Having returned home half-past nine, I find my husband, Rick, waiting for me. I had not expected him home at this hour.

Fixing me with a stern gaze, he sneers. "Looks like my bird's wings need clipping." He walks closer, reeking of alcohol. "Was it Diane again? You know, that bitch is hot." I open my mouth, intending to lie, but unexpectedly, the truth tumbles out, "Yes, that's one of the reasons I am sleeping with her."

What the hell!? 

Rick's grey eyes widen and almost pop out of their sockets. "What!?"

My lips open on their own accord, and I repeat the words. "I said that I slept with Diane."

Rick chuckles. "Is this your idea of a joke?"

I try to snap my mouth shut but fail. "You are an ass. All you do is take. You don't love me; you never have!"

As the words leave me, I start feeling lighter than I have in ages.

Rick balks. "Are you out of your mind? Are you possessed or something?" He grabs my forearms and pushes me towards the couch.

I yelp as the arm of the couch digs into the small of my back.

'Am I possessed? Why am I not able to lie?'

In twelve years of marriage, I had taken care of everything from his meals to his physical needs and tried my best to be the perfect wife, only to be humiliated and abused, both verbally and sexually.

I was a silent victim. I wanted to feel loved; I craved respect. I received none, at least not till I met Diane.

"NANCY!" Rick barks; our eyes meet. There is a familiar glint in his cold eyes.

"I am ready." I stand and smile. I know what comes next.

I didn't know what had come over me. But it had made me realize that I had had enough.

"I have already wasted twelve precious years on you. I am not going to give you any more." I assert, looking him dead in the eye.

"What do you mean?" He steps closer. His figures subconsciously go to his belt. He pulls it out, readying himself.

"I am leaving you, Rick. You can't stop me." I challenge.

"You can't leave me! You are mine." He growls and brings the strip of leather down on me.

I grab the belt, swiftly turn around and kick Rick where it would hurt him the most.

"Arrrrgh!" Rick winces. His legs give way, and he falls to the floor. "What...how..."

"Save your breath, Rick. You will need it when I expose you to the world." Seeing him withering on the floor fills me with satisfaction. "The truth does have the power to set one free, I guess," I state; turning my back on my cheating husband, I walk out of the door, vowing to return to the club I had visited before returning home. I needed to know what the bartender had served me.