Carnal Vengeance (11 page)

She heard his muffled chuckle of masculine triumph and thought it was over. But his hands and body began to stroke her inside and out and waves of pleasure lapped at her again. This time, she knew what her body strived for and had no trouble grasping the orgasm when it approached.

A short while later, when he wordlessly showed her how to use her hands and mouth to make him ready for her again, she was anxious to learn everything he had to teach her.

This
was what it should be like, this closeness, this shared passion was worth any sacrifice she had to make to be with Jerry forever, from this moment on.

Holly couldn't actually remember falling asleep but her internal alarm told her it was morning. God, she was sore, but at the same time, she felt marvelous. She was certain no other woman had ever had such a unique introduction to sex. They would probably still smile about it on their fiftieth wedding anniversary. That thought made her want to make love to him all over again.

Stretching luxuriously, she felt Jerry stir beside her. As she did first thing every morning, she reached for her glasses and switched on the lamp.

Holly turned back to wake her future husband with a kiss, and froze.

The dark-haired man lying naked in her bed was a complete stranger.

Chapter 5

"Excuse me. Miss? You'll have to stow your briefcase under the seat for landing."

Holly blinked at the flight attendant hovering over her and the world came back into focus. Her insides were quivering and her upper lip was damp with perspiration. She should never have allowed herself to fall asleep.

When she had first gone home from Dominion, she constantly escaped into sleep. For a while it worked to keep her from thinking. Then the nightmare had come and she stopped sleeping altogether.

It had been several years since the dream had last haunted her, but she should have known that recalling the details might bring it back. It always started the same, in the dark, feeling terrified of something she couldn't see and trying desperately to find a way out of the room she was in. Then a light comes on and she sees what had her so frightened. Occasionally it turned out to be an animal of some sort, a snake or giant spider. Sometimes it was a grotesque monster. Once or twice, it was the face of someone she had seen on television before she went to sleep.

Most often, however, she saw a mutation of Tim Ziegler, as he had looked that morning in her bed.

As the plane taxied down the runway at the Greater Pittsburgh International Airport, Holly hoped that April was right—that this visit would be a step toward eliminating the nightmare permanently.

She fought off the feeling that automatically came over her every time she returned to the old house. Tonight, she couldn't allow her personality to regress back to that of the shy, overweight girl with glasses she used to be. Tonight, she needed all the maturity and confidence the years had given her to apologize and explain why she had been so hateful all those years ago.

Back then, the sheer helplessness of her situation had her searching for someone she could safely strike out at. Her parents' fear of losing her made them the perfect target. Somehow, in the aftermath of trauma, Holly had decided they were at fault. She had determined that their overprotectiveness had kept her naive enough to believe in Cinderella stories and fall for Jerry Frampton's lies. Knowing the truth of why they were so protective of her made her behavior toward them that much more unforgivable.

Bernie and Viv Kaufman had originally been blessed with three holiday babies. Their son arrived on Lincoln's birthday, so he was named Abraham Lincoln Kaufman, nicknamed Link for obvious reasons. Seven years later Holly was born on Christmas Eve and two years after that, a week after Easter, Viv delivered Bunny.

Bunny was nine when her life was stolen. She and her father had been walking her new puppy when she accidentally dropped the leash. The little dog dashed into the street and Bunny took off after it—right into the path of an oncoming car. Before Bernie even knew what his baby's fate was, he caught the puppy and broke its neck.

Holly remembered the awful funeral, her mother crying continuously for months, and the subsequent move to a different neighborhood where they wouldn't have to look at the street day after day where the accident had happened.

While their parents grieved, Link enlisted in the marines and was sent to Beirut. A month after he arrived, the marine headquarters was bombed causing the greatest casualties the corps had ever endured in peacetime.

Bernie had never fully forgiven himself for failing to prevent Bunny's accident, then he blamed himself for Link's enlisting the way he did. Instead of withdrawing into grief once more, though, he focused all his love and attention on the one child he had left—Holly. And she had thrown that love back in his face rather than trust him to be supportive.

Her parents were already waiting for her when she pulled the rental car into their driveway. No sooner did the headlights shine into the living room window than the front door opened and they hurried out to greet their little girl. Holly always wondered how two people with their excessive girth managed to have so much energy. Other than her father losing his hair and her mother's blonde hair turning white, the years had barely taken a toll on them.

Viv gave Holly the thirty seconds it took to exchange hugs before demanding, "Okay, what is it?"

Holly smiled and kissed her mother's plump cheek. "You know, I think this is the first time in years you didn't greet me with food in your hand."

"She left it in the oven to keep warm," Bernie assured her with a laugh as they walked arm and arm into the house. "There's sauerbraten and noodles and some apple strudel for dessert."

Knowing she would have to eat a several-course meal regardless of the hour, Holly had purposely eaten only a salad with Philip.

"You look like you're dieting again, honey," Viv lightly scolded. "You know how unhealthy that is."

"I'm not dieting, Mom. In fact I've gained a few pounds since you last saw me."

Her mother moved away to scrutinize Holly's figure then shook her head. "Come. Sit. You'll talk in between bites."

"If you don't mind, I think I'd rather say what I came for first. It isn't exactly conducive to digestion."

Although Viv reluctantly agreed to postpone putting food on the kitchen table, they still sat around it, the way they usually did for a family discussion.

Now that the time had come, Holly wasn't sure how to begin, but her father helped.

"Everyone at the restaurant today was talking about our Senator Ziegler and that woman. You know we don't have time to watch television, but when I heard the two of them went to Dominion, around the same time as you, well, it got me thinking. Did you know them?"

"No," Holly said, having previously decided naming names would be a bad idea, considering her father's hot temper. "But the hearing is what made me realize I should have told you about what happened to me there years ago." She took a deep breath and found her courage. "Before I came home, I had a boyfriend... or rather I thought I did."

Viv interrupted. "We figured he must have broken your heart and, since you hadn't had much experience dating, it sent you into a tailspin."

Nodding, Bernie added, "You had called us about him. Said you were in love. Was it Ziegler? No. I'd have remembered that."

Holly held up her hand. "The name isn't important anymore. What—"

"Jim," Bernie guessed. "John? That doesn't sound right either."

"Jerry," Viv supplied quietly. "I remember she said his name was Jerry and he was a football player. Tell us what happened, honey."

Holly glanced from one to the other and saw nothing but pure love and compassion ready to be offered, no matter what she had to say. In that moment, the nightmare began to unravel. She told them of her deep feelings for the young man, without confirming her mother's recollections about his identity, and of the plans she had had for their future. When she described the game and her morning discovery, they were as shocked as she had been at the time.

"What?
How the hell did
that
happen?" Bernie exclaimed, his short fuse instantly igniting.

"It was a fraternity prank," Holly replied, unable to hide the bewilderment the truth still made her feel. "It seems that my beloved told his fraternity brothers that I wouldn't come across for anything short of a diamond ring and one of them bet him that he could change my mind with one kiss. The whole group took part in coming up with a way to trick me into giving the challenger a fair advantage then bets were placed on the outcome."

She couldn't meet her parents' eyes, as she said, "I had had a few drinks and I guess I was a little disoriented. I didn't notice any difference in the dark. When I first woke up the next morning, I had no idea who was in my bed but then I remembered having met him at the fraternity. I kept thinking I was still asleep and having a nightmare. But then my dear boyfriend was banging on the door and shouting obscenities. I was too numb to think clearly. I let him in.

"He went completely berserk when he realized what had happened, but it was
me
he was furious with, not his so-called brother. He hit me and knocked me down. He called me ugly names and said I owed him while he tore off my robe. I tried pleading with him, then with his friend."

Holly closed her eyes and swallowed hard several times before she could continue. "I had the insane notion that, even though we were virtually strangers, our night together, my giving him my virginity, might have meant something and he'd help me. Instead, he was getting aroused watching. When his buddy had a little trouble getting his pants open and holding me down at the same time, he gave him a hand."

"Dear god," Viv whispered. "Did they—"

"Yes. Both of them. I know they hurt me... because of the blood... but I didn't feel a thing. I couldn't."

Bernie's fist slammed the table top.
"Bastards!
Son-of-a-bitching bastards." He got up, stormed across the room and pounded the wall. "I'll kill them. I'll cut their fucking nuts off!" His face was crimson as he strode back and looked down at Holly. "You give me their names. I'll take care of them."

"No, Pop," she countered as she rose. "I knew that's how you'd react, but I didn't come here for that. I came for your forgiveness."

"Forgiveness?" Viv asked and got up to join them. "I could never forgive them, whoever they are."

"Not the men, Mom. Me. I ran home to hide, but rather than explain, I treated the two of you like dirt."

Viv embraced Holly and squeezed her tight. "Oh, honey, we always knew there had to be a good reason, but never in a million years would we have imagined anything so horrible."

Bernie enveloped the both of them in his big arms and for a moment they were all silent. Then Viv sniffled and Holly felt her mother's chest tremble as she tried not to cry aloud.

Suddenly the anguish broke through Holly's wall of stoicism and the tears that had not come forth at the time trickled down her cheeks.

Minutes passed before they could all dry their eyes and sit back down at the table. Then her father said the kindest words he could.

"I understand why it took you so long to talk about this. Time doesn't always lessen the horror or the need for revenge. I am completely serious now, baby. If you want me to punish them for you, I'd take a great amount of pleasure in it."

Holly shook her head. "Doing anything now could backfire—on
all
of us. I didn't have the nerve to report the rape that morning like I should have. I would have had to admit how stupid and vulnerable I was to begin with. The whole situation seemed too unbelievable for words. I guess I was in a state of shock afterward, but somehow I managed to get cleaned up and went to class, as if nothing unusual had happened."

"By that afternoon, half the campus was gossiping about the bet and how the two guys had settled it by sharing me in a wild ménage a trois. Reporting it after that would have sounded like I was only trying to save my damaged reputation. Instead, I crawled home to the two of you."

They talked well into the night and eventually Holly had to have "a little something" to eat before they could all retire.

She didn't know if it was the power of April's suggestion or if the confession really had made a difference, but when she boarded the plane the next morning to return to Washington, she felt considerably lighter in spirit.