• CHAPTER 1
    LIFE'S HOPE

    She wanted to change the world. Make happiness return the beauty to this desolate land. Life would spread through the countries and change women's lives. How could she though? Especially when her love was holding her down, forcing things she didn't want to do on her. He used to be so different, loving, caring, sweet and handsome inside and out. Why wasn't he like he was before? Too much power? Had it sucked all good out of him?
    She wondered down the lifeless hall into the open living room, dimmer than ever. Her heart pounded as she reached for a small doorknob seperating the living room from a small bedroom her husband refused to share with her.
    She shoved the door open, detemined to talk to him, hoping to change the way she thought and open new doors to their life.
    Inside slept an almost naked man, only in his boxer briefs, on a huge, wasted bed. The covers were twisted around his neck and underneith him.
    They clambered against the bedside and she approached him with unworthy caution. Was it neccesary to be this quiet? She didn't think so since she was about to awake him anyways. Her heartbeat echoed through the nearly empty room and she grabbed her chest, afraid he had heard it.
    "Hayer?" She called softly, scared for her life.
    They had a bunch of news rules applying to women now also.
    They were never allowed to wake their man unless they were dying.
    If told, women must fight mens battles.
    They may never walk in front of the man, only behind.
    No matter how hot, they had to wear clothing covering their skin, so no other man could look at the man's woman.
    Her husband, Hayer as she called him, awoke to the small shove she gave him.
    "What is it? Are you dying?" His voice had a impatient and unusual tone to it, giving her a small jump, as she had never heard him talk to her this way before.
    "I don't think, I can deal with this anymore. You're all about following rules and since the rules have changed...."
    She knew she had upsetted him then and there. He became an outraged ball of fury and she wanted to scramble back to her room and lie in bed, curled up in a little ball, crying, or maybe even in a corner of her room, dying maybe.
    "The rules are rules, and if you don't like them, I'll kill you!"
    His words shot through her like a small dagger and she felt frightened.
    "Why?" She was crying now, upset he had yelled at her so early in the morning. She backed away as he came closer. Her eyes watched a small brown belt hooked around his waist and a pistol being yanked from the case hung to the belt. In his eyes, she saw nothing but hate. Dead hate.
    "Why? Why! Because I can! I'll kill you!"
    He was a maniac! Crazy! She knew he would kill her, but didn't know exactly when. It could be next summer before he did it!