Chapter 109

The sun completed its journey across the sky and sank into the horizon, painting the asphalt in a brilliant wave of colors before giving way to twilight. Wind stirred the heavy ash pile on the ground, swirling it and yet not managing to disperse it.

The parking lot remained mostly vacant, only a few vehicles remained to mark the sparse occupants. And of those who stayed, none were watching.

From the shadows trotted a red-coated wolf. It paused in front of a door, where the stench of bleach had wiped a bloodstain away. But he doubted he would ever be able erase the memory of the wound. The shame.

Backing away, he sidled over to the pile of dust. An urge to sniff had him lowering his nose. He inhaled and immediately sneezed, particles of ash lifting and blinding him momentarily. Shaking his head, he sought to clear his senses, but while the dust drifted away, he could do nothing for his muddled mind that still roiled with the images of what he'd done. Ears pricked, he h