Chapter 1
This story is based on true events. Name and places have been changed to protect the identity of those involved. Dedication:
Domestic violence is a real deal. I had to change the names in this book to protect others and myself. My 5 ½ year old dog, my Krobalz, did save my life, but others aren’t so lucky. 1.3 million Women are physically abused each year. 85% of victims are woman.
Women think they will change these men after a while. You will NOT change them. Very few men who hit their partner will never do it again. Most of the time, it only gets worse.
I got lucky, I met my prince charming, and Krobalz sure did jump into his car. You must get rid of all of the rotten food in your fridge before the smell goes away.
Please don’t stay quiet. Stop protecting these abusers. Speak up. Stand up. Be strong. Remember, what doesn’t kill you today, will make you a stronger person tomorrow.
From the time that I left the house when I turned eighteen, I have always had an animal. Sometimes a cat, other times a dog, but always some kind of animal. The last animal I got in my last marriage, I actually still have. My dog Krobalz has changed my life. Not only has he changed my life, a few times, he has even saved it.
In another book that I have not yet finished writing, I will tell about the story of what all was lost because of domestic violence from 2003-2009. This story however begins in October of 2009, when I received Krobalz.
To give you a tiny bit of background, at this time, because my now ex-husband then current husband was grasping at straws to keep me married to him, so he lied to the courts and got me on house arrest for two years. At this time, I had already been married for six years, together for eight. It felt like I had been married for over eighty years because of what I’ve been through.
Finally, not being able to leave my house, dealing with abuse, I begged for an animal. At first, he agreed not thinking I’d be so quick to go online and find one.
My luck was running high when I found Krobalz. He tried everything to stop it. I called the woman, and she agreed to bring a four month old puppy over later that evening. My ex, Scots, said that since we didn’t have a collar, leash, food, or anything else that a dog needs, we couldn’t get him. I was heartbroken.
I called the woman to tell her the bad news, but to my surprise, she let me know that none of that would be a problem. She already had a collar and a leash for him, and she would be bringing a brand new bag of dog food, a kennel, and everything else I’d need for him for quite a while. I was so excited. My ex though, wasn’t.
When the woman arrived, she gave the background story about how her husband had just walked out on her, and Krobalz was her dog. Since the man of the house was no longer there, the dog didn’t listen to her, and was nothing but a hassle. Plus she worked ten hours a day, and it wasn’t fair to the dog to leave him in the house all alone.
If I didn’t take the dog, he would be given to a shelter. Krobalz was tan with a white underbelly. He wasn’t anything special, just a lab with a mix of a few other breeds of dogs. As soon as the woman let him out of his cage in the back of the truck, he took off around to the back of the house, and sat down right next to Scots. I at first felt betrayed. I am the one who worked so hard to get him, and now he was going to be his dog?
The feeling didn’t last long. As soon as Scots stood up and said something to me, Krobalz must have felt what kind of person he was, and he quickly ended up right by my side, and that’s where he stays to this day.
In the beginning, when Scots would begin to argue and fight with me, for a while he would hide behind and underneath furniture and whine and cry. As he got older though, things changed. It went from beating up on me, to taking his rage out on Krobalz as well.
It went from yelling and threatening, to actually hitting him, and even sometimes kicking him. I tried to stop it, but when I would get involved, it got worse for the both of us. As Krobalz turned a year old, then two, he began to stick up for himself. At first, it was just growling and showing his teeth, but then he began snipping.
Things had gotten so bad at one point, that I was determined I was out, and never going to look back. I packed a basket, and jumped in the car. Close to my heels, was Krobalz, making sure that he wasn’t left behind.
We drove to Kentucky, before the lack of gas made me pull over. In the heat of the moment, I forgot that I was a day away from my paycheck. That night, it dropped down very cold. I had to stay put for over a day to wait for my paycheck to be directly deposited, but it was so cold that at first, my fingers turned bright red.
I tried to use what little change I had to buy a cup of coffee, but I couldn’t pay the woman because my fingers were unable to move. I would have turned the heater on in the car to keep warm, but because I didn’t have any gas, turning the car on was out of the question.
You can read the rest of this story from any of the major book sellers, or also at http://www.vincestead.com or http://www.fun2readbooks.com You can also listen to it in Audio.
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