She didn't address my accusation. Not a flicker of panic at being caught.
Her eyes raked over me, head to toe, her gaze and the curl of her lips dripping with contempt.
"We raised you to respect your elders. Is this how you speak to your parents?!"
"You have three seconds to try that again!"
Fury etched into every line of her face, she strode toward me and seized my sleeve—the fabric so worn from washing it had faded to gray.
"Three... two..."
Her voice was ice.
I pressed my lips together, my throat tight and raw.
"I said—how dare you take my kidney away?!"
"You have no right!"
The words tore out of me. My eyes locked onto hers, unblinking.
Before she could answer, my father's palm cracked across my face.
"Penelope! Who do you think you're talking to?!"
"You want to know what gives us the right? We gave you life. We raised you. We got you into Ivybridge University!"
"So many girls are coddled their whole lives and end up with nothing to show for it. You should be thanking us for teaching you hardship!"
His voice rang through the room, sharp as a blade.
"Suffer now, and you'll thank us later!"
"Giving up your kidney to that village girl is our final test for you."
"This is not a discussion!"