by Lara McKusky

Created on: November 06, 2008   Last Updated: November 12, 2008

Susanna's breathing was the only thing louder than her squeaky tennis shoes as she hurried home. It was a shame, because she liked the sound of the leaves crunching and swirling their scratchy dance along the cobblestoned sidewalk. She could barely hear them, but she wasn't about to slow down. She tried to lift her head as she walked, to look around and appear confident, as the self-defense teacher had instructed, but it was like there was a weight around her neck, her eyes glued to the sidewalk. Susanna had taken the class twice before moving on to the advanced protection class. She had waited two months before finally signing up to take the second class. It was only offered at night but it had taken a while to overrule her fear of the dark. She was desperate not to feel afraid anymore and the classes were helping. Sort of.

Susanna thought she was less paranoid now, at least inside her apartment. She wasn't sleeping with the whole apartment lit up like broad daylight for one. She had finally stopped triple-checking all the locks, including the windows, every night. I'm down to just double-checking she thought wryly.

She had moved after the assault, after much research as to the safest areas to live, the safest floor to live on and which were the sturdiest locks to buy. Susanna made sure the complex was pet friendly, as she had intended to get a dog as soon as possible. Her mother and best friend had insisted on it. Besides that, it was among the top three things one could do to deter criminals from entering the home. Low cut shrubs and a well-lit perimeter were the other two. In the end, her mother had found a large Airedale terrier that an elderly neighbor was getting rid of, after a broken hip. And that was how she had ended up with Arthur.

Arthur's head came up to her hip and looked sturdy and fierce. His square head gave the impression of sternness and if one didn't know the breed, he would look like a force to be reckoned with. However, to Susanna's chagrin, he was totally a people dog. She took him with her as many places as she could, but self-defense class wasn't one of them.

Susanna was taking the class at a local grade school, four city blocks from her house, which didn't seem worth driving at the time she left. But now she wasn't so sure as a sense of unease slipped over her like a cloak. Susanna bit her lip and looked about her for a second.

Susanna saw a quiet older neighborhood that had been restored. Beautiful brick and architecture everywhere she

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