Gemotions

Rain lashed against the window, mirroring the tempest inside Leo. He stared at the drawing his niece, Lily, had proudly presented: a stick figure holding hands with a creature that looked alarmingly familiar. It had the same crooked teeth, the same unsettlingly blank gaze.

He took a deep breath. His heart was a clenched fist. He remembered the phantom's manipulations, the way it used fear as a weapon. How it'd reveled in Leo's own terror.

“Lily, darling, how about we rip this one up and draw something happy instead?” Leo said, his voice softer than he intended. He forced a smile. He would make the monster's life miserable this time. He would not stop until he'd broken it in two.