Title: Long Way To My Happy Ending
Author: Blondiebear
Rating: NC-17


Elizabeth stared sightlessly at the razor blade in her hand as she lounged in her luxurious bath tub. With each passing day, her thoughts and feelings were becoming more depressing, more stressful.....more suicidal. It just hurt to simply be. Every time she looked in the mirror, Elizabeth was reminded of what she was allowing herself to become and how powerless she was to stop it. She didn’t even recognize who she was anymore. It wouldn’t be long before she was just a shell of a person.

To anyone looking iin, Elizabeth was the luckiest woman in the state of New York. She had everything that any one could ever want out of life. Elizabeth had a great circle of friends and an amazing penthouse apartment in the upper-class part of the city. Elizabeth was the ‘it’ girl because she was the wife of one of the most successful lawyers in New York. Her ‘loving’ husband made so much money that she never had to lift a finger to work if she chose not to.

Elizabeth was living the life a queen...

...If only Elizabeth saw it that way.

In reality, Elizabeth’s ‘great’ friends were all phonies and gave less than a rat’s ass about her. The confinement that Elizabeth refused to call home seemed to always be cold and lonely. She always felt like she was in a museum with all the priceless furniture and art pieces. Elizabeth was forced not to work and really wished that she could. Oh, and that ‘loving’ husband of hers wasn’t a loving husband at all. Elizabeth’s ‘loving’ husband was the reason why her life had taken a turn for the worst. He was the reason why she contemplated ending her life for the last two years.

If only she had never met him.....

Elizabeth Summers and Liam Angel O’Brien had been married for six years. They had met not long after Elizabeth moved to New York. She was 25 years old and fresh out of graduate school and Angel was 28, just starting out as a lawyer for Wolfram&Hart. At first, they dated casually, not wanting to rush into anything. Angel was sweet and passionate. To Elizabeth, he had known and seen so much in his young life and that intrigued her. It didn’t take long for her to fall for him and Angel seemingly fell for her. In less than a year, she moved in with him and shortly after that Angel proposed. Blinded by what she thought was true love; Elizabeth paid no mind to the voice inside her heart that was telling her things were moving too fast. The wedding was planned in three months.

The wedding party included Angel’s family, friends and colleagues. Elizabeth wasn’t close with any of her family and the one person that she was close with had died some years before. Angel’s parents had been dead against the marriage but his father gave her away nonetheless. They wanted their son to be happy so they kept their complaining to a minimum. It was a very nice ceremony. Because Angel had landed his first big case, they put off their honeymoon. He’d made it up to her with a trip to Paris for a week and even after they returned to New York, the honeymoon bliss had followed them home. Elizabeth felt like she was on top of the world.

Soon, the wind was knocked out of her sails and Elizabeth was brought back down to earth.

Not even a year into the marriage, Angel had started turning into a man that Elizabeth didn’t recognize anymore. It started off as little things at first. He would pick arguments over the smallest incidents, like Elizabeth not picking up his dry cleaning or not making his coffee just the way he liked it. Often he would make her feel inferior and as if she didn’t know anything. He suddenly developed the ‘I’m right and you’re wrong’ attitude when most of the time, he hadn’t a clue what he was talking about. When the firm gave Angel a big promotion, things changed completely. Since his cases were going so well, he made Elizabeth quit her job at the art gallery. His argument was that he made enough money for the both of them. He would come home late and act as if she was in the wrong for questioning his whereabouts. Angel constantly blew her off to go to one of his pricey client dinners or work late at the office. Angel never wanted to enjoy quiet nights at home alone with her and seemed to throw a fit every time she asked him to.

Just when Elizabeth thought that the worst of his behavior was over, one night Angel did the unthinkable and hit her. Saying that it was an accident soon after and promising that he would never do it again, Elizabeth forgave him. It wasn’t long before he hit her again, and again and again. Soon it became a regular occurrence. To this very day, Elizabeth couldn’t remember why he hit her that first time. More than likely, it was over something really trivial. If Elizabeth looked at Angel the wrong way, he blew up.

The one and only time Elizabeth tried to get away from Angel, he made her pay for it dearly when he caught up to her. The beaten she suffered scared her a even thinking of running away again. And it wasn’t as if she could tell anyone about Angel’s dirty deads. To everyone else, Angel really was....an angel. Elizabeth knew better though. It was just a shame that she realized it too late.

Elizabeth let out a small sob of despair. Finally tearing her emotionless eyes from the instrument that would bring her so much relief, she sighed and placed it on the edge of the tub. She knew she couldn’t do it because she had never been a coward and had never taken the easy way out. Besides, if she failed at her attempt, and more than likely she would, Angel would make things worse for her once she recovered. Elizabeth lay back against the head of the tub and closed her eyes. She sighed once more as she struggled to find a time in her life when she was happy. It had been so long that Elizabeth didn’t know what felt like. Sinking further into the slowly cooling water, she tried her best to relax for a while.

Angel would be home soon.

“I thought I told you to be dressed by the time I got home.” Angel addressed as he stood in the door way of the bathroom.

Elizabeth nearly jumped out of the water not only at his presence but the displeasure in his voice as well. She clutched her wash cloth to her bare breasts in a lame attempt to cover herself. She had long ago stopped being comfortable around him when she was naked.

“I was just-" she tried to defend her actions. She hadn’t meant to disobey him. She had honestly lost track of time. Unfortunately, Angel wasn’t one for excuses.

“You were just disobeying me. Again,” Angel finished with a sigh. Immediately, Elizabeth started shaking her head in the negative. Her heart rate sped up and she was trembling with fear of what was to come.

“No, I wasn’t. I swear,” she assured in a rush. “I was just a little worn out. I thought I’d take a relaxing bath before your big night.”

Elizabeth thought that if she turned his attentions to the party that his firm was having for him then he’d forget about her so called disobedience.

“Yeah because lounging around on your ass all day tends to get a little exhausting,” Angel’s gaze turned into a glare. Elizabeth held down the angry retort that would surely get her a black eye.

*Whose fault is it that I’m in this damned house all day, huh?*

Instead, she just lowered her head and said the words that she hoped would please him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-"

“You know, you getting to be sorry a lot more than usual these days.” Angel interrupted as slowly prowled closer to where she sat naked in the tub. “I’d teach you a lesson but then that would make us late for my celebration. We’re already running behind schedule because of inability to think of anyone other than yourself.”

Suddenly, he kneeled down and yanked Elizabeth’s arm in a painful grip, which made her profile to him. As he boldly ran his lips, tongue and teeth along her jaw and neck, Elizabeth shivered in revulsion. Angel didn’t seem to notice though because he ever seemed to notice. Just when she thought she would heave from the feel of him touching her, Angel continued speaking in a harsh whisper.

“The car will be here in an hour. I expect you to be dried and dressed in that black gown that I took great time in choosing for you in thirty minutes.”

“Yes.”

“And Buffy?”

God, she hated that name. Angel had started calling her that just after the abuse had started. He used it to mock her and make her feel small. Not having any choice but to answer, Elizabeth did just that.

“Y-yes?” Elizabeth hated that she sounded so weak. That was never a word she would ever use to describe herself years ago and now it seemed to be the only word to describe her.

“Don’t make me come and get you,” Angel’s voice spoke volumes about the punishment she would receive he had to do such a thing. He had never been a man known for his patience. “Am I understood?”

“Yes,” she answered more confidently. Angel placed a chaste kiss on her cheek while his free hand pinched the left nipple of her breast. Biting her tongue to keep her cry of pain and surprise away, Elizabeth shivered as he whispered his last words before he left her alone.

“Good girl.”

***
A/N Leave a review!!!

In less than thirty minutes, Elizabeth was dried, dressed and ready to endure a night of complete boredom for the sake of her husband. The dress that Angel had picked out was one that she wouldn’t have dared choosing for herself. The black gown was ankle length and had a very high split up the left side. The top was a sort of halter top that showed off her...assets far too much for her liking. Angel had always enjoyed taking great pleasure in treating her like his own little doll to dress up. She couldn’t help but feel on display in this little get-up.

Elizabeth had always been a simple kind of girl when it came to clothes. Long before Angel, she had been fine with a pair of hip huggers and a plain t-shirt. Sure, she was able to doll herself up like any other woman when the situation called for it but preferred comfort over fashion. All that changed when she married Angel.

At first, he’d treat her to shopping sprees, buying various dresses and skirts without her knowing. With one puppy dog look from Angel’s chocolate brown eyes, she’d be showing off her knew threads even though she hated them. She wore them more out of gratitude than anything else. After the abuse started, he’d stop caring if she liked them or not and had stopped letting her shop for her clothing all together. It was his money after all and she’d wear whatever the hell he bought her. She learned that lesson the painful way the one and only time she’d argued with him on the subject.

Once her dress and heels were in place, Elizabeth went on to apply her make-up. Because of her latest shiner, she had to double up the amount of eye color, which forced her to double up on everything else. She didn’t see why she was covering it up. Everyone who was important already knew that Elizabeth was Angel’s little punching bag. They just didn’t care. As long as he kept up appearances and made them all look like royalty, Angel could do whatever he wanted to whoever he wanted...and that included her.

Finishing with her lip gloss, Buffy took in her appearance and cringed. How did she get here? How did she go from graduating in the top half of her major to this woman who had to put on tons of make-up to hide bruises that her husband had caused? How could she have let it get this far?

With a sigh, she turned from the mirror and held back a yelp when she saw Angel standing in the doorway.

“You scared me,” she breathed. Angel walked towards her with an innocent smile on his face. Elizabeth knew he was anything but innocent.

“Sorry,” he returned, sounding anything but. Elizabeth just looked anywhere but him and grabbed her small, black clutch.

“I’m ready. Sorry if I kept you waiting.” Apologizing was common thing when it came to her an Angel. If she wasn’t apologizing for something that she didn’t do, she was apologizing for something that she did do.

“I’ll deal with that later.” Angel waved off dismissively. “Right now, I want to talk about how delicious you look.” he finished with a caress of her cheek. Elizabeth forced herself not to cringe. His compliments had long ago stopped making her heart flutter with flattery. Now days, they just made her feel dirty.

“T-thank you,” she stammered out, still not meeting his eyes.

“But you’re missing something,” mused Angel with a playful frown.

“What?” she asked, looking down hesitantly at herself. Along with the dress, the shoes had been the only thing he’d left out for her.

“These.”

Angel produced a pair of diamond earrings from a small black box. “Put ‘em on,” he ordered.

Elizabeth had to admit that the earrings were a fine piece of jewelry. She still, however, didn’t want to take it from him. It was just like him to try to buy her off. As if a shiny trinket could make her forget about the hell he’d put her through.

“They’re beautiful,” she gasped and hoped he didn’t notice the reluctance in her movements when she took them from him. “Where’d you get them?”

All the playfulness seemed to evaporate from Angel’s expression. His gaze turned dark and his jaw clenched. Elizabeth realized that she had broken one of his golden rules. Never question Angel O’Brian if you what was good for you.

“Who cares where I got them, Buffy. Just put them on,” Angel growled. She knew that he was holding back, otherwise, she’d be half way across the room in pain by now.

“I’m sorry.” Elizabeth hurriedly turned towards her mirror and did as she was asked. Fingering them lightly, she took in her reflection.

*I look like a cheap slut.* she thought miserably. She’d never even think of voicing that to Angel.

“You are so beautiful.” Angel took her in from head to toe. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and hooked his chin over her shoulder.

“Thank you,” she smiled with as much gratitude as she could when in all honesty, she couldn’t care less if she was beautiful in his eyes anymore.

The words were barely out of her mouth before Angel had his meaty right hand wrapped around her neck in a firm grip. He wasn’t squeezing but his intent was blatantly obvious.

“Don’t embarrass me tonight, Buffy,” warned Angel. His lips trailed lightly over her ear and Elizabeth could easily hear the menacing tone in his voice. “There are some very important people attending this party and it wouldn’t do well for me and my career if you didn’t behave yourself.”

“I understand,” she said, meeting his eyes in the mirror. Angel smiled as if he didn’t have his hand around her neck and kissed her cheek.

“That’s my good girl. Let’s get going.”

***

Angel and Elizabeth rode in the back of limousine in silence. This didn’t surprise her one bit. She and Angel had long ago stopped engaging in conversation. Unless he was slapping her around or insulting her with his cruel words, Angel didn’t really say much unless they were in public. He had to keep up appearances.

To Angel O’Brian, appearances were everything. Again, everyone knew about his less than perfect marriage but he wasn’t going to parade what he did behind closed doors in the public eye. Unfortunately, Angel wasn’t that stupid.

Elizabeth held in a sigh when there limo pulled outside of where Angel’s party was being held. She hated these things. They were nothing more than a bunch of boring, stuck up people scattered about in a large room, with absolutely nothing in common other than their bank accounts. These people talked trash about one another and smiled in each other’s faces. They were fake and superficial and Elizabeth would sooner jump off a cliff than willingly surround herself with them.

Of course, she never did much of anything willingly these days.

The reason behind this big shindig was Angel’s victory on some important case. Elizabeth wasn’t sure about all the details. It had been a long time since she actually paid attention to Angel’s work. She did know that Angel won a client a large sum of money and the only reason why she had known that was because it was posted on every newspaper in New York.

As the car parked and driver got out, Angel took one of Elizabeth’s hands tightly in one of his own and squeezed. She bit back a wince.

“Remember what I said, Buff,” he said without looking at her.

“I remember,” returned Elizabeth without hesitation.

The driver opened the door and Angel exited the limo, not bothering to help her do the same.

“And try to have fun, dear; it’s a party,” he added as he walked toward the building.

Angel didn’t wait for Elizabeth’s reply and she had no choice but to follow him obediently towards the mass amount of people. She plastered a fake but well practiced smile upon her face and politely greeted anyone who spoke to her. She and Angel hadn’t been half way into the room before Angel’s boss was upon them.

Elizabeth groaned inwardly. Richard Wilkins was the sickest man Elizabeth had ever had the displeasure of knowing. Every time she was around him, she had to force herself not to cringe in distaste. Wilkins had a nasty habit of sleeping with girls half his age, despite the fact that he was married with two little girls. Since he owned the biggest law firm in the state of New York, no one batted an eye...not even his wife.

“Angel, you’re here,” Wilkins greeted with a huge smile. “For a while, I didn’t think you crazy kids would make it.”

“I apologize, Mr. Wilkins,” Angel smiled regretfully and shot a look over in Elizabeth’s direction. “You know how women can be,” he chuckled easily.

“Boy, do I!” Wilkins chuckled. He finally turned his perverted little eyes towards Elizabeth and looked her over with unmasked appreciation. “But if the end result always looked like you I wouldn’t mind the wait,” he said.

“You’re too kind, Mr. Wilkins,” was Elizabeth’s automatic reply. It took everything she had not to gag as he kissed her hand.

“Angel, why don’t you come and mingle with me a bit?” he asked as he dropped her hand. “There a few very important people I’d like you to meet.”

“Of course, sir,” agreed Angel. He looked to his wife and asked, “You’ll be okay, babe?”

Elizabeth knew that he didn’t give a toss about her being solo for the rest of the evening. As long as she played her part of the well behaved wife, he could care less.

“I’ll be fine, honey.”

Angel left her with a small peck on the lips and a threatening look of bodily harm later she acted less than expected. Once he was out of sight, Elizabeth headed for the bar and ordered ginger ale. She had never been much of a drinker. One would think with the hell that was her life, she’d be looking at the bottom of every alcoholic bottle there was as often as possible. Elizabeth knew that engaging in such a practice would only make her hellish life worse.

With a beverage now in hand, Elizabeth turned to the crowd of people and took in all in attendance. She found it amazing and a little disturbing that she knew each and every person there by name even though hadn’t really said more than five words to any of them. That’s what happened when your husband felt the need to know all of his enemies. All of these people were merely in Angel’s way of getting promoted to partner for Wolfram&Hart.

“Well, look what the kitty dragged in,” a dark voice broke into Elizabeth’s musings.

*Oh joy! Morticia’s arrived,* she thought with an inward groan. Turning to face her mother in law, Elizabeth plastered on her fake smile once more.

“Hello, Mrs. O’Brian,” she greeted.

“Buffy, deary, I’ve told you to call me Dru. Mrs. O’Brian makes me feel older than I really am,” she giggled.

Drusilla, Angel’s stepmother, was actually only eight years older than Elizabeth. Angel’s real mother had died years earlier. She was really beautiful, if you were into the really skinny and pale type of woman. She had long raven-colored hair and big, penetrating brown eyes. Drusilla was the type of woman that had every man in the tri-state area wrapped around her skeleton-like finger.

In the beginning, Elizabeth hadn’t minded the age difference between Drusilla and Angel’s dad, Henry. After all, a person couldn’t help who they loved. Soon, she realized that Drusilla was really a gold digging cow of a woman who wanted nothing more than to rob Henry of his mini fortune. Elizabeth would be surprised if Drusilla even liked the man. Henry, unfortunately, was completely unaware. He’d also been a big shot lawyer years ago. Now, he played an advisor to those who needed his expertise and Drusilla was right along with him, basking innocently in all the perks. Elizabeth didn’t know how but she could tell that Drusilla was cheating on him.

“I assumed you wouldn’t be attending tonight’s gathering.”

“I wouldn’t have missed Angel’s big night for the world,” Elizabeth lied. She would’ve rather jumped off a building than be here. She couldn’t let lady of the dead know that though.

“I didn’t mean to offend, luv,” Drusilla smirked. “It’s just that my boy said you were feeling a bit...under the weather the last time we spoke.”

“Well, I’m right as rain,” Elizabeth retorted with a tight lipped smile.

“Good.” she returned. Drusilla pinpointed Angel in the crowd of people and smiled. “No lawyer his age has managed to win such a case in years. Isn’t my Angel just wonderful?” Drusilla gushed.

“He’s definitely something,” Elizabeth agreed half-heartedly as she watched Drusilla watch her husband with unmasked lust.

Elizabeth had always been more than a little uncomfortable by how close Angel and his stepmother seemed to be. The two of them were, after all, closer in age. Angel always listened to Drusilla and didn’t hesitate to come running if she ever needed anything. She had this nagging thought in the back of her mind that Drusilla played a role more...intimate than that of a loving stepmother. Elizabeth, however, was too fearful to voice her opinions and turned the other cheek.

When the abuse had first started, Elizabeth had made the mistake of running to Drusilla in hopes of getting her to help. Sure, she had been dead set against the marriage at first but Elizabeth was certain she’d be on her side. Instead of having a shoulder for Elizabeth to cry on, Drusilla just laughed chillingly and told her that she shouldn’t have made *her* Angel so angry.

“Bad dollies always get what’s coming to them,”

To top it off, she revealed Elizabeth’s visit to Angel. The rest is painful history. Since then, Elizabeth couldn’t stand to be in the same room with the woman who would let her son, stepson or not, beat on his wife. She had learned that she wouldn’t be able to trust anyone in the world that she was forced to live in and didn’t make the mistake of telling Drusilla anything ever again.

“Drusilla, how are you?!” a squeaky voice exclaimed from the left. Both women turned simultaneously.

“Darla, luv, long time no see,” Drusilla greeted with a blinding smile. Both women hugged and exchanged more pleasantries as if Elizabeth didn’t exist. Darla finally looked in her direction and smiled, almost mockingly.

“Forgive my manners,” she began. “I’m Darla Stevenson; Angel’s personal assistant.”

Elizabeth resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She knew exactly who the blond bimbo was! Angel talked about her enough that she could write a book on the woman. And what made it worse was that Darla knew exactly who Elizabeth was as well.

“I know who you are, Ms. Stevenson,” she replied with a smile on her face but dislike in her eyes.

“Oh, Buffy I didn’t recognize you,” Darla laughed, seemingly apologetic. Leaning in as if she was about to reveal a deep secret, Darla continued, “You really should ease up a bit on the make-up. It’s very unflattering.”

Elizabeth tightened her grip on her glass and offered a thin lipped smile.

“I’ll do that.”

“Well, you must be very happy for your husband.” Darla moved on easily, sipping what Elizabeth guessed was wine.

“Ecstatic,” she returned feeling anything but. The blond didn’t seem to notice.

“All those long, grueling nights at the office really paid off. Angel worked me to the bone those nights.” Darla laughed and Elizabeth clenched her jaw in anger. “It was almost as if he got off on seeing me crack under the pressure. Isn’t that funny?” she asked, knowing clearing that it wasn’t.

“Hilarious,” Elizabeth said, barely restraining herself from slapping the bitch.

“I’m sure Buffy knows exactly how naughty our Angel can be.” Drusilla spoke up with a devilish grin on her face. Elizabeth blinked in surprise, forgetting that she was still there.

Elizabeth looked away to hide the humiliation that she felt while being in the presence of these two horrible women.

“Well, it was nice seeing you again,” Darla smiled innocently, as if she hadn’t just spent the last five minutes insulting her. Turning to the dark-haired woman, she continued. “Drusilla, we should really get together for lunch sometime soon.”

“I’d love it.”

With that, Darla Stevenson headed the opposite direction but not before flashing Elizabeth a smile.

“Well, I’m going to go congratulate the man of the evening. You’ll be alright here?” Drusilla didn’t even bother waiting for Elizabeth to answer before she walked off in Angel’s direction.

With a sigh, she headed towards the balcony. Once outside, she took in a deep breath of fresh night air.

Elizabeth didn’t know how long she’d be able to endure much more of this life. She knew she deserved better than this but couldn’t find the strength within herself to walk away.

*Face it, Buff; you’re stuck here. Better get start getting use to the fact that Angel will never let you go,* she thought miserably.

It was scary how the voice in her head was slowly but surely starting to sound like Angel’s.

***

Three miserable hours later, Elizabeth and Angel returned back to their home. Placing her clutch on the coffee table, she followed her husband into the bedroom.

“Are you hungry?” she asked nervously. “I could make you a snack.”

Angel hadn’t even looked at her on the ride home and Elizabeth wanted to gouge his mood. She had been on her best behavior tonight but she never knew with him. It was better to be prepared for his anger if he was in fact upset.

“I'm really not in the mood for another one of your cooking experiments gone wrong,” Angel returned snidely. He took of his dress jacket and unbuttoned in shirt. Elizabeth swallowed noisily and blinked back tears at his mean words.

“I could order something,” she offered. Angel moved swiftly to the closet and pulled out black pants and another white collar shirt.

“No need. I’m heading out anyway,” he said as he got dressed.

“What?”

“I’ve got some work to do at the office that can’t wait until Monday.” Angel clarified patiently. She looked over at the night stand and noticed what time it was.

“Angel, it’s after midnight.”

Angel stopped buttoning up his shirt long enough to glare at her.

“Your point being?”

“I-I just thought...." she trailed off fearfully when she noticed the look in his eyes. He shook his head with disgust.

“Well that was your first mistake; don’t think.” Angel grabbed one of his jackets out of the closet and put it on before walking towards her. Before Elizabeth knew it, the back of Angel’s hand met her cheek. She hit the wall behind her with a bang. Whimpering while holding her cheek, Elizabeth didn’t dare look her abuser in the eye.

“Your second mistake was thinking you could get away with questioning me like that. I don’t answer to you,.” he continued conversationally, as if he had never struck her.

“I’m s-sorry,” she stammered out.

“That’s one thing we agree on,” he grabbed his keys from the end table. “Don’t wait up,” he ordered, walking past her. “And wipe that crap off your face. You look like a two dollar whore,” finished Angel, never once looking back.

Elizabeth waited until she heard the door slam before letting the strangled sob escape her throat. Still clutching at her cheek with one hand, she walked over to her bed and curled into a tiny ball on top of the blood red covers. Instantly, she burst into tears.

Elizabeth wasn’t stupid. She knew that Angel wasn’t going to the office and if he was, working would be the last thing he’d be doing. She just knew that he wasn’t being faithful in their marriage but she had never caught him in the act. Angel did whatever he wanted, anytime he wanted but he never once admitted to sleeping with other women. Elizabeth knew better though and even though she stopped loving him a long time ago, it hurt to think that he would do something like that.

*Don’t act so surprised,* she chided herself. *There are a lot of things you thought Angel would never do.*

When the last of her tears dried, Elizabeth went to the bathroom and cleaned her face. Fortunately, Angel’s latest slap hadn’t left a mark. It was a little red though and she knew that it would be sore come morning.

Turning off the light, Elizabeth carefully stripped down and then put on a simple white t-shirt.

Snuggling under the blanket, Elizabeth was asleep within minutes.

***

A/N Please leave a review!!!

A few days later, Elizabeth found herself in the lower-class area of New York. Angel really didn’t think too highly of her going out alone, especially to places that he believed were beneath him. When he’d first found out about her going down there, he naturally threw a fit, ranting and raving about the possibility of being seen by a reporter and ruining his reputation. Eventually, Angel figured that he could turn Elizabeth’s visits to hood into some great publicity. Once the right people got a hold of the news that their golden boy was doing another good deed to society, Elizabeth’s every once in a while escapes became mandatory monthly visits. Somehow, he’d managed to make everyone believe that they were giving back to the community, trying to show how humble they both were. He even allowed her to still take a cab to the diner, saying that it would make the whole thing more believable. He sent her with a check and order her to give it to the owner of the diner that she always frequented. It was Angel’s way of securing his reputation if a reporter ever came to interview anyone at the diner. The owner, George, didn’t seem to care or notice that Angel had never set one foot in his establishment. As long as he got his weekly allowance, he would say and do anything Angel wanted.

Elizabeth hated Angel for taking something that was supposed to be hers and making it all about him but there was little she could do about it. The visits to the diner weren’t all bad though. It was there that Elizabeth got to unload the hell that was her life to the only person who cared for her.

“Hey, Liz,” Fred greeted. She was finishing up with a customer when Elizabeth walked in. “My break’s in five minutes. You want anything while you wait?”

“Just the usual,” Elizabeth smiled thinly.

Elizabeth had met Winifred Berkle on a rainy night eight months ago. It had been after a heated argument with Angel. She’d snuck out shortly after he’d left for the office. Elizabeth hadn’t really been aware of where she was going but had somehow ended up in front of a small but cozy little diner called Uncle George’s.

Eight Months prior...

“What can I get ya, sweetie?” the lady asked with a smile. It took her a moment to notice that her new customer had a busted lip and rapidly swelling cheek. Fred couldn’t help but gasp at the sight of her. “Oh, my God! Are you okay?’’

“I’m fine. May I please have a glass of ice water?” Elizabeth asked politely, trying to ignore the waitress’ look of horror and concern at her appearance.

“You’re not fine; you’re bleeding!” Fred reached out to touch her shoulder and Elizabeth flinched away in fear and a little annoyance.

“I’m fine! Please, just get me a glass of ice water,” she pleaded. People were beginning to stare in their direction and Elizabeth didn’t want that.

“Do you want me to call someone?” Fred offered, not caring that she had other customers to wait on.

“I don’t have anyone to call,” Elizabeth answered. She couldn’t hold back the small sob when she thought about just how little Angel would care if someone where to call and tell him of her situation, a situation that he was responsible for.

“I could call the police,” Fred offered, which brought Elizabeth out of her thoughts. She looked up at the brunette with wide eyes and shook her head.

“No! No cops!” she exclaimed. Elizabeth knew what little help the men offered and she didn’t want to deal with them. It’d only make things worse when she got home to Angel.
Fred noticed that the blonde looked as if she would bolt from her seat if she pushed even a little bit more on the matter.

“Okay, no cops. Got it,” Fred didn’t know what else to do but she knew she couldn’t let this woman leave without making sure that she got some type of assistance.

“I should go,” Elizabeth got up from the table. *It was a mistake coming here. Should’ve just passed out in the bedroom or something.* Before Elizabeth could even step a foot in the direction of the door, Fred blocked her path.

“No! Ummm... how ‘bout you come into the back with me and clean up a bit, yeah?” Fred didn’t know why but she was drawn to the small blonde; she felt as if she was meant to help her. Elizabeth wasn’t so sure that was a good idea.

“I shouldn’t-"

“Oh nonsense,” Fred cut in. “If you’re not going to let me call the police, at least let me clean you up a bit,” she reasoned.

Elizabeth really didn’t see any harm in letting the waitress help her, especially if she really wanted to. Besides, the side of her face was on fire and she felt like she’d die if she didn’t get any ice to it soon.

“A-alright,’’ she hesitantly agreed. Fred gave her a comforting smile and led her in towards the back of the diner.

“I’m Winifred Berkle but everyone calls me Fred.”

“I’m Bu-Elizabeth.”

***

It took a few more swollen cheeks and busted lips for Elizabeth to finally admit to Fred that Angel was the one responsible for her bruises. That conversation hadn’t gone over well at all.

***

“I just don’t understand why you won’t go to the police about this.” Fred wondered aloud after cleaning one of cleaning one of Elizabeth’s injuries one night after the shop had closed.

“Believe me, Fred, it wouldn’t help. I’d probably make things worse,” she rasped.

“For yourself?” When Elizabeth nodded, Fred shook her head in confusion. “How?”

“Fred, you know I can’t tell you that.”

“Look, Liz, I know I don’t know you very well but I like you. You seem like a very good person, a person who doesn’t deserve to be treated like some asshole’s punching bag.” Fred took a deep breath to calm her nerves and to prepare herself for the question she was about to ask. “Is it drugs?”
She was ever so surprised when Elizabeth laughed humorlessly and shook her head.

“I wish,” she muttered. “No, it’s not drugs,”

“Then what’s going on? You can tell me. I understand that you don’t want to go to the police but at least give me some explanation as to why you come in here looking the way you do.”

Elizabeth wanted so badly to tell someone about what she was going through, someone who actually cared about her. Maybe then the reality of her life would be easier to deal with.
With a deep breath, Elizabeth looked Fred in the eye and made a decision that would change her life forever. She just hoped it was the good kind of change.

“You promise you won’t tell anyone?” she asked.

“I promise,”

“I’m married....to Liam O’Conner.”

To say that Fred was surprised would have been an understatement. She never would have guessed that Elizabeth was married to Liam O’Conner. She knew that the big shot lawyer was married but the wife was hardly ever seen in the public eye. Even if she was, Fred didn’t pay too much attention. She didn’t like Liam O’Conner or anything he stood for. There was just something about his personality that screamed monster, no matter how angelic he seemed to be.

“The big hotshot lawyer that’s been all over television? That’s your husband?”

“That’s the one,” Elizabeth awaited Fred’s disbelief of how a man such as Liam O’Conner could do such a thing. It never came.

“Oookay...what does he have to do with...?” Fred trailed off when Elizabeth looked at her with haunted eyes and a trembling bottom lip. “He’s the one....he’s doing this to you?”

“Yes,”

“Oh. Oh God,” Fred started gaping like a fish out of water, not really knowing what else to say.

“Fred, you can’t tell anyone!” Elizabeth warned with frightened eyes. Fred narrowed her eyes and looked at her as if she were crazy, as if she had not just promised the exact thing a few moments earlier.

“Why the hell not?”

“You promised, for one thing; and no one would believe you anyway.”

“You can’t possibly think that,” she stated in disbelief. If Liam O’Conner was physically abusing his wife, Fred had to believe that he would be dealt with, no matter how successful he was. Elizabeth didn’t seem to have that same optimism.

“Don’t I? This isn’t just a recent development,” answered Elizabeth. “Angel’s been...it’s been going on for a while. Don’t you think I’ve tried to get help?” she asked miserably.

“Liz-" Fred tried once more to reason with her but to no avail; Elizabeth wasn’t going to budge.

“You said it yourself, Fred; he’s a big hotshot lawyer, everyone’s golden boy. It’d be his word against mine.”

“So you’re just gonna continue to let him do this to you? Until one day he really goes off the deep end and kills you?”

Elizabeth’s silence was all the answer Fred needed.

***

No more had been said on the subject since, at least not from Elizabeth’s end. Fred had made a point to try to convince her to try and leave Angel every time she saw her. It never worked though. Despite Fred’s frustration with Elizabeth about the ongoing abuse, Fred couldn’t abandon her, especially when it was clear that the blonde had no one else to turn to. She had to keep hoping that one day Liz would see reason and leave him.

Fred came over to the booth that Elizabeth was sitting in and sat down a cup of hot chocolate and a blueberry muffin in front of her. Elizabeth smiled gratefully.

“You’re the best, Fred.”

“How’ve you been, Liz? You didn’t come by last month. I was worried about you.”

“Yeah...I...I was kind of under the weather.” Elizabeth was obviously lying and it was rather easy for Fred to see right through it.

“Hurricane Angel hit again?” Fred knew it was a low blow but this thing was getting out of control.

“Fred, please.” Elizabeth begged. She really didn’t have the mental or physical strength to have this conversation. Fred, however, didn’t seem to care.

“This has to stop Liz and you know that I’m right,” she argued. All the fight seemed to leave Elizabeth immediately. She let the tears that were welling up in her eyes finally fall.

“I know. God, I know,” she replied miserably. “I’m so scared, Fred. One of these days, he’s really gonna kill me. I just know it.” Elizabeth’s green eyes were filled with fear and certainty.

“Not if you get away from him, Liz. You just have to get away from him.” Fred was confident that if Elizabeth just got away from him, everything would be okay.

“How am I supposed to do that? I have nothing without him. I have no money or family anywhere. Even if I did, Angel made sure a long time ago that if I did try to leave him, I wouldn’t get far. He’d find me.”

Angel always found her. What would be the point of even trying to leave?

“Not if I help you, he won’t,” Fred returned. Elizabeth looked at her with a mixture of confusion and a little hope. Could the small Texan really get out of this hell?

“I-I don’t understand.”

Fred’s grin unsettled Elizabeth a little but more than anything it made her believe that her life was about to change for the better.

“I think I’ve got a plan.”

****

A/N Things are about to get very interesting!

Elizabeth rode home in a state of shock and disbelief. She had just spent the last two hours having a conversation that she had only dreamed of having, a conversation that she had only played in her mind over and over for the last six years. To think that someone had taken the time to come up with a plan to get her away from her abusive husband had Elizabeth shaken. No one had cared about her like that in a while.

Even with the possibility of freedom, Elizabeth couldn’t help but rain on her own parade. The plan was risky and if it was just her, she’d probably say the hell with it and give it a shot. It wasn’t just her though. Fred was getting involved and Elizabeth would never forgive herself if something happened to her.

But God was it a good plan....

***

Two hours earlier:

Fred quietly led Elizabeth to the office in the back of the diner. Without a word, Fred closed the door behind them and motioned for her to sit down. Elizabeth was still confused as to how Fred of all people would get her away from her living nightmare but she couldn’t help but be curious. She watched as Fred took a small white envelope out of one of the desk drawer and placed it in front of her. Elizabeth stared at the envelope for what felt like hours.

“Well, don’t just stare at it at all day,” Fred said with a grin.

“What is it?” she asked, cautiously reaching for it.

“Open it and see.”

Elizabeth did as she was asked and calmly opened the envelope. What she saw didn’t surprise her as much as confuse her even more.

“It’s a check for seven thousand dollars.” Elizabeth concluded. “And it has my name on it.”

“I’m aware of both these things.” Fred teased with a small smile. Elizabeth suppressed a sigh.

“Why am I holding a seven thousand dollar check with my name on it?”

“I’m giving it to you,” Fred answered calmly, still wearing that smile.

“Why?”

“You’re gonna use this money to get away from Angel,” was her simple response. Elizabeth’s eyes blind a few times and her jaw dropped.

“Huh?”

“Maybe I should just start from the beginning.”

“Maybe you should.” This was making the type of sense that didn’t and Elizabeth was starting to get a headache.

“You know how Angel has been making you come down here every month with George’s thousand dollar allowance?” Fred waited for affirmation from her blond friend before continuing. “Well, he gives me half of it.”

“Okay?” Elizabeth was still confused. Fred took a deep breath and looked her square in the eyes before saying,

“Liz, George knows all about the abuse. Angel has been paying him to keep quiet.”

The news shouldn’t have stung but it did. She really wasn’t all that surprised that Angel would do something like this. She’d been married to the man for six years. Nothing about him surprised her anymore. No, the real surprised came from George. To think that someone would allow themselves to be bribed into keeping quiet about a man abusing his wife nearly made her sick to her stomach. How could someone be so greedy and cruel? Elizabeth realized with a start where Fred got the money from.

“And George has been paying you to do the same.”

“Exactly but I could never betray you like that. I could never take hush money to ensure that some bastard got to keep beating his wife without being caught.”

The thought had never crossed Elizabeth’s mind but she was grateful for the reassurance just as well.

“I’ve been taking the money that George has been giving me for the last six and saving it... for you. I had to add some of my own money to make sure it was enough to get you out of here. It’s more than enough to get an apartment and a car, a used car but-”

“Oh my God,” Elizabeth’s hand came up to cover her mouth in disbelief. Fred was serious. She was really trying to help her. Elizabeth knew that Fred cared about her well-being but this was unbelievable.

“I couldn’t just sit back and allow this to continue. I would never be able to forgive myself if something bad happened to you and I did nothing to help.”

Elizabeth ignored the tears starting to fall from her eyes and offered a humorless smile.

“It’s not your responsibility to save me, Fred.”

If she thought that this would phase the brunette one bit, Elizabeth was mistaken. If anything, it made Fred’s smile widen.

“Maybe not but I’m sure as hell gonna try. I have to try.”

They then began to talk about just how Elizabeth was going to escape and where she would go and what she would do if she did. The plan had to be absolutely flawless. Elizabeth’s life depended on it.

“Why don’t you go back to Los Angeles? That’s where you’re from, isn’t it?” Fred asked, looking at a mini-map of the United State. Elizabeth just looked at her as if she had grown a second head.

“Are you kidding me? That’d be the first place he’d look for me. Wolfram&Hart has offices in LA. Angel would know the second I got into town.”

“Damn,” Fred muttered. After looking at the map for a few minutes, a light bulb went off in Fred’s head. “I got it! There’s a small town about two hours from LA. You could go there.” Fred pointed out the place to Elizabeth, who frowned.

“Sunnydale?”

“Have you heard of it?”

“My mom and I moved there after she divorced my dad,” answered Elizabeth. Fred’s eyes widened. “We were only there less than a year before she got sick. We had to move back to LA so she could get proper treatments. After she...passed, I didn’t even think about going back. God, I haven’t thought about that place in years.”

Elizabeth rarely thought about anything that reminded her of her mother. She felt too guilty. What would Joyce say if she could see her only daughter now?

“Would Angel think to track you in Sunnydale?” The wheels began turning fast in Fred’s head. Now more than ever, she believed that this could really work.

“No. We weren’t really there long enough to make a life for ourselves so I seriously doubt anyone would remember us. Besides, Angel doesn’t know about Sunnydale. I never mention it to him.”

“And your dad? Could Angel somehow get a hold of him to track you?” Fred was covering all the bases. A un-lady like snort sounded from Elizabeth.

“My dad isn’t even in the country anymore. After the divorce, he could care less about me. Not that he cared all that much when they were married.”

“Okay then. This could work,” Fred smiled.
Elizabeth couldn’t help but catch on to her enthusiasm. She still couldn’t help but be weary of the whole idea.

“I don’t know, Fred. It’s way too risky,” she said pacing in front the desk. “It’ll never work.”

“Yes it will. We can do this,” Fred retorted. They couldn’t back down now. They were so close. “You just say when you wanna leave and that’s it; you’re gone.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?” Fred’s brow crinkled in confusion.

“If Angel found out-"

“He won’t!”

“But if he did, he could easily trace this back to you. What then? He’s capable of so much. I couldn’t bare it if something happened to you because of me. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

“You said Angel doesn’t know about me, right?”

“That’s right.” Elizabeth found that strange because Angel knew everything. He never once mentioned Fred or threatened her with harm if she told her anything. Still, for all they knew, the bastard probably had her followed every time she left the house.

“If we do this right, Angel would never suspect that I helped you. You just have to be willing to trust me. Can you do that?” Fred’s eyes pleaded with Elizabeth to trust her.

*What have I got to loose?* Elizabeth asked herself.

Everything.

If she did this and got away with it, she’d have nothing. She’d have to take care of herself. Could she do that? Did she even know how to anymore? Would she really be able to pull this off?

"What about George? I mean, he could warn Angel."

"He thinks I'm on his side. That's why he's been paying me off."

Elizabeth nodded and smiled her first genuine smile in years.

“Looks like I’m going back to Sunnydale.”

***

Before heading home, Fred had advised Elizabeth to act as normal as possible...well, as normal she could act considering her circumstances. Angel had to believe that this visit had been like all the others. If he even suspected something foul, the plan would be shot to hell

Elizabeth paid the cab driver and watched as he pulled off. She took a deep breath before heading up to their apartment. Angel was supposed to be having dinner with Drusilla and his father but just in case he was home, she had to prepare herself for what ever mood he might be in. Entering the apartment as calmly as possible, Elizabeth called out for her husband.

“Angel, are you here?”

She heard voices coming from the bedroom but couldn’t think for the life of her who he’d be doing business with in there when he had a big at-home office. Elizabeth cautiously walked toward their bedroom. The closer she got, the more the voices sounded like moans. Slowly entering the room, Elizabeth could barely hold down the bile at what she saw.

It wasn’t the fact that Angel was screwing another woman in the bed where she rested her head every night. Yeah, it hurt but the shocker was who he was screwing. Elizabeth’s sound of surprise and disgust was the only reason why they stopped going at it like rabbits on speed. They both jerked their heads in her direction and grinned.

“Well, look what the kitty dragged in.”

***

I wonder who that could be! What are your thoughts? Leave a review!!

Angel was screwing Drusilla.

Angel was screwing his step-mother.

Angel was screwing his father’s wife.

No matter how many different ways Elizabeth thought about the situation in front of her, she still couldn’t grasp it. She had always thought that their relationship was a little strange but she never would have guessed that they were this close. For some reason, Elizabeth just knew that this wasn’t their first tryst. And the worst part was that neither one of them looked guilty. It was almost as if they’d been waiting for her to come home just so they could flaunt their affair in her face.

“How was your day, honey?” Angel asked, as if he wasn’t still pounding Drusilla into the mattress. Said mattress banged against the wall with loud bangs.

“Oh my God,” Elizabeth just backed up from the pair and collided with the wall behind her. She closed her eyes a few times to get rid of the images in front of her but it was no use. They were still going at it like weasels. It seemed liked they were enjoying it even more with her presence. Elizabeth felt sick for watching but at the same time, she couldn’t turn away.

Angel had never been that way with her when they made love. Correction: When Angel had his fun with her for about fifteen minutes and then fell asleep or left the apartment completely. Not even when they had first began their relationship had Angel been so attentive or passionate. He’d never really seemed like he was into being with her intimately. He made it seem like it was some kind of chore.

Despite how overwhelming it was, the one thing Elizabeth didn’t feel was pain. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel betrayed, but she didn’t feel like her whole world was ending because her husband was cheating on her. If anything, it made her realize now more than ever that she didn’t love him any more. Abusive or not, there had always been a small part of Elizabeth that had loved Angel. Now she felt nothing for him. She didn’t even hate him.

A loud keening wail from Drusilla brought Elizabeth out of her thoughts. She looked over just in time for her to see Angel shudder with his release. Later on she wouldn’t remember why but in that moment something broke in Elizabeth. Not caring that her tone or words would get her in serious trouble later, she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the door.

“Are you two finished?” she asked with a bored expression on her face. It was the first time in years that Elizabeth really felt like her old self. She bit back a smirk at brief look of surprise on Angel’s face. It was gone just as quickly as it appeared though and then it was back to his smug attitude.

“For now,” he smirked. Angel pulled out of Drusilla with a moan of protest and got out of the bed. Not caring about his nudity, he went over to the closet and pulled out some pants. Meanwhile, Drusilla just lounged on the bed in all her pale, naked glory. Elizabeth had never been more disgusted with anyone in her entire life.

“So you two are....an item now?” Elizabeth asked, using one hand to gesture between them. “How long has this been going on?”

“Does it really matter?” Angel returned, buckling his belt. Elizabeth thought about it for a minute then shook her head.

“No, it doesn’t. I was just...curious,” she returned with a casual shrug.

“You weren’t satisfying my Angel, sunshine. He asked me to tend to his needs.” Drusilla cut in. She gracefully got off the bed and put back on her clothes. She then went over to Angel and gave him a chaste kiss on his cheek, keeping her dark eyes on Elizabeth the entire time. Once upon a time, that little act would have flooded her veins with jealousy. Now, she didn’t feel a thing.

“See ya later on tonight, Dru. Maybe I’ll ask Darla to join us this time. You know how she loves group activities,” he said. Elizabeth didn’t even bat an eyelash. She had figured he was screwing the office slut too. That one didn’t surprise her one bit. The fact that Darla was into Drusilla as well was even less of a shock.

“Until we meet again, my Angel; it was nice seeing you again, Buffy.” Drusilla said politely before grabbing her coat and leaving.

Elizabeth openly glared at Angel while he moved around the room. She was fuming and knew that she wouldn’t be able to hold back with anything she was about to say. She may have been taking a huge risk but enough was enough.

“Not that I really care at this point but...why?” she asked, moving further into the room. “If this marriage is such an inconvenience to you, why didn’t you just ask for a divorce? Lord knows I would have gladly given you one.” Again, Angel gave her look of surprise. After all, Elizabeth hadn’t been that vocal since they first got together. It was throwing him for a loop. “Why cheat, Angel?”

Recovering quickly, Angel sighed dramatically and said, “It wouldn’t do well for my reputation if the media got wind of me cheating on my lovely wife with my father’s wife. My career would be ruined. You wouldn’t want that for your husband now, would you?”

“And Darla?” Elizabeth asked, ignoring his question. “What is she supposed to be?”

“A good fuck every once in while. Lord knows I need one seeing as you’re not up to par.” Angel shot back with a smirk, trying his hardest to hurt her. Unfortunately, Elizabeth didn’t even flinch. Not one to give up so quickly, he continued with a shrug. “Plus, she has a bit of a crush on Dru so it all works out nicely.”

“Are there others?”

Angel looked at her a long moment. This was the longest conversation the two of them had had without him yelling at her or knocking her around the apartment. He was probably trying to figure out where she managed to get the courage to speak to him in such a way. The moment passed and he finally answered her question.

“No. I couldn’t take the chance that they’d keep their mouths shut.”

Elizabeth surprised them both and let out an almost hysterical laugh. Angel looked at her like she was crazy but didn’t back down from his overbearing stance. She took in a few gulps of air in between her giggles and continued.

“You really don’t love me anymore do you?” she asked. “A person couldn’t do the things you’ve done to me and still love,” she finished with a bitter chuckle.

Angel rolled his eyes and let out a dark laugh of his own. He slowly advanced on her in a way that used to scare her shitless. For some reason, it only fueled her anger.

“You always were a romantic,” he scoffed while get personal with Elizabeth’s personal space. “This has nothing to do with love, Buff; it’s about power.”

“Meaning?” she bit out in between clenched teeth. Angel grinned and leaned in and brought his voice down to a husky whisper.

“I own you. Plain and simple. I could do anything I want with you and no one would care,” Angel paused long enough to slowly run his hand down her cleavage. “I’ve got everyone in this town wrapped around my finger and as long as I keep winning cases and making the big guns look good, I can do whatever the hell I want, with whoever the hell I want. And that includes you, babe.”

Elizabeth suppressed a grin at how soon he’d be losing that particular luxury. Soon, she’d no longer be around for him to harass.

Angel looked at her thoughtfully for moment before giving her one of his charming smiles, a smile that use to give her butterflies and make her weak in the knees. Now it just made her want to heave.

“You know, you should really consider coming with me tonight. I’m sure the girls wouldn’t mind a newcomer. We’d have such a good time breaking you in,” he finished with a light caress of the underside of her breast.

Elizabeth really had no control of her mouth at this point. She couldn’t stop her response even if she wanted to. The look of shock on Angel’s face had been worth it anyway.

“You disgust me,” she spat. And to add icing on the cake, she shoved him back but not before finishing with, “Have fun with your whores.”

Heading towards the front door, Elizabeth’s brain was screaming in frustration and a whole lot of fear.

*Fred said act natural! That was so not natural! What the hell were you thinking? You better get out of here before he comes to his senses!*

The front door was halfway opened when a big, meaty hand practically came out of no where and slammed it shut. Elizabeth let out a yelp and turned around to face a surprisingly calm Angel.

*Too late!*

“That wasn’t very nice, Buff,” he said, caging her between him and the door. Elizabeth went in full defense mode and tried to move away from him, only to have him grab both arms in vice-like grips.

“Let go of me. Now.” Elizabeth growled. She didn’t know where this sudden act of bravery came from but now that it was out in the open, she wasn’t backing down. If this was it, she was going to go down fighting.

“Or you’ll do what?” Angel taunted with sneer. With a burst of strength she didn’t know she had, Elizabeth got one of her arms free and delivered a well placed blow to Angel’s left cheek.

If a pin dropped in that moment, it would startle them both. Angel slowly turned his face back to Elizabeth and she couldn’t help but gulp at the look of unadulterated fury in his eyes. He’d never looked at her with such rage before. Grabbing her by the hair, he threw her down on the floor a few feet away. Landing with a painful thud, Elizabeth’s hands were the only thing that saved her from getting a mouth full of carpet.

“You seemed to have grown a spine while you were out today,” Angel said conversationally. Elizabeth didn’t even bother looking back. Instead she crawled towards the bedroom in a vain attempt to get away and protect herself. Angel was too quick for her though. He bent down to grab her ankle and pulled her back towards him.

“No!” Elizabeth screamed, pulling at the carpet with each tug.

“I think it’s time for Daddy to put you back in your place,” he continued as he tuned her over on her back and quickly mounted her. Elizabeth’s heart dropped into her stomach when she saw the crazed look in Angel’s eyes.

“Angel, no!!! No!” Elizabeth screamed, scratching at any part of him she could reach before Angel finally got the upper hand and pinned her arms to the floor with one hand.

He used the other one to unbuckle his pants....and pulled up her skit.

“Angel, you’re hurting me!!”

“Oh, baby, I haven’t even started yet,” Angel smirked evilly before crushing his mouth to hers in a brutal kiss.

Elizabeth couldn’t believe that this was happening. Angel had her pinned down on their living room floor and was trying to...force himself on her. She would have much preferred a beating over this! Death was better than this!!

Angel managed to rip her underwear clean off her body before positioning himself at her entrance. Unfortunately for him, Angel made the mistake of shoving his tongue in her mouth during their brutal kiss. Elizabeth seized the opportunity and bit down on the appendage. Hard.

“Arrrgggg!!” he screamed, instantly releasing her hands and raising up away from her.

Not caring about the blood dripping from her chin, Elizabeth acted quickly and rammed her knee into his groin. Angel fell to the side of her with a pitiful groan. Not wasting any time, Elizabeth got up to her feet and ran for the door. She didn’t look back once as she opened the one thing keeping her from safety. Once it was opened, she sprinted for the stairs leading to the alley, not wanting to risk Angel cutting her off if she used the elevator. At this point, Elizabeth had idea where she was going. She only had one thought running through her head.

Run.

***

A/N So I chickened out on the rape scene! It’s so hard for me to read stuff like that so I knew writing it would be twice as difficult. This chapter was still very hard to write, so I’d appreciate some feedback!

Some readers were wondering if I had posted this story on another site. I had originally started this story about six months ago under a different title and wasn’t all that pleased with it. That’s probably why it looks so familiar to some people. I took the story down, edited it a bit, before reposting it under a new title. I hope that clears up everyone’s confusion.

Anyway, please leave a review! I’d really like to know how you think I did with this chapter.