Taking Time

Perfect Timing

    It was a silence loud enough for me to hear my pulse racing behind my ears. Deafening. 

    Neither of us had said a word. I wouldn't dare break the silence, I needed to see how deep his rage burned. The longer he went without breaking the silence let me know that he was not just furious. My husband was hurt, lost, and scared. He definitely may not have looked as such. In fact, he looked quite the opposite, but I knew him well. And as his wife, it should have made me feel bad to know I had scared him, but I was barely his wife anymore. And he scared me. 

    We knew each other from childhood. Once upon a time, it was a fairy tale life with Derek. He was everything to me for far too long. We were bestfriends as children, crushes as kids, dated growing up, and married as two young eighteen year old adults. It was like our small, simple, and intimate wedding was the kickstart to my new hellish life. My father was the main reason for the private wedding. I got to roll him down the isle in his wheelchair, but only a few weeks later, he had passed away from a nasty colon cancer that had been slowly eating him away for years. Since my mother had left us when I was a baby, I mainly took care of my father. Derek knew about my father and my nurturing nature. Once my father was gone, Derek must have thought that I was going to take care of him the way I did with my father. I was eventually, painfully, conditioned to do so.   

    Derek was taking a different route home than usual. I had figured that we were stopping somewhere, but I didn't care to imagine where. I let the twists and turns of the roads take me on one last sight-seeing journey while I reminisced on our younger years. Chicago really had some sights to see, you just had to know where and when to look. As I was sight-seeing, I found some of the buildings and roads to look a little more run down. Even most of the people we were now seeing looked more run down that anyone in the neighborhood that we lived in. I started to get a heavy feeling. Something in the back seat was tugging at my attention, but I didn't dare turn to look. I would find out soon enough.

    I was completely lost after just a few twists and turns. If I were to make it out of this s**t alive, who knows if these streets would be any safer. I guess that's why he had picked this location. 

    We neared the end of our journey when we turned onto a street that had 3 houses left on it. Bulldozed lots lines the sides of the road when there wasn't a decrepit building taking up space. Although the houses looked empty, I could feel eyes on our car. We rolled to a stop on the dead end road that turned into a dirt path. We were now surrounded by a thin layer of woods on all 3 sides of the car. The woods were a burial ground to leaves, litter, needles, spoons, and soon, my body. I could see it now, cold and white, just buried under a thin layer of snow. 

    I couldn't take the silence anymore. "What are we doing here?", I said sounding as disinterested as possible. My interest was in the back seat again, but I still did everything I could to resist peeking.

    "Come on Monkia, don't act stupid.", he sneered. "You bailed on me. You simply ditched me this morning, right? Well now I'm ditching you".

    That was all? Was this a joke? As I listened to his explanation, I started to feel a sense of relief realizing that my punishment was simply to walk h-

    SMACK. SLAM.

    f**k, ouch! 

    The smack to the back of the head was rough enough that my face slammed into the dashboard. I was surprised the air bags didn't deploy.

    "Wipe that dumb ass hopeful look off your face. Didn't I just tell you to not act stupid?", he roared 2 inches away from my ear. My ears were ringing again like they were in the office earlier today. 

    I didn't have time to respond or even react to the first hit before he was onto phase two. 

    "You're not getting off that easy. Dumb f*****g b***h", he muttered under his breath as he grabbed a fist full of my hair, and started to drag me from the passenger seat, across the drivers seat and out the driver's side door. When passing the center console, my eyes finally met my maker in the back seat. A shiny brand new machete stared at me, waiting patiently to meet me. This started to make more sense. He was ditching me... by leaving me in pieces in a ditch.

    This was it. I had to do something. 

    "No, no, no, no, no, no, no", I pleaded as I was being dragged. The feeling of being watched was overwhelming, but a quick scan of the street crushed those hopes. No one was around. No one was coming. There was no use, but still, I filled my lungs. Before I could let out my scream, his other hand was wrapped around my neck. My hands clawed at his, doing nothing. My trimmed nails doing zero damage, as per his design. He kicked my legs out from under me and I was immediately on the ground.

    "Derek, Derek listen. I'm sorry I forgot! I love you!", I lied. 

    BAM. One black eye.

    "Derek, PLEASE!", I sobbed.

    POW. Two black eyes.

    "You want to take the bus? With these people?! Well here, you get to live with these pieces of s**t then, that way you can take the bus together any time!", he roared. As he spoke, he grabbed my shirt and jacket by the collar and pulled me from the ground. He thrust me backwards until my back slammed against a small tree. It shivered under the pressure. 

    Although the closest house to us was still a couple car lengths away, I could see some movement on the porch. It had to be my imagination, it was too good to be true. The house looked far too broken down and ruined for anyone to live there.  

    Derek pressed upward with one hand under my jaw and clutched it with so much force, I thought I'd lose a couple teeth from the grip alone. His other hand moved to my sternum, which was probably meant to be placed on my breast, and he gave it a hard press. 

    I couldn't breathe. Suddenly, he put his mouth on my throat. I believe he meant to be tender for only a moment, but instead of tender, his mouth on my neck felt like two hard chapped razor blades. Everything about this last kiss was wrong, unnecessary, unwanted, and humiliating. When he sensed my discomfort and hesitation, he bit down on my neck. Hard. 

    "AAAHHHHH!!", I roared, thrashing my arms uselessly against his back.

    Derek bit me harder than he ever had, and I couldn't help but let out a scream for help. I was still recovering from that night a few weeks ago when he realized he enjoyed biting me. I still had marks all over my ass and thighs. This bite burned almost as much as the back hand I received for my screaming. This slap had put me back on the ground. When he backed up, there was actually a bit of blood on his lips.   

    "Shut the f**k up before I make you", he seethed as he wiped his mouth and went back to the car to grab the last instrument of torture that he would ever use on me. 

    I had to act fast. Without giving it much thought, I rose from the ground as quickly as I could and tried to run. I didn't even make three steps before his hands were in my hair, pulling me back down to the ground with the machete landing inches from my face.

    "HELP ME!", I screeched. 

    Derek came down on top of me as I landed on my chest and face. I felt at least two ribs re-crack. With my arms pinned under myself, I was trapped. He positioned himself tightly over me as to not free my arms, then wrapped his arms around my neck. 

    I was beginning to wonder if I had somehow deserved this. Karma was heavily against me these days, but I didn't  realize that I had done anything to deserve this.

    My head, pounding. My legs, numb.

    A loud crack sent chills down my spine and I was sure I was paralyzed. I hit the ground with a hard thud, maybe my back was broken? Strange.. Suddenly the weight of his body was gone, I opened my eyes to inspect what the monster did to me.

    I turned over cautiously, anticipating another attack. Before my eyes stood a man that I was sure was not real, an angel. A man who's energy radiated hot enough to warm my insides. He had a wild hunger in his eyes. His arms, pulsing with a web of dark veins, stayed tuned and ready for any incoming threat.

    But there no longer was a threat. The only possible threat was now dead at this mans feet.  

    This man just snapped the monsters neck.