They waited until she slept. It was after her night watch shift. She never heard a sound—not the whispers, the low growl, the quick struggle, or his last bubbling yelp—as they snapped his neck.

                                                            *****

            The next morning Olivia woke in a panic to the smells of roast chicken. “Guys!” She yelled as she struggled from one darkness to another, “I don’t care if you caught a rat! We can’t take chances with a fire!” They. . .