This was a mistake, this was such a big fucking fucked up mistake. What the hell was she doing? Did she even think this through? Of course she hadn't, she often just did shit, flowed with whatever happened. The last year, she had relied completely on her husband and just went along with everything the Legion demanded, what Caesar had demanded. And it had led to what, exactly? It had fucked her over completely – she must truly be brain-damaged, how could she love a man that treated her like he did?

And she did love him, she loved him so goddamn much she wanted to scream into the desert surrounding her. She wanted to tare all her hair out, scream and swear, shot things, kill and wreck mayhem over how fucking stupid she'd been.

It really was her own fault, there was something wrong with her in so, oh so many, ways. The fact that she couldn't seem to become pregnant, the fact that she couldn't fucking control her temper, the fact that she loved a monster – a fucking tyrant, wife beating misogynist who would now hunt her down and fucking kill her.

If she had stayed, he might have just killed her in a normal way, beating her to death, strangling her in the tub or whatever. Now, now she didn't even want to think about what he was going to do. She had run. Why had she run? She didn't even truly know. If it weren't for the constant beatings, she would have been content. But it was always something wrong. When her lord husband finally realized it would be harder than he thought to impregnate her, he'd taken a mistress. Fucking liar. She always knew he was a liar, she knew he was a cunning, lying bastard who enjoyed two-timing her, because it humiliated her and he loved to humiliate her.

But was he a bad husband? Arcade screamed YES, he's the worst possible husband in every possible way you stupid bitch. But Rhia didn't think so. He was bad, in some ways, but also gentle and kind, but destroyed. Destroyed by the corrupting power he held. No, Arcade said, he's not destroyed, he's just a sadistic psychopathic maniac who's brainwashed you into loving him.

Rhia knew, as she struggled against the thick sandstorms in the desert leading her closer to Utah, closer to Zion, that he would find her. She couldn't escape her husband, mainly because she didn't really want to escape him. At the same time she did, but she couldn't. He would come after her and all that she could do, instead of just laying herself down on the ground and wait for either the desert to drain her of all fluids or Vulpes so drag her back to New Vegas or Flagstaff by her hair, was continue to run. Perhaps she could find her salvation in Zion, perhaps the Burned Man would be simply another one of all the people who could and would kill her.

She was the runaway wife of the Monster of the Mojave, making her way towards the Malpais Legate. She was definitely and utterly fucking brain-damaged.

Vulpes had turned cold, he seldom came home after he had beaten her in front of Arcade, in stead Arcade came on visits to their suite to make sure Rhia ate as she should. She didn't, not really. She could move about as she pleased in New Vegas, but she didn't – she kept herself in their apartment, licking her wounds. Her face had started to return to its normal state of not being beaten black and blue, but Rhia didn't feel like going out, meeting the faces of the legionaries who watched Vulpes beat her with such ferocity. Not that they really cared or even judged her for it, some of the younger men had even had a hint of pity in their eyes as they watched her on one of her few strolls outside of the suite. And Caesar, he was in such a bad state nobody dared talk about it and her husband certainly didn't, the few times he actually came home. In fact, he didn't say much at all when he was at home with her, except "Get on your knees", "Shut up", "Suck".

She believed him to be stressed, but first and foremost, she believed he was annoyed due to what seemed to be an inability to become pregnant. She had been a housewife for almost four months now and they had been having unprotected sex for a year and a half, without any results – and Vulpes had children since before, with slaves, so it was certain it wasn't his fault.

Rhia felt ashamed, she was good at so many other things, education, housework, gathering intelligence and even killing things, fighting. But apparently the gods had not deemed her fit enough to bare the children of the man she loved more than anything else in this utter shithole of a world. Slaves were fit enough, but not she.

She fell deeper and deeper into a melancholy, which had the effect that she spoke less and less – and Vulpes seemed to lose his interest in her, as she sank deeper into what Arcade described as depression. It's your own fault, you should have escaped. You knew who and what he is, what he does. You've sacrificed everything for a devil who doesn't even have the decency to pretend he's not evil.

The thing was, Rhia didn't necessary see it as being evil – from Arcade's perspective it was definitely evil and she didn't blame him exactly for being of that opinion. But was it worth it? When Rhia had seen her own beaten face, she had felt doubt for the first time since Vulpes had captured her. He must have been right all along, she wasn't right in the head. Because no matter how mean he became, she gladly did all he asked – she would have shot herself if he asked her to, because he knew best. He was her husband, how could he not know better? And he allowed her such lenience, such freedom no other wives had who was married to men of his station. He had even made sure she had a pool in the garden in the back of the Tops casino – secluded and only for her, since she missed the pool in their house in Flagstaff so much. But still, he didn't even flinch when he beat her to the bone in one of his tactical fits of rage.

She had to do something, had to come to some sort of decision about what she wanted to do with herself, with her life. It was becoming more and more obvious she was completely useless, unless there was a war going on. Vulpes now only slept in their home two or three nights a week, she didn't ask about where he spent the other nights, since she knew he was here in Vegas. She had cried, cried until she didn't cry anymore – until the tears just stopped flowing down her cheeks. She dressed up when she was supposed to, when there was some sort of special event within the higher ranks where she as a wife needed to show up and be beside her husband. Put on a good show. Vulpes would still be gentle with her, sometimes – but during the last months, she could count those occasions on one of her hands.

So she started collecting things, small things, so she could leave. So she could run. She had to be careful and not alert Vulpes that she was up to something, that she planned to leave him – leave everyone. She had no idea what had happened to Cass, and Arcade, well, he served Caesar and was as she had thought, well off. Rhia was an egotistical asshole, she knew that – she'd always known what she was, and that was also why she had to leave. Vulpes had never been able to completely break her – put her into a state of melancholy, it had never been his intention. He wanted her spirited, he liked her temper, since it made it so much easier and, as Rhia suspected, much more rewarding, to manhandle her.

But she felt broken. She couldn't take it anymore. He'd fucked her over completely.

"Rhia!"

Rhia looked up from her book as she lay in the couch in the living room of the large suite, reading and more or less just wasting her time. Lucius had come by earlier during the day with a few new books for her to read. Apparently his wife had asked about Rhia, since she hadn't left the suite in almost a week and seeing as Lucius was what you could call a kind man, by legion standards, anyway, he had taken some time to check up on her.

On the outside, Rhia looked healthy. She had become a bit pale from spending so much time indoors, something that hadn't gone unnoticed by her husband, who seemed to appreciate it. He didn't like women with too dark skin, preferred them as pale as possible, for some reason. Rhia didn't mind, in fact, it made her happy. Even though she was conspiring to leaving her husband, she couldn't help the spark of hope and excitement that sprung up within her, as Vulpes complemented her. It stirred dualistic emotions within her and she hated it. He hated that she loved him so much and she hated that she felt the need to leave.

"Maritus", said Rhia in a hoarse voice. "You're home early"

Vulpes shrugged as he clipped off the shoulder-pieces of his armor, followed by the rest until he stood only in his tunic, greaves and boots.

"You hungry? Want me to make you something?" she asked, following her husband with her eyes as he moved closer to her, finally lumping down into the couch just next to her feet. When he didn't answer, she went back to reading her book, soon enough, however, she felt his icy eyes on her and in the corner of her eye, she could see his shifted face looking her way. His angelic dark curls had become longer now, falling down in his face, if he didn't draw them back over his head. Was it some sort of punishment? Making a man like him, evil incarnate, so heavenly beautiful? His chiseled roman nose, those high cheekbones, together with slightly bronzed skin, icy eyes and full, at times almost perky, lips.

She put her book down and looked back at him. "What is it, Vulpes?"

"Can't a husband come home to his wife without being questioned?" he finally retorted in a stiff voice, shooting her icy arrows through his eyes.

"I didn't mean to question you, my love, I only wish to know if there's something you require. If there's anything I can do for you"

Vulpes only hummed slightly before removing his gaze from her, instead moving her feet unto his lap and stroking them gently, in an almost absentminded way. Was he acting strangely? Rhia thought to herself as she rested her eyes on her husband. He sat relaxed, deeply in the couch, stroking his hands over her feet and up her chins, breathing evenly as he always did.

"Sometimes", he began speaking in his vibrant voice, no longer strained, but almost wickedly soothing, as it was when he was in his more manipulative moods – not that he wasn't always manipulative – sometimes he used it as a mere pastime. "I feel as if the Gods have cursed me"

Rhia remained silent, looking at him and he kept running his calloused fingers over her curvy legs. Her months of inactivity had made her gain some weight, which resulted in her already curvaceous body becoming even fuller. Vulpes had seemed to appreciate it, her softer shapes, the way she filled out her dresses – you almost look pre-war like that, he had said one night just before they headed out for one of the officer-dinners.

"I do everything in my power to preform my duties, to my Lord, to the gods, to my wife", he continued. "Perhaps it is not enough. But why should the gods see fit to punish me? Do I not perform the right sacrifices?"

"Why are you asking me this, maritus?"

Vulpes turned towards her again, watching her with hard eyes, his iris's moving just slightly following her own eyes and their movements. "You are my wife, Rhiannon. No one knows me as well as you do", he said. Oh, please, Rhia thought to herself as she felt her eyes narrowing. "Tell me, what is it that I am doing, that would invoke the rage of the gods upon me?"

What was she supposed to answer? The truth? You're a horrible man who beats your wife, rapes slaves, murders and pillages, takes a slave mistress, takes a wife and makes her your slave. You torture innocents and those you claim to love, you humiliate me in front of others and perhaps worst of all, you betray me.

"I do not believe the gods are angry with you", said Rhia and sat up so she could reach Vulpes' shoulder and feel the oozing warmth of his skin under the deeply red tunic. "What I do know, is that you're tired, my love. You've lived through several wars without even allowing yourself to breathe in between"

Vulpes snorted as he clasped Rhia's face with his large hand, stroking her cheekbone with his thumb and she could feel his hot breath against her chin and collarbone. She separated her lips as his mouth drew closer to hers, waiting for him to collide with her and in what seemed like the longest seconds ever, she only felt him breathing. She felt his touch and the vibrations of his very being. It was horrible, only because she knew – she fucking knew – that she'd never love anyone this much, ever again. Vulpes might take other wives, but she could never marry again. She was lost in him, lost in her love for a man who was nothing more than a violent megalomaniac.

Their lips collided in almost feverish kisses, wet and needing, desperate and passionate, as Rhia's hands pulled herself closer to the man she was forever bound to. Vulpes' arms curled around her waist and torso, claiming her and keeping her as close to him as possible. His touch was soft, but determined, loving but at the same time demanding.

"Make love to me, please", she whispered and drew her hands through is dark tousled hair. "I need you, I really need you"

He didn't answer, there was no need as he gently pushed himself over her in the couch, settling between her legs and letting her body embrace him.

Maritus – husband