First Eric/Natalia story. This idea has been floating around in my head for a while now.
WARNING: This chapter has mentions of Domestic Abuse and violence. Discretion is advised.
The feeling of having your life in danger is something one should never have to experience; especially when the one threatening your life is the who is meant to love, cherish and respect you for the rest of your lives. But lately, the feeling had been happening almost every day. But this day when he left the house and slammed the door behind him, she felt more scared than usual. It crossed her mind that he could very well come right back in that door with god only knew what in his hand, or even use his own hand, to end her life. He had done it more than once; she had been pinned against the wall of their bedroom with his hand holding her up off the floor as the air left her lungs, the darkness of unconsciousness pulling her away from the hell she called her life. The few moments following her return to the world of the conscious made her worry; what would he do to me now? What would he use? Just his hands? It was too much. Today, the moment the door had slammed shut, she ran to the bedroom they shared, tore open her closet for the three packed suitcases hiding behind her hanging clothes. This was it; he wasn't going to hurt her anymore. She would not be his punching bag anymore. With shaking hands, she slung her shoulder bag over her right shoulder, clutching the handle of one of the suitcases with a shaking left hand. She cast a look around the room that was meant to be the room of safety but instead turned into her torture cell. She let go of the bag, reached down to unplug her cellphone charger and as she did, she turned around and could almost sob. He was standing there; right behind her.
"Where do you think you're going?" He asked, his voice cautiously soft as he shoved the bags away and reached for her hand. Almost as if it were on fire, she snatched her hand away and reached again for her bag. However, he was too fast for her as he grabbed her left arm, yanking her close to him. The force of the grab made her cry out in shock. "When a man asks his wife a question, she is meant to answer him." He gave her a shake, causing her to cry out.
"I'm leaving you!" She cried out, feeling her vision begin to swim with tears. No more would she allow him to hurt her. She had to leave, and she had to do it now. The look in his eyes was one she knew would burn right into her soul for the rest of her life.
"I don't think so!" He yelled at her, almost right in her face as she used his free hand to hit her hard across the left cheek. The sting of the impact made her eyes swim, but she made no noise. She would not give him that satisfaction. He dragged her by the arm he had hold of, towards the staircase leading to the ground floor. Reaching the top of it, she felt her heart in her chest. This was something she always feared. "We agreed, until death do us part." She tried to fight out of his grip, but it only tightened. She couldn't help it; the pain was too much. She cried out as she felt something in her arm snap. Biting her lip to stop herself from screaming, she tried to focus her eyes on his; trying and failing to read what was going through his mind. But then she saw it; he wanted to kill her. Another hit to the cheek and a hard shove and she lost her footing. Down she rolled; down the stairs like a ragdoll. She felt each hit from the oak steps but before she could reach the bottom –
"No!" She sat up, her eyes not able to focus on the dark room around her. She felt sweat coat her skin as she reached over to the bedside table and pressed her lamp on. For the past three weeks, the same nightmare had been causing Natalia Boa Vista to lose what little sleep she could get. A soft moan from beside her caused the young Fed to almost jump out of her skin but then she remembered who was sharing her bed; the co-worker she had been drawn to the moment she saw him.