“I wasn’t overseas, I was being held prisoner in my bedroom by a man. The Police came and he told them I was overseas, but I wasn’t, I was in my room. Thank you for caring about me. I had no friends and no family and no one else to report me missing.”
“It didn’t help though.”
“It did help, Krystal, because it was good evidence about him lying to the Police and my lawyer used it expertly. Thank you. I also have to find the nurse who gave me her cardigan. I owe her a cardigan because the Police took it into evidence. I haven’t even been back to that place since I left it.”
Krystal thanked the waiter for her coffee and asked if she could sit with Verity. They sat down at the table. “My colleagues told me I was being stupid and worrying the Police for nothing. They figured you must have got a better offer and not been considerate enough to let us know. You were really held prisoner?”
Verity nodded, “I was starved, beaten and raped for eighty four days.”
“That’s the most horrible thing I’ve ever heard,” Krystal said, “Are you okay now?”
“I’ve had a lot of emotional ups and downs but I think I’m okay. I’m pretty determined to not let people try and take advantage of me. I was aggressive then I got complacent and allowed another douchebag to abuse my body, and now I want to find a happy medium. I don’t want a relationship, well I do, but there’s only one man for me and I don’t know where he is.”
“Did you report him missing?”
Verity laughed, “No, but maybe I should.”
“Can I give you my number? We could go out sometime and watch a movie or something? I feel for you, and I don’t even know you, but I’d like to be your friend.”
“I would love that,” Verity said, “My number is still the same, but I’ll give it to you again.”
Verity’s breakfast arrived on the table and Krystal continued to chat with her until she looked at her watch and announced she had to go back to work. Verity pushed her empty plate to the side and wiped her mouth on the napkin. She had already reported him missing. He wasn’t missing, just missing from her life.
Chapter 15
As she stepped out of the bar, Verity was relieved at how cool it was outside. Her ears were picking up a high pitched whistling sound. Obviously her ears weren’t enjoying the dramatic change from the roaring music and people to the relatively quiet street. She held her nostrils and blew through her nose trying to get her ears to pop. She tried shaking her head and opening and closing her jaw. With no regard for how this might look in public, she began hopping on one foot and shaking her to the side like she had water in her ear.
“Have you been drinking, ma’am?”
Verity turned and looked at the man in the suit, “Adrian, hi.”
“Hello,” he replied, “What on earth are you doing?”
“Just trying to hear again. How’s one of my favourite Police Officers?” Verity asked, opening her arms for a hug.
“One of your favourites, huh? Obviously not as drunk as you, but happy to see you,” he replied.
“This is the first time in a while I’ve been this tipsy. Why didn’t you grab my butt when you hugged me?”
“You sound disappointed,” Adrian replied, “Let’s do that hug again.”
Verity smiled and put her arms out again, “I think I am a little drunk.”
Adrian pulled her close and moved both hands sensuously down her body and onto her bottom. He gently squeezed while moving his hips towards hers. “I could take you back to my place if you want to go all the way again,” he said into her ear.
Verity smiled. It was very tempting. He was incredibly sexy, but given all that had happened with men recently, she wasn’t sure what to do. “If we have sex twice, isn’t that a relationship?”
“Not specifically, but I live to serve.”
Verity looked at Adrian’s short blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, and she smiled when he smiled. He was very attractive, and she had found herself thinking about him from time to time. He had an unusual chin, and she found that interesting. “I’m just going home to watch a movie, which is really boring, I know. If you came for a good time then you’re probably more likely to find it inside one of these places. I’m really happy to see you. Really.”
“I can come and watch a movie with you if you like,” Adrian replied.
“I don’t want to cramp your style. Go have fun.”
He smiled and saluted. Verity walked to the curb and looked down the street for a taxi. Adrian was sweet. At least he could take ‘no’ for an answer. She smiled about the one and only time she had sex with him. He was so tender and let her lead and he had even hugged her in the court. He wasn’t dangerous. It might be nice to watch a movie with someone tonight, and he was very nice indeed. He did offer, so maybe he wouldn’t mind. She turned around to see if he was still there and hurried after him, “Adrian?”
“Yes, Ma’am?” he replied, turning around.
“Would you like to come home with me and watch a movie?”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
Verity nodded, “Yes, it was my last day at my job yesterday. I quit or I was fired, I don’t know. I couldn’t work there anymore because some men are arseholes. I thought I wanted to be alone but now that I’ve seen your friendly face, I’d really like your company.”
“Well, in that case, we should get going and see this movie.”
“I have alcohol at home, and if you feel the need to pay for drinks, I could set it up like a bar for you and charge you a lot,” Verity shrugged.
Adrian laughed and held her hand. Verity smiled and put her other hand out to the taxi that was coming. Adrian opened the door for her and offered her his hand again to get in. He sat beside her and closed the door. She held his hand and rested her head on his shoulder. He didn’t resist and Verity sighed happily.
Back at Verity’s apartment, she arranged drinks and turned the movie on. She rested on Adrian’s shoulder again because he said he didn’t mind. Throughout the movie they were either resting on each other or holding hands. It was friendly and comfortable. Verity liked that they found the same things funny. She had been pretending he was someone else there with her in the dark, someone she missed a lot, and chastised herself for the thought. Adrian was a wonderful individual and he was really here. He wasn’t just in her head. He wasn’t a memory. He was really here and really sweet. She reminded herself that he deserved to be respected and not used.
“Can I ask you something about sex?” she asked as the credits rolled.
“Please do,” he replied, stroking her hand.
“Is it possible to have really passionate sex without feeling used?”
“I hope so,” Adrian laughed, “Did you have some bad sex?”
“Ugh, how can I explain this? There was this guy who was my friend for a couple of months, and he said he wanted to act out some fantasies, but I didn’t think they were sexy.”
“What do you want to know exactly?”
“The first time, the one that he said was a fantasy, well, actually he said all of them were fantasies, he was treating me really roughly and, I don’t know, badly and disrespectfully. It didn’t feel sexy to me, but other people said it can be.”
“Like hair pulling and name calling and spanking?”
Verity nodded, “Yes, exactly.”
“Some people get right into that, but I think you can have passionate sex without it being ugly. You were assaulted, so violence and sex is not a good fit for you. Sex can be passionate and rough without being vicious.”
“You must think I’m a flake,” Verity said, “Can I get you a coffee?”
“I don’t think you’re a flake, and no thanks, I don’t need a coffee yet. How did you end up with this guy? It’s not Roberts is it?”
“No, it wasn’t Brandon. He’s a gentleman. This guy’s name is Brad. How did I end up having lousy sex? Actually, I don’t know. He asked me out a few times, okay a dozen times, and I said no, but he seemed
really keen on me. I guess my self-esteem was in the gutter one day because I said ‘yes’ and that was dumb. He took me out to dinner, wanted sex on the first date and he seemed okay with me saying ‘no’. Except that he stuck his penis out of his pants and put my hand on it in public.”
“What is he, fourteen?”
Verity smiled, “I know, but I thought he was just hopeless. Anyway, for two months he said he was my friend and gave me dinners and flowers and chocolates and compliments and kisses. I told him I’d been raped and also that I didn’t want a relationship. He then gifted me some lingerie, telling me I was beautiful and to trust him to have friend sex. So I did.”
“And what happened?”
“Do you really want to hear this?”
“A lot of men never want to even know that a woman has slept with another man. Women are curious and want to know how many, but men like to think they’re the first and only. This is a generalisation, of course. I’m always willing to hear whatever people want to tell me.”
Verity smiled and sat down next to Adrian again. “I put on the lingerie he gave me and he told me I was sexy, like a fantasy, and then he wanted to pretend I was a prostitute and it was his only chance to be with me.”
“That’s pretty juvenile.”
“Agreed,” Verity said, “Then he took me from behind, slapped me, called me foul names and decided to go anal without asking or lubricating. Five minutes later it was all over and I was in shock.”
“Nasty.”
“It got nastier, Adrian. I don’t want you to judge me. I kind of know you won’t. He stayed over on my couch and mounted my chest next morning to stick his penis down my throat. Like all the way down my throat until I was suffocating on my own vomit.”
“Delightful,” Adrian said, folding his arms.
“Then he left. I had a shower to get the yuck off me, and that was that. My conclusion, not sexy.”
Adrian put his hand to Verity’s face and turned it towards himself. “That wasn’t it, was it? There’s something else you don’t want to tell me. I know we’ve only met a couple of times, but you can trust me.”
Verity nodded, “I do know I can trust you, otherwise you wouldn’t be in my apartment right now. Maybe I just don’t want to say it out loud. But I should. It’s a statement of fact. Okay. I was in the shower and he appeared in my bathroom. He got into the shower with me, and he’d brought a friend with him.”
“Say what?”
“You heard me. But he was kissing me and I didn’t know the friend was there until he grabbed my hips. Next thing I knew, my head was being held down between Brad’s legs so his friend could rape me anally.”
“Jesus Christ,” Adrian said, standing up, “Did you report him to the Police?”
“I did. Nothing happened. Brad even turned up at my rape trial and berated me for having sex with my rapist.”
“It’s not good enough that nothing happened,” Adrian said, “Give me his details and I’ll sort it out. There should be charges and an AVO.”
Verity stood up and put her arms around Adrian, “Shh, you gorgeous man. I’m not going to ruin another one of your nights because I’m a rape victim. That’d be two for two.”
“You didn’t ruin that night at all, it was beautiful, and you’re not ruining this one. I live and breathe crime, Verity, and I don’t like to see people get away with criminal behaviour.”
“I know, but I really like being near you, and seeing you around. You left me with some very happy thoughts and those are the ones I want to keep,” she said, touching his arm. Adrian put his arms around her and took a deep breath. Verity smiled as his chest expanded, “I’d like to do something for you, Officer Adrian.”
“You did, you watched a movie with me.”
“I want to do something else for you. Can I be in control again for a bit? If you trust me,” Verity said, taking his hand. Adrian agreed, so Verity led him to her bedroom. She kissed him gently and he kept to her pace. She unbuttoned his shirt and ran her hands over his chest. She took his shirt off and gestured for him to lie down. He smiled and lied down on her bed. Verity walked into her bathroom and brought something behind her back to the bedroom. She asked Adrian to roll over so he was face down. He complied and Verity straddled him and dripped massage oil on him. Adrian laughed and asked what she was doing.
Verity rubbed the oil across his back. “I want to give you a massage, Adrian. Last time we were at your place, you made me feel so good and I never really got to tell you how much I appreciated it. This massage is just for you, so you feel good.”
“I’ve never had one before,” he slurred.
Verity leaned over and looked at his squashed lips. “Excellent, so you won’t know if it’s good or not. You look really cute with your face all compressed like that, so cute.”
“Thank you,” Adrian laughed.
Verity ran her hands over his strong back and massaged his shoulders. She used her thumb in circular motions down either side of his spine as he moaned softly.
“I have a major wood,” Adrian whispered, as he lifted his hips to adjust himself.
Verity laughed as he moved under her. She used her knuckles deeply in the muscles of his lower back. She could feel that he had very tight muscles and she did her best to unknot them. She moved her hands around his sides and he flinched. Verity smiled that he had ticklish ribs under all that muscle. She used her knuckles to massage the major muscles up his back, and then used her thumbs in his shoulders and neck. Verity continued massaging his muscles and stroking his skin for fifteen minutes. She noticed that his breathing had changed a few minutes earlier and he was extremely relaxed. She smiled and continued caressing his skin. His muscles felt smooth and comfortable now, and he was asleep. Verity climbed carefully from his back and went to the bathroom to wash her hands. She squatted down next to Adrian and smiled at how sweet he looked. She had learned how to massage properly for the love of her life. He was very active in all of the university sport teams and often injured himself by being a clown. He did exactly what Adrian did, became sexually aroused, completely relaxed and fell asleep.
Out in the lounge room, Verity turned off the DVD player and television. She sat down on the couch and picked up a photo album. She had to touch his face in every picture. Most of the pictures showed an uncompromising facial expression. She wondered if he had the male equivalent of ‘resting bitch face’ and smiled at the thought. He had a beautiful smile, and he could switch between gloomy-looking and joyful in the blink of an eye, yet his demeanour was constant. He was always happy and wanting to joke. She touched his face and wondered if he had a job being serious in the commerce world. He would be taken, he’d have to be. He would be taken by any organisation who wanted a brilliant mind. And he’d be taken by any lucky woman who wanted an uncomplicated man. A man who would tell her how it is and make her laugh, and never get angry or annoyed even when you drove him crazy. Verity smiled about the fact that they’d never had a fight. He used to quietly disagree with her and he’d always turn out to be right, even though Verity would be vociferously telling him he was wrong. She hoped he was having a wonderful life because that’s what he deserved.
Verity went to the kitchen and put the kettle on to boil. She would wake Adrian up with a coffee soon and see how he liked the massage. She was on her way through the lounge area to go see if Adrian was snoring when she heard a key in her door. She turned around and the noise stopped. She smiled thinking it was probably a neighbour at the wrong door because all the doors looked the same.
The front door flew open and four men appeared in the doorway. “Grab her,” one said, shutting the door hard as they entered. Verity managed half a scream before a hand was over her mouth. The four men took a limb each and forced her to the ground. They were groping her and taking down her underwear. “Who’s going first?” one asked.
“That would be me,” Adrian said.
“Fuck. I thought you said she lived alone?” one man asked.
&nbs
p; The man holding Verity’s left arm stood up and brandished a knife at Adrian. “Unless you want to die, piss off.”
“Really?” Adrian asked.
“The bigger they are the more they bleed,” the man with the knife said, “You lift weights or something, big deal, that doesn’t mean you can fight. We have a gun too. Do you really want this? She’s not worth it. You’ll die and we’ll all fuck her anyway. Why don’t you just leave before you die?”
“Don’t let him go, Max, he’ll tell the cops. Just kill him.”
“Let’s do her in the kitchen, while he wipes that guy out,” one of the other men said, and the three of them picked Verity up while she struggled.
“You ready for me?” the man with the knife asked Adrian.
“More than ready. You’re an idiot and you’re about to get hurt,” Adrian said. He turned his head to the noises in the kitchen and looked back at the man in front of him. “Let’s get it done.”
The man laughed and lunged towards Adrian with the knife. Adrian disarmed him with one movement and dislocated his shoulder with another. He pushed him to the ground and went to the kitchen. “Who’s next?”
The three men looked at each other and back at Adrian.
“Who’s next?” Adrian repeated, “No one? Fine, I’ll go next.”
Verity got to her feet and stood as far back as possible in the kitchen while Adrian engaged in a fight with the three men at once. In under a minute all three men were on the ground groaning. Adrian took Verity by the hand and led her into the bedroom. “Lock yourself in and stay put.” He picked up his shirt and closed the door. Verity locked the door and sat on the bed with her hands clasped. She replayed the kitchen scene in her mind, not the men groping her and taking her underwear, but what Adrian was doing. She didn’t feel scared because she knew Adrian had it under control. He moved so fast that he didn’t even get hurt, yet he managed to incapacitate them all. He was incredible. She wondered what he was doing out there. She assumed he’d be okay but there were four of them and only one of him. She went to the bedroom door and pressed her ear against it. She couldn’t hear anything. She put her hand to the knob. No. He said to lock herself in and stay put, so that’s what she should do. She really needed to pee.
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