by A. Hargrove
“Dinner's ready.” I headed back to the table and opened my phone.
Then I stopped dead in my tracks. The text was from him.
Let's stop the bullshit, love. You know who I am and that it was me who tried to break in. I also know you have four coppers in here, and several outside. One word from you and I'll slit your throat with the knife I'm holding. Don't believe me? Turn around and look.
It was true. He stood behind me and in his hand was a knife, big enough to take me out with one slice. Then he put his arm around me in a chokehold and whispered, “Sit.”
We sat at the table and ate dinner, or at least he did and commented on it, sounding perfectly normal. I tried to think of how I could yell, scream, do anything to attract the detectives' attention, without getting a knife to the neck in the process. But the truth was I was scared to death and could barely get a solid breath in.
Then he said, “Since you went to so much trouble to cook, let me help you clean up.”
We went into the kitchen and I knew something bad would take place in there. Maybe he’d drag me out the back door, so it was now or never. He carried our plates and I had the tray of lasagna, which was the best weapon and my best chance. I threw it at him, but that squirrelly little devil was quick and ducked. I panicked and didn't think to scream until he nailed me square on the side of the face. Then he whacked me in the nose with his fist and that's when everything clicked. I screamed and kept on screaming. I remembered taking a self-defense class and the instructor informed us that a woman’s advantage was in her legs. So I aimed my knee up and connected with his groin, but didn't stop there. I kicked him square on the kneecap. Next, I reached for his balls and put the twist of death on them. If possible, I'd have ripped them off. By this time, the kitchen had filled with men. They streamed in the back door and from the inside of my apartment.
Keeping the tight grip on his nut sac, I wouldn't stop punching the little bastard. He’d slipped to the floor, with me following, trying to protect his groin while I yelled obscenities at him. I punched him anywhere my other fist could connect, until finally someone pulled me away. I fought to get free, so I could beat on the little fucker some more. That shit came into my home and threatened me. A red haze of anger had descended upon me. I spat out a wad of blood and it landed directly next to his lips. A string of curses flew out of him and I did my best to fly back at him, but now I was held by two men. Thornton shouted at them to get me out of there before I brought the whole damn town running. The little fucker bellowed that I stripped him of his manhood.
“You didn't have any manhood to begin with you cocksucking piece of shit.”
“Miss West, please calm down!” I wasn't sure who said that.
One man had my legs, the other had my arms, and a third was trying to grab my torso as they carried me out the front door, but I was squirming so much, they had to put me down. As soon as they did, I tried to make a run for it. But there was a huge cop blocking my exit and he picked me up, tossed me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and that was it. My craziness came to an abrupt end as he placed me into a waiting ambulance.
“Feel better now?” giant cop asked.
I panted. “No. I would rather have strangled the fucker.”
“Yeah, but then the prison would've been your home and I hear the decor in there sucks.”
I stared at him for a second and broke out into a laugh.
“You fight like a bloke, you know that?”
I shrugged. “He really pissed me off with that knife.”
“He had a knife? Are you bloody mad?”
“Yeah, I was really mad.”
“I meant mad as in insane. He could've killed you.”
“He didn't and I got a good nut twist in. He deserved it for being a rapist.”
“What do you mean?”
“I grabbed his balls and twisted them. That's why he's screaming.”
The EMT guy came over and began dabbing at my face. “Ow! What are you doing?”
“Miss, I'm tending to your injuries.”
“Injuries?” Shit, I'd been on such an adrenaline surge I'd forgotten about those punches that fucker had given me.
“Yes, ma'am. You're bleeding.”
I said goodbye to the police officers, including DCI Thornton, and the ambulance took me to the hospital. All of a sudden, I started crying. Here I was, all alone, with no family nearby, and a broken nose because some idiot attacked me in my own home. And that wasn't the worst of it. They told me I'd need surgery, but the doctor was out of town and wouldn't be back until Monday morning. I would have to wait until then. I didn't want to go home where all this stuff had happened, but I had no choice.
They gave me some pain relievers and I took a cab home. When I got back, the police were still there, processing all the evidence. The unfortunate thing was they didn't get anything on tape. They did however, get his knife, which had his fingerprints on it and they believe he'd used it in the other attacks. Maybe this time they'd put him away for good.
DCI Thornton wondered if I wanted someone to stay with me that night. I hated to sound like a big sissy, but I said yes. They sent over a female officer and I was very grateful for that. I was also grateful that throughout everything, the only damage that had occurred were two broken plates and a broken pan of lasagna. But damn, that was my favorite lasagna pan.
Chapter Fourteen
Piper
Monday morning, my new friend and police officer, Emma Stanton, drove me to the hospital for my nose surgery. I didn't have a phone anymore, because the police had taken it since it had the text message on it from that stupid fucker. It was now considered evidence. DCI Thornton said they would need it for the trial. They'd also taken the fucker's phone, since the evidence from the sent text was there, not to mention, who knew what else they'd find.
I met with the doctor before surgery. It was a bit strange that we were proceeding this way, but I wanted to get this over with.
The surgery didn't take long. When I woke up, it felt like someone had jammed a watermelon up my nose. It reminded me of my sister when our cousin accidentally broke her nose.
The grogginess from anesthesia made me think I was back home, so I shouted for my dad. A nurse ran over and told me he wasn't here. Then I cried.
“I'm all alone. Will you be my friend?”
“Yes, I'll be your friend.”
“Will you hug me?” I lifted my arms and she hugged me, but it wasn't a hug like I was used to. She felt like a stiff board and I told her as much. Then I giggled at the thought. An image of me hugging a piece of wood was hilarious. But it morphed into a giant penis and I laughed even harder. “Oh my God. A woody!” I must've told her she was a giant penis because she backed away from me with a look of horror as I giggled even harder. A new nurse showed up after that.
Then I asked for a mirror so I could see my new nose. The new nurse advised against it.
“You should wait to talk to the doctor.”
I merrily waited for him and took a little nap. When I woke up, my nose hurt like a motherfucker. I grabbed it, but there was a gigantic bandage on it. Shit. I wished I could've had another go at that little shit. I would've broken his nose, along with his nuts.
The doctor came in a little later. “How are you feeling?”
“Ugh.”
“Yes, you'll feel terrible today. Tomorrow will be much better. I heard you told one of the nurses she looked like a penis.” He chuckled.
“Oh, God. That's awful.”
“People say all sorts of things when they come out of anesthesia. But that was brilliant.”
Was he nuts? I just hope my nose didn't look like a penis.
“When can I leave?”
“Your friend can take you home as soon as you can walk without crashing into a wall.” He laughed again. Wasn't he Dr. Funny?
“My face is hurting me.”
“I will prescribe you some pain relief medication and I'd like to see you at the en
d of the week in my clinic to remove the bandage.”
“Okay. I'll have the nurse call your friend back and get your discharge papers ready.”
He sauntered out and Emma came in, grinning. “Looking right nice there, Piper.”
“Shut up.”
“You'll be back to yourself in no time.”
“Tell that to the nurse who I told looked like a penis.”
“You what?” Then she cackled.
“I don't remember doing it, but that's what the doctor told me. Apparently I'm the talk of the recovery room.”
“I suppose you are. Imagine that. I bet she got a big laugh out of it.”
“I just hope my nose doesn't look like one.”
“With all that gauze on it, you can't tell what it looks like. But don't worry, I'm sure it'll look good as new when it’s healed.”
“Can you help me get dressed?”
It wasn't bad, considering I had a watermelon for a nose. Emma laughed at me a dozen or more times, but in the end, I was ready to go when the doctor returned with my pain medication and papers to sign.
“Here you go and don't wait until the pain is unbearable to take this.”
I signed my life away and we left.
“Can you do me a favor. I need to stop at the cell phone store and get a new one. I can't be without a phone.”
“Sure thing.”
We made a quick stop and they were super kind to me, considering the situation with my other phone. It helped to have a police officer with me to support my claim. I ended up having not to pay full price for a new phone. They even gave me my same number.
“What about the other phone though. The police need access to it for evidence.”
“We can make it happen, miss,” the man said. “Just have them let us know when they're finished with it. Or you can drop by too.”
“Thank you.”
They had me ready to go in a jiffy.
Emma stayed with me that night but I was fine and she went home the next day. Turned out, we ended up being great friends. I couldn't thank her enough. “I'd invite you over for a lasagna dinner, but that little fucker made me break my pan. I'll have to buy a new one.”
“Better yet, why don't you come to my place. A change of scenery, you know?”
“Sounds great.”
“How's Friday?”
“Oh, that would be awesome. We can celebrate the bandage removal!”
We made it a plan and she left.
After she was gone, I emailed my professors, explaining what happened so I could catch up on missed work. They emailed back and let me know what I needed to do. I spent the rest of the day working on my courses, even though I was in a fog.
On Friday, I went to the clinic and had my bandage-slash-brains removed, because that's what it felt like.
“How much of that did you cram up there, Dr. Benson?” I asked.
“It’s Mr. Benson and good and plenty.” He laughed. He laughed at just about everything. He was an older man, maybe in his late fifties, but had a great disposition. I liked him because he was so cheerful. But I was instantly on edge. “What do you mean, mister? I thought you were a doctor?” I was in complete freak out mode. “How did they let you operate on me? Oh, my God, did you ruin my nose?”
“No, I fixed it. And calm down. Over here, surgeons are referred to as mister, not doctor.”
“That’s ridiculous. That would be an insult in the states. I want to see some proof that you’re a medical doctor.”
“You what?”
“Yes, I want to see you’re certified to operate on my nose. I might look like penis nose after all.”
“What in the bloody hell are you talking about?”
“If you’re just a mister. I know a lot of misters that couldn’t fix a nail in a wall, much less a nose. My nose could look like a penis for all I know.”
He laughed. A deep hearty one too. “Now, don’t you worry a bit. I am a certified surgeon. See?” He pointed to the wall where his license was displayed.
I wrinkled my forehead. “And you’re called mister? That’s the weirdest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“I’d be insulted if you called me doctor. There, all done. Can you breathe now?”
“Ahh,” I said, taking a deep breath. “But that doctor-mister thing is plain crazy.”
“Be that as it may.” He rubbed his palms together, then tipped my chin up and around, looking at me from different angles. “It's absolutely brilliant. Just perfect. I'll say I did a fabulous job on the old conk.”
“Can I see?”
“Oh, bugger.” He handed me a mirror and I nearly screamed.
“Yikes. I look awful. Like a giant purple onion.”
“That'll fade. The nose is bloody gorgeous. Not a penis in sight. You'll see, I promise.” He winked. “Use some ice if you want, but to be honest, time is your best friend. I'll put a little splint on it today, mainly for protection. Come back next Friday and I'll take it off. The bruises...it's going to be six weeks before they're gone, I'm afraid.”
He put a little piece of plastic on the bridge of my nose and I was free to go.
That night, when I got to Emma's, she didn't appear to be shocked by my purple eyes or nose at all.
“Are you faking it?”
“No! I saw those bruises before and so did you.”
“No, I didn't. I had those stupid bandages on, before and after the surgery.”
“Well, okay. I thought you saw them. Come on and let's drink to celebrate. You're not on those pain pills, are you?”
“No. I stopped taking those after the first day. I'm good.”
We toasted to my new hooter. I nearly choked on my wine.
“Um, Emma, a hooter in the states is a tit. A boob.”
Then we both cracked up. “Who knew I got a new hooter?”
She made grilled fish for dinner and it was delicious. We ate and drank and I got shit faced, as Emma said.
“You have to act it out.”
“Act what out?” I asked.
“The way you took your little fucker down. All the guys at headquarters said you kicked arse. And were mental.”
“I did go crazy. I was so pissed off at him. All I wanted to do was rip off his balls.”
“You wanted to rip off his balls, as in his testicles?”
“Yeah, for raping those women. But at first, I was really frightened because he had that knife and said he'd slit my throat. So I was trying to figure out what to do. I knew he was going to drag me out the back door or something. That's when I came up with the idea of the lasagna pan.” I re-enacted the scene for her up until giant cop grabbed me.
She refilled her wine glass, took a long swallow and stared at me.
“Well?”
“I can't decide if I should run or laugh.”
“Run?”
“You are mental.”
“Yeah, I stepped off the ledge that night. Totally lost it.”
“No wonder he's still raving about the injustice of you injuring his balls.”
“He what?”
“You did quite a number on him.”
I beamed. That was the best news I'd heard all week. “That's fantastic.”
“Except that his lawyer is calling for restitution due to cruel and unusual punishment.”
Now I laughed. “Isn't that rich. I guess rape isn't considered cruel and unusual.”
“The women he raped still haven't ID'd him yet.”
“Why not?”
“Because most of the time, they didn't see him. But don't lose hope. We still have several to interview yet.”
“What happens if they can't charge him with the rape?” Anxiety ripped through me. If they let him out, he would definitely return and this time it would be for revenge.
“We can still charge him with attempted murder. We have your text and his.”
“You and I both know what would happen if they let him out.”
“Don't worry. They'll keep him in
as long as they can.”
I had a really bad feeling about this now. Maybe I shouldn't have squeezed his balls so hard. But I didn't regret it. My only regret was I didn't rip them off completely.
Chapter Fifteen
Alessandro
Gabriele would talk of nothing except Piper coming over. Ever since Piper had called last week to cancel, his disappointment ruled everything he’d done. His only focus on when she was coming today. Ms. West is coming in six days. Then five. Then four. When Sunday finally arrived, I wanted to leave so the three of them could enjoy each other’s company without me.
“Papa, aren't you excited for Ms. West to get here? She's going to love your cooking. I just know it. Then she'll want to marry you.”
“You remember what she said about us dating, don't you?” My patience was near its end.
“Yep. When are we moving?”
I squatted down to be eye level with him. “Gabriele, you know how much I love you, don't you?”
“As much as the whole world.”
“That's right. If we move to America, then we wouldn't see Nonno, or your other grandparents much. Would you like that?”
“No, but I'd also like for you to have a, um, what do you call it?”
“A wife.”
“Yes. A wife. And I want a mama. And Papa, the airplanes could take us to see Nonno and the others and Ms. West could come too. She would love it there. Let's take her for Christmas. Can we?”
My father came into the room and Gabriele ran over to him. “Can we, Nonno?”
He laughed and asked, “Can we what?”
“Take Ms. West with us for Christmas?”
My father glanced at me and chuckled. “That will be your Papa's decision, little one.”
Gabriele ran around in circles then back upstairs to his room, yelling, “I'm going to draw her a picture.”
“You can't encourage him,” I hissed.
“How did I encourage him?”
I rubbed my face and stormed toward the kitchen. He was fast on my heels.
“You heard what I said. That was not encouraging. I'll be gone tomorrow, so you'd better get your head on straight. He won't have anyone here but you and the nanny. One thing is clear. That boy needs a woman in his life and so do you. Every day you become more harsh with him and me. You are not the son I remember. What has gotten into you?”