Jenna stood awkwardly at the back door, grateful her children were tucked far away from them. The muffled voices of television actors floated down the hall and spilled into the dimly lit kitchen. Disbelief washed over her, then humiliation, but it was anger that finally settled around her like a warm fog.

Alex stood with his palm open, her wedding band set, including her tenth anniversary diamond wrap, winked menacingly in the soft light. He hadn't said a word since pulling them from his pocket.

"Where'd you get those, Alex?" Fury boiled inside her and bubbled out with the words.

"They were in your jewelry box."

Her eyes flew wide, her jaw slack. It took a moment before she could speak. "You went through my things? How dare you?"

"Jen, it was Hannah-"

"Don't, Alex." She threw her hand in the air, cutting him off. "I just don't think I can stomach any more excuses for your behavior. Not tonight, not ever again." Jenna turned to leave. He seized her arm, wrenching her hand from the knob. The action startled her.

Familiar fears, long buried, wrapped around Jenna's throat and squeezed. She swallowed hard, pushing them down as fast as they'd grabbed hold of her. She decided long ago, she would never be a victim again. The man next to her wouldn't make her cower. "Let go of me." The words ground out through clenched teeth, sounded feral, even to her.

"Jen, I'm sorry." Alex pulled his hand from her arm as if he'd been burned. "It's not like that, Jenna. Please can't we just talk about this?" He wrapped his fingers around the rings and shook his fist in the air. "About us, about our marriage. I want-"

"That's just it, Alex." She cut him off, not wanting to hear anything more. Jenna swung open the door, willing herself to remain rooted to the spot and not flee from his flailing fist. "From now on, it's not going to be about you and what you want. For once in this relationship, it's going to be about me!" She slammed the door behind her and bolted down the stairs. Her trembling hands fumbled with the car key, missing the mark several times before unlocking the door.

Her heart raced as fast as the engine carrying her car into the night.

The headlights tunneling through the darkness bounced along leaves drooped low over the road. The blackness hung heavily around her, opening only long enough to let her pass before closing in again behind the Volvo. It matched her mood.

She drove unseeing, gripped in the nightmare of her past. Had Alex intended to physically hold her at the house? The thought rolled the dinner in her stomach. Bile filled her throat. As angry as she was with him, Jenna couldn't believe he'd actual hurt her to make a point. After all, this was Alex Callaway, the man she once loved.