Right, here it is, an update, finally! I know. There will be more, but I can't promise you when. At the moment my priority is Walk Away And I Stumble (which will be updated ASAP, it just needs to be transferred from my laptop to my computer). I'm sorry for the delay in this but I was never happy with how Parts 5 and 6 turned out. I'm still not 100 about this, but I think it's the direction I want to go in. Enjoy, and if any of you remember this then let me know what you think!

Nina xxx

Two Beds and a Coffee Machine

Part 5

"Mommy? Mommy?"

Monica could hear the voices, but she couldn't see the faces. Slowly the blurs around her head morphed into her children. She rushed to sit up, hide away the marks she knew would soon be visible on her face, protect them from their parent's marriage. It was soon apparent that sitting up wasn't the best idea, her vision suddenly blurred again. Brushing her hair from her face she battled to stand up. She managed it, but only just and was forced to steady herself against the worktop.

"Hey babies" she whispered, struggling against the crippling headache now rooting itself in her brain. "Go and get washed up for dinner OK?"

She watched as they ran out, now assured of their mother's health. Monica sometimes wished her life could be that simple. A reassuring smile from an elder and everything was perfect again. But nothing was perfect, not for regular people. Giving herself a minute to gather her senses, Monica gradually began walking over to the sofa in her lounge. She paused to pick up her now bloodstained invitation and felt the unmistakable urge to vomit overtake her. Collapsing on the sofa she managed a feeble,

"Help me … "

, before she succumbed to the darkness.

XXX

"Female, early 30s, collapsed at home. Head trauma and bleeding from back of head. No name as yet. Her son called the ambulance"

Monica didn't understand where the voices were coming from. It wasn't Ethan, nor any of her kids. This voice sounded authoritive, in control, and Monica trusted it. She relaxed, focussing on nothing more than sleep.

XXX

"Monica? Monica? Can you hear me?"

Monica slowly opened her eyes and blinked furiously as her vision cleared. She could just make out the shape of a person standing over her and for an instant Monica was terrified that Ethan had come back for her, come back for more. The she noticed the ponytail, and the faded nurses uniform. Relaxing slightly, she nodded.

The nurse smiled, "Do you remember what happened?"

The shouts, the yells, the angry words, the punch, the kick, the fall and then … darkness. Monica forced a smile, "No, I can't remember anything"

She could tell the nurse didn't believe her, but thankfully she didn't press the matter, "OK, Monica. Your husband thinks you must have hit your head in the kitchen. He thinks you slipped"

Monica nodded, blinking away the tears, "Yeah, that sounds about right"

The tears only fell when the nurse walked away, and Ethan's voice boomed down the corridor.

"So she can come home later today? Great"

Home. Where HE was. Where no matter what she did he'd find fault. Dinner was too late, it was too early. She dressed like a slut, she dressed like a nun. He liked her hair long, he liked it short. Nothing was ever good enough for him, and Monica suddenly realized what she had known all along. He would never stop hurting her, no matter what he said; he was always going to do it.

And in that instant she knew one thing – she had to get away.

Monica jumped out of her bed and yanked the wires out of her arm Frantically she grabbed her jeans from the end of her bed and pulled them on, taking her sweater with her. She quietly crept out of her cubicle and made her way towards the elevators on the other side, only when those doors had closed behind her did she allow herself to breath. She pressed the number and waited until the doors opened and she saw the crèche and inside it, her babies.

She ran towards them, wanting more than anything to get them out of here. She didn't even have time to explain, she simply held Lottie as they ran, keeping Anna and Henry in front of her. Nothing mattered but their safety. And this was it. This wasn't another half hearted attempted, there would be no more cheap motels until morning and then the drive home. She was going. She was going to drive straight through to New York. Find them a room and then call Rachel first thing in the morning. She was leaving. She was finally free.

Right?