Mile

ates now feeling like the bars of a gilded cage I had narrowly escaped. The city lights blurred through my unshed tears, each one a testame

I knew, a sound I dreaded. My rescue dog, Shadow. He had been my only constant, my loyal companion through the lon

ran. My feet pounded against the pavement, every muscle screaming in prote

nal affront. My heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic drumbeat of terror. The kennel

pipe in her hand. She swung it at Shadow again, a sickening thud echoing in the night. "Stop it!" I screamed, lunging forward. The pipe conn

deserved it." She raised the pipe again, aiming for his head. "No!" I shrieked, shielding Shadow with my own body. The

cued him from the shelter? He was so scared, and you held him all night until he felt safe!" I invoked our share

demanded, his gaze sweeping over the scene. His eyes landed on me, then on Cassidy, then on Shadow, who lay whimpering beneath me. "Bryn

ring wildly at the pipe, at Shadow's bleeding form, at Cassidy'

assidy. "Is this true, Cassidy?" he as

ay dog attacked me! I was only defending myself!" She looked at me with a th

e. "Shadow would never! He's gentle! You know that!" I tried to pus

w knew was fake, were cold and distant. He kicked Shadow, a brutal, casual movement that sent a shockwave of pain through my a

loved him!" I tried to reason, to cling to the fragm

as for you, Brynn, your delusion is getting tiresome." He looked at Cassidy, a possessive gleam in

my throat, raw and primal. "No! Dayton, no!" But it was too late. Shadow's body went limp. His eye

nnocent," I sobbed, clutching Shadow's lifeless body

posed of properly. Perhaps we can even have him... stuffed. A trophy, really, to remind us

dy." Then he turned to me, his gaze cold as ice. "And you. You're confined to you

y eyes fixed on Shadow's still form. The world blurred, a kaleidoscope of pain and betrayal. I

etail how Shadow's body had been handled, how his fur was being treated for a "special display." Each word was a knife twisting in my gut, designed to break me, to destroy me piece by piec

r lips. "Dayton wants to see you," she announced, her voice sickly sweet. "He wants you

open, revealing a sparse, brightly lit room. In the center, on a pristine white pedestal, stood Shadow. Not really S

it would be a lovely reminder. Of how fiercely he protects what's his." She str

over me, hot and bitter. "You're a monster

l, ornate box on a nearby table. "And for you, a little memento." She opened it. Inside, nestled on velvet, was a silver charm. It was the same charm t

e charm, a faint smirk on his lips. "Cassidy has such thoughtful ideas," he commented,

ords tearing through my throat. "You

ection of such foolishness. Perhaps your memory is

lizer for my rose garden. They always say blood makes the roses bloom brighter." She paused, her eyes gleaming. "Or, if you pre

the consequences, only about silencing her, about making her pay for the sacrilege, the desecration. My hands f

hands flying to her stomach. She hadn't been pregnant long, but the news was fresh in eve

rs like steel claws, and slammed me against the wall. The impact knocked the wind out of me, my head hitting the plast

ed into a ball, trying to protect myself, but there was nowhere to hide. Each punch was a

y askew, but otherwise unharmed. She met my gaze, a triumphant, chilling smile on her lips

. He stood over me, panting, his chest heaving. "Get her out of my sight," he commanded, his voice dripping with di

s glassy eyes staring into nothingness. He was gone. And so, it seemed, was ever