Jo sat across from Dr Klein again; just as she had done every day for the past three weeks. Their sessions had been mainly silence, with Dr Klein attempting to get Jo to speak to her, and Jo stubbornly refusing to bring up what had happened, and was still refusing to take the medication.
Dr Klein was becoming exasperated; she looked across the table at Jo; "Good afternoon.."
Jo looked back at Dr Klein; "Good afternoon."
Dr Klein looked at the file in front of her, then back at Jo; "Can you tell me what happened…before you came here?"
Jo dropped her glance to the floor, "No. I don't want to have to think about it."
Dr Klein exhaled. "Jo…I understand what you're going through."
Jo looked as though someone had slapped her. She suddenly stood; slamming both hands down on the table as she did. "You understand? How could you possibly understand! Do you know what it's like to wake up every morning and feel your stomach sink as the door to your room opens and you have no idea if the person entering is going to give you food, or kill you? How it feels to be beaten, to have buckets of freezing water thrown over you!"
Jo was shouting; her voice shaky. Her eyes were wide and she was struggling to hold back tears. "Can you, then, understand what it feels like to be violated every single day? To feel ashamed and disgusted at yourself! Do you know what it is to miss your children so much, to worry that you may never see them again! Do you know how it feel s to be pinned to a table, and have your unborn baby killed, inside you, with an unwound coat hanger, to feel yourself passing Its remains into a dirty plastic bucket while you try not to pass out from the pain! You do not understand any of it!" Jo sank back down into the chair, her face in her hands. She was sobbing.
Dr Klein exhaled, she had dealt with countless traumatised agents now for many years, but she hadn't quite known how to help Jo. She was different.
Jo's shoulders were shaking, her breaths were ragged and she sounded devastated. After a few minutes she looked up from her hands and at Dr Klein. "Y..yes..sorry."
Dr Klein passed her a glass of water. "It may have taken you to yell at me, but at least you've let it out a bit." She was writing as she spoke. She set down her pen and looked at Jo. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Jo took a sip of the water "I…I don't know, Yes. No. I just want to get his face out of my mind; I don't want to remember it."
Dr Klein interlinked her fingers. "Jo. Talking about it may be a release. I can't force you, but, you may find that telling me a bit more; in a calmer environment; might help. Would you be willing to tell me a bit? Just; whatever you're comfortable with."
Jo sat in silence for what seemed like hours; it was in fact only a few moments. She gave a slight nod and looked at Dr Klein. "It was just an ordinary morning. We ran out of milk and I went to get some and few things for the boys, I was…I was walking home and then I remember waking up in a dark room." Jo broke down again and through her tears she told Dr Klein as much as she could bear to mention.