A woman named Carolyn Shepherd has opened up about the abuse she endured from her ex-husband, Wayne Wellings—even on their wedding night.
According to Carolyn, she spent two years trapped in her own home as Wellings used the family Alexa device to monitor her every move.
She revealed that during their marriage, he forced her to record herself in her hotel room during her bachelorette party to prove she wasn’t with another man. Even on their wedding night, he attacked her out of jealousy after she danced with a gay friend.
The abuse didn’t stop there—she recalled how he crushed her face after she got cosmetic fillers and would spit on her makeup and smash her beauty products, accusing her of trying to look good for other men.
Recalling one of the many times he interrogated her, she said he would demand, “What are you doing? Are you there on your own? Have you got a man in there?”
Through tears, she would respond, “Well, you’d better be.”
As s the violence continued, Carolyn finally decided to put an end to the abuse. Her ex-husband, Wayne Wellings, was arrested and later sentenced to five years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court after being convicted of assault and coercive control.
Speaking about her experience, Carolyn described the torment she endured throughout their relationship: “He was very intense, from the start, and wanted us to be together all the time.
“But I was flattered, I thought he really loved me. I was ready to settle down and he seemed like the perfect man.
“The first night we moved into our new home, Wayne attacked me because he was drunk. He rubbed my face in the dog’s bowl and told me I was fat and I was a dog.
“I felt so ashamed, I couldn’t bear to tell anyone.
“I’d borrowed money from my family to move into the house. And that set the pattern for the next eight years – I just kept quiet no matter what he did.
“Wayne was abusive almost every day. He’d spit on me and rub his hand in my face to mess up my make up. He pulled out my hair extensions. He said I was a slut.
“I had lip filler sometimes and he’d squash my lips until they burst which was agony.
“He’d raise his hand and then laugh when I flinched, thinking he was going to hit me.”
“I had a quiet hen do, a night away in Essex with two friends, but Wayne harassed me all night and made me video the hotel room to make sure there were no men in there.
“On our wedding day he got drunk and vanished, and I had to do our last dance with a gay pal.
“Wayne went ballistic and attacked me on our wedding night, squeezing me round my throat.
“He told me I deserved it and by now, I believed it. I thought I was completely worthless.”
“He locked me in the house when he went to work, and if we had a delivery, I had to open the window
I couldn’t go out because I had no keys. I was trapped.
“He monitored me through the Alexa which was downstairs. He’d dial in and listen silently, even though I could hear the noise from his workplace in the background.”
“When I asked him about it, he’d say I was imagining it, trying to make me think I was going mad,” she says.
“It was his way of checking up on me every day and he did it for nearly two years.
“Sometimes, he’d dial in and shout down the Alexa, to make sure I was at home, and I was alone.
“If I ever didn’t pick up his call or reply to a text message, he immediately dialled straight into the Alexa because he suspected I was being unfaithful, which was never the case.
“I felt like I couldn’t breathe in my own house, because there was always that feeling that he was tracking me, dialling in and following every move I made.”
Carolyn stated that when her mother finally found out about the abuse, she promised to help her escape. However, every time she tried to leave, her ex-husband would threaten to kill her, trapping her in a cycle of fear and control.
She added, ‘“By now, my mum was calling me every day to make sure I was OK. She begged me to get help.
“I left him a few times, but he’d threaten to kill me, or my mum, and so I always went back. I was trapped.”
“I took a work message from a male colleague and Wayne accused me of flirting. He went ballistic, pulling a curtain pole down and beating me.
“My mum turned up and something clicked. I realised enough was enough.”
“I used to stay quiet, even when he was attacking me, because I felt that was best.
“Now I realize that finding my voice is the best thing I’ve ever done.
“I’m back at work, raising my children, and really enjoying my life.”
I am so relieved he’s behind bars. I now have chance to look to the future. I’m back at work, I’m enjoying raising my sons, and life is better than it’s ever been.
“For eight long and lonely years, I stayed quiet, because I felt that was best. Now I realize that finding my voice is the best thing I’ve ever done.
“I only hope my story can be a lesson to someone else. Please speak out and get help. Silence is not the answer.”
