They took Hannah and returned a few weeks later for Julian. The hens stopped laying.

When Blue puts his paws on the window sill and complains mournfully to the empty backyard, dread slides like ice down my throat and shivers past my heart until I’ve lost my last safe place.

Miriam N. Kotzin writes fiction and poetry. She is the author of five collections of poetry, two collections of short fiction, and two novels—most recently the novel Right This Way (Spuyten Duyvil). Her 50-word stories have been published in 50-Word Stories, 50 Give or Take, and Blink Ink. She teaches literature and creative writing at Drexel University.