Page 20 of Lexi, Property of Rhyder

Stacey reaches in her bag and hands me some Kleenex. I thank her as I wipe away my tears.

Without thinking twice, I blurt it out, “I was raped!”

Tears start to leak from my eyes, so I hide them in the tissue trying to conceal them.

What was I thinking having this conversation in a public place?Luckily for me, there are not many people in the café today.

“Oh my God, Lexi. I… I don’t know what to say. Are you okay?” Diane reaches out and grabs my hand again while Stacey hugs me to her as close as she can get.

I don’t reply. I can’t because I don’t know if I am okay.

“Who were they? Did you report it to the police?” Diane demands, anger now flashing through her features.

I look over at her. “You need to promise me you won’t say a word about this? No one knows, but you two. Oh… and Rhyder?” I add discreetly, almost in a whisper.

Diane frowns. “Rhyder? Who the hell is Rhyder?”

“He’s the man who saved me that night.”

Diane sits back. “What do you mean? How?”

“Rhyder was riding past on his motorcycle when somehow he heard my cries. He found me with the men in the bushes and somehow got rid of them.”

“Wait! What? You were in the bushes? Oh my God, Lexi. I’m so sorry.” Diane sits back covering her mouth with her hand while her eyes glisten with unshed tears.

I sniffle, pulling in a large breath to try and control my breathing. Wiping away fresh tears, I continue, “They dragged me into the nearby bushes. Two of them held me down while another one raped me.”

That’s my undoing.

I sob into my hands and feel Stacey drape her arm around my shoulders while Diane grasps my hand in hers.

“We’re so sorry, Lexi, you poor thing. You have been carrying this around with you for so long. What about your family? Do they know?”

“No!” I snap, sitting up, my back straight. Then I see both their concerned faces and soften slightly. “Sorry, it’s just… I can’t let them find out. I just can’t. If they did, they’d make me go to the police and report it, and then everyone will know what happened to me. My parents are protective enough as it is. Can you imagine what they will be like if they found out? No,” I shake my head. “I can’t tell them. They would never let me go to Harvard alone.”

“But, Lexi, these guys can’t get away with what they did. I mean, what if they try and do it again?” Stacey explains in a low, calm voice.

I know she’s right, and it kills me every day that they’re out there living a normal life while I have to live in fear. “I know, I’ve thought about that, believe me, and it plays on my mind constantly, but what can I do? I can’t tell the police… my family will find out.”

Diane lets out a breath and takes a sip of her coffee. I do the same with mine. We sit in silence for a while caught up in our own thoughts.

“I… I don’t know what to say, Lex. I’m so sorry you went through that alone. If there’s anything we can do, just ask.”

I smile briefly and look at them both. “Just promise me… please, that you won’t be as naïve as I was.”

Diane gives me a small smile. “That I can promise.”

“Me, too,” Stacey adds.

“You must be scared to be alone. No wonder you didn’t want to come out last night. I’m such an idiot for pushing you.”

“It’s okay, Di. You didn’t know.”

“But how did you get home? Did you end up getting a cab? You shouldn’t have left without us.”

“I look out the window. Normally, I’d see Rhyder lurking around keeping an eye on me, but today he’s not there. He told me he’d be away, so why am I still looking for him?

I seriously have some deep shit going on in my mind right now.

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