Close Your Eyes

“Hi Charlie,” The female detective smiled gently, “I’m Detective Moore and this is my partner Detective Leroy,” She nodded towards the older man sitting down beside her, “And we’re here to ask you a few questions about what happened earlier tonight, okay?”

Charlie licked over her lips, folding her arms across her chest, snuggling further and further into her father’s warm jacket that he had lent her as she sat in a cold plastic chair across from the two detectives. Both of her parents stood behind her by the door. She wasn’t sure if she could talk about it with them standing there listening, but she was going to try.

“Okay,” Charlie nodded.

“Okay, first things first, can you tell me where you were tonight when the assault took place?” Detective Moore asked.

Charlie drew in a deep breath, “I was at Henry’s house. He’s my best friend. It wasn’t a party or anything; it was just a small get together with a few of our friends.”

“Were there any alcohol or drugs involved?”

“Yes,” Charlie nodded, “Everyone was drinking beer.”

Detective Moore raised one eyebrow, “Even you?”

“I…I had one,” Charlie admitted, “But that was it.”

“All right,” The detective nodded, “Now, can you explain to me what happened?”

Swallowing hard, she nodded, “Ruthie and Jason, two of my close friends, left to go into one of the bedrooms for some privacy, and Henry was busy talking with Collin because he has a crush on her, so I was hanging out with Lawrence.”

“Is that who assaulted you?” Detective Leroy questioned.

“Yes.”

“Okay, what happened next?”

Charlie flicked her eyes from the detectives to her lap, “Henry noticed that all the beer was gone and started to complain, and Lawrence said that he had some in his car, that he would go get it. He asked me if I could help him, and I just…” Tears blurred her vision as she looked up at them again, “I’ve only known him for a few months, but I thought he was harmless. He was always so nice to me, you know?”

“It’s okay, Sweetheart,” The female detective said softly, “We understand.”

Charlie cleared her throat and pawed at her eyes for a moment before continuing. “We went outside to his car and he asked me if I would climb into the backseat and hand him the two cases of beer since he was borderline drunk and was afraid that he would drop them. I did as he asked and…I…um…he climbed in from behind me and shoved me back against the opposite door. And you wanna know what he did next? He actually smiled at me, like were just screwing around and that I wanted him,” She shook her head, “He pinned me down after that, and I told him over and over again to stop and to let me go but he wouldn’t listen. I tried to scream but I froze. I fucking froze,” She buried her face in her hands, tears falling quicker than before.

Brian couldn’t take it anymore. He went over to Charlie, knelt down beside the chair she was seated in, and then wrapped his arm around her, letting her know that he was there for her. “Is this really necessary right now?” He asked the two detectives, “She’s clearly upset and I don’t believe she’s going to be of any help right now.”

“Mr. Haner,” Detective Moore sighed, “We know that this is hard for your daughter, but we need her statement. It’s very important if you expect us to make an arrest by this afternoon.”

“It’s fine,” Charlie muttered, looking up again, her face wet with fresh tears, “Lets just get this over with. I wanna go home.”

Brian nodded, “Okay, Angel. Tell them the rest then. Tell them what happened.”

Charlie turned to her father, “You should probably leave the room,” She murmured, “I don’t think that it would be in your best interest to hear the rest.”

He knew she right. Hearing the rest of what had happened probably wouldn’t be the best thing for him, but he refused to leave her. Brian was going to stay by her side through out it all no matter what, because he loved her and she needed his and Rose’s support.

“No, I’m okay. Don’t worry about me. Just focus on telling them what happened so we can get you home,” He told her.

Breathing out, Charlie nodded before turning back to the two detectives. “He ripped my dress. I don’t think it was on purpose, but he ripped the side while trying to hold me down, and then… and then he went up beneath my dress and he ripped my underwear off.”

“And he raped you?”

“Yes,” Charlie mumbled.

“What happened next?”

“When he was done, he climbed off of me and laughed, and…”

Detective Leroy asked, “Did he say anything to you?”

She nodded, “He said that I was good for a virgin.”

“Okay Honey, we just have a few more questions for you and then you can go on home,” Detective Moore said, “Was that your first and only sexual experience?”

“I, um,” Charlie licked over her lips and slowly shook her head, “No, it wasn’t.”

Brian drew in a deep breath, trying to maintain himself from exploding. It was all just too much for him at one time. First his little girl is sexually assaulted, next he finds out she drinks with her friends, and now he learns that she’s been sexually active, even though she was a virgin up until tonight.

“Did you ever participate in sexual activities with Lawrence before tonight?”

“No,” She said, “He wanted me to once but I have a boyfriend.”

“A boyfriend? What’s his name?”

“Jack,” Charlie murmured, “Jack Dusel.”

Detective Moore scribbled his name down, “Why wasn’t he there tonight?”

“He had to babysit his niece.”

“Alright, thank you for cooperating with us, Charlie. We just have one more question for you,” Detective Moore leaned forward and looked her straight in the eye, “Do you want to press charges against Lawrence?”

“Yes,” Charlie said, “I don’t think it was the first time he’s raped a girl. The way he held me down and acted seemed like he’s done it before, and if he has, then you know he’ll do it again, and I don’t want another girl to have go through this because of him.”

Detective Moore and Detective Leroy stood from their seats, sad smiles lingering upon their lips. “Thank you so much for answering our questions, Charlie. An arrest will be made shortly after we locate him.”

Charlie stood from the table, immediately leaning into her father’s side. “So there’s enough evidence?”

Detective Moore nodded her head, “The doctor collected a sample of his semen from inside of you. It’s enough to have him arrested and charges pressed against him. I’m not sure where this will go next, but there’s definitely a possibility that he will serve jail time.”

“Thank God,” Brian muttered.

“We’ll contact you as soon as we make his arrest, Mr. Haner,” Detective Leroy said.

Brian shook both of their hands, thanking them before they left. Brian and Rose then took Charlie back to the hospital room she was in before so they could speak with the doctor. Brian stood outside the door with Papa Gates, while Rose helped Charlie dress in some sweatpants and a t-shirt that she had grabbed for her before they left the house earlier that night. Rose knew that the hospital would be keeping Charlie’s clothes since it was evidence.

“Mom?”

“Hm?” Rose looked over at her daughter.

“I want to take that pill that the doctor told us about earlier,” Charlie murmured, “I don’t want to get pregnant, much less with his child.”

Rose nodded, running her hand across Charlie’s cheek, “I understand, Sweetie. We’ll get it from the doctor for you to take as soon as possible, alright?”

Charlie nodded her head as she tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. She wished she could speak to the doctor and get it over with already, rather than waiting around around for another half hour or so. All Charlie wanted was to go home and sleep the memories of tonight away.