I take a deep breath before asking again, “Is anyone else in the house besides you?”
She shakes her head with a quiet “no.”
“Are you hurt?”
She shakes her head again.
I don’t know what the hell happened here, but in the ten seconds I’ve been in her house, I’ve gotten completely wet. “Stay here.”
I hurry to the basement, shutting off the main valve. When I turn to go back up, I notice Ghost hadn’t followed me downstairs. Hmm, that’s unusual.
When I return to the kitchen, the scene greeting me nearly knocks me to my knees: my new neighbor hasn’t changed her sitting position, but now her hands are resting on her soaked feet, her knees bent to her chest while she stares ahead, unblinking. My loyal dog sits behind her, resting his head on the woman’s shoulder. His butt is in the water, and he hates cold water. The spoiled little shit always waits for me to warm it up before I clean his paws. His eyes are sad as he notices my approach.
Ghost got his name for a reason. We never see him coming; he’s stealthy and mean. He knows how to hold a grudge and isn’t friendly to anyone. He doesn’t even like my sister, simply tolerating her presence, even though she’s been bribing him with treats for years.
I got him from the K-9 unit in Boston. He was my friend’s dog for a few months of training as a puppy until they deemed him unsuitable for the job. My gain. The friend couldn’t have two dogs at the same time—his unit rules—so he had to find him a new home. I gladly accepted the pup since I’d been looking into shelters by then anyway.
Since then, Ghost has been my best friend, a part of my family, and my therapist. Sometimes, a very mean one. He doesn’t bite, but he can give anyone a stink eye, sure to make them understand how little their worth is. It’s precisely why I give Alicia and my dog a moment before I burst in. I’ve never seen him try to comfort anyone but me.
And it’s fucking annoying.
“What happened here?” I ask, managing to calm my voice despite the adrenaline rushing through my body.
She finally moves her attention to me. Those big blue eyes are full of pain, sadness… and something else. Something that’s been lingering there for a long time, but I just noticed it. Something I can’t name yet. “The pipe burst,” she says quietly.
“Why were you yelling?” I ask, calmer now.
Her voice is barely above a whisper. “I got tired.”
“Tired?” I ask, annoyed. I’m back to being pissed off. What the fuck could she have gotten tired of to yell like someone was killing her? “Of what?”
“Of living like that.” This time, I have to strain my ears to hear. I’m not even sure I was meant to hear it. My annoyance evaporates. Ghost whines, nudging his wet nose into her neck. She shudders, blinking rapidly. Her stare becomes more focused and present. Only now she understands she has a huge German shepherd sitting behind her back, nuzzling his big head into her neck. “Of the pipe fighting me. That’s what I got tired of.”
“It fought with you?” I raise a brow.
“It did.” She nods and turns toward Ghost. The bastard is eager for attention and hangs his tongue out the side of his mouth. She carefully strokes the fur behind his ear, whispering something meant only for him.
I’m jealous. I’m fucking jealous that she bewitched my dog, a mean bastard to everyone. But not her. It took him months to warm up to me after the betrayal of his first daddy.
“I turned the main pipe off. I’ll check what the problem is.” I dive under the sink. The pipe has given its last breath, and there’s no way I can fix it without replacing the whole thing. “The hardware store is closed, obviously, and I don’t have anything I can replace it with now. You can call tomorrow for someone to come and fix it or wait for the day after tomorrow. I’ll be off shift and can do it. Your choice.”
“I’ll call someone,” she answers quietly. “Thank you.”
I nod in acknowledgment of her decision and whistle to Ghost. He whines but follows me. Thank fuck, or I’d be super pissed.
When I’m about to walk outside, I notice the door is toast. Damn it, how can I leave her alone, sleeping at night like this when a lot of weird shit has been happening in Little Hope recently? Last night I was too exhausted to think about it, but now, when my brain is functioning, I can’t just close my eyes to it. I sigh and walk back. She’s still on the floor in cold water.
“Do you have anywhere to stay tonight? I thought someone was here killing you or something…” I notice her slight flinch, but I keep going. “So I kicked the door to get inside.”
Her eyes go round, but she’s quiet.
“So yeah, no door,” I say, feeling a little guilty. “Do you have anywhere to go tonight?”
“Sure,” she mumbles as the corners of her lips drag down. She’s the picture of pure sorrow.
Fuck my life. “You can stay with me.”
Her eyes widen even more if that’s possible, and I’m about to drown myself in those deep blue oceans like a fool, led by his dick.
