Gearing up for an ugly court battle, Angelina Jolie makes serious claims about Brad Pitt

Walled up in a Hidden Hills, Calif., rental home with her six children, Angelina Jolie wasn’t seen in public for weeks after her split from Brad Pitt. “She stays indoors most of the time, and has the kids do the same,” an insider says. “She’s afraid they’ll be photographed from a helicopter and she wants to stay out of sight.”

But behind closed doors, she’s preparing for battle. Angelina, 41, is accusing Brad of cruel behavior during their two-year marriage — and plans to go to court with those claims as they enter the next phase of their custody battle. “Brad has engaged in a pattern of angry behavior,” a source close to the situation exclusively tells Life & Style. “This is one big reason why Angelina wants sole physical custody of the kids.”

A DESTRUCTIVE PATTERN

Angie separated from Brad, 52, the day after he lost his temper with sons Maddox and Pax on a Sept. 14 private flight, which led to a call to LA’S Department of Children and Family Services; DCFS was required to investigate. But Brad’s outburst was part of an ongoing problem, the source claims. “She didn’t pull the plug on this marriage because of one incident,” says the source. “Look at the overall situation. This has been a long time coming.”

For years, Angie tried to live with Brad’s angry outbursts, the source claims.

But his behavior got more serious in recent months. “If it was just one thing, like Brad smoking a lot of pot, she would have been willing to work through that, but that’s not it at all,” says the source. “This is of a serious nature. And yes, she will bring it out in family court.”

A DIFFICULT FIGHT

Brad’s prepared to fight back hard. Angelina’s claims are “simply not true,” another source close to the situation tells Life & Style. “This is an attempt to make him look bad and the truth is going to come out.”

Things are getting ugly already. Angelina never ex-

pected Brad to dispute her sole custody claim in the first place, says the insider, and was shocked when he complied with the DCFS investigation and agreed to take a drug test (which came back negative, the insider says). “She was confident that the agency would recommend that she have

full physical custody,” says the insider. Instead, “It’s heading to family court and Angelina is prepared to go to war. She’s doing it for the sake of her kids.”

Angie feels the media has taken Brad’s side. Her legal team went on the attack: Blogger Perez Hilton received a letter threatening a lawsuit for pro-brad coverage. But after he posted it online, one of her people defused the situation. Now, the insider says, Angie’s trying a softer approach to win over the press and the public, without giving interviews. “She just wants to win the custody battle,” the insider says. “But that isn’t going to be easy.”