She almost drove past the place.
It didn't look like much, just a narrow storefront squeezed between a pharmacy and a small café, easy to overlook if you weren't specifically searching for it. If Alessia hadn't already been thinking about what she needed, she probably would have passed it without a second glance. The sign above the door read Pet Supplies in faded lettering, slightly uneven, as though it had been replaced and repainted more than once over the years.
She slowed the car.
“…This is unnecessary,” she muttered under her breath.
She said it as though convincing herself would make it true, but she had already turned into the small parking space outside.
A few seconds later, she stepped out and walked inside.
A soft bell chimed above the door as she entered. The air was warm,
