Fractured

10

She always tried her best, as all lawyers must do. She cared for her work and the people she worked for. She was often spoken of in hushed tones, people were afraid of going against her, there was not much one could do against a women like her. People whispered behind her back, they talked about the life she'd led, the choices she'd made and the problems she'd faced.

Astrid Walker lived with her small family near a round-a-bout. Not that there's anything special about that, she just happened to live there. But she also built her house with her husband a short five years ago. In this day and age there was something to say about people that built there won house, they did not hire contractors or buy a house, Astrid and Graham Walker had built their own.

But Astrid was not happy with her life, she enjoyed her work and she loved her son, but Graham made life hard. Her husband came back from the Vietnam almost eight years ago now, but he had succumbed to drink. Graham didn't come home most nights, Astrid would normally collect him from the local pub to make sure he didn't hurt anyone. However, sometimes he did come home... and those were not the good times.

It was late, Astrid had a case early the next morning and she truly needed her sleep, eventually she decided not to wait for Graham to come home, she couldn't wait for him anymore, not after what had happened.

A week ago Graham had come home on his own for the first time in what seemed like months, his breath smelled of alcohol and his appearance was dishevelled. He had no keys so he pounded his fists upon the front door of his house, he thundered aloud, yelling at his wife to open the house. Eventually she came. She opened the door and she was horrified by what her husband had become, he looked like the Bogeyman himself. Graham barged into the house, knocking his wife to the ground, when Astrid screamed Graham didn't even look down at her. He just walked past.

Astrid followed him to the bedroom and yelled at him, how could he treat her this way? Graham was still impartial to her voice, there was no getting through to him. Astrid walked to hi and thumped her hand on his chest, trying to get some attention out of him.

Graham hurt his wife.

This all passed through Astrid's mind as she climbed the stairs to bed. She heard a sound behind her, it was Nathaniel, her son. Astrid hugged him and held his hand as they climbed the stairs together, she took him to his bed and wished him goodnight, pulling up the covers as she did so. After her son was in bed, she crept to her room to catch some sleep.

Astrid was awakened by a drunken scrawl, her husband called out to her in the early hours of the morning. He looked as though he had drunk a lot this time and she was afraid. Her husband said he was home, obviously that scared her, she did not want to see him, and he was almost like the devil now. He called again and she knew he would wake Nathaniel if she did not go to him. So Astrid left the comfort of her bed and set forth to the hallway where her husband was standing.

What she saw horrified her, on the floor in front of her dearly beloved was the limp body of her son. It all hit her in that moment, the choice she should have made last week, the monster her husband had become and the life she could no longer live. She and her son were no longer going to be safe here. She realised that now, and so she made her choice. Astrid ran to her son and gathered him in her arms, they fled to her bedroom behind a locked door and they waited for her husband to leave again.

Graham went away half way through the next day and they gathered all their belongings, or at least as much as they could collect and filled the car. But they didn't leave just yet, Astrid and Nathaniel sat in her car, they waited for Graham's arrival that night and when he finally arrived he had to watch them go, Astrid gave him her wedding ring and told him never to look for them. After they left, Graham soon righted his wrongs, he made new choices, but he, like his wife had walked the hard road. And his son would do the same.