BEATING HEARTS: Stories of Domestic Violence

The Good Wife

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The Good Wife

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He doesn't hit me very often, so I guess I'm not really abused. He does other things. Like when he polishes his gun for hunting, he'll point it at me and say, "One wrong move, Roberta...and pow!"

Or he'll pinch me, real hard, bad enough to leave a big bruise. When he's not happy with something, he won't say anything, but when he walks by me in the kitchen, he'll pinch the fire out of me.

The latest thing is I can't eat with him at supper. I'll fix his plate and serve it to him at the table, but I can't eat at the same time. He has a stool from the kitchen that he puts in the doorway, and I'm supposed to sit there until he finishes. If he needs something else, or if his tea glass is empty, I should jump up and take care of it. When he's through he just leaves. Then I can fix me a plate.

Am I a slave girl, or his wife?

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