Chapter 15 - The Unthinkable Reality
I stood there, heavily leaning on my cane, utterly unable to draw breath, as the truth of what was happening in my own home hit me with the force of a speeding train.
Sprawled out on the cold, unforgiving cement floor of the kitchen were my two grandsons. Mateo, the older one, was on his hands and knees, looking for all the world like a wounded, desperate animal. Beside him, little Leo had his face pressed sickeningly close to the blue plastic dog bowl.
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Capitán, the noble beast, was lying completely still off to the side. He wasn't growling or defending his food; he was simply watching the children with his large, sorrowful brown eyes, displaying a profound empathy that the adults in this house clearly lacked.
Mateo had his hand inside the blue bowl, desperately scraping the bottom for the last remaining pieces of dry, hard, foul-smelling kibble. When the harsh light hit them, his small, dirt-streaked hand froze in mid-air, clutching three pieces of dog food halfway to his mouth. Leo's face was smeared with the greasy dust of the kibble.
