The Dog, The Baby and The Criminal

Chapter 14

This chapter may be upsetting to some readers.

Evangeline

By the time Dominic had finished filling Milo's grave you could hear the birds tweeting signalling the early morning, although it was still dark outside, it was winter after all. I had insisted on helping seen as though Milo wasn't his pet to bury but he had forced me away from the shovel, ensuring I stood to the side while he did all the heavy lifting. Surprisingly, I hadn't cried since the lid on the coffin closed. I think that put Dominic on edge, the full journey home I'd see him look at me every couple of minutes out of the corner of my eye, surely expecting to see me sobbing again instead of the silent unmoving person sat beside him.

I had half hoped that he would drop me to my apartment on the way, but I had no such luck since he carried on driving until we got back to his mansion. I had wondered what more he could possibly need to keep me around for, that didn't matter to me either way. Wherever I was, be it my home or his, I wouldn't be there much longer anyway.

He pulled up outside of the huge doors of his home, I didn't even notice we had arrived until my door was pulled open, startling me slightly in my disorientated state. Dominic stood there, with his hand held out to help me out of the car. Unbuckling my seatbelt, ignoring his hand I got out of the large car on my own. Grimacing slightly as pain shot through my legs when my feet hit the ground. Ignoring the pain, I walked towards the doors, hearing Dominic sigh loudly behind me,

"I thought we'd got past this" he had the audacity to say behind me, making me stop in my tracks. I turned around, slightly fuming.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"You still hate me, I thought after comforting you and helping you bury Milo you wouldn't. Surely you still don't hate me?" His voice was pleading, almost as if he was begging me not to hate him. How could I not hate him?

"How could I not hate you, Dominic?"

"I just thought-"

"Don't mistake my vulnerability and need for comfort as any indication to how I feel about you" I interrupted him, seething but refusing to let him see how much he angered me. "And as for helping me bury Milo, you're the reason he's dead in the first place, helping me bury him is the least you could've done".

With that I turned around and made my way into the house, hearing Dominic follow behind me.

"Evangeline-"

"Can you show me to my room, I don't know my way there yet" I asked, cutting him off before he could anger me further. He just stared at me for a few seconds, his face blank before sighing again.

"Follow me"

I trailed behind him, taking in my surroundings this time so I'd know my way back. We arrived at the room I was staying in quickly, Dominic opened the door for me, holding it open as I walked past him muttering a quiet thanks.

As I stepped into the room, I noticed that it had been completely cleaned, the bed was covered in fresh silk sheets, made to perfection. There was a faint smell of cleaning products in the air as I walked in the room, probably to rid the stench of death. The only out of place thing in the room being the bottle of pain medication the doctor had left behind for me. My eyes once again found the bed and the image of Milo's body being there came to mind, haunting me as I couldn't shake the thought away, the image all I could see.

I was knocked out of my thoughts by Dominic shaking me slightly and calling my name, startling me.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently, his eyes full of concern.