Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

I was living the life every one else wanted.

At least that’s what it looked like from the outside.

I have the newest car, designer clothes, and my husband spoils me with every piece of jewelry he can buy.

If only those people knew what I had to go through in order to get those things.

“No, Clyde, please. Just calm down.” I whimper and lift my hand to block my face. He’s doing it again. This time, I don’t even know what I did to set him off.

“Calm down! You want me to calm down after what you’ve done?” Clyde roars and brings his fist down on my side once again.

Vomit surges up into my mouth and I have to swallow down hard to keep it from spewing out. If I throw up on him it’ll only make the beating worse.

I’ve been with Clyde for a little more than two years and if he has his way I’ll be walking down the aisle to be his wife next week. I need to get away from him but I don’t have anywhere to go. When I first got with him, I isolated myself from my friends and family. I thought I was better than them because of what Clyde could do for me. How wrong I was.

“Clyde please.” I curl up into a ball. I don’t even know why I bother begging. He’s not going to stop until he tires himself out. There’s nothing I can say that’ll get him to leave me alone.

The tears stream down my face, but I don’t even feel the blows anymore. I’ve become numb to all the pain.

I can see the bruises littering my body, a kaleidoscope of purples, yellows, and blues. My eyes are swollen and red from crying, my hair is disheveled and tangled. Clyde's face is twisted in anger, his fist connecting with my side over and over again.

The pungent stench of alcohol fills my nose, mixed with the sharp, metallic smell of blood as it trickles down my face. I can also smell my own fear and desperation, a sickeningly sweet aroma.

I didn’t want to admit it, but after tonight, there’s no denying it anymore. If I don’t get away from Clyde he’s going to kill me. It’s not going to get better like he promises. Things are only going to get worse until I find my image printed on a flyer, the description will be how I will be missed by my family and friends.

I can’t interfere.

No matter how bad I want to walk in that big house, grab him by the back of his head and smash his face against the cold marble counter top in the kitchen, I can’t.

I’ve never been what people would call normal. I don’t like being around others. In fact I’m most at peace out in the woods where no one can find me.

The only reason I ever come down to the small town here on the edge of North Carolina is to break up the monotony of living out in nature.

I’ve been peeping in windows for as long as I can remember and apart from a few close calls no one has ever caught me doing it.

When I was a young man I used to peek in the windows to watch the ladies changing. It gave me something to beat off to. Then after that I’d peek through windows to see where the people would hide their valuables, made it easy for me to steal when they were gone for the day.

Recently I’ve been peeping through Macy and Clyde’s window and what I see inside fills me with a rage I’ve never felt before. I know some people can be absolute jerks but Macy doesn’t deserve this.

Someone as beautiful and lively as her deserves nothing but the absolute best. Things I can’t give her. But things that seem to come at a price in Clyde’s mind.

This is the second time this month that I’ve come to watch them only to find him beating on her like she was an unwanted dog.

I have half a mind to march up to their front door and confront Clyde about his actions, but something holds me back. Maybe it’s fear of confrontation or fear of getting caught for peeping through their window.

So I do what I always do, I step back and hide in the trees. If Macy wants help she’ll have to get it on her own. I only hope she does before it’s too late.