Chapter 1

I had just come to terms with the death of my sister, Hope Marsh, when I found her dog, Toto's body.

Toto was covered in wounds, her legs twisted at strange angles. Next to her lay a necklace. I picked it up, and in the pale moonlight, I saw that the diamond ring hanging from it was engraved with the letters L and M.

They stood for Lionel and Maisie McBride.

I gripped the diamond ring tightly, crouched down, and carefully cradled Toto's bloodied body. Her warmth still lingered, and as I stroked her fur, I couldn't hold back my tears anymore.

In one night, I had lost two family members.

I placed Toto's body in a cardboard box, with her favorite treats and toys beside her.

"I'm sorry, Toto… Go be with Hope now. She missed you so much..."

I grabbed my coat and drove to Maisie's apartment.

When Maisie opened the door, my already-frayed emotions shattered completely.

A brief, self-satisfied smile flashed across her face when she saw me.

"June? What are you doing here?"

I scoffed and slapped her across the face.

Maisie, caught off guard, stood frozen for a moment, her pale cheek swelling rapidly.

She took a while to regain her composure, and her eyes started to redden.

"June? What's going on? Did I do something to upset you?"

I looked at her coldly, ready to raise my hand again when Lionel emerged from the bedroom.

He was wearing pajamas, clearly just woken up.

Seeing Maisie's swollen face, he instantly sobered up before stepping forward to grab my wrist.

"June! Why are you acting crazy?"

His grip was strong enough to make my wrist feel like it might snap.

I bit my lip, stifling the cry that almost escaped.

"I'm acting crazy? You're a psychologist! You know how important Toto was to Hope! You know how painful it is when depression flares up—why are you acting like it's nothing?"

Lionel paused, then rubbed his forehead in frustration.

"I've already told you that Hope's condition wouldn't be triggered just because Toto was gone for a few days. If you're still worried, I'll bring Toto back tomorrow."

I laughed bitterly, the rage building up inside me, but all I could do was smile through the pain.

"Lionel, there is no tomorrow. Hope's gone. Toto's gone too. You don't deserve to be Hope's brother-in-law. You don't deserve the trust she gave you!"

As I spoke, tears fell uncontrollably again.

I remembered Hope, barely alive in the ambulance, whispering to me, "June... I'm sorry... I just can't keep going… After I'm gone, you have to find Toto. You and Lionel, you have to live well... As long as you have Toto, it'll be like I'm still around..."

Hope was still thinking about Lionel, even in her final moments.

What she didn't know was that her brother-in-law had secretly taken Toto, just to please his childhood sweetheart.

Seeing me like this, Lionel instinctively released my wrist. When he saw the red marks his grip left, he softened his tone and asked in a low voice, "June, did I hurt you?"

Maisie immediately started to sob. "I'm sorry, June. It's all my fault. My claustrophobia has gotten worse lately, but Lionel's been busy, and I didn't want to bother him all the time… I remember meeting Toto before, and though I was afraid of dogs, I wasn't scared of her. So I thought of having Toto keep me company for a few days—"

I interrupted her coldly, "And where is Toto now?"

Maisie hesitated for a moment, then lowered her head even further.

"June, I'm sorry. When I opened the door earlier... I don't know why, but she ran out..."

I raised my voice, trembling with anger, "Liar! You monster! Toto was such a cute little thing, and you tortured her to death!"

Maisie suddenly looked up, shaking her head with red-rimmed eyes. "I didn't do it, June..."

My fury exploded once more. I threw the ring at her face and grabbed her hair, forcing her to look at the diamond ring that had fallen to the floor.

"What is this? Tell me, Maisie, what is this? I found this ring on a necklace next to Toto's body! Who else could it belong to if not you?"

Maisie screamed, but before I could react, I was suddenly pushed hard. I fell to the ground, my face stinging with pain, and my palm scraped against the floor, drawing blood.

I felt a wetness at the corner of my mouth. I wiped it away, but the blood quickly flowed again.

Lionel looked at me coldly, growling, "Enough, June! Stop being unreasonable!"

He carefully examined Maisie's injury and softly asked, "What really happened?"