The Flashbacks

Prequel

Let's take a breath. Before I walked inside my front door, I could already tell this was going to be a long night. His truck never left the driveway: parked in the same spot it was this morning when I left for work. Here we go.

I turn the key in the door and take a step inside. The first thing I see is the back of my husband's head, sitting in front of the blaring television set. I shut the door behind me. This caused him to burst out of his chair and make his way towards me. "Bitch, where have you been? Where the fuck is my dinner?" he blared at me in a forceful tone. The amount of alcohol on his breath could kill a whole room. I stood there, taken aback for a split second.

"I'm sorry babe, work ran late and-" I said but was cut off abruptly. The next words that came out of his mouth stopped me in my tracks.

"MAKE ME SOME FUCKING DINNER, YOU SLUT!" I didn't know what to do. At this point, he could see the fear in my eyes and take this to his advantage but I wasn't gonna let that happen to me anymore.

"Don't talk to me like that!" I stood between him and the TV. He wouldn't be able to shove me without damaging the TV and I knew that was something that he wouldn't want to risk. I reached behind me and turned it off. "Can't you hear the kids crying upstairs? I swear Tyler, if Ava has another diaper rash-"

"You swear what? What do you think you could do to me you stupid bitch?" He got up in my face. The longer I stood there, staring down at my husband, the louder my poor babies' cries got. I had to be strong. For them. "I said, what are you going to do, bitch?" Tyler was so close; I could smell Jack Daniels rolling off his breath and the beer-soaked shirt. From the corner of my eye, I could see the empty one-shooters scattered all over the floor.

"Get out of my way. They need their mother." I went to step around him, but he stepped in my way. "Tyler, move." I tried to be aggressive, just like he was, but deep down I was terrified.

"No." He grabbed me by my shoulders and threw me down on the couch. "I just figured out what you're going to give me for dinner." Before I could even register what he just said to me, he was yanking my pants down. No. My stomach and chest felt like ice. I could take the hits and the insults, but I was not about to be violated with rape.

"Get the hell off of me!" I kneed him in the family jewels before he could get his boxers down. When he was on the floor, I ran up to the nursery, closing the door behind me. Without a thought, I turned the locks, and slid the dresser in front of the door, making sure we were safe. Why is this happening to me? To us? I'm hiding from my husband who used to love me, cherish me, protect me from harm. He was the one that stripped away my self-worth layer by layer. I had lost sight of the woman I used to be. Love to me was scrubbing your heavy words off my skin and making my mental state fall to the floor. I kept telling myself for years and years that I could fix him, but he's rusted out and can no longer be fixed. I am not going to let him hurt me again or get close to MY babies. I hear loud footsteps stumbling up the stairs.

"Open this fucking door" I hear him yell, banging on the door. I move closer to my babies, putting them both in my arms as their screams get louder and louder. Think Stephanie THINK.

"GO AWAY!" I sat down in the corner of the room, holding my babies close. Fortunately, my phone hadn't fallen out of my pocket with everything that had happened. With shaky hands, I dialed '911,' holding the phone to my ear.

"911, what's your emergency?" The lady on the other end picked up on the first ring.

"My husband is trying to rape me. He shoves me and hits me. I'm locked in the nursery with my two babies. I need help." I was sure that the operator could hear the kids screaming in the background.

"Okay, honey, someone is on their way. We have an officer responding from around the corner. They should be there any minute. Just stay put and an officer will find you" Her voice was calm. Right after she finished her sentence, I could hear the sirens coming around the corner.

"They're here. Thank you so much." I whispered. I waited quietly, chewing on my lip. I could hear the police bang on the front door. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the yelling to start.

"POLICE! OPEN UP" I heard from downstairs. I recognized that voice from somewhere, I just couldn't place where. I could hear Tyler opening the door and then I heard laughter. Laughter? That couldn't be right. A knock on the bedroom door caused me to jump. "Stephanie? This is Officer Cooper. Come open the door, sweetheart." Now I knew where I recognized that voice. Oh no. It was Tyler's best friend Leo Cooper. If that man was here, there was no way I was going to make it out of this house alive.

"I'm not leaving this room until my husband is in handcuffs," I called through the door. Jax had stopped crying but Ava was still screaming her head off.

"Steph." I heard Leo sigh. "I know you're not able to breastfeed and that poor baby is on formula, get out here so that you can feed her." His words were a stab at me. He was just rubbing salt in my wound too.

"No." I stood firm, putting Jax down next to me slowly. He hung tightly onto my pant leg.

"Come on, Ty." Leo's voice was quiet on the other side of the door. "Just let me handcuff you so that she'll come out of the bedroom. I'll pretend to take you to the station and we'll just go to the bar." They thought I couldn't hear through these walls, but I knew exactly what would happen. I open the door just a crack to see Leo putting the cuffs on my husband.

"Leo, this isn't the time to laugh. My husband has been abusing me. I have the scars and bruises to prove it." There is silence for a split second then laughter from both of them.

"Come on Steph, Tyler would never do such a thing to his wife, especially with his kids in the house." Leo immediately took the handcuffs off. "Look, I'll take Tyler out to the bar, we'll get some dinner and drinks, and it will be enough time for you to calm down, okay?" He asked me through the little crack. I slowly nodded my head, just wanting them to leave. I could smell a slight whiff of Jack Daniels behind his mint.

"I'll see you later, sexy. We can finish what we started downstairs. I love you." Tyler put on a fake smile, putting on a show for his best friend.

"See you later." I shut the door and listened to them leave. I went over to the window and watched them get into Leo's patrol car. I knew that Tyler wasn't allowed in the patrol car while Leo was working, but reporting him wasn't going to do me any good right now. I had to get me and my kids the hell out of here right now.