The novel you are about to read is a work in progress. What I am posting here is the raw, unedited draft – complete with typos and mistakes… The finished project will be vastly different. I started this project in 2011 and I stopped working on it abruptly to let it cook for a while…
While I’m writing a much better version, you can read the old draft while the new one is being completed. Essentially, you get to read a version free, and if you liked what you read, you can purchase the complete polished version from book retailers everywhere.
I began writing this before I wrote and published my first book. The writing is far from my best… but there’s a story here, kids. The title is a working title. And again, I stress this is a very rough draft, cringeworthy (at least to me) to read in some places, but I thought this would be a fun way for you to read a developing work, and then read a finished product.
Enjoy...
Chapter Eleven
When Mason woke up, Atticus was still pressed close to him. His tail and legs were again matted in spots with feces. Mason rolled to his back and let out a disgusted moan. Atticus looked at him mournfully.
“It’s okay, buddy. It’s alright. Let’s clean you up.”
Mason went through the usual routine of bathing Atticus: an activity which Atticus hated but had come to accept with little fight. He washed the bedclothes again. He showered. He made coffee and ate breakfast. Then he started thinking about Chloe and couldn’t stop.
It felt like someone was watching her. Someone was. Chloe sprung up from the bed.
“Where were you last night?” Agnes was standing just inside the doorway.
Chloe rubbed one of her temples. “How did you get in here?”
“The door was unlocked.”
“Why didn’t you knock?”
“I didn’t want to wake you.”
Chloe ran her hands through her tangled hair. “Well, you did.”
“I was just checking to see if you ever came back. I was worried. I thought you ran away.”
Chloe put here feet on the floor. “First of all, I’m an adult. Adults don’t run away. They just leave. And I have no reason to leave.”
“Well, I know you don’t have any family or friends close by. It just seemed odd to me that you would be gone all night.”
