Without You

“I need to ask you something important,” Officer Franks said.

I looked back at Janet. I began crying harder as the memories of last night started to come together.

“O-okay,” I whispered.

“How much do you remember about last night? Specifically, about your time with Blake Turner?”

I closed my eyes.

Chrissie…

The room was spinning.

She told Blake she gave something to me.

I felt sick.

Blake carried me up the stairs.

Get Grace, Chrissie…

“I asked Chrissie to get Grace. Blake wasn’t acting right, and he said…he said…”

“It’s okay, Alex. Take your time,” the officer said.

I opened my eyes. “He was mad about me not passing out. He ripped my shorts open and put…”

I looked at Will. I slowly turned to my parents and then to Officer Franks. Then, I looked into Janet’s eyes.

“I can’t…” I shook my head.

Janet looked up at Will and then back at me. She nodded her head.

Officer Franks took my hand. “It’s okay, Alex. You did great. I want you to know that Blake has been arrested. Chrissie spoke to the police and confessed that she gave you a drug called Rohypnol. Blake had given it to her. You must not have had very much to drink because you were able to stay awake and fight him off.”

I took in a deep breath as I remembered that I’d dropped the beer Chrissie had given me. “I only took a few drinks of it. Someone bumped into me, and I dropped it.”

Janet turned around to look at my parents. I noticed my mom wiping a tear away.

“I don’t want to talk about it anymore,” I said as panic began to set in.

Janet walked up to my parents and said something to them. She then turned, moved next to Will, and whispered something to him. He nodded his head before turning and smiling at me.

“Lex, I’m going to go sit in the waiting room with your mom and dad.” He leaned down and gently kissed me on my lips. “I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you, too.”

He smiled at me and walked toward my mom and dad.

My mother moved next to the bed. She leaned down and kissed me on the forehead, followed by my father.

“We love you, sweetheart. We’ll just be right outside,” my father said with a smile.

I tried to smile, but every time I moved, my face hurt.

The moment they walked out the door and shut it, I looked at Janet and began crying.

She sat down and took my hand. “Alex, it’s okay. It’s just us now, sweetheart. Whenever you’re ready…you tell us.”

I swallowed as I looked at Officer Franks. She smiled sweetly and nodded her head.

I took a deep breath. “Blake told Chrissie that I belonged to him, and then he told her to leave. I begged her to get Grace. Then, he put me on the bed, and he took his pants—” A sob escaped my mouth.

“Take your time, Alex. Just take in a deep breath,” Janet said in a soft voice.

Somehow, I pulled out my inner strength to tell Janet and Officer Franks what had happened to me in that bedroom last night. When Officer Franks told me that Blake had punched me right as Grace walked in, my sore face made sense.

“I don’t remember anything after that.”

I looked down and saw Emma—the doll Grams had made for me—lying next to me. I smiled as I picked her up and held her tightly.

“Alex, you might want to talk to someone once you’re out of the hospital,” Officer Franks said.

“What do you mean…talk to someone?” I asked.

“About what happened. Janet can help you with that.” Officer Franks looked at Janet. “Janet, I’ve got enough for now.” She looked back at me. “Alex, if we need any additional information, we will be in touch with you, okay? For now, I think we’ve gotten a good statement from you.”

I nodded my head and looked out the window. “What will happen to him?”

Officer Franks cleared her throat. “With your statement, Chrissie Weaver’s confession, and what Grace Johnson and Mr. Weaver witnessed, Blake will be charged with aggravated sexual assault.”

I snapped my head back to her. “But he didn’t…he didn’t…”

She nodded her head. “I know he didn’t. But Texas laws can move it up it from attempted to aggravated because he used Rohypnol, and it was thought out ahead of time.”

Deep down inside, I was glad. I wanted to see Blake rot in jail. “Oh…okay,” I whispered as I looked back out the window.