Chapter 3. Her Lonely World

She pulled into the drive way a little thankful that she made it home few minutes before her curfew. The sky was tar-black and the large clouds were showing signs of storm in it's belly. The pitter-patter of rain on her car became her nightmare instead of the Lord she would encounter inside the house.

She looked at the street through her side mirror to see people running for cover. Beautiful colors and designs of umbrellas were opened as the clouds spat out their beads of water. The tiny Puddles on the street were plinking as the rainfall became heavier.

She scanned through her car hoping to find her umbrella. Atlas it wasn't in the car. Her mind began to race as she kept calculating an easier way to get into the house.

"I just made this hair and I can't ruin it yet" . She grumbled as she kept scanning through the car kaleidoscopically hoping to find something that could stand in place of an umbrella.

Few minutes had passed and nothing was available to protect her from the rain so she prepared her mind to run into the rain.

"Amy! You need to go through this heavy down pour just somehow". Taking a deep breath she counted "1, 2 ,3, Go!"

She was still in the car.

The thought of getting drenched in rain kept her back from Sprinting off the car after her counts.

"Now this is it! I am going now, so last count" taking a deep breath, she started again "1, 2, 3, go! Now!".

She quickly clicked on the Key fob which released the latch thereby giving a click sound. With her bag on her head in bid to protect her new hair style, Amy pushed the door open, then she hurried out from the car almost immediately. The thud of the slammed door could be heard few meters away as she ran through the rain to the porch.

"Rain could be such an uninvited mess" she grouched. "It could have happened some other day but it just had to pick this day!". The discontent was vivid both in her voice and attitude.

Amelia pulled off her jacket hoping to get rid of some wetness before getting into the house.

She could hear light music coming from the living room. "That's odd" Amy whispered as she tip toed and slinked by the corners of the window to get a view of her sitting room. The curtains were down therefore, she was unable to see inside the house.

"what do I do now?" Amy whispered. unable to think of anything else, she began to calculate her next line of action then it occured to her to check if the handle was broken. 'Maybe a burglar broke in' Amy speculated. Twisting the door knob to realize it wasn't broken. The person inside the house certainly has a key.

Scared Amy stuck her head through the slightly ajar door taking a quick glance of the visible parts of her home. On seeing nothing alarming except for the music, she stealthily walked into the house shutting the door quietly behind her so as not to give her presence away to the intruder.

The quiet walk into the house gave her enough time to look around for a weapon incase she needed to defend herself.

Standing at the entrance of her living room, she could only see a glass of whiskey sitting on the coffee table with a business magazine beside it.

"Where have you been?" The orotund voice from the kitchen lashed out.

Quickly turning to face the voice , her chin trembled as her eyes fell to half his body. "I had to make my hair" she wobbled through each word.

This place she spends more than ninety percent of her life is her nightmare. Out in public, she was a queen whereas in here, she was worse than a commoner.

Sliding his hands into his pants pockets, he slowly walked closer to her as though he was counting his steps. He halted few meters Infront of her; just enough for a close hand shake. Pointing at her he began, "you don't move an inch to any where outside this house without my permission". He scowl as he continued "I am your husband and your master. I don't care if your hair is a mess. Don't go anywhere without my permission!"

"Rightly understood." her wavering voice replied almost immediately too. "I am sorry".

"You had better be. Next time you may need to treat your injuries as I wouldn't warn you again".

She stepped back as her head was still bowed.

Amy dared not to look straight at Jack when he get this furious which is almost every time.

"Get me a cup of coffee. I don't want to ask for it again". His voice was quiet stringent and lacked love for the woman before him. It didn't feel like they had affection between them. Oddly enough, their marriage is half a decade old.

Tossing her Hermes bag on the side of the sitting room, Amy rushed straight into the kitchen dashing to the coffee machine. If he called her name anytime soon, she would have to go to bed in bruises.

'How did I get here?' was the resounding thought in her head. Young Amy didn't have the best clothes nor dreamt of ever wearing top designers outfits but she was happy and cherry. 'They said money would make me happy. They said it was every woman's dreams to marry a rich man. Well, this is far from a dream. This is such nightmare'.

The sound of the boiling coffee pulled her back to reality. She turned off the kettle then fetched the coffee cup as she quickly poured a generous quantity of the beverage into the cup.

The walk to the living room was filled with questions of what next could happen before she goes to bed. The day wasn't over yet so Amy would dare not put her guards down as anything could go wrong at any time. This would subsequently be followed by punches, kicks and slaps.

"I was just going to call you. You are certainly in luck today", he said while giving her a repulsive glare.

"I am sorry. I tried to be quick..."

"You never try hard enough. You are such a sluggish fellow" he cuts in while arching back. Maybe to have a clearer look at her.

Amy quietly placed the cup on the coffee table. Responding or apologizing any further may aggravate him even more.

"Stand there!. You only leave when I ask you to".

Her head slightly downturned as she tugged on her left earlobe praying the day ends without violence of any kind.

The splash of hot coffee on Amy's chest caused her to impulsively take few steps back.

He scowled. “Why do you always act like such an idiot? Why is this too hot?” his eyes bulged in anger.

"I am sorry. I didn't mean..."

"Shut up!" He sneered as his jaw clenched visibily. "You never do anything right. You get the most expensive things from me yet you are worse than use*less!"

Amy's eyes instantly became moist. That moment, she wished the earth would open it's doors to bury her beneath it.

"It's amazing how just one person can be so use*less!" He cursed as he walked to the stairs while leaving her behind.

'Was this ever going to get better? For how long would this continue. If I reacted, would he change? What if I lose my marriage while trying to make him respect and love me? May be marriage is actually a serious business that is absent of love. May be I am asking for too much.' Amelia's puzzled mind couldn't find answers to the burden in her heart.

Using her arms, she wiped off the tears that rolled down her cheeks. Still hopeful that the day would end without punches and bruises, she calmly picked up the cup before her then headed back to the kitchen.

'It will end well'. She hoped.