Gemotions

The sunlight was too bright, too intense. Emily squinted, feeling a prickle of discomfort crawling up her spine. The terrier, Pepper, was a dark spot against her lawn, digging ferociously near the rose bushes.

She kept her arms close to her body. Her breath hitched. She had spent hours meticulously tending to those roses.

"Pepper, no!" she shouted, her voice sharper than she intended. She couldn't stop the tremors that started in her fingers. She was suddenly keenly aware of every sound: the wind rustling through the leaves, the distant hum of a lawnmower, the rhythmic digging.