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How was I so lost in my mind that Bash managed to completely sneak up on me? And how did he fill that form out so quickly?
“I can carry it myself, you know?”
“But why should you when you have me here?”
A part of me wants to protest. There is nothing I hate more than when people assume I can’t do something or offer to unnecessarily help me just so they can feel better about themselves for helping poor little Penny. But, for whatever reason, Sebastian doesn’t give me the feeling that he pities me, and so far, my gut has always been right. So I shrug instead.
“Be my guest. As a matter of fact, since you’re insisting on being here, why don’t you feed them while I give them a brush?”
Not giving him a chance to protest, I turn on the balls of my feet and walk around him to the cabinets. It takes me a minute, but I finally find a brush.
The tense silence fills the room as I open the first cage and softly whisper to the dog as he comes out. I sit down on the floor and let the dog sniff my hand and the brush before telling him to sit. He does as asked, so I pull one of Henry’s treats out of my pockets and hand it to the dog before I start brushing him.
I can hear Sebastian walk around the room, the squeak of the hinges as he pulls the door open, followed by dog food falling in a plastic bowl.
For a while, we work in silence, which is just fine with me.
Or it would be if my mind wasn’t filled with all things Sebastian.
I don’t understand him. I’ve already told him that I’ll play for him, so why insist on joining me today? It makes no sense whatsoever. The man doesn’t even like dogs!
“Hey there, little one,” I coo to the next dog. A soft whine comes from the kennel, and I can feel a wet snout press against my hand through the metal bars.
“You want some lovin’, huh? Not surprising. I wouldn’t like it if I was stuck here, either. It must be so lonely.”
Folding my cane, I place it on top of the kennels before opening the latch. I carefully outstretch my hand, and a small fluff ball runs into my arms. Startled, I almost dropped the dog, and it didn’t help one bit that he kept wiggling excitedly. A wet tongue assaults me, licking at my chin.
“Okay, okay, slow down,” I chuckle as I try to pull away. A furry body brushes against the side of my leg, and Henry lets out a whine in protest.
“Don’t be a needy baby, Henry. You get all the snuggles back at ho—” My sentence is cut short as I take a step back, my body connecting with a hard wall of muscle. “Sorry,” I mutter, turning toward Sebastian. He was so quiet. I almost forgot that he was in the room.
Almost, but not quite.
“I brought the dog foo— What the hell is that ugly thing?”
The dog stops moving immediately, startled by Sebastian’s loud voice.
“Are you crazy?” I hiss quietly, covering the dog’s floppy ears as I pull it closer to my chest. “You’re scaring it.”
“Am I crazy? Have you seen it? I swear it’s the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
* * *
Twelve years old
Hands connect with my side, giving me a shove and making me stumble.
“Where did you get that dress?” Julie cackles, the loud sound was causing the hair on my arms to rise as dread makes my stomach sink. “It’s the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen. Didn’t you see yourself in the mirror?”
I open my mouth to protest. My fingers clenched around my cane, the only connection to real life, my lifeline. Once, a few weeks ago, they took it from me, putting it out of my reach and leaving me in the bathroom alone, helpless, and completely lost to the darkness.
“Oh, right, you’reblind,” she mocks, laughing even harder with her friends joining her. “Isn’t that right, Penny? Poor little Penny, she can’t see. We have to do our best to help her.” Her voice turns serious, a complete one-eighty from seconds ago. “When will you stop lying to people? I’ve seen you when you think nobody is watching. You don’t seem to have any problem walking around, so when will you stop pretending?”
“I’m not.”
Her hand grips my arm, tugging me closer to her. Her fingers dig into my skin so hard I’m pretty sure they’ll leave nasty bruises.
“Liar,” Julie hisses.
