pedal. In doing so, he almost locked the wheels. The car veered off the road onto the left, narrowly missing the Valliant’s nearside mudguard. Frank turned to me and said, ‘You think you’re so bloody smart and such a good driver, you can drive the rest of the way home.’
Without daring to question his peculiar sense of reasoning, I silently sighed with relief and slid behind the wheel. I had only gone a few hundred yards when his demanding, menacing, voice ordered me to drive to the nearest pub. I told him that I wouldn’t.
My voice was shaky, both with fear of the consequences of what might happen for defying him and also from the near catastrophe a few minutes beforehand. Frank poked his index finger hard and deep into my cheek and said through clenched teeth, ‘I said drive me to the nearest pub, bitch head.’
I replied very determinedly that I was driving us home, where our kids were waiting for us, it’s almost six-thirty and it was getting dark and the kids would be worrying and wondering where the hell we were.
Frank let out a demented, taunted laugh, which reminded me of the haunted house type movies I saw as a child,
Frank ‘That’s a good one, you being worried about the kids. The only person you worry about is yourself. And anyhow they’re your kids, not mine.’
Amelia ‘Oh for God’s sake don’t be so damned ridiculous, Frank you know as well as I do that they’re your children.’
Frank ‘Oh no they’re not I’m only their father but I don’t own them, you’ve seen to that. You’ve turned them against me, you and that bastard of a father of yours. The great Rob Long whatever Daddy says little Amelia does cause Daddy’s the boss.’
Frank continued, ‘Well I’m telling you bitch your father is nothing. He’s just a two-bob lair who likes to big note himself.’
His voice was almost at screaming point, and just to prove to me that he meant what he said, he aimed a hard punch to the side of my head, behind my left ear. Choking back the tears, I gripped hold of the steering wheel as hard as I could, so that I didn’t lose control of the vehicle or my temper. I drove home in silence, and as soon as we walked through the back door, Vivian, Heather and Claire gave out a resounding chorus of, ‘Hello, Dad.’
Vivian took one look at her father, and without erasing her smile, she glanced imploringly at me. I flashed a despairing look at her. Vivian knew instinctively what that look meant. We had often communicated to each other with facial expressions, and the look I had shown was, watch what you say, he’s in a very bad mood.
Although Heather was only a few weeks off her tenth birthday, I knew not to even try giving her a warning look. Even if she knew what the look meant, she wouldn’t have heeded it anyway. Heather held her own counsel and if she didn’t want to do a particular thing, she just wouldn’t and that was that.
Claire at four and a half was far too young to understand any such warning glances from anyone. Besides to her, her father was the greatest man in the world. She idolised him. And Frank, knowing this, showed favouritism to her. Claire put her hands up to her father to be picked up and given a cuddle. As he leant forward to lift her, he lost his balance and fell against the kitchen cupboard. Claire let out a little giggle and in mock reprimand she said, ‘Daddy, have you been on the drunk again.’
Little did she realise what repercussions her innocent remark would bring. I pretended not to hear the comment and took the electric frypan from its cupboard and indicated to Vivian to get the other two out of the room. As she walked out the arched doorway into the living room, she called to Heather and Claire to come and see Santa Claus on TV. I turned to Frank
Amelia ‘Do you want vegetables or salad with your steak?’
Frank snarled, ‘You bitch, you put her up to that didn’t you?
Amelia ‘I don’t know what you mean.’
Frank ‘Don’t give me that ya bitch, you know what I’m talking about. You told Claire to say that didn’t you? Admit it.’
Amelia ‘Frank, don’t be so stupid, she’s only a baby, and how could I have put her up to anything? I’ve just this minute walked in the door and I haven’t even opened my mouth.’
He grabbed me by the throat with his left hand and squeezed hard.
Frank ‘I oughta choke you, ya bitch.’
He then spat in my face. I struggled to get free and in doing so, I raised my arm to wipe his saliva off my face, with my sleeve. Frank then delivered a punch to my left temple with his right hand, knocking me to the floor.
Frank ‘Trying to hit me were you bitch? I’ll give you what for, you ever hit me.’
With that he kicked out at me. I rolled my legs over far enough to allow his boot to just graze the side of my left calf. And I scrambled to my feet screaming hysterically.
‘You bastard, I hope you rot in hell.’
Frank lunged forward to grab hold of me, just as I started to run for the back door. He grabbed me by the hair and pulled as hard as he could. He lifted his hand above his head as if to strike me a backhanded blow.
Vivian terrified, screamed, ‘DAD, PLEASE DAD, DON’T.’
Heather was crying and Claire had begun to scream. Frank turned towards the children and ordered to them, ‘Get out or you’ll all get a thrashing.’
He lowered his hand and let go of my hair and shoved me towards the children then stormed towards the back door
Frank ‘I’m going to the pub and I might not be back.’
As he stamped down the back stairs, I mumbled under my breath, I hope to Christ you fall down the stairs and break your neck, you bastard.
* * *
Ambulance man ‘Mrs Williams.’
His soft wheezing voice broke my thoughts.
Amelia ‘Pardon?’
Whilst wiping my face with a tissue.
I looked up to face the elderly, overweight, gentleman standing in front of me. He coughed a rasping, dry, hollow, sound. I gathered my thoughts and realised that this fellow was one of the ambulance attendants. I felt a sudden hot flush of embarrassment and tried desperately to stifle a broad smile as the thought crossed my mind, God the ambulance man looks as if he needs an ambulance. He sucked in air through his thick lips, in short quick gasps.
Ambulance man ‘We can’t turn the stretcher through the back or front doors to go down the stairs, so we won’t be able to carry your husband on the stretcher to the ambulance.’
He gasped again, and the sound of air being sucked in between his teeth, made a slight whistling noise.
Amelia ‘ Christ.’
I pressed my hands onto the armrests of the lounge chair in an effort to levitate myself into a standing position. I could feel the blood rush to my head,
