Was she such a horrible person that it brought the worst out of her husband? It hadn’t always been like this.
David used to be so sweet and spoiled her every chance he got. Once they were married though, a switch flipped, and the kind David only appeared after nights like tonight.
“You’re finally going to learn your place tonight. I don’t know how many times I have to teach it to you before you get it through your fucking skull.”
Cassidy could no longer hold back the tears threatening to run down her face.
Landing a punch to her ribs, “You are worthless.” Another punch to her stomach, “No one will ever love you.” Spots flashed behind her eyes as he slammed her head again. “You will never amount to anything but the dirty whore that you are.”
Cassidy didn’t know how much more she could take. “I own you and you will never escape.” That was the last thing she heard from David before the strike across her temple turned her world black.
The steady beepingand the smell of antiseptic greeted her when she came to. Cassidy couldn’t remember anything after the last hit to her skull happened.
There was no doubt that David brought her here. He needed to save face if anyone saw what he had done to her. Her face felt half missing and the throbbing that accompanied it hurt.
“Mrs. Taylor, it’s good to see you awake. You had us worried for a little bit.”
She turned towards the sound of the sweet voice she heard and her world spun. Leaning her head back and closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and tried to battle the nausea she felt.
Yep, she one hundred percent had a concussion again. This would make her fourth one this year. How many concussions can one receive before permanent damage occurs?
“No sudden movement, Mrs. Taylor. You have a concussion. We had to remove your spleen because it had ruptured and the fractured ribs you have will take some time to heal.”
She slowly nodded her head and glanced at her name tag, Hope RN it read. For once Cassidy was taking it as a sign. She had hope that this was the end.
“How long have I been here?”
“You were admitted on Tuesday evening. Today is Friday, so about three days. It has been a long uphill battle these past three days. The doctor has hope that everything will heal perfectly and you will be good to go home soon.”
“And where’s my husband?” she croaked out past a dry throat.
“Your husband stepped out and went to the cafeteria. He’s been at your bedside since you were admitted. I can page him if you would like.”
Rapid beeping followed Hope’s question, giving away the fear that gripped her soul.
“Okay, okay. It’s alright, Mrs. Taylor. We don’t have to get him.”
There was a pause before Hope spoke again.
“He did this to you, didn’t he?”
Cassidy nodded her head, refusing to speak the words. She had been asked that question every time that he put her in thehospital, but never before now did she feel like she could answer it honestly.
“We can help you. There are resources out there that help women in your position.”
“I can’t. He’s the captain of our police department. I’ll never be free from him. I need to get out of here before he comes back.” Cassidy started to pull at the IV in her arm.
“Wait, Cassidy, just take a breath. It’s going to be okay.”
“No! I need to go now. If he comes back, I’ll never escape. Next time, it won’t end with me in a hospital bed. It will end with me in a grave.” Taking a deep breath she turned and pleaded with Hope. “Please, just help me.”
She watched Hope pause before saying, “Okay, I’ll help you.”
Cassidy watched as Hope pulled the IV from her arm and started to help her put the clothes on that she was admitted with.
She felt gross putting them back on and would have loved to shower first, but right now she couldn’t focus on that.
She needed to focus on getting out of the hell she had lived in the past few years. That was the only thing that mattered right now.
