Chapter 2

The Beaumont estate, though faded, still held an air of antebellum grandeur. Our engagement party was in full swing, a lavish affair meant to solidify the union of two prominent Charleston families. Chad was attentive, his smile charming, but his eyes kept drifting towards the staircase, as if expecting someone.

"For you, my love,"Chad said, pulling out a small, velvet box. Inside lay an antique silver locket, intricately engraved. "A Beaumont family heirloom. To welcome you."

I thanked him, touched by the gesture, though a part of me registered the desperation in his eyes. His family needed this marriage. Their estate was mortgaged to the hilt.

Angel, the Bichon Frise Billy Ray had "rescued"for me, yapped at my feet. She'd been a constant, cloying presence since her arrival.

Chad chuckled, scooping up Angel. "And what about our little mascot?"He unclasped my own cherished locket – a simple gold heart, a gift from my late grandmother – from my neck. "Let's make Angel an honorary Jenkins-Beaumont."

Before I could protest, he playfully fastened my grandmother's locket onto Angel's diamond-studded collar.

The moment the clasp clicked, a wave of dizziness hit me. The crystal chandeliers above seemed to spin, the music warped, and Chad's smiling face dissolved into a blur. I felt a sickening lurch, a tearing sensation, as if my very essence was being ripped from its moorings.

Then, blackness.

I awoke to a cacophony of barking, the stench of urine and fear. My body ached. I tried to sit up, to call out, but only a weak yelp escaped me. I looked down. White paws. A fluffy white body.

Panic, cold and absolute, seized me. I was Angel.

Through the bars of a cramped, filthy cage, I saw Billy Ray. He wasn't looking at me with concern, but with a chilling smirk. He spoke to a tired-looking attendant at the notorious county animal shelter, a place whispered about for its high kill rate.

"Found her wandering. No tags, no chip. Just drop her off."

He didn't even glance back as he walked away, leaving me, Sarah Jenkins, trapped in the body of a dog, abandoned to die.

Later, though I wasn't there to see it, I knew what was happening. Daisy-Mae, now inhabiting my body, would be standing beside a triumphant Billy Ray and a relieved Chad. She'd be admiring her reflection, her new life, her hands already itching to control the Jenkins' fortune. They would be celebrating their monstrous success, their laughter echoing in the grand halls that were once my home. My "death"was their new beginning. The betrayal was absolute, the cruelty unimaginable.