[h2]Esme[/h2]
Esme sat in the chair, fighting her emotions and thoughts, which caused her to crumple up the pamphlet as her fist curled around it. She then balled up the pamphlet and threw it in the trash can next to her chair. Sarah, who she hadn’t realized had followed her into the hospital, came over and placed her paw on Esme's leg with a worried whine. Esme flinched, taking a sharp breath, then looked at Sarah with a sad, heavy sigh. She placed a hand on Sarah’s paw and squeezed it. “I can’t lose him, Sarah…. Not like this.” she whispered to the Hellhound. Sarah moved closer and gently nuzzled Esme’s cheek in an attempt to comfort her. Esme leaned into the nuzzle before she pulled up her legs and curled herself up in a ball. This caused Sarah to move in closer and lean against Esme to comfort her the best she could. “Come back to me, Duke. Please. Fight to get back.” she whispered softly into her knees. “If I don’t have you…. I’m… Alone…. Again. Then what do I have to live for after we get Natalia back and take care of the demons that caused all of  this?” 

A little time passed before Esme heard someone walking towards the room. As she sat up, Sarah moved back to let Esme set her feet back on the floor. As soon as the nurse came through the door, Esme took to her feet, waiting to hear what news the nurse had for her. It wasn’t the news she wanted. “No! He can’t be!” She screamed the words, not believing her. She looked the nurse in the eyes, seeing that it was true. Esme couldn’t breathe. All the air had left her lungs. Placing a hand on her stomach, she collapsed to the floor on her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. Sarah was quick to sit at her side.  When the air came rushing back to her, she took a deep breath and let it out in a sob. She wanted to scream, but she couldn’t get it out. All she could do was scream internally. She didn’t hear the nurse leave or when Cason entered the room as she was overtaken with grief, but that grief was gradually being taken over with anger. Demons had taken away the man she loved, and now she felt alone all over again. 

The moment Sarah saw Cason, she ran over to his side, her tail wagging happily as she did so. She nuzzled his leg and hand before returning to Esme’s side to comfort her. As Cason spoke to her, it fueled her anger, turning it into rage. The thought of how the hell he was even alive never crossed her mind as she lifted her head to glare at him with tear-filled eyes. A demon was the last thing she wasn’t to see. Using the chair beside her, she pushed herself onto her feet, slightly swaying. “Yeah, I’m sure you do feel for me.” she nearly growled at him. “We both know you didn’t like Duke. So don’t pretend you're not happy he’s….” She couldn’t say the word, even in her rage. It made her sick to her stomach. Esme thought about Cason saying she could get revenge. Revenge wouldn’t bring Duke back to her, and it would only make her feel better for a short time. So she looked past that. She would be saving Natalia. She’d be saving a life from those assholes that look Duke away from her. At Cason’s next words, she shot him a daggered glare.

She could hardly believe he’d bring that up at a time like this. As much as she wanted to bring Duke back, she couldn’t bring herself to make a deal with Cason. She looked down at his outstretched hand and back up at him before walking over without taking it. If she had taken it, she would have fried it, which she was tempted to do out of frustration from his words. Sniffling, she wiped the tears from her cheeks with both hands, then slid her arm back into her jacket sleeve. “I don’t know how the hell you know I was in that hell hole, but it doesn’t matter right now.” she sighed, closing her eyes briefly. “What does matter is that we get Natalia out of there.” she told him. Esme then turned and looked at Sarah with a gentler look than she had given Cason. “You’re coming too, right girl?” she asked the Hellhound. Sarah barked and came over to her side, and Esme scratched her head before turning her attention back to Cason, her features going serious again. “Let’s go get Natalia.”