Silence followed the slamming of the prison door. Sharp footsteps heard overhead were the only evidence that anyone else was there, and the footsteps seemed to be getting further away by the moment. Then silence. The silence was a welcomed relief, but the silence was only external. Inside, the screams of agony begged for release. Instead, silent tears rolled down her cheek. No screams. No sobs. Noise would bring her husband, and as much as she loved the sight of him, she knew it wasn't really him.

She wrapped her arms around her legs pulling them into her body. Whether as a way to comfort herself or as a way to keep her pain silent, her head dropped between her knees in quiet agony. The welts from her beating were on fire burning scars into her soul that would be there far longer than the physical scars.

Opening her eyes, she looked into the darkness. The light bulbs had been busted awhile ago, and the darkness was now her friend and her second worst enemy. Terror enveloped her as she remembered how her husband suddenly became crazed. Reacting happily to the cries of his fellow guild members.

Footsteps. The footsteps sounded hurried. Crawling quickly to the adjacent wall, she felt for the little door under the stairway that would keep her hidden from the love of her life. She had to survive and make it back to her guild. To her kids.

In the darkness, the little latch proved too elusive and the room was flooded with light as the figure at the top of the spiraling staircase shined a light down on her. Rolling into a tight ball against the wall she silently begged her husband who would not listen, "Nguyen. Please stop."