Heather lives her life with one purpose: to make her father proud. She's a straight-A student, obedient, respectful, and determined never to disappoint him. Her father has only one rule: no dating in school. But everything changes when she falls in love and gets caught.
Her father's reaction is swift and brutal. The man she once admired becomes unrecognizable-controlling, angry, and even physically abusive. Confused and devastated, she can't understand why he treats her so cruelly, especially when her older sister, now in college, never saw this side of him.
When her father announces he's marrying a lawyer from his firm, she hopes for change. Instead, things only spiral further. The abuse intensifies, and the emotional wounds deepen as he begins to blame her for her mother's death. In a desperate search for love, truth, and freedom, she uncovers painful secrets buried within her family-realizing her entire life has been built on lies.
By the time she pieces everything together, it's too late. What she wanted was simple: happiness, love, and her father's acceptance. What she gets is betrayal, loss, and a shattering truth that will haunt her forever until the day she dies.
I thought losing my parents would be the most traumatic thing that was going to happen to me. I was wrong. Living with my foster father and his son is a constant reminder that I was left all alone in this world, abandoned by the only family I had left. This house will never be my home, these people will not be my downfall and their hate will never replace the love that I once had. I am a survivor.
Kate's life has always been hard, but she is a fighter like her father and will do anything to survive. Sixteen year old Kate is an orphan. Her mom died giving birth to her and her dad died serving his country when she was only 12. She lived with her aunt and uncle for most of her childhood while her dad was deployed, but when he got stationed in Washington he decided it was time for the two of them to start their own life. She had to leave the only family she knew behind. A couple of months after their move, her dad tragically passed away and social services placed her with her crazy aunt after the rest of her family failed to show up. It was not long before her aunt disappeared, leaving her with an abusive and alcoholic guardian and his son, who seems to be getting more dangerous by the day. Will she be able to survive until graduation and escape to the college and life of her dreams? Will she ever find find out why the rest of her family abandoned her? Or will everything come crashing down around her before she can make her escape?