Nobody's Perfect

by Steve Kirby

  “No I don’t follow football.”

  “Well what bloody difference does it make then you daft sod?” They both started laughing then the two guys came over.

  They introduced themselves as Carlton and Dixie from Brighton.

  “Can we join you ladies?” Carlton asked.

  “Why not, move up Rachel let Dixie sit at the side of you.” Rachel moved up and the two of them sat down.

  Much to the girl’s relief the conversation wasn’t about football they talked about music and films, they all got on really well.

  After a couple of drinks they went to a Cantonese restaurant down the road for something to eat, and then they walked back to the Draganora hotel.

  Sally and Carlton got out of the lift at the sixth floor, Sally gave Rachel a wink and a kiss on the cheek.

  “See you later Rachel give us a ring on Thursday evening OK?”

  “Alright Sal see ya.” She turned and smiled at Dixie.

  Rachel opened the door of her room and switched the light on Dixie walked in and dived on the bed.

  “Wow this is a nice room, Come here to me sweetheart.” He said patting the bed besides him.

  “In a minute lover we have to get the money side of it out of the way first.” Dixie sat up quickly.

  “Money side what the fuck you on about?”

  “I’m on about £100 for the night.”

  Dixie gave her a look of disbelief.

  “You’re a prozzy? Well darling I’ve just bought your drinks all night and paid for you a meal I think I’ve paid my dues, but if your any good I may drop you a couple of quid in the morning, How’s that sound then?”

  Rachel leaned against the doorframe.

  “It’s 100 or you’ll have to leave now!”

  “I’m going nowhere darling, I’ve never paid for a bitch in my life and I am not going to start now so forget all the money crap and get on here with me.”

  “£100 or leave now!” Rachel started to pick up the phone.

  “Well do I have to call reception to have you thrown out?” Dixie got off the bed he walked over to Rachel, He grabbed the receiver off her and in one movement smashed it across the right side of her face, the force of the blow knocked two teeth out her mouth filled with blood, Dixie swung the receiver round and hit Rachel on the left side shattering her lower jaw the bone pushing through just below her lip.

  She tried to scream but couldn’t Dixie brought the phone down on her forehead it made a loud sickening crack her forehead split open like a ripe melon blood spurted out over his shoulder, the handset broke in two, he brought his left hand up under Rachel’s chin with such force he lifted her off the floor

  Dropping the phone he brought his right hand round the back of Rachel’s head lifting her he spun around and threw her onto the bed.

  She landed on her back her mouth filling with blood she began to choke coughing blood out of her mouth like a dark red geyser.

  He jumped on top of her Rachel could see him through a red mist as blood filled her eye’s she coughed again blood flew out and hit him in the face.

  “You dirty fucking bitch” He yelled and punched her crushing her left eye socket.

  “Get over there, you owe me.” He said turning her onto her stomach this one action saved Rachel’s life the blood poured out of her mouth.

  He tore her blouse open exposing her naked skin.

  She clawed at the bed trying to get away ripping off three of her finger nails leaving tracks of blood on the white sheet where she was clawing trying to escape.

  She didn’t know where she found the strength but she started pushing up on her hands lifting him off the bed, and then she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head as he punched her, then she was falling into a black hole into never-ending darkness.

  It took four days for the police to work out that the Rachel Dyson who had been beaten and raped in the Draganora Hotel and who was now in Leeds General Hospital intensive care unit in a coma was the Rachel Weston whose mother had reported missing after she hadn’t come home all weekend.

  The Rachel in the hospital bore no resemblance to the photograph her mother had posted, in fact when her mother did see her she didn’t recognise her own daughter at first her face was swollen to three times the size, there was swelling on her brain the doctors were keeping her in a drug induced coma until the swelling had gone down.

  They couldn’t tell whether she would have any brain damage or even if she still had sight in her left eye.

  For two days her mother never left her side she sat holding her hand talking softly to her daughter telling her everything was going to be ok and they all loved her, The Doctors told her Rachel probably couldn’t hear her but her mum just said while there was a chance she had to keep trying.

  After two days the Doctors convinced Rachel’s mum that she needed to get some sleep otherwise she would make herself ill, she hadn’t eaten or slept in all that time, It would be at least a week before they brought her out of the coma Rachel’s father said she should go home have a hot bath some food and get some sleep, he would stay with their daughter until she came back. Begrudgingly she agreed but told him any change at all and he MUST! Ring her immediately.

  That sorted she got a taxi home.

  She had just run the bath when the phone rang sheer panic shot through her body she ran down the stairs taking them two at a time, she grabbed the receiver talking even before the handset was at her ear.

  “Hello!” The voice at the other end of the phone was very happy and upbeat.

  “Hello Mrs Weston, its Becky Gibb here can I speak to Rachel please if she’s there and not out gallivanting Ha Ha.” She told Becky what had happened to Rachel, Becky screamed into the phone.

  “Oh God no! Please no! Not Rachel. Look Mrs Weston I have some holiday’s to come if I book them can I go to the hospital with you please?”

  Becky had seven day’s holiday left the manager wasn’t well pleased about her wanting holiday’s at such short notice but Becky said he either gives her the time off or he could take them as her notice.

  He didn’t want to lose Becky she was the best trainee he had ever had so he allowed her to have it on the strict proviso she must only have the seven days.

  Becky was out the door before he had finished the sentence.

  The sight that greeted Becky as she walked into the ICU made her stop in her tracks and catch her breath, the thing that was lying in the bed wasn’t Rachel it was some grotesque gargoyle her face was all swollen and blue dried blood still matted her hair, her jaw was wired up and she had all sorts of pipes and wires attached to her head and body.

  Becky wanted to run to her pick her up like a hurt child and make it all better but she knew she couldn’t.

  She moved slowly round the bed to the chair not being able to take her eyes off Rachel.

  She sat down and picked up her right hand speaking slowly and quietly.

  “Hya Shelly belly what the hell have you been up to then eh? I can’t leave you alone for a minute can I.” She leaned forward and kissed her cheek.

  Just then the door opened and Rachel’s Mum and Dad came in.

  “Oh, Hello Becky when did you get here?”

  “Only just this minute.” She said getting up and giving her a hug.

  “It’s a mess Becky.” Her mum said tears filling her eyes.

  “They don’t know if she will be able to see out of her left eye the socket was smashed and she could have brain damage, Oh Becky!” She put her head on Becky’s shoulder and began to sob.

  “What animal would do such a thing to my baby? And what was she doing in a hotel in Leeds under a different name? That’s why they took so long to identify her.”

  “She’s in the best place now though they’ll look after her here this is one of the best hospitals in England it’s been on telly ha.” It was only a half hearted laugh just something to break the tension.

  “So how are you doing Mr Weston?”

  “Very an
gry Becky, I just want five minutes with the scum that did this, just five minutes,” Becky turned to Rachel’s Mum who was fiddling with the bedclothes.

  “I’ve booked my holidays Mrs Weston will it be alright if I come up here and sit with Rachel please?”

  “Becky for Christ sake you’re almost family course it’ll be ok you spend as much time here as you want, It’s not much of an holiday you should be spending it on a beach somewhere not in an ICU in Leeds. You’re a good girl, they say we can bring a tape of her favourite music in if we want to stimulate here brain, you will know better what she likes can you do a tape for her please?”

  “I’d love to; I’ll do it tonight when I get to my mum and dad’s I’ll bring it in tomorrow.”

  Becky spent the next seven day’s with Rachel listening to music and talking, the Doctors were still worried about possible brain damage the swelling on her brain was very slow to go down.

  It was two days after Becky had had to go back to Manchester when the Doctors decided it was time to start bringing her round.

  Rachel’s Mum had never been as frightened in her life, waiting to see if her daughter was going to be the same as before, she went home that night worrying what she would be faced with next day, she didn’t sleep a wink she cleaned the house from top to bottom anything to keep her mind occupied anything to stop her thinking about tomorrow.

  It was a long recovery Rachel was moved from ICU but spent a further six weeks in hospital.

  The Doctors were more than happy with her there didn’t seem to be any damage to her brain but she had lost 20% vision in her left eye which they said under the circumstances was a Miracle due to the severity of the injury.

  Rachel was interviewed by the police but she couldn’t remember anything about that night or her attacker.

  When Sally had found out about Rachel she had gone straight to the police to make a statement, this wasn't much help she couldn't remember much about Dixie only what him and Carlton had told them, they were professional footballers from Brighton who were playing Leeds United the following day, she gave a description of Carlton but she hadn’t taken much notice of Dixie.

  All what they had told them had been lies the police told Rachel there wasn’t much chance of ever catching her attacker unless she remembers something significant or he does it again and is caught, they had managed to recover some DNA from the scene which they would process through the system and hope something turns up.

  On hearing about the attack on Rachel Pippa Granger destroyed all documentation on her and swore Lynne to secrecy.

  After eight weeks in hospital Rachel was allowed to go home, she felt strange walking into the house her senses were in overload the sounds of the budgies, the tranquil bubbling of her father’s tropical fish tank the smells of the dog and cooking were all strange but familiar to her, it took a while for it all to sink in.

  Rachel sat on the settee for five minutes not saying a word then she breathed a huge sigh of relief looked at her mother and said.

  “Thank you for bringing me home Mum.” Her Mum burst into tears and gave her the cuddle she had wanted to give her daughter for weeks, she knew then she had her back.

  “We’re having your favourite for tea tonight; Pasta bake, Becky gave me a new recipe when she was over here. You know she spent all the holiday’s she had left up at the hospital sitting with you.” her mum shouted from the kitchen.

  “You know Mum? I remember that, she was singing her voice doesn't get any better ha ha.”

  Her Mum walked back into the room wiping her hand on a tea towel.

  “You mean you could hear us when we were talking to you I thought they were just saying that to make us feel better.”

  Becky rang everyday to talk to Rachel.

  “So Shelly Belly, when you going back to college and finishing your secretarial course?”

  “I don’t know Becky I don’t think I could ever go back there and face all the sympathetic looks and awkward questions, and there will be the people who will snigger behind my back and say I deserved what I got.”

  “You’re probably right there Shelly, hey how about if you ask them if you can complete the course at home, they let that guy on the accounting course do it when he broke his leg snowboarding, the daft git.”

  “Do you think they would Becks?”

  “Won’t hurt to ask.”

  The collage couldn’t have been more helpful the brought her a typewriter over and all the work she had missed and a tutor called twice a week to check her progress and help her if she needed it, Rachel passed all her exams received her certificates with distinction.

  “Do you fancy going shopping to Wakefield today Rachel?” Her Mother asked at breakfast.

  “Not really Mum I don’t feel up to it.”

  “But Rachel it’s been two months and you haven’t set foot out of the house, this isn’t good for you.”

  “Yes come on Rachel.” Her Dad say’s

  “It’ll do you the world of good.”

  When they got to The Riding’s Centre they took the glass elevator to the second floor, Rachel was feeling good she looked in the shop windows as they went down and told her Mum all the shops she wanted to go in.

  “Body shop first Mum.” Her Dad looked up and sighed.

  “Shall I stay with the car then?”

  “No Dad don’t be silly you can wait outside you don’t have to come in.” She said laughingly

  There were some benches opposite the lift and a group of six or seven girls were sat there as Rachel walked out they started laughing.

  Rachel looked across in horror, Did they know her, were they laughing at her, she struggled for breath her head began to spin, the laughing was getting louder and louder she was gasping for breath the world was going black her mouth seemed like it was filling with blood she was choking she wanted to run but her legs were like lead, she grabbed her Dads arm and screamed at him.

  “Dad please help me! Get me out of here please!” Things were a blur then, the next thing she knew she was back at home laying on the settee with Doctor Redman holding her wrist checking her pulse.

  “Hello Rachel you gave us all quite a scare for a minute, how you feeling now?”

  “I don’t know, what happened?”

  “You had a bit of a panic attack; it’s not unusual given what you’ve been through it’ll take time.”

  “Is there anything that will help Doctor?” Her Farther asked.

  “Well possibly if she could get away from here for a while that may help.”

  “She could go stay with my sister in Newquay, she’d love to have her stay for a while you could walk along the beach it’s pretty quiet this time of the year, not many holiday makers in November. What do you think Doctor?”

  “Sounds good to me let me know the local Doctors name and address and I’ll write to him so if you have any problems you don’t have to travel all the way back here for treatment or repeat prescriptions.”

  “Thank you Doctor. Right Rachel it’s up to you what do you think? Do you want to get away for a while and go to your Aunty Junes?” Rachel smiled at her Mum.

  “Yes if you’ll be alright?”

  “Don’t be silly of course we’ll be fine and we can come down for a holiday at Easter, it’ll be nice to see June again I haven’t been down since her husband, your Uncle Des died two years ago.”

  It took another eight months before Rachel was confident enough to go out in crowds alone, her Aunty June and her German shepherd dog called misty would walk for miles on the beach with Rachel.

  Aunty June was so patient she took everything slowly she had been through it a bit after Des had died it took her a while before she could face people again.

  Now with her help Rachel was building her life again.

  Eventually Rachel decided she was well enough to start thinking about getting a job, so she got the local paper and started applying.

  After a month of rejections because of her lack of experience she
got an interview for a receptionist position at the local newspaper office.

  She got the job her confidence grew and grew, after six months she applied for and got the position of PA to the Managing Director of a plastics company in Reading meaning she would have to move.

  After a tearful goodbye she moved into a rented flat in the city centre.

  She applied for her driving license and started taking lessons, she took to driving like a duck to water and within six months she had passed her test and bought herself a little Vauxhall Nova, it wasn’t anything special but Rachel loved it.