Chapter 2

"Who's a good girl?" Taylor said, squatting as a Labrador ran toward her.

Mark stood behind her, with dark circles under his eyes, too tired to frown.

He sighed and walked past her into the house.

Looking up at the clock, he exhaled heavily and slouched on the couch.

He reached for the remote and turned the TV on, gnashing his teeth in irritation at the sound of the barking dog.

Shortly after, the door sprang open.

"You do know you're supposed to be resting, right?" he said, searching for a channel.

"Taylor!" he called, having not heard a response.

Hearing heavy breathing, he turned to his side. Gazing at him with two big, watery eyes was a furry creature standing with its mouth open.

"What the...?" He jumped off the couch.

"Bella!!" he yelled, holding his chest to calm his racing heart.

"Bella, come with me," Taylor called as she stepped in.

Mark looked at her leaving figure, sighed, and turned off the TV.

Getting into the room, he saw Taylor wrapped in a towel while the dog lay on the bed.

"Stay there!" she said as she walked toward the bathroom.

Mark cast a questioning gaze at her, his eyes seeking answers.

"Why is she on the...?" he went on to ask.

"She's sleeping next to me," she said with a firm tone, not even sparing him a glance as she walked into the bathroom.

Mark clenched his fist as he looked at the innocent dog. Seeing his gaze, she ran behind the pillow, cowering.

Under the shower, Taylor heard the door slam, followed by a thud on the ground.

She sighed as the water ran through her body.

Exhaling deeply, she recalled the accident that had happened earlier.

Why is Mark so insensitive?

"A dog... So?!" she mimicked.

Sighing, she turned off the shower and looked down at her belly.

"If only I knew he was this uptight!" she said and let out a sigh.

Suddenly, she heard her dog growling.

"Bella, what's it?" she called, knowing Bella was not one to growl like that unless she saw something.

Coming out with a towel wrapped around her body, she walked toward the living room, where Bella's barking could be heard loudly.

"Mark!" she called instinctively, still unsure why Bella would growl at Mark in that manner.

"Ouch!" she exclaimed, seemingly having stepped on something that cut her foot.

Grimacing, she looked down only to find the wall clock on the ground, its glass shattered in pieces.

"Guh!" she exclaimed, annoyed, and then began leaping on one foot toward Bella, who continued barking, staring through the window.

"Bella, what's up?" she asked, rubbing her head as she, too, looked through the window. To her surprise, Mark's car sat unmoved in the driveway. "I thought he drove out..." she uttered.

"It's okay, girl. Let's go eat something." She hopped to her room to get a first aid kit to clean her wound.

……

In the kitchen, Taylor stood by the counter cutting some onion.

"Ouch!" she exclaimed, inadvertently putting her finger in her mouth.

"What's happening today?" she said, about to drop the knife when she heard a low growling sound coming from near the window.

Taylor's heart skipped a beat as she heard the growl. It was a deep, guttural sound, unlike anything she had ever heard before. Her palms began to sweat and her breath came in short gasps.

Bella, who had obviously heard the sound too, ran toward the window and began to bark.

The growl echoed in her mind. Having worked at the vet for so long, she'd heard many dogs growl, but none like this.

"Shhh!" she tried to hush Bella so she could hear better, but the dog ignored her plea.

Slowly, with the knife clenched in her fingers, Taylor walked toward the window, the source of the ominous sound.

Everything outside glowed in the moonlight, a brightness like day but slightly gray. The dense trees swayed in harmony with the howling wind, increasing the tension of the moment, their branches casting eerie shadows on the ground.

"Mark!" she called out, wanting to believe that Mark was the one trying to fix something—an attempt by her mind to excuse the situation.

With one hand holding the knife, she used the other to shut the window.

A sudden loud bang echoed from the roof, pulling Taylor's heart to her throat.

She held the knife firmly now with both hands as she looked at the ceiling, following the sound of slow, heavy footsteps on the roof. Now more than ever, she wished Mark were here with her; despite being quite timid, at least he'd take away this sense of being alone. Even Bella was cowering behind her.

Another thud was heard, and then the sound on the roof hushed, leaving an unsettling silence. Taylor's sweaty palm holding the knife slowly loosened its grip as she cautiously walked toward her room.

With the knife still in her hand, she lay on her bed, staring left and right, refusing to turn off the light.

……

Awakened by the stream of sunlight that made its way through the curtains, Taylor sighed in relief. "It's finally day!"

She got off the bed, briefly glancing at the knife on the table. Her hands were slightly sore from holding the knife for so long.

The finger she cut the night before had become slightly swollen.

Grimacing, she reached for her first aid kit.

Looking at her disheveled reflection in the mirror, she sighed. Like a nightmare, the scene of the accident played once again in her mind.

"I hope he's alright..." she said as she picked herself up from the bed.

Just then, the door was pushed open. Mark, who still seemed tired, walked in.

"Where'd you go?" she asked.

"Like you care..." he said and walked into the bathroom.

Truly, Mark was the last worry on her mind for some reason. After her patients at work, he used to be the first thought she had when she got up, but now, the thought of him raised questions in her heart that she didn’t want to answer.

"Come on, girl, let's take a walk!" she said, looking at Bella, who had been sitting there quietly.

She and Bella walked out of the house, her eyes peeled as she wondered what had made the sound she heard.

Before getting behind the kitchen, Bella, who had beaten her to it, continued to bark rapidly.

"What's it, Bella?" she said as she rounded the corner to the back of the kitchen.

"Whoa!" Her eyes widened in shock.