Page 7 of Clash

Fuck him.

Fuck him.

FUCK HIM!

I kept chanting it in my head, reminding myself to stay strong.

He tugged at his tie, loosening it along with his cuffs as he made his way to our bedroom. “I expect filet mignon and asparagus when I get out of the shower. Here’s a hundred bucks. Go make yourself useful and head to the store.”

My fists clenched as I reluctantly rose to my feet, staring at the floor the entire time. I wanted him gone; I wanted him to die. But I knew I was too weak right now to fight back. I just had to appease him a little longer.

When I heard the water start, I rushed to Alex’s room. He was sobbing on the floor, looking absolutely terrified. “I didn’t mean to make him mad again, Mommy. I was just worried about you. I heard him yelling again, and I wanted to protect you.”

“It’s okay, Alex. It’s not your fault. None of this is your fault.” SpongeBob played on the TV behind him. It was the episode where SpongeBob was trying to make himself stronger by working out. I don’t know why that stupid cartoon got to me the way it did, but it made me want to be stronger as well. Strong enough to leave Eric forever. Strong enough to save me and my son before it was too late.

“Come on, Alex. Mommy needs to go to the store.”

Alex followed me out of the house and to my car. I buckled him in the back seat, then quickly got behind the wheel, clutching it for dear life. I had to go… this had to end now.

The grocery store was long gone.

The town’s lights were well behind me.

Once I crossed the state line, I abandoned the car at a truck stop, managing to find a nice woman truck driver who was willing to give us a ride.

“You okay, ma’am?”

“No,” I cried out weakly. “But I hope eventually I will be.”

She nodded her head, noticing the bruises around my throat and my eye. “Want me to take you to a police station?”

I shook my head. “No, I just need to get out of town.” The police didn’t care. Not when his brother was the chief of police. He was untouchable… and I was just the woman they mocked when they thought I couldn’t hear. But I heard them. I heard every damning word.

“Well, I’m driving to Austin. Is that far enough?”

I nodded, my entire body slouching in defeat as Alex settled against me. We both were exhausted, the mental strife I felt seemed to weigh a zillion pounds.

“No, but it will do for now. Thank you.” And before she had even made it two miles down the road, my eyes closed, succumbing to the weariness that was already plaguing my body.

A soft knock on the door stirred me out of the mental prison I was held captive in. I don’t know how long I’d been sitting in the shower like this, but it was definitely long enough to prune my skin.

“You okay in there?” a gruff voice asked behind the door.

“Yeah, sorry. I fell asleep.”

“Food’s here,” he said in annoyance. “Hurry up before it gets cold.”

Was that an order or a request?I suddenly felt like Belle hiding from the Beast.

My body shivered as I stepped out of the shower that had turned frigid and unwelcoming. The warmth of the towel was a welcomed feeling as I wrapped it around my quivering body andcrawled into the clothing I had scrounged up from one of his drawers.

He lied… his boxers didn’t fit me either. My curves barely held them in place, so I restrained them with a hair tie, tying the side up like a ponytail.

The room was empty when I stepped outside, and I heard voices coming from downstairs.

“So, Alex, who’s your favorite character?”

“Sandy Cheeks.”