Escape from hell

ESCAPE FROM HELL

Tears run down Alicia’s face as she tries to lift her arm to ring the doorbell. The effort is just too much for her and she collapses in the doorway.

“Lights, it’s so bright,” Alicia thinks to herself.” I must open my eyes. I need to find out if I’m still alive.” She focuses all her energies on opening her eyes. They slowly open to see a crisp white room. There is a woman dressed in white standing over her. The woman is saying something, but Alicia can’t seem to make out what it is she’s saying.

“It is like I’m in a sound proof box. I can see the woman moving her lips, but there is no sound coming out.” The woman pushes a button and almost instantly a man appears at her side. The man is also dressed in white and talking to her.

“I think I hear him. Yes! He is calling my name.” Alicia struggles to focus on the man. Suddenly he is very clear and she can hear him perfectly.

“Alicia can you hear me?”

Alicia struggles to speak.

“Yes,” she says weakly with great pain. “Where am I?”

The man smiles “I am Dr. Wilson. You are in Aarhus General Hospital. Do you remember what country you are in?”

Alicia realizes that the man is speaking in Danish. “Yes I’m in Denmark.”

“We thought we would loose you for awhile. We sure are happy to see you back. How do you feel?”

“I feel awful I hurt every where,” Alicia replies quietly.

“I am not surprised after the abuse your body took,” Dr. Wilson said with great concern in his eyes. “You were vomiting when you came in. It didn’t look or smell right so we had it tested. We discovered that your stomach contents were full of rat poison. Do you have any idea who would have done this to you?”

Alicia’s mind was suddenly flooded with memories.”It was Danny, herhusband, or was it?” “When I married him he was sweet, gentle, and kind. I fell so deeply in love with him, that I left my children with their father in Canada to follow him here to Denmark. He’s not Danny anymore he’s some kind of monster. I don’t recognize him.”

“Alicia can you still hear me,” Dr Wilson’s voice broke into her thoughts.

“Yes I hear you and in answer to your question, my husband, Danny, did this to me,” and she starts to cry.

“He is here asking about you. We haven’t told him anything yet. Do you want to see him?"

The fear in Alicia’s eyes told him she didn’t but he needed to hear her say it.

“No, Please don’t let him in here. Tell him I’m dead. If he finds out I’m alive he’ll just try to kill me again. Please doctor Please help me,” she begged.

“Okay we’ll think of something. Don’t worry he won’t get any where near you. Now you get some rest and I will deal with him. I’ll come back in a little while okay?” he smiles at her and leaves.

Alicia looks over at the nurse who is sitting in the chair next to her bed. “I guess she is going to stay and keep an eye on me, thank God.”

“How long have I been here?” she asks the nurse.

“You have been in a coma for 3 days. You are lucky to be alive,” the nurse replies, “Now you try and get some rest. You need your strength.”

Alicia smiles through the pain and closes her eyes to rest. “I feel like I am in a nightmare and I can’t wake up,” she thinks as she drifts off to sleep.

When Alicia wakes a different nurse is sitting with her.

“I need to use the washroom,” Alicia says to the nurse.

“You can go to the washroom but you must have some one help you as you are still very weak.” The nurse reaches for Alicia and smiles at her. “Come on honey lean on me.”

Alicia manages but it seems like every part of her body is aching. She stands and washes her hands. When she is drying her hands she looks in the mirror. One eye is completely black and swollen shut. Her lips are both split and swollen. She has 4 stitches in her forehead and bruises around her throat. She closes her eyes and cries. “I don’t want to see anymore,” she cries to herself.

“Are you okay honey?” the nurse calls to her.

“I’m okay. I need help back to bed.”

When she gets settled back in her bed the doctor comes in to her room.

“Hi, you’ve been up, that is a good sign. How are you feeling now?”

“Where is my husband?” she snaps at him.

“I took your advice and told him that you died. He asked to see you. I told him that we would have to perform an autopsy before he could see you, which would take a few days. I told him I would contact him when he could see you. That should give us a few days of grace. Now I need to ask you if you want to press charges.”

“If I press charges I will have to stay in Denmark until the trial is finished, right?”

“Yes probably.”

“I just want to go home to Canada as soon as possible. I have a problem though, I have no money.”

“We won’t worry about that right now. We will just concentrate on getting you in a safe place first. Leave it in my hands for now. I will be back in a little while.” He looks at Alicia with a twinkle in his eyes and a smile.

After the doctor leaves Alicia settles down to sleep, but her mind is busy. “I wonder what it will be like to go home after 2 years. I have changed so much. My girls have grown and changed a lot too. I miss them so much. I wish that I never came here and left them behind. What would have happened to them if I had died? It will feel good to hold them in my arms again.” With that thought, and a smile on her face, Alicia drifts off to sleep.

As Alicia finishes her breakfast the doctor arrives with a stretcher. He whisks her off in an ambulance that transports her out of town. The ambulance delivers her to a women’s center in a small town called Alborg.

The women’s center is expecting her and they have a room ready for her. When she arrives in her room the nurse from the hospital is waiting for her.

The women at the center help Alicia with contacting the social service and make arrangements to leave Denmark.

The days seem to drag by as she is waiting for every thing to fall into place. It takes 2 weeks, but it all comes together.

Alicia is standing in the travel agents office with the plane tickets to Toronto Canada in her hand and she starts to cry.

“I thought I would never go home again. I can’t believe it is happening. I will be 3000 miles from my girls but at least I will be in Canada instead of half way across the world.” Alicia realizes that the people in the travel agency are staring at her. She wipes her tears, thanks the counter lady. She clutches her ticket to her heart and walks out into the sun with a smile. When she returns to the women’s center she is met at the door by one of the volunteers.

“The social worker is waiting for you in the sunroom.”

“Thanks, I wonder what she wants,” she says as she heads for the sunroom. As she opens the door the social worker looks up from her magazine.

“Hi, you must be Alicia Knudsen,” and she stretches a hand out to Alicia.

“Yes I am, is there something you need?” shaking hands with the worker.

“My name is Kirsten Andersen and I have a cheque for you. It is not much but the services thinks you should have some clothing and personal things. We wish you luck with your trip and your plans. I hope some day you will come back to Denmark. We are not all like your husband. It was nice meeting you.”

“Thank you very much this is just perfect. I want to say thank you for every think that the services has done for me. You guys have been a real lifesaver. It was nice meeting you too. Bye now.”

Kirsten leaves and Alicia’s mind starts working. “I’ll go to the secondhand stores and get some clothing. Maybe I’ll have enough money to buy a bus ticket, in Toronto, to get closer to my children.”

“I’m here. I can’t believe it I am here standing in line at the airport ticket counter. 1 hour and 38 minutes and I’ll be on a plane to Canada.” Alicia looks around the airport taking it all in. Suddenly she can’t breath. Danny is walking towards her. “I have to do something. I don’t think he saw me. He is looking in the other direction.” She quickly turns her back to him. “He shouldn’t recognize me, my hair is a different color and I am about 20 pounds thinner. What am I doing? He thinks I’m dead. Just breathe and act normal.”

Danny walks right past her and into the men’s washroom. Alicia gets through the ticket counter, past the security check, and into the secured waiting room before she sees him again. He walks past the window and never even notices her. She breathes a sigh of relief and starts to pace. When the plane takes off she realizes that she has been all tensed up. She breathes deeply and starts to relax. She’ll be in Canada in 18 hours.

The plane touches down in Toronto Canada. Alicia takes a cab to the bus depot and discovers that she has enough money to get to a little town about an hour from her kids. She buys her ticket and waits for her bus.

“Well here I go 3 days and nights and I’ll finally be close to my girls. What if after 2 years the girls don’t want to see me.” Alicia shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter I’ll work it out. I just escaped from hell, I’m alive, and I’m going home.”