Last night I could hear them fighting again.

Why she lets him control her like that, I will never understand.

I push lightly at the door, just to check.

It is locked again.

Poor girl.

She never leaves except when she takes her car for groceries.

I had burst in once, but I was no match for him.

Perhaps her emotional scars kept her there, but she chided me for interfering.

I think I made it worse.

Today I could hear her screams.

I stifle my outburst as I hear the scuffling within.

I close my mind and my ears and slowly slink back to my place.

The morning came and I roused, slipping over to her place.

The door was open, but there was no one home.

Her perfume filled the air. 

The keys… HER keys still hung on the hook.

I slipped back to my place, my breath shallow and quick, as I gazed out the window. She normally parked right to the side of my place, almost directly in front of my window.

Her car was there.

If her car was here… her keys… then what did he do?

Her door rattled, my heart racing, I rushed out.

Oh my… she was safe… my heart… she can see it in my eyes.

She looked at me, her face stoic and unbreakable, until she broke…

The grin spread across her face as she reached down and scratched behind my ears. “Who’s a good boy!?”