Yolanda Olson

Before I was discarded for the final time on the doorstep of this place, I had been treated as a hand-me-down. A pushover that no one wanted and needed to get rid of, but I was happier then. The rules were never as strict, the punishments nowhere near as brutal....

I'm haunted. Not by ghosts, but by a face I can't quite remember. Eyes that shine so brightly each time I see them are now nothing more than a hazy memory....

I've spent most of my time in a cage. A beautiful steel structure that gives me a sense of safety....

I haven't fallen down in days. That may not seem like much, but my God, it's such an accomplishment. Being made to stand and kneel repeatedly while he performs his rituals is exhausting, and I'm pretty sure that the welts on the bottoms of my feet are ready to pop....

I deal in beautiful things. I'm paid to create unique masterpieces and I enjoy my work. I'm the best there is because I'm patient, kind, and quick....

A boy and a girl met one night and fell in love. One was broken and delicate. The other was callous and violent. They hid their true selves from each other until it was no longer possible. This is the story of how the delicate girl and the violent boy began their love affair....

Being the daughter of a man such as my father can have damning consequences, but even bigger rewards. I don’t fear him as others do, however, I do worry sometimes that he’ll find out that I’ve been whispering about things I shouldn’t have. It doesn’t matter....

I was raised a poor girl in the streets of Sinaloa. When my family died during a turf war, I was taken away to Navolato to start over anew. I thought I would be safer here. And that’s when he found me....

When I was ready to give up, I saw him. He looks at me with such hunger in his eyes—a longing that I’ve never experienced before. He loves me with every frayed fiber of his being. No one will take him from me. I won’t allow it. Not when I finally have what I’ve always wanted....

Someone once said that if you talk about the devil, he’s bound to appear. Most would keep silent, hoping that they’d never be found by such a monster, but I prayed for his touch every night. I knew the devil when I was a child and fell in love with him....

I should have been there. I told her not to leave without me, but she didn’t listen. And now she’s gone. No one remembers her—not like I do. I refuse to let her memory die. She was a good girl and fell for the wrong kind of guy. It wasn’t her fault....