The Family Trip: No Return Ticket Chapter 1

For the Memorial Day weekend, I booked tickets to take my whole family on a trip.

But when my husband, Ryan, saw the booking confirmation, his face changed instantly. He snatched my phone and tried to cancel everything.

The trip was incredibly affordable; I didn’t understand why we couldn’t go.

Without any explanation, he locked me in the house and beat me senseless, screaming, “Let’s see you try to run off to a place like that again!”

I was locked up for three whole days, dizzy with hunger.

When I finally managed to steal his phone to call my parents for help, my father, who had always doted on me, slapped me across the face.

My mother grabbed a broom and beat me again, cursing under her breath.

“No, we can’t let her go to that place!”

“We have to break Chloe’s legs, just to be safe!”

I didn’t understand why they were doing this to me. I struggled with all my might, but they caught me and hacked off my legs with an axe.

Staring at my amputated stumps, my heart turned to ash.

My parents cheerfully brought me home to “recover.” I stared at them, my eyes burning with hatred, and demanded to know what was so wrong with that place.

Their faces stiffened. Then, they pushed me out of the tenth-floor window.

My body shattered on the pavement. I died instantly.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the first day of the Memorial Day weekend.

* * *

My husband, Ryan, had just come home from work and pulled me into a tight hug.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Work has been insane lately. I haven’t had any time for you.”

“This long weekend, wherever you want to go, I’ll take you. Okay?”

The familiar voice in my ear snapped me back to reality.

I instinctively broke free from his embrace and frantically fumbled for my phone. I flipped it open. The date read: May 23, 2025.

I had been reborn.

And I was back on the first day of the holiday weekend.

In my past life, Ryan had been buried in work. So when the holiday finally came, I was thrilled to plan a family trip. I had told him about my plans beforehand. He hadn't seemed strange at all then; he’d happily agreed. He even took three extra days off to extend our vacation. He had been looking forward to this trip.

But the moment I bought the tickets and booked the hotel, he had only to glance at the reservation details before his entire demeanor shifted.

He’d snatched my phone and, without a word, started canceling the tickets.

Confused, I assumed he was worried about the cost. “Honey, I heard this place is a great value for tourists,” I’d explained quickly. “It won’t be too expensive.”

He ignored me and continued tapping on the screen.

Annoyed, I grabbed my phone back.

In response, Ryan punched me squarely in the face, roaring, “What the hell were you planning to do in a place like that?”

In three years of marriage, he had never been so furious.

I was terrified, my body trembling uncontrollably. I clutched my face, my voice shaking. “What do you mean, ‘a place like that’? It’s just a state park. What do you think it is?”

But he wouldn't listen. He locked me in the house and beat me. “Let’s see you try to run off there again!” he’d snarled.

For three days, he held me captive, confiscating my phone. I was starving and dizzy.

When he went to take a shower, I stole his phone and called my parents for help. They rushed over. But when they arrived, Ryan wasn't scared at all. He looked at me with pure defiance.

My mother hugged me, crying, while my father grabbed Ryan by the collar. “It was just a trip! Why did you lock Chloe up?”

Ryan didn’t answer. He just handed my phone to my dad.

The moment my father saw the booking information, the color drained from his face. He looked at me in horror, his hand trembling as he struck me across the face.

My left cheek swelled instantly. My mother cried out, shielding me. “What are you doing, you old fool?”

“Chloe just wanted to go on a little trip! Do you have to hit her for that?”

My father ground his teeth and showed the phone to my mother.

My mother, who had been protecting me just a second ago, froze as if struck by lightning. After a long moment, she shoved me away. She ran to the kitchen, grabbed a broom, and started beating me with all her strength.

“You wretched thing! We raised you for nothing!”

“Tell us! Why did you want to go to a place like that?”

My mind was a whirlwind of confusion. “Mom, what are you talking about? What is ‘a place like that’? Just tell me!”

She didn't answer, just glared at me with hatred and said to my father, her voice grim, “We can’t let her go.”

She paced back and forth, her mind racing. Then, an idea seemed to strike her. “Let’s just break her legs. Then she’ll never be able to leave the house again.”

My eyes widened in terror. My whole body shook. The destination was just an ordinary state park. Why did the sight of the tickets make them react as if they were facing an invading army?

I saw them coming towards me with an axe.

I scrambled to my feet and ran, but Ryan tackled me, pinning me to the floor. I sobbed, asking them what I had done wrong. They didn’t answer. They stuffed a rag in my mouth and then, with a knife and an axe, they started hacking at my legs.

The pain was so intense I nearly passed out. I struggled, begging them to stop. But they were like demons from hell, ignoring my pleas. They severed my legs completely, bone and flesh, leaving a pool of crimson on the floor.

I fainted from the agony. When I woke up, I was in a hospital. They had amputated what was left.

My parents smiled as they put me in a wheelchair and took me home.

I screamed at them hysterically. “Why? Why would you do this to me?!”

My mother’s face turned grim. My father slapped me. “You ungrateful wretch! All our efforts on you were wasted!”

I stared at them, stunned. A moment later, my mother let go of my wheelchair, and I was rolling towards the open tenth-floor balcony.

“Since you’re so ungrateful, you might as well die!” she yelled.

I plummeted, my body shattering on impact. But by some cruel miracle, I didn't die instantly. As I lay there, my breath a faint whisper, desperately trying to call for help, Ryan appeared. The man who had once loved me deeply. He knelt down and choked the last breath from my body.

Even in death, I didn't understand why the booking confirmation made them want to kill me.

But now, I have another chance.

This time, I will find out the truth.