Alicia shuddered and fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. Angela quickly wrapped her arms around her daughter, careful of the IV line. "Shh, you're safe now," she murmured, rocking gently. "You're safe. " A knock at the door made them both look up. A police officer stood in the doorway, notepad in hand.
He was middle-aged with graying hair at his temples, wearing a crisp uniform with a name tag that read, "Officer Reynolds. " Miss Carter. He stepped into the room. I'm sorry to disturb you, but I need to take your statement while the details are still fresh. Are you feeling up to answering some questions? Alicia nodded, though her stomach churned.
Angela sat back, but kept hold of her hand. Can you tell me what happened? Officer Reynolds pulled up a chair, pen poised over his notepad. Alicia took a shaky breath. I was walking home from school, taking the path through the woods.
Brandon Hayes and his friends were waiting for me. Brandon Hayes? The officer's eyebrows rose slightly. Councilman Hayes's son? Yes.
Alicia's voice grew stronger. He and Kyle Matthews, Trevor Wilson, and Mason Clark. They grabbed me and tied me to a tree. They gagged me so I couldn't call for help. Officer Reynolds wrote slowly.
His expression neutral. Did anyone witness this? No. That's why they picked that spot. Alicia felt frustration building.
But they took my phone. They threw it in the bushes. And my books. They ruined all my books in a puddle. We'll look for the phone, the officer said.
Though it may be difficult to prove who put it there. Did they say anything specific while this was happening? They said, Alicia's voice caught. Angela squeezed her hand encouragingly. They said they wanted to teach me about respect.
That no one would help me. Brandon's been threatening me since I started school here. Officer Reynolds made another note. Any previous incidents? They've been harassing me every day, making racist comments, pushing me in the halls.
Alicia wiped at her eyes. Yesterday, Brandon cornered me at my locker and told me to learn my place. Were there witnesses to these earlier incidents? Other students saw, but Alicia's shoulders slumped. Everyone's afraid of Brandon.
His father has a lot of influence in town. The officer closed his notepad. Well, we'll certainly look into this. Though without physical evidence or witnesses, it may be difficult to pursue charges. These situations can be complicated.
Complicated? Angela spoke up, her voice tight. My daughter was assaulted, tied to a tree, and left to freeze. What's complicated about that? Ma'am, I understand you're upset.
Officer Reynolds stood. I promise we'll investigate thoroughly. We'll search the area where it happened, try to locate the phone, but these cases often come down to one person's word against anothers. A familiar weight settled in Alicia's chest. The same heaviness she'd felt when Brandon first started targeting her.
She'd hoped that once the police got involved, things would change, but something in the officer's careful tone told her otherwise. "Thank you for your statement, Miss Carter. " Officer Reynolds moved toward the door. Get some rest. We'll be in touch if we need anything else. After he left, Angela tried to smile reassuringly.
At least they're investigating now. That's something, right? Alicia nodded, not trusting herself to speak. The nurse came in to check her vitals and adjust her IV, mentioning that she could probably go home in the morning if her temperature stayed normal. The next evening, Alicia sat at her kitchen table, pushing food around her plate.
Her mother had made her favorite mac and cheese with extra cheese and breadcrumbs on top, but she couldn't summon an appetite. The empty chair where her father usually sat, seemed to mock her. He was still deployed, unreachable for at least another week. "You should try to eat something," Angela said gently. "You need your strength.
I'm not hungry. Alicia set her fork down. What if they come after me again? The police aren't going to do anything. You don't know that.
Angela reached across the table to cover her daughter's hand. Officer Reynolds said they'd investigate. Now that it's officially reported, Brandon and his friends will have to be more careful. Things will get better. Alicia wanted to believe her mother's words.
She wanted to believe that the system would protect her, that justice would prevail. But she couldn't shake the memory of Officer Reynolds's careful neutrality when she'd mentioned Brandon's name, or the way he'd emphasized the complexity of the situation. "Maybe you're right," she said, picking up her fork again to make her mother happy. But inside, she felt more alone than ever. The morning sun cast long shadows across the school parking lot as Angela's car pulled up to the entrance.
Alicia's hands were clenched in her lap, her fingernails leaving half-moon marks on her palms. "You don't have to go back today," Angela said softly. "We can wait until next week. " Alicia shook her head. "No, I won't let them win. " But as she walked through the main doors, her confident facade cracked. Brandon and his friends were lounging against the lockers, and their laughter echoed down the hallway when they spotted her.
They didn't look worried or ashamed. They looked triumphant. "Hey, tree hugger," Brandon called out, just loud enough for her to hear. His friends snickered. Alicia kept walking, her shoulders tight.
She could feel their eyes on her back, hear their whispered comments. Other students quickly looked away when she passed, hurrying to their classrooms. No one wanted to be associated with her. In first period, she struggled to focus on the lesson. Every time someone shifted in their seat or dropped a pencil, she flinched.
Kyle Matthews sat two rows behind her, and she could hear him whispering to his friend about how some people didn't know their place. By lunchtime, Alicia's nerves were frayed. She sat alone at her usual table, picking at a sandwich she couldn't taste. Across the cafeteria, Brandon's group was holding court, speaking loudly and gesturing in her direction. Several times they broke into exaggerated laughter.
Emma, the girl who had smiled at her before, walked past with her lunch tray. She glanced at Alicia, then quickly away, choosing a table on the far side of the room. The message was clear. No one would stand with her. The afternoon dragged endlessly.
In gym class, Trevor accidentally threw a volleyball at her head. In chemistry, Mason knocked her textbook off the lab table, spilling water on her notes. Each time the teachers barely reacted, treating it as normal teenage behavior. When the final bell rang, Alicia practically ran to her mother's waiting car. She slumped in the passenger seat, finally letting out the breath she'd been holding all day.
"How was it? " Angela asked carefully. "They're not even pretending to be sorry. " Alicia's voice cracked. "The teachers saw them messing with me, but nobody did anything. " Angela gripped the steering wheel tighter. We'll figure this out, baby. The police are investigating.
They'll have to do something. At home, Alicia tried to lose herself in homework, but the equations blurred before her eyes. Every sound made her jump. A car door slamming, footsteps on the sidewalk, a dog barking. The woods behind their house seemed to loom darker than before.
The phone rang around dinnertime. Angela answered it in the kitchen while Alicia sat at the dining room table pushing pasta around her plate. She could hear her mother's voice rising in frustration. But Sheriff Wilkins, there's physical evidence, the rope marks, the hypothermia. Angela paused, listening.
What do you mean kids being kids? They could have killed her. Alicia's fork clattered to her plate. She crept closer to the kitchen doorway, her heart pounding. No, that's not acceptable.
Angela's voice shook with anger. These boys committed a crime. They need to face consequences. Another pause. I understand Brandon's father is an important man in this town.
But Alicia didn't need to hear more. She ran upstairs to her room, slamming the door. Tears streamed down her face as she collapsed onto her bed. They were going to get away with it. Brandon's father's influence meant more than her pain, her fear, her dignity.