Redress of Grievances (43 page)

Harriett
felt the tip of his knife pierce the skin under her chin slightly and closed
her eyes. "Twelve fucking years," Wilkes said slowly, dragging his
words out. "Look at me!" he demanded.

She
felt her breath quicken even though she tried to control it. When she opened
her eyes again she hoped Wilkes couldn't read the fear in them.

"I've
been watching you for a long time. At the bar, in court, passing you on the
street. Nice home, too. Sexy lingerie," he said as he brought his mouth
closer to her ear. "Has your new girlfriend seen you in it yet? I could
have killed her that night she chased me, you know.

And
Lacey, I can't wait until I meet her," he leered.

At
the mention of her niece's name, Harriett brought her hands up in an attempt to
push Wilkes away. He laughed as he shoved them away. "I'm going to take my
hand away from your mouth now, so we can talk," he said quietly. "But
I'm going to keep the knife right here," he continued, jabbing it slightly
into the skin under her chin, making her wince.

Wilkes
slowly removed his hand and she began to breathe through her mouth to take in
more oxygen.

"What
do you want, Jared?" she asked, her voice wavering slightly as she felt
the tip of the knife on her skin with every word, making her tilt her head
further back in order to speak without pain.

"You
know, this is a really nice little office you have here," Wilkes said,
ignoring her question. "I've been in here a couple of times looking
around. Bet you didn't know that."

"No,
I didn't."

Wilkes
pulled her away from the wall and wrapped an arm around her throat, moving the
knife to her back. "Let's go," he said as he pressed against her
back.

With
Wilkes guiding her from behind, Harriett made her way down the hallway and
upstairs to the rooms that had been her home before Nick joined her practice.
They had been converted into storage for old files long before and were seldom
used. Wilkes stopped her in front of an upstairs room and opened the door. As
soon as they were inside, he closed and locked the door before flipping on a
small light. She couldn't believe what she saw. A mattress lay on the floor and
Wilkes had covered the window with a black drape. Her body tensed, and she knew
he could sense it as well.

"Do
you like it?" he asked.

"What
do you want, Jared? You can leave right now, and I won't report this. If you do
anything else, you'll only be making things worse for yourself."

Wilkes
shoved her away from him, and she turned to face him. The corners of his mouth
curled into a wicked smile. "Undress," he ordered.

When
she failed to make a move, he twirled the handle of the knife in his hand and
moved toward her. Instinctively, she began backing away from him, but there was
no place to go in the small room. He teased her with the knife until she found
herself against a wall. Swiftly, his free hand grabbed her throat, and he held
her against the wall. She could barely breathe as he began unbuttoning her
blouse. With a flick of the knife in his hand, she felt her bra come apart and
saw his eyes as they surveyed her upper body. She closed her eyes as he ran the
tip of the knife around her breasts. Releasing her throat, he grabbed her arms
and slung her onto the mattress.

With
more strength than she thought she had, she swung her fist and caught Wilkes on
the left side of his head. A moment later she was stunned as his hand struck
her face. Before she could react, he was on top of her, pulling her skirt up
with one hand and holding her by the throat with the other. Cold metal raked
against the inside of her thigh as her underwear fell away. Pushing himself up
slightly, he looked down at her.

"Is
this your worst nightmare, Harriett?" he asked. "I've been watching
Lacey, you know. I hope her boyfriend hasn't done her yet. When I'm through
here, I think I'll pay her a little visit and find out. I could've already had
her but decided to save the best for last. After all these years, I bet you're
still wondering what all those girls went through."

She
tried to move from under him, but her efforts only made him smile. He leaned
down closer to her face and whispered, "Let me show you."

JESS
WAS TURNING down the flame under a pot of potatoes that had finally come to a
boil when Lacey came into the kitchen. "Smells great," she said.
"When will Aunt Harriett be home? I'm starving."

"I
thought she'd be here by now," Jess frowned. "I talked to her a
couple of hours ago, and she was finishing up then. Call her office and tell
her there won't be any food left if she doesn't get here soon."

As
she was running water over a head of lettuce for a salad, Lacey walked back
into the kitchen. "She doesn't pick up at her office. All I got was her
service. Maybe she's on her way home."

Jess
had to smile. She liked the idea of her house being referred to as Lacey and
Harriett's home. The cell phone in her pocket vibrated, and she looked at Lacey
as she fished it out. "Probably her now." Flipping the phone open,
she didn't recognize the number on the display. "Jess Raines," she
said.

A
moment later, she shook her head at Lacey. "It's my office. Call Harriett's
cell. Maybe she's stuck in traffic," she said calmly. As soon as Lacey
left the room, Jess returned to her own phone. "Repeat that," she
said.

WILKES
KISSED HARRIETT'S cheek as he encircled her neck with his hands, slowly
squeezing and cutting off her oxygen. Within a few seconds, she could feel her
body going limp and knew she would lose consciousness. As her eyelids
fluttered, he opened his hands, and she gasped for air. Weak from the
strangulation, gasping for air, she was powerless as Wilkes ran his hands
between her legs and pushed them apart. Her brain was sending signals to her
body, but it wasn't responding correctly to the messages as he penetrated her
roughly. As her body began responding to the oxygen she was taking in and the
pain she felt, his hands found her throat again. The more frenzied his attack
became, the tighter he gripped her throat.

JESS
BROUGHT THE Durango to an abrupt stop behind two patrol cars and left the
driver's door open as she quickly exited the vehicle and ran toward the officers
who were standing two houses down from Harriett's office. Catching her breath,
she said, "Anything?"

"The
building is dark inside, but there's a tan Chevy in the back drive," one
of the patrolmen answered.

"Then
she's inside," Jess said. Pointing at two of the officers, she ordered,
"You two, take the back. When I give the signal go in. We'll go in the
front." Drawing her Glock, Jess and the patrolmen moved rapidly toward the
office. Looking in the front windows, she tested the front door. Stepping in
front of it, she nodded to one of the officers. "Tell them to break the
back glass and go in," she said as she struck the front glass with her
elbow.

HARRIETT'S
THROAT WAS dry and ached as her eyes opened. As she tried to move, she felt a
stabbing pain in her groin. A hand ran across her breasts and down her abdomen,
causing her abdominal muscles to tighten involuntarily. Wilkes's face appeared
over her once again and a chill ran through her. "Please...," she
started as tears filled her eyes.

Seeing
the fear in Harriett's eyes, he smiled. "I could keep this up all night,
but I have a date with Lacey later and don't want to keep her waiting too
long," he said, his hands taking her by the throat again, slowly beginning
to close. Harriett knew she was going to die as lights exploded inside her
head, followed by a roaring in her ears as she lapsed into unconsciousness.

A
quick search of the offices revealed nothing out of order until Jess glanced up
the stairs leading to the upstairs storage area. A small shaft of light came
from under the door at the top of the landing and Jess took the stairs two at a
time with a patrol officer right behind her. She turned the doorknob and when
she found it locked she lowered her shoulder and rammed into it. She barely had
time for her brain to register the scene in front of her before she squeezed
off two quick shots. "Call an ambulance!" she screamed to the officer
behind her.

Chapter
Forty-Four

HARRIETT
LAY STOICALLY on an examination table, a warm blanket covering her as she
shivered. She couldn't remember ever feeling so cold. The bruises on her face
and neck had begun to darken into an ugly purple. She barely remembered being
undressed, Wilkes's blood being washed from her face and upper body as she
trembled.

"Are
you all right?" Jess asked softly.

Nodding
slightly, but not looking at her, Harriett brought a shaking hand up and pushed
strands of hair behind her ear. She didn't want Jess to see her like this.

"Lacey,"
she managed to say.

"She's
safe," Jess assured her.

When
Harriett finally looked at her, Jess saw tears had begun forming in her eyes.
Her heart went out to Harriett, and she took her in her arms, holding onto her
tightly, allowing her to cry as long as she needed to. A light tap on the door
announced the arrival of a doctor wearing green hospital scrubs, followed by a
nurse.

"Ms.
Markham," the doctor said softly. "I'm Dr. Jacobi. I know this is an
extremely difficult time, but we need to perform an examination."

"I
know," Harriett nodded.

"Are
you a relative?" Jacobi asked Jess as he pulled latex gloves on.

"A
friend."

"Then
you'll have to wait outside."

"I
want her to stay," Harriett said in a firm voice as she wiped her face.

"I'm
afraid that violates hospital policy, Ms. Markham," Jacobi said.

"I
don't give a damn what it violates," Harriett said forcefully, even though
the strain of speaking made her throat ache. "I'm an attorney, and I
promise not to sue you because you let her stay."

"I'll
need to perform a pelvic exam and take several swabs as evidence."

"I
know the procedure," Harriett said flatly. "Just do it and get it
over with."

Jess
took Harriett's hand and held it tightly, turning her back to what was
happening as a nurse prepared Harriett and set out medical implements. She
couldn't imagine the humiliation Harriett was going through and tried to block
out what the doctor was saying during his examination. Periodically, she
flinched and squeezed Jess's hand tighter. Despite the fact that the exam room
seemed cold enough to hang meat in, beads of perspiration appeared on her
forehead. Picking up a towel hanging near the exam table, Jess wiped Harriett's
face. She opened her eyes and kept them on Jess during the remainder of the
exam. This is my fault, Jess thought. I should have been keeping a closer watch
on her. It seemed that the doctor was taking an eternity to complete his
examination and, although she tried not to think about what the doctor was
doing, Jess picked up scraps of the doctor's explanation to Harriett and his
instructions to the nurse. At last the doctor turned off the exam light and
moved to the side of the exam table.

"You
have some tearing, which is to be expected, as well as considerable bruising,
Ms. Markham. It might take several days for them to heal, and you'll probably
have some discomfort until it does. Do you have children?"

"No."

"Well,
the treatment is about the same as with new mothers. Sitz baths and then apply
heat to the area to reduce the pain and speed healing."

"What
about...diseases?" Harriett asked as she squeezed Jess's hand again.

"We'll
send slides to the lab to determine the presence of any STDs. I evacuated the
vaginal area, but I'll give you an injection to prevent pregnancy. Do you have
any other questions you'd like to ask?" Jacobi asked, patting her on the
shoulder. "I recommend you make an appointment with your own gynecologist
for a follow-up. Someone will be here shortly to photograph the bruises for the
police."

"Can
I go home after that?" Harriett asked.

"I
want to admit you for observation, at least for tonight. I'm sure there won't
be any complications, but occasionally we see some hemorrhaging. I'll write an
order for a sedative tonight and a prescription you can take home. If you'd
like I can request a psych consult. Sometimes rape victims have a delayed
reaction even after they've healed physically."

"No,"
Harriett said. "I have a friend who's a psychologist. I'll contact
her."

Jacobi
patted Harriett on the shoulder before leaving the room. Jess excused herself
and followed him out.

"Can
you get her a private room, doctor?" she asked.

"I'm
sure we can. We should have her in a room in less than an hour."

"I'd
like to stay with her."

Jacobi
smiled and said quietly, "I won't tell anyone if you won't."

FORTY
MINUTES LATER, Jess accompanied Harriett to her room. As soon as the nurse had
taken her temperature, pulse and blood pressure, she left to get the prescribed
sedative.

"Jess,"
she said softly. "I want to take a bath."