fore I even opened the door. A thick,

or open and my

s and rotting food across my welcome mat. Piles of dog feces were smeared on the door itself. A

l of death a constant companion. My lungs seized. I couldn't get a breath. The walls of the hallway started closing

n! Oh m

r for their morning check-in. My dad rushed to m

th me. In... and out. You're saf

ger, her voice shaking with fury. I could hear th

er face ashen after she hung up. "He said we shoul

cleaning supplies. We worked in silence, the stench of bleach mixing with the sme

b Ol

he end of the hall, a smirk plastered on his f

My steps were silent, measured. The panic wa

I was standing right ove

s funny?" I asked, my

c his father's belligerence. "Don't kno

when I

front of his shirt, bunching the fabric in my fi

, letting every ounce of the battlefield ice seep into my voice. "You are not scary. You are a soft, stupid litt

, his eyes welling up with tears. He was just a child, a crue

cried, rushing forwa

s body shielding the now-sobb

his feet and ran, n

standing and horror. They had seen the monster I kept locked away