Against the Tragic Fate

My elder sister, Carly Lambert, was trafficked when she was 19 years old.

My father, Colin Lambert, claimed that she led a better life there.

When I saw Carly again, she had forgotten about me.

She was locked in a shed, and her children were taken away one by one.

I volunteered to become her husband's wife.

Colin was happy after hearing my decision and praised me for being so considerate.

But after I was sent there, I realized that I had to sleep with three men, two days each.

That suited me just fine as I could handle them all at once.

Carly wasn't a virgin when she got married, and only I knew that secret.

She warned me never to tell anyone else, or she'd be beaten to death.

I once caught her engaging in secretive behavior with a guy whom I didn't know.

I was ten years old back then and didn't understand what it meant in a feudal rural area.

I just thought I had stumbled upon a huge secret.

The following summer, Carly told me she was getting married.

I couldn't understand why she was so sad that she cried all night, and her pillow was soaked.

I asked Colin if getting married was a dreadful thing.

He said, "Don't listen to Carly's nonsense. She's going to live a good life."

I replied happily, "Then I want to get married, too."

Colin looked me up and down and said, "You are too young to get married. Otherwise, I will marry you at the same time. Just wait a bit longer."

The day before Carly's wedding, she talked to me for a long time, but I didn't quite understand her.

She told me to run away if I ever got the chance, but why would I run away? It was our home.

She urged me to protect myself and delay getting married as long as possible.

She also asked me to study hard and earn her share of freedom in the future.

Carly talked a lot, and even when I fell asleep, she kept talking.

After all, she had raised me since we were a little girl. Colin didn't care about us, so we had to rely on each other.

At Carly's wedding, there was no sacred church or fancy white dress.

Just an old man hunched over to take her away.