It was a peaceful morning, with the sun shining brightly and the sounds of early traffic. The dogs were out of their cages and were roaming the courtyard; everything seemed calm and peaceful. I was woken up by the noise of a vacuum cleaner, so I got out of bed and started my day. I was heading out with my mom when I heard a scream coming from outside. I rushed out trying to identify where the scream was coming from.

Question

And there I saw my dog, Diana lying on the street whimpering with a car behind her, I was frozen in shock. I didn't cry, nor break down I just stood there. Waiting for her to stop whimpering and to stand up and to go back to how it was 10 minutes before, her running around the courtyard, but she didn't. She stopped whimpering eventually but her eyes started to close and that's when I realized the situation. My mom rushed me out of the area and brought me inside the house, a few minutes later animal control came.
Where would the exclamation mark go ?

Answer 1

The exclamation mark should go at the end of the sentence where you express your realization of the situation. Here's how you can incorporate it:

"I was frozen in shock. I didn't cry, nor break down; I just stood there, waiting for her to stop whimpering and to stand up and to go back to how it was 10 minutes before, her running around the courtyard, but she didn't. She stopped whimpering eventually, but her eyes started to close, and that's when I realized the situation!"

The exclamation mark emphasizes the impact of your realization.