The late afternoon sun hung low and lazy over Lusaka, painting everything in lazy gold. Jordan clipped Rio's leash to his collar with hands that still trembled faintly from the morning. The mall was only a fifteen-minute walk—close enough to burn off the adrenaline still fizzing in her veins, far enough to let Rio sniff every lamp post, every overgrown bush, every discarded wrapper like it held the secrets of the universe.
The puppy trotted ahead, tail whipping side to side in perfect metronome rhythm, blissfully unaware of the storm still churning inside her chest. Jordan needed ice cream. Something cold enough to numb the dull throb where Leo's knuckles had grazed her cheekbone earlier. Something sweet enough to drown out her mother's voice, still looping in her skull like a broken record: Hurt him to the bone, Jordan. Make it permanent.
Rio tugged toward a strip of sun-warmed grass. She let him wander, phone in hand, scrolling without really seeing.
Then she saw them.
A sleek black SUV purred to a stop at the curb. The back door opened first. Lexis Virell stepped out—designer sunglasses perched on her nose, cream blazer tailored to razor precision, every inch screaming old money and older grudges. Leonel followed, casual in a black hoodie and dark jeans, hands shoved deep in his pockets. That smirk was already curling his lips, like he owned the sidewalk and everyone walking on it.
Jordan froze mid-step. Rio sat beside her, ears suddenly perked, sensing the shift in the air.
Lexis spotted her first. Her mouth curved into something too sharp to be called a smile.
"If it isn't the only child the Azuls managed to squeeze out."
Leo's smirk stretched wider, lazy and dangerous.
Jordan bent slowly to retrieve the leash Rio had let slip when he'd sniffed too far. Her fingers shook—just a fraction. She straightened, forcing her spine steel-straight.
Lexis took one deliberate step closer, voice dripping slow venom. "Just like your mother. Always so clumsy. Always dropping things. Always leaving a mess behind."
Jordan rolled her eyes so hard it hurt. "And you're just like a spitting turtle. All mouth, no bite."
Leo moved before Lexis could fire back.
He shoved her—hard. Jordan stumbled backward, phone flying from her fingers, leash slipping through her grip. Her back slammed into the low concrete ledge bordering the flower bed. Pain lanced up her spine like fire.
Rio barked once—sharp, furious—then lunged.
Small white teeth sank deep into Leo's calf.
Leo roared. "What the fuck—let go, you stupid mutt!"
He kicked viciously. Rio yelped but held on, growling around the mouthful of denim and flesh.
Jordan scrambled up, snatched the leash, yanked with all her strength. Rio released, blood already blooming dark through Leo's jeans.
Lexis clutched her chest theatrically, like she'd been personally wounded. "Look at you, small girl… so disorderly. No class. No control."
Jordan's voice came out low, lethal. "Make me."
Leo limped forward, face twisted in pain and fury. "I said stop talking shit to my mom."
Jordan stepped right into his space, close enough to smell the expensive cologne mixed with the copper tang of blood. "Tell her to leave the hell alone. What is she doing arguing with a juvenile shamelessly in public?"
Leo's hand shot out—fingers twisting into her ponytail, yanking her head back hard.
Jordan winced, eyes watering instantly. Then she stomped down on his instep with every ounce of weight she had.
Leo hissed through clenched teeth, grip loosening just enough. She twisted free, ponytail slipping through his fingers.
They stood there panting, inches apart, Rio growling low and continuous between them like a living barrier.
Lexis hissed, "Security!"
Two uniformed guards rounded the corner at a sprint.
Jordan wiped her mouth with the back of her hand—split lip, bright copper on her tongue. She scooped Rio up, cradling his trembling body against her chest. "We're done here."
She walked past them, head high, even as her scalp throbbed and Rio's blood smeared crimson across her white shirt sleeve.
Leo watched her go, jaw locked tight.
Lexis muttered under her breath, "Pathetic."
Jordan didn't look back.
But she heard the SUV doors slam shut.
And the engine rev.
She kept walking. Rio licked her chin once, twice, like nothing had happened at all.
Halfway home her phone buzzed—Mom.
Jordan answered, forcing her voice steady. "Hey."
Elena's voice crackled through the speaker. "Where are you? You sound off."
"Just walking Rio. Ran into—"
A screech of tires shredded the sentence.
Jordan spun.
The black SUV barreled down the narrow side street—far too fast for the residential zone.
Rio barked once—sharp, warning.
Then the thud.
A sickening, wet impact.
Rio's small body flew.
The leash snapped clean from Jordan's hand.
Her phone clattered to the pavement.
"No!"
She ran.
Rio lay crumpled on the asphalt, chest heaving in shallow, ragged bursts. Blood pooled dark and fast beneath him.
Jordan dropped to her knees, scooped him up. "Rio—buddy—no, no, no…"
Warm blood soaked through her shirt, staining the white crimson in seconds.
Rio whimpered, eyes glassy, trying weakly to lift his head.
"Hey, hey…" Jordan pressed her forehead to his soft fur. "You'll be fine, okay? Just hang on. I'll take you to the vet. Don't leave me… please don't leave me…"
His breathing slowed.
Jordan rocked him gently. "Rio… please…"
The whimper faded to nothing.
The small chest stopped rising.
Jordan stared down at the still little body in her arms.
A scream tore out of her—raw, animal, broken.
She curled around him, cradling him tight against her chest, rocking harder. "No… Rio… Rio…"
Tears fell hot onto his cooling fur.
People gathered. Phones lifted. Red recording lights blinked like accusatory eyes.
Jordan didn't care.
She lay down on the cracked sidewalk, Rio still clutched in her arms, sobbing into the soft fur at his neck. "Rio… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"
Minutes blurred into gray.
An old woman knelt beside her—gray hair braided neatly, kind eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses, floral kimono fluttering in the breeze.
"My girl… come on. Let me help you up."
Jordan didn't move.
The woman touched her shoulder—gentle, steady. "I understand your pain. I once lost a son. They said it was rubies in his blood… but he was poisoned. Slow. Cruel. Deliberate."
Jordan lifted her head, eyes swollen and red, face streaked with tears and blood.
The woman helped her stand, steadying her as Jordan clutched Rio's lifeless body like a lifeline.
Jordan turned toward the direction the SUV had vanished.
Her voice came out low, trembling with something colder than grief.
"This is just the beginning, Virell."
She wiped her tears with the back of her hand—blood and salt smearing together.
The old woman squeezed her arm once. "You'll be fine, child. Go home."
Jordan nodded—once, sharp.
She walked to where she'd parked earlier—Rio cradled like he was only sleeping.
Behind her, the cracked phone still lay on the ground.
Still recording.
The video was already uploading.
Somewhere, someone was watching.
And the war now had teeth.
(