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Daddy closes the kennel door, gives me one last smile, touches something on my neck, and stands up. It isn’t until I see Daddy moving his lips and not being able to understand anything that the anxiety rolls through me. But I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Daddy said it would only be while the customer was here, and I can make it that long. I can show Daddy that I’m slowly getting better, even if I’m not.

I keep my eyes on Daddy as he points at several different pieces of furniture and talks to the customer. The man leans over the counter, pointing at something, and our eyes connect. My hands tighten around the blanket as he keeps staring at me. Is this really the man Daddy is talking to?

Daddy speaks as the man keeps looking at me, his eyes going up and down my blanket-covered body. Right as I’m about to open my mouth and talk to Daddy, the man says something and points at me, making Daddy look in my direction.

I school my expression and give him a forced smile, hoping he doesn’t know anything is wrong. This man is a customer of Daddy’s, and I don’t want him to lose any business. If I have to put up with a couple of creepy looks, then I’m going to.

Daddy squats in front of me and touches my collar through the kennel. “He wants to talk to you since he’s about to get his own human. Are you okay with that?”

I’m not, but I nod anyway.

“Are you sure?” Daddy asks. “Nothing is going to happen if you say no.”

Does Daddy want me to say no to him?

“I’m okay.” My voice shakes, and Daddy stares at me for several seconds.

“You may talk to her,” Daddy finally says and stands up.

The man walks around the counter and stands at the end so I can see everything. Daddy is still to the side of my kennel, which eases my stress, but as the man kneels to make eye contact with me, my hands tighten around the blanket.

If only I could be held in Daddy’s arms right now so I know that I’m fully safe.

“Are you liking Venkoria?” he asks, his voice nice and calm.

“Good,” I whisper.

“And you’ve fully gotten used to being with your Daddy? How long do you think it took? Do you remember him doing anything special that helped you get accustomed to being with him for the rest of your life?” he fires off the questions.

I look up at Daddy, unease filling me, but Daddy just smiles down at me, giving me an encouraging nod to answer him.

“He has been with me the whole time and taken care of me,” I explain.

“And that’s the special thing he did for you to get comfortable with him? He just kept you close to him?” the man asks.

I shy away from the front of the kennel and keep my mouth closed, not liking his questions. I’ve never talked to anyone else but Yamal and Daddy, and they never questioned me so much.

“It’s okay, I’m just curious because I’m about to get my Little Pet and want to make sure that she gets accustomed quickly and doesn’t go through anything too hard or bad,” the man explains. “I’ve been speaking to the other men and asking their pets the same question so I can get different perspectives.”

He has? Maybe he’s not so bad at all, but his questions are weird.

“Yes,” I finally reply.

A smile blossoms across his face as he stands up. “Thanks for letting me talk to her. I’ll be back in a couple of days to pick up the piece.”

“It’ll be ready by the end of the week,” Daddy replies before turning to me. “Ready to go home?”

I nod quickly and hold my hands up, wanting to be in his arms already.

NINE

“Do I really need to learn more tricks?” I ask as I sit on the ground, looking up at Daddy, who’s sitting on the couch.

“Yes, Little Pet. You do. I want you to be so good at all these tricks that when a friend comes over, you can show them what you’ve learned,” Daddy explains. “Also, what if one day I need you to do something for the sake of your health and you don’t do it and get hurt?”

“Like what?” I look up at him, my lips turned up.

“Well, hopefully nothing bad happens to you, but what if someone was coming at you and I told you to lie down so you didn’t get hurt?” Daddy asks.