Chapter 2

The day after I was discharged, I went to the K-9 training center to pick up Duke's retirement papers.

Duke was the guard dog we adopted together when we first started dating. Before his retirement, he was the star performer at the Family's training grounds.

When an accident occurred at the training grounds that day, I was the only one who rushed in and dragged him out of the kennel.

Later, the five of us agreed to take care of him together.

Luca claimed he would handle his special diet, Cassian said he would cover all his medical checkups, and Roman boasted he would train Duke into the ultimate bodyguard.

But the novelty didn't even last a month before these entitled guys completely forgot about the hassle.

When Duke's wounds got infected, I was the one who stayed up all night giving him antibiotic shots.

The massive monthly costs for premium dog food, rabies vaccines, and training fees were all automatically deducted from my personal bank account.

The vet handed the thick file folder back to me.

"Are you taking this big guy with you to Europe?"

"No."

The estate in Sicily did not allow private guard dogs.

I had planned to send Duke to my mother's estate. But when I pushed open the villa doors, Chloe was standing in the middle of the living room, holding my dog's leash.

The three men stood around her, and the floor was littered with brand new dog beds and toys.

"Elena, you're back just in time." Luca took the paperwork from my hands.

"Chloe recently moved into a downtown penthouse, and she feels unsafe living alone. We decided to let Duke be her bodyguard."

I looked up at them, taking in their self-righteous expressions.

"When did you guys discuss this?"

"Last night." Roman answered smoothly. "You're heading to Europe soon to take over the new territory. How would you have the time to take care of an aggressive dog like this?"

"Duke is extremely defensive around strangers. Don't you know he bites?"

The air in the villa instantly froze.

Chloe shrunk back behind Roman in fear, tightening her grip on the leash.

"If Elena doesn't want to, I won't force it."

She lowered her head and petted Duke.

"I really don't mind. As long as I lock my doors at night, I guess no one will break in."

Hearing this, Roman frowned slightly. He walked over, took my hand, and patiently coaxed me.

"Elena, you know I would never let anyone mistreat Duke. Chloe is just scared of living alone since she just got back. We're only borrowing him for a few days. Once she gets used to her new place, I'll bring the dog right back to you, okay?"

A frustrated growl rumbled in the fierce dog's throat. His paws dug into the floor as he stared down Cassian's approaching hand.

I closed my eyes, patted Duke's head, and gave him the 'stand down' command for the very last time.

Duke whimpered and stopped struggling.

Only then could Cassian step forward and unbuckle the black leather collar around Duke's neck.

That was a custom handmade collar I ordered from a craftsman, engraved with my initials.

"He's Chloe's dog now. We need to put her info on him just in case."

I watched as that collar was tossed straight into the trash can.

Cassian then swapped it for a ridiculous pink leash.

"No matter how wild a dog is, skip a few of his meals and he'll learn to behave."

Roman patted Chloe's shoulder to comfort her. "He's just not used to you yet. Take him home and feed him some meat a few times, and he'll be fine."

The three of them backed each other up seamlessly. It was as if I was the truly selfish one.

Chloe yanked the leash hard, trying to drag the massive dog out the door.

He looked back at me in desperation. I instinctively took a step forward, but Luca blocked my view like a solid wall.

"Leave him be. The more you baby him, the longer it'll take him to accept his new owner."

He knew perfectly well that Duke only obeyed me.

He would rather starve than eat food that wasn't given by my own hands.

Back then, Luca pointed at him and praised him, saying this was what a truly loyal guard dog looked like and that he should never change masters.

Now, as Duke was forcibly dragged until bloody marks appeared on his neck, they acted completely blind. They only cared about the red leash burn on Chloe's palms.

"Just bear with it. Once we get to your new place, we'll give him a sedative."

Cassian looked down at his phone and forwarded a long shopping list for the special dog food to my email.

Imported raw meat from Germany, top-tier vitamins, and a strict appointment schedule for a private vet. The expenses were listed down to the very last cent.

"This dog's expenses have always come out of your card, so just keep transferring the money on time. Chloe hasn't officially taken over her family wealth yet, so she can't afford these high costs. You'll still need to pay for this."

I looked at Cassian mockingly.

"So she gets the dog, and I pay the bills?"

Luca sighed, walked over, and patted my shoulder. "Elena, we all grew up together. You've always been the mature one. Just treat it as helping her out. Do you really have to make a scene with Chloe over a dog?"

"Didn't you guys say we would all be responsible for him together?"

I suddenly wanted to laugh. I found it incredibly ironic.

So they remembered the promise, but only the part that could be used to trap me.

I didn't put up a fight. I simply drove calmly to Animal Control and asked the staff to update Duke's microchip and registration info.

I canceled all the automatic payments for medical care and food tied to his name.

And I changed the emergency contact to Chloe's information.

Late that night, Chloe flooded the group chat with voice notes.

Duke absolutely refused to eat the dog food, knocked over his bowl, and was pacing anxiously in her living room.

Luca called me. "Elena, do us a favor. Bring some of Duke's favorite food over and feed him. Chloe is so scared she's hiding in her room."

Cassian texted me, accusing me of intentionally withholding the feeding commands and cutting off the payments just to embarrass her.

Roman initiated a video call, his tone laced with annoyance. "Elena, stop making a fuss. As long as you come over, feed Duke, and teach Chloe how to handle him, I'll take you on a vacation this weekend."

I sat in my empty living room and switched my phone to Do Not Disturb mode.

Since they chose a new owner for Duke, everything about him had nothing to do with me from today on.

Just like after tomorrow night, these arrogant men would have nothing to do with me either.