Husband by Choice

She started to laugh. Funny, he was going to half kill her because he was enraged over the fact that she’d told him he’d have to kill her.

“What are you laughing at, bitch?” he asked. And she laughed again. She couldn’t help it. Life was funny.

And she wasn’t afraid.

She wasn’t afraid.

“Shut up!” He slapped her mouth, and her lip split. Blood pooled in her mouth.

She was glad Caleb would never see her like this. Such a good little boy. Who was going to grow up to be a man just like his daddy. A good man. There were so many of them out there....

One more slap to the side of the head and Meredith swooned. Too dizzy to think, she just knew stars and ringing...and pain, too. A lot of it. Everywhere.

She didn’t care. She was free of him.

With a rough thrust, Steve let go of her.

He always did when it got to this point. When there was no challenge left in her.

“You disgust me,” he said.

“No, Steve, you are disgusting.” How she got the words out, she didn’t know. And wasn’t sure he could understand them, but she didn’t care. They were for her.

And for Max. And Caleb.

“Either kill me or let me go,” she said. “Because I’m not playing your game anymore, Steve. I don’t care what you do to me. I’m not afraid. Don’t you see? You’ve lost your power over me.”

She was standing up to him. Finally.

She’d come here to finish this. To be free of the fear.

“You’re kidding, right?” His sneer was nasty.

And her head hurt so badly she was going to puke. Meredith tried to move, to stand. She got up on all fours, and started to gag.

“You stupid bitch.” Arms grabbed her midsection, dragged her the few feet to the adjoining bathroom and hung her over the toilet.

“You got to do something you do it there,” he said. “And don’t even think about turning this on me.”

He stood in the doorway. She could see him out of the corner of her eye.

Steve never touched her face above her mouth. And she’d always known why. He needed to be able to see her life shining out from her eyes.

He’d never managed to snuff out that life. Another funny.

Something sharp touched her hand, the blade of a knife. He wrapped her fingers around the handle and then it was gone.

“You tried to kill me, Meredith. I have a knife here and when they find it, it will have only your fingerprints on it. So just remember this, my love, if you ever, ever think about disobeying me again, or turning me in, or telling any more of your ugly little lies about me, I will turn you in. I will tell everyone how you tried to kill me. It will be your word against mine and I know what to say and to whom and don’t you doubt for one second that I will do it.”

He knew the police commissioner. Had saved his daughter. Steve had saved a lot of good people. And caught a lot of bad guys.

He risked his life without thought of cost to himself, just to make the world a better place....

Could she just go to sleep with her head on the toilet seat? For just a little while? Or did she have to puke first?

Blood cleaned up off of toilet seats.

And they weren’t that expensive....