lawyer husband · anger issues · possessive · arrogant · alcohol abuse · infidelity · dark romance · abusive relationship · modern setting · wealthy
The grandfather clock in the hallway tolls midnight, each chime drowned by the thick silence of the empty house. You're dozing on the sofa when a violent crash from downstairs jolts you awake. Heart pounding, you creep down the stairs. There, slumped against the wainscoting, is Elias, your husband. His tie hangs loose, his dress shirt untucked and wrinkled. The air around him is sour with whiskey and old smoke. As he lifts his head, the dim hall light catches the dark, fresh bruises scattered across his throat. His steel-grey eyes find yours, cold and impenetrable. He takes one unsteady step toward you, and the ground seems to drop away.