Pentagon Pick Pete in deep trouble: His ex-wife was allegedly 'so scared of him that she hid in the closet'

In a shocking twist that's rattling Washington's corridors of power, Trump's pick for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing explosive allegations from within his own family circle. His former sister-in-law dropped a nuclear-level affidavit into senators' laps Tuesday, painting a disturbing picture of alleged volatile behavior that supposedly had his ex-wife creating secret "escape plans" and hiding in closets.

The bombshell allegations from Danielle Hegseth, his former sister-in-law, claim his second wife Samantha was so terrified she developed a secret code word system with family members to rescue her if things got ugly. And according to the explosive affidavit, she actually used it!

"She actually had to hide in her closet," the former sister-in-law claims in sworn testimony that's got Capitol Hill highly concerned.

But it gets worse. The affidavit paints a picture of a man who allegedly:

- Got so drunk at a bar he was "dancing with gin and tonics in both hands"

- Was allegedly found "drunk in his military uniform" at a sordid club

- Supposedly shouted "No means yes!" after a boozy night out

- Allegedly claimed women "shouldn't have the right to vote"

Samantha Hegseth, the ex-wife at the center of these claims, is singing a different tune. "There was no physical abuse in my marriage," she declared yesterday (Tuesday). Team Hegseth is firing back too, with his lawyer Tim Parlatore dismissing the claims as the work of "an anti-Trump far left Democrat who never got along with the Hegseth family."

What's curious though is the timing. Why did she wait so long to come forward with these allegations? Is it just more of the same old same- Dem tricks we've seen a thousand times before?

With a confirmation vote looming as soon as Thursday, at least 15 senators - including Republicans! - have already seen the troubling affidavit. Democratic Senator Jack Reed isn't pulling any punches, calling Hegseth's alleged behavior "disturbing" and saying it would "disqualify any service member from holding any leadership position."

In another bizarre twist, the FBI apparently knew about some of these allegations since December but nobody told the Senate committee's top dogs about it before Hegseth's hearing.

Will these explosive claims derail Trump's Pentagon pick? With Republicans holding 53 Senate seats, Hegseth only needs 51 votes to get the keys to the Pentagon. But some senators might be having second thoughts about putting their stamp of approval on this nomination, with good reason.

NBC contributed to this article.