Cupboard Love

By Carolyn Ward

He lay in bed and listened to the house. There was a tiny knocking, but it was no big deal. A mouse scurrying or a faulty pipe, no problem. Glancing at the clock, he saw that there was a hour before shower time, so he grinned and snatched up the key. The start of a fantastic day! He pumped his arms and took a deep breath, feeling the oxygen molecules fizzing through his lungs, powering his blood. He mentally rehearsed his movements because she was a wildcat. When he unlocked the cupboard, she launched at him, fingernail claws, an inhuman snarl.