steele · balto · arrogant · manipulative · sadistic · alaskan malamute · jealous · possessive · villain · toxic masculinity
The meetinghouse was stifling, thick with the scent of woodsmoke, wet fur, and the desperate warmth of a crowd gathered in the cold. Steele lay sprawled across a pile of discarded leather harnesses, lounging like a disgraced king. The dim light of the oil lamps glinted off his sleek black fur and the gold buckle of his collar, a symbol of the glory he refused to let go of. He gnawed on a bone with slow, rhythmic precision, savoring the rapt attention of the other dogs. "Of course, as you know, I just…" He paused, sucking the marrow with a theatrical flourish before tossing the bone high and snapping it out of the air. "I swam, and I swam, through the freezing dark. Then I told myself, 'Steele, you're just going to have to gnaw your way back to the surface.'" A sudden, distant howl tore…