THE SOLITARY LIFE OF A BATTERED WIFE

She fell down on her knees

Her brown skin felt like it was on fire

She could still hear her ears ringing

The after effect of multiple slaps on her face

The bruises on her face stung her

She tried not to cry

Tears would cause her more pain

Crying would only worsen her pain

This feeling…so familiar

She knew she should run

But she wondered where her destination would be

She was tired of been found

Tired of been caught

She leaned forward

And then she moved closer to the pillar before her

Her head felt woozy

She couldn’t hear a thing now

The ringing sound had stopped

As her head hit the cold pillar

She could feel her torn clothes tear even more

She was tired

Exhausted

Broken

She had lost count of the years

The bruises

The scars

The sprains

The fractures

Inflicted by the man she once loved

The substance-addicted man of her youth

The man she called her mate

The man…her worst nightmare

She wanted to run

She tried but couldn’t

She wanted to scream

She really wanted to but couldn’t

No one believed her tale

He seemed like the replica of a dove

A good actor he was

The man was a dragon on the inside

They all thought she was lucky

Perfect

And privileged

So many envied her

How would she prove her story is real?

Who would listen to her tale?

Who would respect her words of truth?

He was the perfect liar!

The worst husband

And also the famous philanthropist

Her heart ached badly

The solitary life of a battered wife

The wealth could no longer make her smile

It no longer brought warmth

Neither did it bring her protection

Her childlessness hunted her daily

It created an invisible tag in her world

Redemption seemed far

Her story tasted bitter in her mouth

But there was no place to vomit

So she was left to swallow and remain silent

The luxury gowns hid them all

The beautiful jewelry covered them all

The cuts

The bruises

The scars

A tale well hidden

She lacked the urge to look in a mirror

Her beauty was the least of her worries

But it meant a lot to him

So proper arrangements were put in place for that

She no longer had cause to smile

Her face was well “botoxed” with lack of feelings for him

Her heart was a cold as ice

Life meant nothing anymore

She fantasied about a special kind of slumber

A slumber so sweet

A slumber that would never end

An escape from all the hurt

The pains

All the unhappiness

Away from a false life

Away from this plastic world

His loud snore forced her back to reality

It brought back her sense of hearing

The snore was all too familiar

It always came after the battering

A conclusion to the nightmare

The summary of the drama

The story of her life

The solitary life of a battered wife

By Sylvia Chika

sylviachika@gmail.com

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© SylviaChika 2013