

"Even if you can't bear it anymore, you have to bear it!" Gloria hit Elena again. "The people outside said they want you to suffer more than death every day."

Elena suddenly stopped struggling, not even reacting when the stick fell on her.

Seeing her still, Gloria kicked her. "Keep dawdling, but if you don't finish, don't expect to eat."

Elena slowly got up and picked up the mop again.

She looked at her reflection on the corridor floor, which was spotless and gleaming from mopping, and burst out laughing.

As she laughed, tears started to fall.

With the mop that was leaving red marks on her palms, she dragged her heavy feet back to the cell, where the guard was waiting at the door.

"7348, someone is here to visit."

Elena froze, loosening her grip on the mop handle.

Everyone in the cell looked over, and Gloria raised an eyebrow and smirked mockingly. "Oh, someone's here to see you, you waste of space?"

Ignoring her, Elena followed the guard to the visiting room.

The cold wind blew into the collar of her shirt, making her shiver.

Her ribs still hurt, every step pulling at a dull ache, while the wound on her forehead that had recently scabbed over tightened whenever she moved.

The visiting room was separated by a glass partition, and as Elena sat down, she saw the person on the other side, her heart suddenly constricting.