Remarried to the Scorned

Trouble at home

Sandra.

I heard the first sound when I was in the kitchen but I didn't pay any attention to it. Then came another, and a third, and I knew I was in trouble. It took me a few seconds to come to terms with what was happening and my heart started beating rapidly after I did. I heard soft sounds like footsteps as I tiptoed to my room, bunching my flowing nightgown in my hand. I entered, locked the door behind me, and went straight for my phone. I dialled Brian's number but the call declined immediately. What the hell was he doing?

I tried it again and it rang for a few minutes before he answered. I quickly told him everything that happened and he promised to be on his way as soon as possible. Then I heard the voice of a woman in the background just before he hung up but I was too scared by my situation to bother. What was there to be bothered about anyways? He was at a party so there was bound to be lots of women there. And Brian had never given me any cause to be worried in all our years of marriage. He was faithful and loving and that is all I ever wanted after what happened the last time I was suppose to get married. After ending the call with him, I went to stand behind our bedroom door and I pressed my ears to it, listening carefully. I knew the exact moment the intruders entered the house and my heart skipped when they did. Brian had advised against calling the cops and I wondered why. I heard footsteps outside my door and my heart nearly caught in my throat. There was a brief silence afterwards, followed by a knock. The knock came again, a soft, yet threatening sound that sent shivers down my spine. The knocking stopped and then I heard receding footsteps. The person obviously sucked at moving silently.

I thought of clearing the things on my dresser and moving it closer to the door to serve as a wedge but I quickly dismissed the thought because I realized it would cause noise that would alert the intruders to my presence, that was if they weren't already aware. Instead, I went into the bathroom, locked the door, and moved to the bathtub to sit inside it. I don't know when I started praying and I continued when I saw that it offered some sort of comfort to me. I heard nothing for the next few minutes but I knew they were still in the house because I would have heard them if they were leaving. Or would I? Unable to bear the suspense, I decided to ignore Brian's orders and I dialled 911 on my phone. The call was delayed for a while and I started panicking when I realized that I might just be on my own in this situation. Then the voice of the operator came on and I felt a little bit relieved. I explained everything that was happening to them, gave them my house address, and ended the call. Now, there was nothing I could actually do but wait. What the hell was taking Brian so long?

I heard a doorknob turning a few minutes later and I gasped in fright because I knew it was from the door of my room. The door opened and closed softly and I hugged myself tighter until I was nothing but a little ball of white in the bathtub. I heard footsteps as the person walked about the room. Drawers were opened, followed by my wardrobe a few seconds later. Then someone whispered and it was met with another. I knew then that there were two people in my room. How lucky I was. The footsteps got closer and my heart began beating rapidly again. I squeezed my eyes shut and increased the pace of my prayers. My heart nearly flew out of my heart as someone tried to open the bathroom door. He tried again and again but he was unsuccessful. Then I heard him whisper something to the other person with him and the sound of a siren suddenly pierced the atmosphere. Both of them started talking fast and then I heard them run out of the room. Frightened beyond measure, I didn't step out of the bathtub even after I was sure they were already leaving the house. I heard shouting coming from outside and then there was a gunshot a few seconds later. Then there was another, and another, then total silence. Then I heard footsteps downstairs and this one seemed to be more organized. The footsteps got closer and I started panicking again.

“Hello?” A voice called out as the owner of the footsteps entered the room.

“Hello?” The person called out again. “You can come out, ma'am. It's the cops. You're safe.”

But I was still scared to move and I sat there in the bathtub, my eyes fixated on the shower curtain.

“Ma'am? It's really important that you signify if you're inside here,” the person said. Several seconds later, I heard the person turning to go.

“I'm here,” I said, barely able to hear my own voice. The person stopped walking briefly and when they started again, I knew they were coming towards the bathroom. I screamed as the curtain shifted on its rod and I looked up to see a man dressed in a uniform and holding a gun.

“Hi,” he said, his eyes roaming the bathroom. “Are you okay?”

I nodded gently but I didn't make any attempt to move.

He held out a hand to me. “I'm Officer Matthews with Lancaster PD. You're safe now. You're the one that dialled 911, yeah?”

I nodded again. I tried to stand up from the bathtub but I had been sitting there for so long that my muscles refused to respond. Seeing that I wouldn't be able to move, I took his still outstretched hand and I was able to stand up from the bathtub. He led the way back to the room and I followed him with my hand wrapped tightly around myself.

“I heard gunshots,” I said. “Did you catch any of them?”

“No,” he replied. “They were prepared for us and they outnumbered us.”

The drawers of my cabinet were still hanging open, same as the door of my wardrobe with the clothes scattered about. The bedspread was quite ruffled and one pillow was lying on the floor. Moving closer to it, I said, “So there were more than two of them.”

“You saw them?” The cop asked.

I shook my head and picked the pillow up. “I heard them in my room and I could tell that there were two different people.”

“There were four of them but they were unarmed as far as we could tell.” he said.

“What about the gunshots?” I asked, hugging the pillow to myself.

“That was us. They defied our order to stop and took to their heels,” he replied. “There's something you should see.”

“What's that?” I asked but he was already walking out of the room. I did the same and continued following him as he walked down the stairs.

“This,” he said when we got to the living room.

My head nearly exploded from shock at the horrible sight I saw in the living-room. I turned to face the cop as i

f he was responsible for it and he just shrugged.