Chapter Seven

 

Natasha was doing an all night vigil at the bedside of Jiselle Newman. She had been incoherent earlier, so the doctors had given her something to make her sleep. Natasha wished that they could have gotten more information from her, but as it was, the trail on the rapist was quickly going cold. The bastard had raped the young woman in the evening. She had arrived at the security post on the south side of the campus battered, bloody, and hysterical.

The security guard had the traumatized young woman taken to the clinic. It had been three hours since she was sedated. Natasha waited at her bedside; a sense of rage had her in its grip.

Jiselle's parents were in the visitors lounge. Her mother had been crying so loudly that the doctors had sedated her as well. They lived nearby so this girl was a day student. Penelope on the other hand lived on campus.

Natasha looked at her watch and then over at the battered face of Jiselle. She had no idea if this was the same rapist, but her skin prickled with rage. She was on campus when this happened. How could this have happened under her nose? She felt a huge sense of inadequacy.

Tony tiptoed into the room and sat in a chair beside her.

"Any movements yet?"

"No." Natasha shook her head. "She's out. The doctors did a rape kit for us, but you know how long that will take to process at the lab. Besides, the rapist used a condom again."

Tony nodded and then whispered. "We could explore the similarities between the two girls…see if there is a pattern."

"Good idea, but I am not leaving this girl's bedside until I get a statement."

Tony dragged out his notebook. "I could find out some things about Penelope, like her background…her boyfriends…see if there is anything similar to Jiselle."

"That sounds fine." Natasha looked at her watch and yawned. "It's nine o'clock."

She wondered if Taj and April were still at his house. The green-eyed monster was active in her. She never got this way, ever. She was surprised at herself. Really shaken up at the possessive way she felt toward Taj. It was scary to feel so involved.

She glanced at Tony who was cracking his knuckles impatiently.

Then Jiselle stirred. She opened her eyes a crack and asked, "Where am I?"

Natasha got up hurriedly. "You are at the university's private clinic. Do you remember how you got here?"

Jiselle squeezed her eyes shut. "Yes."

"My name is Natasha. I am with the Mount Faith Police. This is my partner Tony Beaker. Can you tell us what happened?"

Jiselle turned her head away from Natasha and Tony.

"I was on my way from the business center. I went to the post office. I was expecting a package."

Natasha jotted down that information.

"I was passing the greens."

"The common area where students hang out?"

"Yes," Jiselle said, a croak in her voice, "and out of nowhere a guy grabbed me." She swallowed. "He grabbed me from behind and covered my mouth and then blindfolded me."

"Didn't anybody see this?" Tony asked incredulously.

"I don't think so. It was pretty scanty out there. The guy covered my mouth tightly before I could scream. He carried me to the empty lot near the psychiatry center. I think they are building a garden there… and threw me behind a mound of dirt."

"What did he blindfold you with? Could you see anything through it?" Natasha asked earnestly.

"Not really," Jiselle said softly. "It was a thin white kerchief. I was trying to fight but the guy held me down. Tied my mouth and my hands and he started to kick me all over and called me names. He told me I was high handed and acted better than everybody else and that he was going to show me who was boss."

She shuddered. "After he raped me, he gave me a kick and asked me who was the boss now. He untied my hands and left. When I heard him move off I waited a while and found the security post nearby."

"What time was this?" Natasha asked.

"Near four-thirty, the sunlight was weak and the day was overcast. So it looked like dusk."

Natasha patted Jiselle's hand. "We are going to get to the bottom of this, Jiselle. Don't worry!"

Jiselle moaned as she turned. "I just want to go home!"

"Can you remember anything outstanding about this guy?" Tony asked Jiselle gently.

"He smelled like bubblegum," Jiselle said shuddering.

Natasha looked at Tony, her eyebrows raised. They had heard this before. "And his voice, what did it sound like?"

"He sounded hoarse." Jiselle winced in pain.

"Would you say he was about your height?" Natasha asked. "Since he held you from behind."

"He was a bit taller than me," Jiselle whispered, "and he wasn't muscular either but he felt strong because when I started to fight I couldn't believe that he was that strong."

"Thank you Jiselle," Natasha said closing her notebook. A seething fury had taken up residence in her mind.

She exhaled when she walked out into the night air with Tony.

It was quarter-to-ten. She glanced at her watch in the light of the clinic gardens. She felt angry and aggressive.

"Why couldn't this idiot try that with me?" Natasha asked. "I would beat him to a pulp."

Tony looked at her angry expression and bit his lip. He watched as she paced the parking lot angrily.

"Maybe tomorrow we can look at some of the parallels in the two cases together," Tony suggested folding his arms and staying out of Natasha's way.

Natasha stopped pacing and stood still. "Sorry for the blown fuse. I just hate injustices against women, particularly this type…cowardly men creeping in the dark, overpowering them. These men take so much from women when they do this," Natasha said bitterly. "It is not just a physical attack. It stays for years. Forever! It screws up their lives, their future relationships..."

"I know," Tony nodded, "but we have to remain calm about this. What time should we meet tomorrow?"

"At the station," Natasha said, heading for her car. "Ten o'clock tomorrow. We can compare the girls as you suggested…see if there is anything similar and then run through what Jiselle told us. I'll contact campus security and see if there are any CCTV cameras near the psych center. I am tired!"

She waved to Tony as she got into the car but stayed a little while with her head on the steering wheel before she found the energy to drive home.

 

***

 

Deidra woke up in a sour mood. She had hardly slept last night. She had tossed and turned and thought about Micah all night until her mind had expired from overuse. She was of two minds. One voice was telling her, in Charlene's sensible tones, to back off Micah. Another voice, sounding like the most cynical version of herself, was mocking her and saying, Micah Bancroft is strange. He should be punished for treating you like a naive child.

She headed to the kitchen and saw James slurping his cereal and reading a book and Charlene cooking up something that smelled delicious.

"What's that?" She asked Charlene gruffly.

"Leftover warmed up fish and fried breadfruit," Charlene said looking at her assessingly. "Want some?"

"No." Deidra shuddered. "I don't eat grease. I don't want to ruin my shape."

Charlene shrugged. "Suit yourself, I never expected you to eat this anyway.

James looked up from his book absentmindedly. "Hi Dee."

Deidra snorted. "Don't speak to me unless spoken to, twerp. What is that you are reading? A book without pictures! I am shocked. Is the world going to end?"

James laughed. "It's just a book."

"It must be porn. You nasty creature," Deidra said going into the fridge for her non-fat Greek yogurt.

"Porn!" Charlene exclaimed. "So early in the morning James? I would prefer if you don't read it at all."

James looked at them both sheepishly. "Jeez, it's for a reading assignment."

Charlene raised her brows speculatively. "Isn't your major Animation? Why on earth would you be reading porn?"

James placed his book face down on the table. There was a picture of a lady tied up and looking seductively at them.

"It's for English Language 101. The teacher said we should read a book that we liked and give a one-page report on it. I failed the course twice last year. I need to pass it this year."

"You do realize that Mount Faith University is a Christian institution, don't you?" Charlene asked sharply. "You are going to get called upon to explain why this book."

"Aunty Marcie will have to come up here and beg Dr. Bancroft not to kick you out of school because of your sick report," Deidra chimed in. "Your mother is a big senator who is passionate about young people and the turn their lives are taking in this country. She'll be devastated to learn that her own pookie-boo is a sicko."

"Stop it!" James said to Deidra. "Why do you have to be so hard and so mean?"

"Because you are stupid and ugly," Deidra said churlishly.

"Make her stop!" James turned to Charlene, gripping the edge of the table until his knuckles were red.

"Stop!" Charlene looked at Deidra sternly.

"I hate him," Deidra said petulantly. "He sicks my stomach. Why did Aunt Marcie have to send him to Mount Faith University? There are several universities on the island, and some very good ones in Kingston where she lives."

James bit his lip and sat down, playing in his cereal. "Nobody else offers a degree in animation or animation technology," he gritted out. "If it were up to me I would not be here."

The kitchen was silent except for the cluttering of the knife and fork on Charlene's plate.

"You two need to find some way to get along," Charlene said in the silence.

"I want him out of here!" Deidra said stridently. "He hardly goes to school. He sits around and plays video games with his little friend and eats his gum and sticks it all over the furniture."

James didn't respond, he just hung his head and played with is spoon. "You are being mean because Micah Bancroft doesn't want you," James said snidely when Deidra started eating her yogurt.

"You pig!" Deidra shouted, the spoon clattered out of her hand and her face wrinkled in consternation. "Micah Bancroft wants me. He wants me so much he couldn't help himself. He held me down and took me, just last night!"

Charlene gasped. "Deidra, is this true?"

Deidra paused infinitesimally. "Of course it's true."

James shook his head. "You are lying. I gave you that story the last time you came in here rejected."

"Well let's call it a self-fulfilling prophecy then," Deidra bit out.

Charlene looked at Deidra seriously. "If this is rape it has to be reported. There is a spate of rapes taking place on the main campus. Maybe Micah Bancroft is responsible for those too!" Her eyes widened." I can't believe this. I actually liked Micah. He has never given me that vibe and the last time we spoke he acted as if he didn't even like you. What an actor!"

"Believe it," Deidra said, a deflated feeling in the pit of her stomach. "He is deceptive and conniving."

Charlene looked at Deidra with compassion. "Are you alright dear? Should we get you to the hospital? I have no idea what to do in cases like these. Let me call the police."

"I have to go." James said looking at Deidra, an odd light in his eye. "I have class."

Charlene picked up the phone and made the call. Natasha Rowe answered as soon as she sat at her desk.