CHAPTER 2 – The Fire Nobody Saw Coming
Emily woke with a start.
Something smelled wrong.
Smoke.
Thick...
Black...
Burning smoke.
She rushed downstairs.
The kitchen was already engulfed in flames.
A faulty electrical outlet had ignited the curtains during the storm.
Within seconds...
The staircase behind her collapsed.
She was trapped upstairs with baby Noah.
Emily screamed.
No one outside could hear over the thunder.
Except Shadow.
The dog hurled himself against the back door again...
And again...
And again.
The glass shattered.
Ignoring the flames, Shadow charged inside.
Smoke filled every room.
The heat scorched his fur.
Still...
He climbed the burning staircase.
Emily could barely breathe.
She wrapped Noah in a blanket.
"I'm so sorry..."
She whispered, believing they would die together.
Then...
Out of the smoke...
Shadow appeared.
Covered in soot.
His eyes locked onto hers.
He barked once.
Turned.
Then barked again.
Emily understood.
The dog wasn't panicking.
He knew another way out.
Shadow led her into the old storage room.
Hidden behind dusty shelves was a tiny attic ladder leading onto the roof.
Emily had never noticed it before.
She climbed out carrying Noah.
But before Shadow could jump...
The burning ceiling crashed down.
The dog disappeared beneath the flames.
Emily screamed his name until firefighters arrived.
Hours later...
The fire was finally extinguished.
No body was found.
Everyone assumed Shadow had died.
The entire town mourned the stray they had once hated.
News stations called him a hero.
Children left flowers where he used to sleep.
Emily cried every night.
"I never even got to tell him thank you."
She thought the story had ended.
She was wrong.
Because three days later...
A police detective knocked on her door.
May you like
And in his hand...
Was an old leather collar.
