A woman is abused physically and mentally by her husband, a government employee, for over a decade. Finally she finds the courage to get away from him, but the struggle isn't over yet.

Charlotte marries John. Things seem OK: John has a good job and he's going up in the world, working for the government. But every so often he loses his temper and Charlotte gets the brunt of his anger. During their 18-year marriage, there are at least 8 incidents of physical abuse and countless incidents of mental abuse. Charlotte's family and friends tell her to leave John but she keeps going back, most likely because he has convinced her that she would be nothing without him. It finally explodes in a big divorce battle balancing on the cases of abuse.—<[email protected]>