Within weeks the monster had returned

Weeks had passed and Valeri had been amazing without any signs of the problems of the past.

We listened to music, danced, laughed, talked and made promises to each other to never return to those bad times.

We did everything together, even gardening. We watched the sunrise and set. We had romantic meals, candlelit evenings and would lay together listening to music and talking cuddled up on the sofa or in bed. We even showered together and were inseparable for weeks!

Valeri had said one thing that unsettled me in all that time which was the beginning of the end.

Out of the blue after weeks of bliss, he turned to me after giving me a cuddle and said if I was ever to leave him, he would kill me!

He said it in such a way that it sent shivers down my spine!

He whispered it in my ear in a calm voice and once he  said it, he then carried on as normal.

I tried not to show it but I was frightened as it raised the alarm bells within me that he was given me a warning and I knew then that he still had that monster inside that would come again at any time.

It was a quick decline after that to Valeri being angry and aggressive but at first it was just short outbursts followed with him being back to nice again.

Valeri also warned me in one of his short bouts of anger that he would never go back to the mental hospital again and would kill me and himself if he thought it was likely.

Before long Valeri started blaming me for putting him there.

I was not the reason for him being admitted to the mental hospital as I tried to point out.

In Bulgaria the only way a person can be institutionalised against their will is by their family signing agreement to it or if the police can prove the person is a danger to themselves or to the community.

Despite me showing him in black and white the laws regarding this, Valeri nevertheless started to accuse me of being the reason for it all, stating I had manipulated the system as I had connections and I was behind it all.

Valeri was quickly becoming the Jekyll and Hyde character again whom I hoped had gone forever.

When I spoke to Valeri about my concerns and asked him not to do this again and ruin the chance of us having a wonderful future together, he did seem to understand that he was going down the road he had no desire to take and he was better for a bit.

Valeri often would be talking to himself downstairs in an angry manner and I would start to feel anxious and go downstairs to let him know I was worried about him losing it but he would reassure me his angry talk was not projected at me and something he had to do to get it off his chest.

He reassured me that I had nothing to fear and that he would never hurt me again as although he had moments of doubt in which he would accuse me of being out to get him, he knew I was not and it was a battle he needed to have with himself to get past it.

For me however, I felt the anxiety return every time I heard him talking outloud to himself downstairs and was on edge the whole time.

It wasnt long before Valeri talking aggressively to himself progressed to him smashing things like a glass or a plate and then tell me it was an accident.

About three weeks later he was talking aggressively to himself like he now was doing regularly and I went downstairs to see if I could calm him.

Valeri smashed an expensive glass water container that I had just bought on the floor by my feet and said did I think I could repair it. It was smashed to pieces and so I said of course not so why had he done it. He said that he could not be mended either from all the damage I had done to him. I was horrified to hear  him say this after I had done nothing but show him kindness and support him since I had met him.

I told him that he was frightening me and to please stop and calm down but I could see he was beyond reasoning with and hell bend on letting his anger out on me.

I just left straight away and told him I would leave until he was calm. He followed me out and ran to the gate to lock it so I quickly ran back inside and locked the door.

I went upstairs and spoke to him from the bedroom window to tell him that unless he calmed down I would not let him in.

I told him to cool off in the cottage for 20 mins and then I would let him in.

Valeri would not listen and eventually I said that if he didn't calm down I would have to call the police as I was frightened.

It went quiet for a few minutes then all the power went out and I was in the dark.

Valeri had turned off the electric at the mains outside and after he was trying every door to get in and telling me he would get in and kill me after everything I had done to him.

I tried to reason with him and to let him know that he was leaving me with no choice but to call the police which I didnt want to do but he said that he knew I would never do it.

Eventually he put the power back on and agreed to go to the cottage and calm down.

After 20 mins he was hammering on the front door again and clearly not calm.

He started smashing his head against the wall until it was bleeding and was screaming at me was this what I wanted.

I was begging and pleading with him to stop and told him I would gladly let him in if he just stopped and calmed down.

Instead he just smashed the glass in the front door and kicked the door down and got in.

I ran out the back door and he cornered me in the garden.

I asked him to just let me leave and go to the apartment but he refused and told me to get back in the house before I made him do something bad to me.

I was petrified and went back into the house and ran upstairs.  He came upstairs after me and said why did I have to keep making him so angry.

I knew I had no choice but to apologise to him and hope that he would back off now I had done as he asked and come back inside.

He went back downstairs and I knew I had no chance of getting out and that if I didnt I was going to get beaten up again that night.

When he was downstairs I climbed out the window of the bathroom and jumped 20 ft to the neighbours garden at the back. I sprayed my ankle but I ran anyway and crawled through a hole in their fence.

I ran and hid in a derelict building and rang the police who at first were not interested until I made it clear he had kicked in the front door. Even then I was not sure they would come.

I was petrified he would find me so I stayed in the derelict building all night as I was too scared to move.

The next morning when it was daylight I still had no idea if the police had turned up but I went to the villa and I didnt go in for an hour until I was sure he wasnt there.

I called Lula from the garden and when she came out I knew he had to be gone but I didnt know if he would return so I got Lula and we went to my apartment.

Later that day I walked past the villa and there was no sign of him so we went back in and locked and barricaded ourselves in the bedroom.

A few days later I was told by a man in the village that Valeri was now back in a mental institution.

I still did not feel safe though as he had escaped before and I had no front door at the villa.

I tried to find someone to repair the door but noone would help me! Still now it has no been repaired.