Bloody corpses filled the hallways of the doomed school. Desmond, a 3rd year student had just transferred into the school a couple of weeks ago. If he'd known this was going to happen, he would've just stayed in California. Unfortunately, his parents decided upon him studying overseas in Japan. Although Desmond did like the culture and language there, he didn't want to leave his friends behind. After a while, Desmond eventually got over it and flew to Japan. Once he arrived, he was surprised at the clusters of people moving in units. Desmond tried asking directions but seemed to offend the person he was trying to ask. He had began learning Japanese a few weeks ago, what could he expected? It took quite an effort, but Desmond finally managed to find his apartment. It was an average tall building, about the size of his old apartment back in California. The doors leading into the building were automatic, and opened instantly as Desmond walked near them. The inside of the building, was bland or modern, nothing Desmond looked at really stood out. When he approached the front desk, the man regarded him with half interest, as if he had better things to do. A couple minutes after introducing himself, he got his key card and rode the elevator up to his room. He walked down the long narrow hallway, arriving at a black-brown door with the numbers "406" on it and walked in. The trip tugged at his fatigue, so he decided to go to sleep....
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]]