In the dead of night, Jonathan sat in his dimly lit room, the only illumination coming from the glow of his computer screen. The game of Snake and Mouse was an old, childhood favorite, but tonight, something felt off. As he guided the snake through the maze, the mouse seemed to move with a mind of its own, dodging his every attempt to catch it.
The air grew colder, and the shadows in the room seemed to lengthen, creeping toward him. Jonathan's heart pounded as he noticed the snake on the screen morphing, its eyes glowing red. The mouse, usually a simple prey, now bore sharp fangs and a sinister grin.
Suddenly, a message flashed on the screen: "The hunt is on." Before Jonathan could react, a chill ran down his spine as a whisper echoed in his ear, "Will you be the hunter... or the hunted?"
Antique store owner Liz brings home a Victorian taxidermy hound from auction, unwittingly unleashing dark forces on her wife and son.
*****
Nat Loman has finally married the love of her life, Liz, and is getting used to her role as stepmother to Liz's 5-year-old son, Liam. The Loman family runs a bustling antique business so they attend a sale where a striking, black taxidermied hound is up for auction. Liz picks it up for the business, but it ends up being stored in their home, where Nat notices strange things occurring. She quickly discovers the past residents had died violently. Then she hears from a friend about the myth of "the devil's dog", a hound that perches in the shadows, tearing families apart from the inside. Soon, people around the Lomans are dying, and Liz is changing, darkening. It's up to Nat to save the woman she loves from the darkness closing in, and to save Liam from danger no matter what she has to sacrifice.
[[Winner of the 2018 Wattys "Hidden Gems" category]]
[[word count: 60,000-70,000 words]]