One Way Out by R. L. Weeks

THE INTRUDER
                 
    The fire crackled, echoing Laura’s anger. “Put down my dog, I’ll move out,” she bellowed at her dad. Her affectionate, chocolate-coloured labby lay on the floor, his head on his paws. He let out a sigh and eyed Laura.
    “He bit the neighbour, we have no choice,” her dad lets out an exasperated sigh, dismissing Laura.
    “They must have deserved it, Teddy wouldn’t have done that unless he thought they were a threat, look at him dad, he’s a big goofball, he wouldn’t hurt a fly,” Laura protested, her dad glanced over at a cross-eyed Teddy who was eyeing up an ant that hurried across the floorboards.
    He stood up, placing his glass of scotch on the mantelpiece.  “My word is final, I’m sorry to see him go as much as –
    “No, you’re not!” She interrupts, taking a step towards her dad, she looked at his bulging waistcoat and gold cufflinks. “You’ve never cared about him.”
    “I’ll get you a new puppy, please, let it go.”
    “No!” she knew this was his way, not to cause any bother with her, to pay her off. “I don’t want another dog, I want teddy.” She had taken Teddy in exactly a year ago to the day when they found him abandoned.
    Her dad looked at Laura, his mouth curling into a sad smile, he could feel himself giving in like he always did. “I have to go to the club, we can talk about this when I get back, that’s not a yes, but it’s a ‘we will talk about it.’”
    Laura jumped over to him, wrapping her arms around his rounding belly, resting her head on his chest. “Thanks, Dad.” He smiled down at his little Laura, sixteen, how did she grow up so fast? He wondered.
    With age, she had begun to look more and more like her mother, who had sadly died a few years back, leaving them both with a hole in their hearts that couldn’t be filled. He knew that Teddy had been Laura’s rock and eyed the half-obedient goofball, sighing. How could he make this work? They would come for him, he could offer more to the neighbours than he had originally offered he supposed.
    “Enjoy your night at the club,” Laura said, her bright blue doe eyes mirroring her mothers, with thick black lashes and blossom pink lips.
    He patted her on the back, “stay safe, trick-or-treaters are out tonight.”
    “That’s nothing to worry about, Teddy will protect me. I’ve got a bowl of sweets to hand out anyway,” she said. The smile on her dad's face curved into a frown. Laura had always been too trusting, the neighbourhood is a good one, yes, but also a target for burglars. However, there hadn’t been any reports of a break-in for years, plus the CCTV would capture anything, she’d be fine, and she’s right, Teddy may be a lovable huggable ball of fur, but when it comes to Laura he has the ferocity of a lion.
    “Take care of my Laura, Teddy and we’ll see what we can do.” Teddy’s ears perked up when he said Laura’s name and responded with a little howl, getting up, his claws scratching on the wooden floor as he shook his body and ran over to sit next to Laura.
    “Good boy,” Laura cooed.
    Her dad walked over to the door, popping his black button-up coat on. “Call me if you need anything,” he shouted and shut the door.
    Laura kneeled down, stroking Teddy’s head, scratching behind his ears. “See, he won’t put you down, I wouldn’t let anyone hurt you,” she cooed and planted a kiss on top of his head. He responded by licking the side of her cheek.
    “Let’s get you some dinner,” she said, he ran into the kitchen, wagging his tail behind him. She stepped into the old-fashioned kitchen, catching her reflection in the patio door, which was the only thing in the house that was slightly modern. Her light brown hair fell down below her chest, puberty had been kind to her, for which she was grateful. Acne had not left their awful scars upon her soft, clear skin. She had recently started developing curves in all the right places, but still