Washing the blood off my hands roughly, I glanced over my shoulder to eyeball the pair currently on my kitchen table. That damn dog watched me with narrowed pupils and curled lips, and I knew I had no hope of getting to her human. I’d done what I needed to do, and until Caroline woke up Kiki was going to stand guard.

She was a good dog.

My gaze slid to Caroline, and I let out a harsh breath before yanking down the faucet handle. I still couldn’t wrap my head around how I’d gotten dragged into this mess. Leaning on the counter, I dried my hands before reaching for the pile of needles, tubing, alcohol bottles, and gauze to drop it in the trash can. The sound was almost damning, and I grabbed the back of a chair to sit down heavily.

The woman on my table was clammy, pale, and dark, purple bruises were beginning to bud around her ankles and thighs. Staring at the pristine, white wrap on either ankle, I rubbed my jaw harshly as I debated calling an ambulance. My patchwork skills were amateur at best, but my argument for avoiding the hospital was null now. Against my outer thigh my cell phone rested heavily in my pocket, and I gnashed my teeth before throwing the idea of rescue away. Chances were that she wouldn’t even get to a hospital for hours, and by then she’d be awake. The nearest hospital was more than two hours away, and that didn’t include the journey to get the damn ambulance here.

“Fuck.” Pushing myself out of the chair, I made my way to the refrigerator to grab a beer. “I don’t need this shit. I have enough to deal with.”

The whole reason I was awake and out last night came back to mind, and I grimaced as I went to the living room to drop heavily on the couch. Any of the three channels I received out here was better than thinking about the past few months, and my fingers itched as they wrapped around the remote controller. Blinking hard, I popped the cap off my beer to neck the bottle, but even then, images assaulted my mind’s eye.

I couldn’t even step foot in a room in my own fucking house because of the atrocities I’d witnessed in there. It was pathetic, and a huff of a condescending laugh escaped my wet lips.

A woman’s voice filtered out from my television speakers, and I upped the volume as she explained the weather. No matter how sad the distraction, it still worked; the next few days were going to be hot, hotter, and hot as balls. In my peripheral vision I could still see Kiki, holding her place on top of her master, and I took another swig of my beer absently.

“Why am I the one that gets stuck between a rock and a hard place…” Staring blankly at the news channel, I leaned back into the couch in the hopes of falling asleep.

Not that sleep was as easy as it was before.

Drifting in and out of consciousness, I watched the sun grow brighter and warmer beyond my eyelids. The sensation of it on my face would fade and reappear, but my time overseas gave me a good idea of how to track the time. Deep, steady breaths inflated and deflated my lungs, and my heart thudded against my ear drums. The song was mine, proof that I was still here when so many people I knew weren’t.

My leg throbbed at that thought, forcing me into full wakefulness, and I rubbed the spot absently with my fist. The thick scars were felt even from behind my jeans, and the dents in my flesh created a valley from knee to hip. Tracing the jagged mark through my pants, I took a deep breath before opening my eyes.

Noon rolled around before I stood up, and I swiped my hand through my hair with a tired yawn. Rubbing my eyes and face, I shook my head wildly before my gaze landed on the table. Caroline was still passed out cold, and her dog was still watching me. Kiki’s body hadn’t lost any rigidity, any alertness, and I shuffled past the pair to crack open the cereal cupboard.

I’d barely finished my bowlful when the dog sat up, her lean head whipping around to Caroline’s face. Setting my burden down with a clatter, I leaned to watch through narrowed eyes as she blinked heavily. She didn’t move, her eyes didn’t wander, but after a moment she opened her mouth to lick her teeth and lips.

Firmly planted between my cheeks, my grimace grew deeper as Caroline slowly looked around. She took several passes to notice me, and I cocked my head while her slender brows came together.

“… Did you mess up?” Rasping and scratchy, Caroline’s question caused her to wince as it gyrated my ear drums. Relief surged through me even while I shook my head, and her lip twitched up. “Awesome.”

“You remember, then?” Grabbing a glass from a cupboard, I filled it with water before noticing Caroline struggling to sit up. Reaching for her shoulder, my fingers were only an inch away before a low, menacing growl made me freeze. Swerving to Kiki, my eyes narrowed into slits at the slight pick up of her lips, showing just the tips of her long, sharp teeth.

The exchange was only a second, maybe less, but it was long enough for Caroline to sit up fully. Tearing my gaze off the dog, I pulled back my hand only to hold out the glass for her shaking hands.

“Yeah. How long has it been?” Her trembling question came as I stepped back, and only then did the dog stop growling. Gulping down her drink roughly, she rolled her eye to watch me shrug.

“It’s almost 1p.m.. I got you here around 5a.m.. The drugs are about ready to wear off- it’s why you woke up.” Caroline stared at me openly as I answered her, and I took her glass to refill it before continuing. “Your ankle will be fine in a few weeks. I wanted to wait until you woke up to call an ambulance- it’ll take forever, anyway.”

“Thank you…” Trailing off, Caroline developed a quizzical expression, and my own morphed in confusion. “U- uh… what- what’s your name again?”

“James. I’m James Dunn.” So, she knows who I am- that I helped her… but didn’t remember my name. The effect was common with trauma and drugs, and I crossed my arms over my chest. “It’s at least four miles between my house and your campsite, you know. Your dog came all the way here even though you said there’s another campsite a mile from yours.”

“Oh- like Dunn Enterprises?” Frowning deeply, I jerked my head in a nod at Caroline’s arched brow even as annoyance bubbled up in my chest. “I sell my pictures to a company under them. Uh, anyway… I don’t know why Kiki did that, but I’m kinda glad. I’d probably lose my foot… or at least a toe…”

Caroline’s expression portrayed nothing of what she should’ve been feeling; the fact that she really could’ve lost her foot didn’t seem to bother her at all. For a long moment I watched her closely, but she only sighed as she stared at her bandaged feet.

“… You can take a bath. You shouldn’t get the bandages wet, but I have more.” I didn’t move, waiting to see her reaction, and Caroline picked at her dirty, bloodied, damp shirt before sliding her fingertips down her arm. The trail she left was noticeable, and her face scrunched in disgust before she carefully shimmied her legs off the table.

“Should I, like, call a hospital or something? Is it safe to walk on my right foot? I don’t do damsel very well…” Snorting at Caroline’s concerns, I sauntered over to the table to pick her up. Her body was lighter than before, and she stiffened but didn’t protest as I exited the kitchen. Kiki bumped against my shins, keeping herself firmly underneath her human, and I kicked open the bathroom door to set Caroline on the edge of the tub.

The bathroom was more grandiose than anything I’d ever seen before, but I ignored it for the moment to head for a cabinet. A low whistle slid up my spine, and I snatched a towel before Caroline spoke up.

“I bet you spent a crapload for this set up. Is your wife gunna be mad I’m here, James?” Rolling my eyes at the question, I set the towel on the vanity to head for the door. My chest tightened, hands balling into loose fists, and my skin crawled from Caroline’s gaze until I glanced over my shoulder.

“Clean yourself up. Shout when you’re done.” Closing the door without waiting for a response, I took a deep, harsh breath and held it on my way down the hall.

Wife. Fuck- I hated that word. There wasn’t even any reason to bring it up. A flash of blonde struck my eyelids when I blinked, and I gripped the kitchen counter to grind my teeth together.

So much shit had happened in the past six months that Hannah hadn’t popped into my mind at all. According to voicemails, she absolutely refused to marry my brother.

What did he do, then? Oh yeah- Nick had our parents adopt her instead.

I could still feel the potent pain that ripped through my chest when Nick told me Hannah had gotten pregnant. I could still feel the relief when he immediately followed up with ‘it’s not yours’. I could still feel the guilt of that night and the guilt that heaped atop it because I’d run away like a little bitch.

And now, here I was- haunted and miserable. Where I deserved to be.