"You listenin' to me, Judy Palermo? I'm tellin' you to abort the damn kid and marry the guy I tell you to. If you don't, I'll have you sent to a nursing home, got it?" Bill Palermo, Judy's birth-father, sneered at her.
Judy pinched her palm hard, trying to hold back the tears. She couldn't believe her own flesh and blood would say such things to her, but she wasn't about to show weakness in front of these people who just saw her as a pawn in their game.
Ever since her biological mother, Mary Palermo, barged into her room and found out about her pregnancy, they'd treated her like a traitor. All they cared about was their own interests and making sure she didn't ruin their plans for their adopted daughter, Jessie Palermo.
But Judy wasn't going to let them get away with it, especially not after everything they'd put her through.
She'd never felt any love or warmth from them, so why should she listen to their demands now?
Looking up at her father with defiance in her eyes, Judy retorted, "This is my child we're talking about, and I'm not gonna harm it just 'cause you say so. And I sure as hell ain't marrying no one I don't wanna marry."
"Fine then, Judy Palermo. You're no daughter of mine if you're gonna bring shame to this family. I'll have security escort you out and send you straight to that nursing home," Bill snarled.
But Mary stepped in, pretending to be outraged. "Bill, can't you see our daughter's upset? She loves her baby, just like any mother would. We need to be there for her and support her, not tear her down."
She put a hand on Judy's shoulder, trying to be comforting. "Judy, do you have any idea how hard it is to raise a child on your own? You'll be doin' yourself a favor if you just end this now and move on with your life. It's for your own good, honey."
Judy knew Mary wasn't really trying to help her, though.
All they cared about was their own interests, and they didn't give a damn about what she wanted or needed. So she pushed Mary's hand off her shoulder and glared at her.
"You really expect me to believe you're doing this for my own good? Give me a break. You just want me to marry that disabled heir so you can keep up your precious image. What about me, huh? Do you even care about me and what I want?"
She shook her head, feeling the last bit of hope she'd had for a real family slip away.
"Never mind. I don't even wanna be a part of this messed up family anymore."
"You ungrateful brat! We brought you back to New York from that run-down farm in New Jersey. You should be grateful we even gave you a roof over your head. If it wasn't for us, you'd be nothin'," Bill spat.
Judy couldn't take it anymore. These people had always looked down on her, and she was sick of it.
As she tried to leave the room, Jessie, their adopted daughter, stepped in and tried to stop her.
"Please, Mom and Dad, don't be so hard on Judy. She's upset about the baby, but I'm willing to marry the guy if it'll make things easier for everyone," Jessie said, pretending to cry.
Judy felt sick to her stomach.
They'd always treated Jessie better than her, and now they were using her as a pawn in their sick game.
If it wasn't for the paternity test that proved that Judy was really the daughter of Bill and Mary, Judy would have doubted her It was the adopted daughter.
But after countless quarrels, they still felt that Judy was an ungrateful brat.
She had enough of their drama and didn't want to waste any more time with her “families.
"Hey, don’t cry, Jessie. Don't waste your tears on this ungrateful piece of garbage. Your mother and I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do, you're way too good for that."
Bill and Mary rushed over to comfort Jessie, who was crying her eyes out, but they didn't see the sly smile on Jessie's face as she looked at Judy.
Judy didn't give a damn anymore, and when she turned to leave, Jessie suddenly grabbed her arm and said, "Where you think you're going?"
That's when Bill remembered that they knew Judy was planning to run away, so he called the security team to stop her before things got out of hand.
"Yo, security! Get over here and drag this girl back to her room, and if she don't cooperate, knock her the hell out!"
Judy didn't have much to pack, just a few essentials already in her backpack, so she took off before the security could catch her.
"Hurry up and catch her, don't let her get away, break her damn leg if you have to," Mary shouted.
Hearing this, any affection Judy had for this family was gone.
She bolted out of there and found a spot to rest at a café tucked away on a quiet street corner.
Judy sent out a message to a chat group she rarely spoke to:
"Listen up, it's Judy. I'm leaving the Palermo family on my own accord, and I never want to see any of you again. Don't try to contact me."
Then she blocked all contact information related to the "family".