Something to Be Brave For

By Priscilla Bennet

Would you die for love…?

Christmas 1997 and Katie Giraud is taking refuge under her grand piano.

Just a few short years after marrying Claude, she now lives in fear for her safety and that of her young daughter, Rose.

Claude, the dashing and charming Frenchman she’d fallen in love with, so attentive and considerate during their whirlwind courtship, has become a monster.

Nothing she does is right and she constantly walks on eggshells, terrified that she will unwittingly inflame his anger.
He humiliates her, he violates her, he beats her…

But Claude is a well-respected, highly successful surgeon, always so polite and thoughtful to everyone but her. As a result, he has succeeded in creating the perfect façade behind which to hide his true self.

Katie’s parents think the world of him, his own patients adore him – everyone loves Claude.

So, who will ever believe what he does behind closed doors?

This story sensitively lifts the lid on the processes of an abusive relationship, which anyone who has ever experienced will identify with, and for those who haven’t, will answer questions like, ‘Why is she putting up with that?’

Something To Be Brave For is a deeply moving account about one woman’s battle for survival.

Priscilla Bennett, born and raised in Boston, is a retired emergency room nurse. For more than 20 years she witnessed and treated abused women from all backgrounds. She merged her love of writing with her sincere desire to spotlight firsthand domestic violence with the goal of empowering women to escape and heal.