Miller exhaled — long, tired, knowing — then nodded.
“Fine. But he’s your responsibility.”

And that’s how a German Shepherd pup ended up traveling with a platoon of American soldiers.

They named him Shadow.

Shadow slept curled against Ethan’s boots during cold desert nights.
Shadow walked beside him during patrols, tiny paws stumbling in the sand.
Shadow listened when Ethan whispered the fears he couldn’t share with anyone else.

In a place where everything was uncertain, Shadow became the one reminder that something innocent still existed.

Weeks turned into months.
Shadow grew stronger.
Ethan grew harder.

And then the attack happened.