“David, I’m sorry,” he said. “I know this is not the time or the place, but I need to ask you. And I’m not proud of it, and I don’t like it, but it is my job to ask these questions and see the whole thing from all angles.”
David looked up from his chair. His eyes were shallow and dark, his complexion wan and exhausted. He was a man at the end of his rope. Gaines saw sadness on his face, a sadness that he himself was afraid to even imagine feeling. Put yourself in his shoes, an internal voice threatened. But he didn’t wish to wear those shoes. Gaines could not bring himself, even for the briefest of moments, to allocate his own daughter to such a terrible fantasy. The idea of it turned his stomach sour.
“Listen, I know what you’re going to ask,” David said. “My daughter just said Harry Bennett raped her. You need to be sure she isn’t just some disturbed teenager making up a story for attention. I get it. It’s a small town, and you’re in the politics game. You don’t want to ruffle any powerful feathers.”
That was true; Calvin Gaines was a politician, although he hated to think of himself that way. Maybe a sheriff required election, but the job came first and foremost. Besides, politics had little to do with his concerns. He did, however, need to consider the fact that throwing around accusations like this could ruin a person.
He took a seat next to Kara’s father and set his hat on the chair beside him. “Look, I’m no fool, David. I have no doubt your daughter has been through something terrible. I just need to be certain what that something is before I go haul Harry Bennett into the station and ask him if he raped a fifteen-year-old girl.” His insides tightened like a twisted rope at his last sentence.
“She isn’t lying,” David said bluntly. “You probably think she is, but I know my little girl. I know when she’s lying, and I know when she’s telling the truth. Just the same way I’m sure you can tell when your Maddie isn’t being straight with you. A parent—a father—can tell.” He turned, looking at Gaines, his face ironed flat. “But I also understand this isn’t just some ordinary open-and-shut case. I know you need to take care how you handle it. I just can’t say I’m seeing it like you, right now.”
It surprised Gaines how calm and level-headed David was being. He half-expected some sort of vigilante defiance from the man, like something from a movie, a father out for revenge, threatening to take matters into his own hands if he didn’t do something! Instead what he was seeing was a man defeated. Helpless. He hardly knew David, their interactions limited mostly to the sidelines of their girls’ soccer games in the fall or the occasional conversation down at Hawk’s Pub when they bumped into each other. But Gaines knew David well enough to know he was a smart, reasonable man. Character aside, Gaines had expected some sort of fight or up-in-arms reaction from the father of a daughter who’d just shown up home beaten and bruised, claiming she’d been raped. He suspected it was possible that David Price was being plagued by his own good sensibility—a hardwired voice of reason telling David to be rational when all he wanted to do was be irrational. Gaines may not have known the man well, but he had a hunch about this because somewhere deep down inside himself he felt a reflection of it.
“It isn’t that I think your girl’s lying, David. I just need to know more. We don’t really have much yet.” Gaines knew this was bullshit, because part of him thought—perhaps hoped—she was lying. It would definitely make his job a whole hell of a lot easier if she was. But that wasn’t the real reason he questioned Kara Price’s honesty. It was because a prideful piece of him did not want to believe that Harry Bennett, a man he’d spent so much time in the presence of, could do something so vile, and he, the sheriff, could be so blind to the monster that had been in front of him all along. What would that say about him?
And even if it turned out that Kara was lying, Gaines still couldn’t ignore what was true—the evidence right in front of his face. He couldn’t discount her bruises and the obvious signs of some kind of abuse. It was possible she hadn’t been raped, sure. She could be faking it. Gaines had heard stories before of teenage girls crying wolf for some reason or another, complete with self-inflicted wounds, all in the name of attention. There was an obvious answer here, though, and he refused to accept it.
“I’m sure you’re probably not in the mood for it now, but I need to ask you a few questions.” Gaines plucked out the pencil that had been resting behind his ear and pulled a small notepad from his breast pocket.
David balled his fists and rested them on his knees. “Go ahead. But make it quick. When my girls are finished back there”—he pointed to the door beside the reception desk, the one with the plaque that read EXAM ROOMS, PATIENTS & MEDICAL STAFF ONLY—“I’m taking them home. And I’ll warn you, Ellie is a hell of a lot smarter than me and far more perceptive, if she picks up on what I picked up on, if she sees that look on your face like I have, if she thinks you’re calling our daughter a liar, you’ll be lucky if she doesn’t try and put you through that damn wall.”
Suddenly Gaines felt vulnerable, exposed. He didn’t think he had been so transparent. He’d planned to come right out and ask David if his daughter could be lying, but David had spotted the question and answered it before Gaines had even asked. For this reason, Gaines had denied his intention—or at the very least, tried to disguise it to soften its edge. He paused for a moment, letting out a long sigh. “Okay. I understand,” he said. “You know I’m just doing my job, don’t you? I really hope you can see that. And part of that is to be skeptical. If I took everything at face value, I’d have to believe every accusation. I’m not saying that your—”
David held up his hand. “Calvin, it’s fine. What do you want to ask me? I don’t know much more than you do, though. I think we’ve pretty much already said everything we can.”
Gaines rose to his feet, standing in front of David. “Your wife—Ellie, I mean—said that Kara had recently started working at Harry Bennett’s office. Is that right?”
“Yes,” David said.
“And how long has she been doing that?”
“Not long. Today was actually her first day. She was supposed to do Saturdays for a few weeks, learn the ropes, you know, until school was out, then she’d be full-time for the summer.” He rubbed the side of his face with his hand. “Ellie’s friend, Gail Hatcher, she’s a secretary down at the clerk’s office, she offered to get Kara an internship a few weeks back. I guess there’s some kind of co-op program at Town Hall.”
Gaines wrote down the information and moved on. “Does your daughter have a boyfriend?”
David shook his head, looking down at his lap. “You mean has my daughter ever had sex? Is that what you’re asking? Christ.”
Gaines looked away for a moment, dropping his hands to his sides. “Like I said, I just need to get all the angles. Please just try and understand that.”
“Not that I know of, but she never really talked about boys with me and Ellie.”
“Okay,” Gaines said.
“She hangs out with John Kinsey’s kid sometimes. Ryan, I think’s his name. Sometimes he gives her a ride home from school. I don’t think they’re anything more than friends. I’ve never noticed anything to suggest otherwise, anyway.”
Gaines wrote down the name, underlining it in his pad: Ryan Kinsey. Friend? BF? “What about school? Everything been going okay for her there? I know she’s a freshman, sometimes the seniors can be rough on the underclassmen. Has she complained about any bullying?”
David looked toward the door to the exam room. “As far as I know, everything’s fine. But again, she’s at the age now where she doesn’t really tell us much unless we pry it out of her. For all I know, she could be valedictorian and I’d have to hear it from someone else.”
Gaines could see tears welling in David’s eyes. “Yeah, my girl’s the same way.” He smiled halfheartedly, trying to offer some levity in light of the shared paternal plight. David didn’t react. Gaines moved on. “So, I know you said you don’t know much about what happened tonight, bu
t what can you tell me?”
“Not a lot. This is stuff we’ve already been over,” David said, and shifted in his seat. He kept his eyes glued on the door to the exam rooms. “I was reading in the living room. Ellie was making dinner. It was around six-thirty, I think, and we were expecting Kara to be home from her first day soon. Ellie opened the front door to let some air in or check the mail or something, I forget, and that’s when she found our daughter standing there.” David broke his gaze and turned to Gaines. “That’s it. After that we just tried to calm her down long enough to find out what had happened. Then we called you after she told Ellie she’d been raped.”
“Do you know how she got home?” Gaines asked.
“No. Ellie said she was just standing there. I have no idea for how long. But I imagine she probably walked from somewhere.”
“So you didn’t see anybody drop her off? Didn’t hear any car?”
“No. But I doubt Harry Bennett was going to deliver her to our front door after he raped her,” David said sharply.
There it was again, that name: Harry Bennett. Every time Gaines heard it, his chest panged with anxiety. “So you never saw a car? Harry Bennett’s or any other?” He could feel what he was doing, how he was posing his questions, trying to lead the whole thing away from the mayor. He knew it wasn’t right, but he wasn’t even sure he was doing it on purpose. It was more like instinct, self-preservation. It wasn’t as though he had any plan in mind; he was only reacting.
“For fuck’s sake, this is goddamn ridiculous,” David said, slamming his fists down on the armrests of the chair. “My daughter just gave you a name: Harry Bennett. The mayor. I know it’s not what you want to hear, but there it is. There is your lead. You need to be talking to him.” David’s calm resolve was gone. The rope he was at the end of had snapped.
Gaines cradled the pencil behind his ear, flipping his notebook closed and tucking it in his pocket. “Relax, David. I know you’re upset.” He took a step closer.
“Relax? You want me to relax?” David gripped the armrests and leaned forward as if he were going to launch himself to his feet, but he stopped, his voice shifting from anger to despair. “My daughter is back there right now having God knows what done to her, and you want me to relax after you act as though she’s just some dumb kid looking for attention—”
“I never said anything like—”
“You didn’t have to, it’s obvious. It’s all over your face,” David said. “Look, I can appreciate that you’re not confident in the word of a teenager, but she just told you what happened. You know how hard that was for her? At least act like that’s significant and you’re considering it.”
“I am, and it is. I know this is hard—”
The door to the exam rooms opened and Kara walked out, her mother beside her with an arm around her shoulders. Behind them, farther down the corridor, Catherine was speaking with Dr. Hornsby and the nurse, Julie Bowen. When Catherine saw Gaines, she held up a finger to Julie and Dr. Hornsby, breaking away from the conversation. She headed down the hall toward the waiting room.
David looked up at Gaines. Their eyes met. Gaines looked down for a moment, then toward Kara and her mother. He looked back at David. “We’re all done here for the night,” he said. “David, you can take your family on home now. Catherine and I need to speak with Dr. Hornsby.”
Ellie walked her daughter through the waiting room toward the exit. Kara never said a word, her gaze set firmly on the carpet, but her mother paused on the way by. “Thank you, Sheriff,” she said, and touched his arm.
The guilt and shame was an unexpected punch. Seeing Kara’s face again nearly floored him. He had done nothing deserving of any appreciation. So far all he’d managed to do was insinuate to the father of a raped child that his daughter might be making the whole thing up. Thank you. Those words were like flechettes fired from her mouth. “No need for thanks, ma’am. Just doing my job.” He looked back at David but couldn’t bring himself to make eye contact. “Get home safe and sound now. We’ll be in touch.”
“We will,” Ellie said, and continued to the door. “Come on, sweetie, we’re going home now.” Then they were outside, walking back to the car, slow steps.
David rose to his feet. “I know you’ll do your job, Calvin. You’re a good man. Sorry I lost my temper before,” he said flatly, patting Gaines on the shoulder. Then he followed his family.
The front door to the medical practice was glass, and through it, Gaines could see David catch up to his wife and daughter in the parking lot. He put his arm around Kara, but she pulled away toward her mother. The two parents glanced at each other, pausing briefly, then continued, David slouching, hands in his pockets. The rear of their car divided them. Ellie went right with her daughter under her arm, opening the back door for her, and David, alone, went left and got into the driver’s seat. Gaines finally saw the true character David was playing in this tragedy: the outsider. And Gaines felt for him.
Catherine stood in the doorway, thumbs hooked in her pockets, watching with a suspicious look on her face. “What was that about?” she asked.
Gaines heard her but didn’t respond. He continued watching as the Prices got into their car. There was the dull roar of an engine. Brake lights flickered. Then they were gone.
“Calvin? Sir? Hey.” Catherine snapped her fingers. “You with us?”
“What? I heard you. What was what about?” Gaines said, turning back to Catherine.
She stepped forward out of the doorway. “I asked what was going on between you and the girl’s father. There was some serious tension in here.”
“Oh. Nothing. Don’t worry about it,” Gaines said dismissively. “What did you find out? Where’s…”
Dr. Hornsby’s tall frame filled the doorway behind Catherine. He brought a finger to the bridge of his nose and adjusted his glasses. Julie Bowen stood beside him, eyes down, writing in an open file. She was a short woman, with wide-set eyes, brown hair, and a chubby figure.
“So what can you tell us, Creed?” Gaines asked.
Dr. Hornsby stepped around Catherine, and then all four were standing in a circle in the doorway. “I’ll let Julie fill you in. She did the exam.”
Gaines’s eyes widened, his fists on his hips. “What? Why didn’t you do it? You’re the doctor.”
Everyone looked at Gaines, surprised.
“Calvin, the parents asked for it that way. Given the circumstances I’d say that was the right call. Besides, Julie’s well qualified.”
Gaines rubbed his forehead. “I know, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t’ve said that.” He looked at Julie then back to Dr. Hornsby. “No offense. It’s just, well, you know who the girl’s saying did this to her, don’t you?”
“Yes. Catherine told me. I’m no detective, but—” Dr. Hornsby glanced briefly down at his feet, then back at Gaines. “But frankly, I have a hard time with the idea that… ” He started to say something but trailed off. “Never mind.” He shook his head and tugged nervously on his earlobe.
Gaines noticed a look on the doctor’s face—in his eyes—and he recognized it immediately. It was the face of a man in disbelief, a man struggling with an idea that seemed completely unfathomable. It was what Gaines had been feeling since Kara Price had uttered the name “Harry Bennett” back in her bedroom. He picked up again. “So you can understand why I don’t want to take any chances on this.”
“Look, Calvin, I understand. But everything was done by the book,” Dr. Hornsby said.
“Well, how can you be sure if you weren’t in—”
“What? Do you want me to call Kara’s parents and have them bring her back so I can reexamine her?” Dr. Hornsby snapped. “Put her through that again? Is that what you think I should do?”
“That wasn’t what I meant, and you know it,” Gaines said, raising his voice firmly. “I just need to be extra careful with this.”
Dr. Hornsby stiffened his posture but said nothing.
“Cal,” Catherine said softly, p
lacing a hand on Gaines’s arm. “Let’s not forget what we’re doing here. Can we just…” She didn’t finish the thought. She didn’t need to.
“You’re right,” Gaines said. “I apologize.”
Julie clicked her pen, sticking it in the crease of the folder and closing it. She wasted no more time. “You two done?” she said, and took a step forward. She spoke clearly and concisely with authority. “There are definite signs that Kara was raped. The bruises on her inner thighs are consistent with a sexual assault. I also found some internal swelling and tearing. The problem is some of these are only signs of sexual activity, not necessarily assault. But taken in context, given the mental state she’s in, the defensive wounds on her legs, the contusions on her face, I think it is clear what happened to her.”
A sick, unpleasant feeling ripped through Gaines’s body when he thought about the idea of human flesh tearing. “Jesus.” He looked at Catherine.
She shook her head, the corners of her lips curling down. “Go on.”
Julie continued: “I also swabbed her for fluids, but if this guy wore something, there might not be anything. The test might take a while for results, too. And once again, even if we do find semen, that doesn’t mean anything more than she’s had sex. It isn’t proof of rape. There isn’t much else we can do right now, either. That’s the problem with these types of things, everything’s pretty much circumstantial.” She shut the file. “But if you ask me, whoever did this was a sick son of a bitch. Worked her over real good. Put her tooth right through her lip.” Julie paused, looking around, then brought her gaze to Gaines. “You really think Harry Bennett did this?” she asked. “I’ve known him my whole life. I just can’t imagine…” And just like Dr. Hornsby, she trailed off before she said something she might regret.
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