Ginny arrived and pushed her way through the small crowd gathering, past the yellow police tape. Grumbling about people rushing from bed to see what the commotion was, she knew curiosity was human nature.

Arriving at the scene, she found the others gathered, Mitch overseeing Grant, Burt, Sam, and two detectives from the North Herron Sheriff’s Office. Moving straight to Mitch, she said, “Got here as soon as I could.”

“You’re off duty, no apologies. The ambulance is ready to head to the hospital. I need you with her every moment. Take the bags given and collect everything—”

“I know the procedures, Chief,” she interrupted.

With a nod, he growled, “We’ll be here collecting evidence and then I’ll come to the hospital after I make a public statement.”

She placed her hand on his arm, her concern bleeding through her words, “Chief…Mitch…this is not your fault.”

She felt pinned to the ground, his stare was so hard. “If I hadn’t listened to the mayor and had gone ahead to make a public warning—”

“He’s your boss. You tried it his way. It didn’t work. Now we do it our way,” she assured. Turning, she ran to the back of the ambulance and hopped in, all other thoughts pushed back.

* * *

The young woman sat on the edge of the hospital bed, the curtains pulled all around. Ginny stood near her—close enough for comfort, but not crowding. She closed her eyes for a second, allowing the fatigue and adrenaline drain to overtake her for a second. She was thrilled Carly had not been raped, but to have been attacked was horrible. She knew the young woman was shaken to her very core.

The questions had been endless and Ginny hated having to be the one to ask. Where were you? Did he come from behind? Did you see his face? How did he touch you? On and on. Ginny had taken each article of clothing and placed them in separate evidence bags, sealing them. She had sealed the scrapings from underneath Carly’s fingernails, too, as well as the buccal swab.

“Carly?” Ginny said softly, so as not to startle her. When Carly’s eyes met hers and she continued, “This may not be very professional, but I’m going to tell you something…woman to woman.” Seeing Carly’s questioning gaze, she plunged ahead, “You will get through this. I know.” Leaning closer, so that their faces were but inches apart, she repeated, “I. Know.”

Carly’s eyes widened in understanding, but a knock on the door panel interrupted before she could respond. Ginny checked to see who it was, inviting June to come in.

When June looked to her for approval, she nodded once. Turning to Carly, June said, “Carly, my name is June Sisco. I’m with the Eastern Shore Mental Health Group and I am one of the Sexual Assault counselors. I work with the police and as a private counselor.”

Carly lifted her gaze dully to June and nodded, sucking in a ragged breath, as June stepped closer and placed her hand on Carly’s.

“What you need to know is that you are not alone. What happened made you vulnerable, but you are no longer alone. There are those who will help and I’ll be with you every step of the way.” Ginny watched as Carly held June’s gaze for a long moment, before sliding her eyes to her. A slight nod followed.

“I’m going to step outside the room with Officer Spencer and ask her a few questions, if you don’t mind. If you do, I’ll be more than happy to meet with her at a different time and can stay with you now.”

“No, it’s fine,” Carly said. “Is it about what happened?”

“Yes. I’ll have the officer tell me your statement, so you don’t have to repeat it so soon. We’ll certainly talk about it later, but for now, if you like, she can give me the details.”

“Yes, please,” Carly nodded. “I’d rather not repeat it right now.”

With a pat on her arm, June motioned for Ginny to step outside the doorway and shut the door behind her.

In the hallway, June’s warm eyes bore into Ginny’s and she asked, “How are you?”

“Me?”

“Come on, Ginny,” June cajoled. “This cannot be easy for you.”

Placing her hands on her hips, Ginny pinched her lips as she stared down at her shoes. Heaving a sigh, she said, “No. No, it’s not. But this isn’t about me. This is about her.” Lifting her eyes, she said, “I’ve had several years to work through what happened to me. Several years to…not forget, but to…put it in a place where it doesn’t affect my every thought. And, I’m getting help.” A slight smile toward June slipped from her lips, soon to be replaced with a stoic, professional expression.

“Okay, the quick details. She was walking from a friend’s house to hers, walking across the park. She had had a glass of wine but was not intoxicated. Her test put her under the legal limit, but of course, she wasn’t driving. She said she’s always aware of her surroundings, and had just passed the gazebo and was hustling to get to the next street light. She said she heard footsteps behind her, but they were already close and she had no time to turn around. She was grabbed from behind, one hand on her mouth and one arm around her upper body, clamping her arms to her sides.

“He took her to the ground, face down. His body weight on her back kept her from being able to get up and run. He talked to her, saying things like ‘You’re hot.’, ‘You make me want to come’, ‘I’ve been watching you’, things like that. She said she tried to scream, but he shoved a rag in her mouth and even though she tried to push it out with her tongue, it was too much. Then she became afraid of choking, so she focused on breathing through her nose.

“He pressed his genitals against her bottom, rubbing himself on her, thrusting. Her pants and his stayed on, but he slid one hand underneath her shirt and managed to grab her breast. He had to be forceful, with the weight of their bodies on the ground, and she does have marks on her stomach and breasts.”

During Ginny’s recitation, June took notes on a pad of paper, her lips tight. Looking up, she nodded for Ginny to continue.

“She said he kept talking the whole time and then finally he grunted loudly and she said he must have ejaculated in his pants.”

“Any semen on her clothes?”

“There was a tiny stain on the seat of her pants but I don’t know what it will produce. Everything’s been sent to the lab.”

“Anything else?”

“She said she thought he was going to kill her, but he said for her to keep her face away from him and to stay on the ground for five minutes. If she didn’t, he knew where she lived and he’d come for her.”

“Shit, Ginny,” June said, her mouth drawn in a tight line.

“Listen, just so you know, we’ve had reports of a voyeur in town. The mayor put the kibosh on Mitch talking about it, but the news is out now. Mitch’ll be taking care of that. Just want you to know…it can stir up memories for past victims, so the Mental Health Group might be getting more calls.”

“Right…thanks for the warning.” June snapped her notebook closed and placed it in her oversized bag. “Okay, let’s go back in.”

* * *

Bone tired. Not entirely a new experience for Ginny after having served in the Army’s Military Police or as a police officer even in a small town. But right now, she was not sure she could remember the last time she was this tired.

Two hours of sleep, several long hours with a very emotional victim, returning thoughts of her own victimization, and a conference in the police station had her dragging. And the day was just starting.

Mitch had stood outside the police station with the local press, including several from the Virginia Beach area, and made a public statement concerning the reports of voyeuristic behavior and now an assault. The obvious questions about why he had waited rained down and his tense stance and short responses gave indication of his anger. Standing next to the blustering mayor, who assured the public that their fair town was safe, Ginny thought Mitch’s teeth would crack under the pressure of his grimace.

Finally, with the circus gone, the law enforcers were back in the workroom. Mildred and Mable hustled in with coffees. “Compliments from Jillian,” she said. The group took them gratefully. Mildred put her hand on Sam’s shoulder and said, “Your wife called. She’s worried, but I told her you were fine.”

Sam grumbled good naturedly, “Worrying woman,” but the soft smile on his face told the story of a man in love with his wife.

Ginny turned her attention to Mitch, knowing the pressure of his job right now was bearing down on him. “You okay, Chief?”

Standing by the white board with his hands on his hips, he nodded as he lifted his gaze to her. “Yeah. Kicking myself for not going with a public announcement earlier, but what’s done is done. Now, we move forward and find this asshole.”

Grant spoke next, “I canvassed the area to see who was seen out last night. Got an interesting list.” Using his laptop, he projected the list on the white board. Ginny recognized several names of men in town, but a few she did not know. Grant explained they were vacationers. As her eyes dropped down the list, she reared back.

“Yep, I wondered when y’all would notice that. Robert Banks. The mayor’s nephew. And, on top of that…Silas Mills.”

“What was Silas doing out in the middle of the night?” Burt asked. “Or, for that matter, Robert Banks?”

“Looks like we’re gonna find out,” Mitch said. “But before we go out questioning the people on this list, let’s look over what we know.”

The group spent the next hour poring over the details of both the voyeur reports and the assault.

Mitch finally looked around and asked, “Who needs a break?”

Ginny quickly offered, “I had a couple of hours of sleep, so I’m better than Sam. I’ll go question.”

“Hell, Ginny, I ain’t no old foggie,” Sam muttered, stifling a yawn behind his hand.

The others laughed, and Mitch ordered, “Sam, go home, get some sleep. At least a couple of hours. Ginny, I know this is hard, but I’d like you in on the interviews. You’ve got a different perspective than the rest of us and it’ll give us a chance to question these men with a woman present. Got no idea if it’ll make a difference, but I’d like you on them anyway. You and Grant talk to Robert, and then you and I’ll talk to Silas.”

“He’s gonna be pissed,” Grant warned, but winked at Ginny, knowing they all disliked the town manager.

“Not my job to keep him happy,” Mitch said. “Okay, let’s roll.”

* * *

People crowded around the bar, conversations flowing about the latest news in town. Brogan glanced at Aiden, noticing his brother’s normal loud laughter had not resounded today. Aiden’s face appeared to mirror his own—tight lips and hard eyes. Sighing, Brogan pulled another beer and set it on the counter, wishing for the regular talk of fishing, weather, and sports to fill the air instead of the topic of Mitch’s public statement.

Katelyn walked behind the bar after delivering a plate of food and sighed as she picked up a tray of drinks to take.

“You don’t gotta do that, sis,” Brogan said. He cast his practiced eye over the crowd. “We have plenty of servers.”

“I know, but Gareth’s doing some work with Mitch and I closed up the PI office early to come here.” She held his gaze and shrugged. “I just found myself wanting to be near people instead of at the office by myself.” Seeing his jolt of concern, she quickly added, “I wasn’t afraid, I just felt so sad at what was happening in our town. But, I’ve got to admit, everyone’s conversation is a downer.”

“Some are bitching about the mayor not letting Mitch announce things earlier…others are blaming the police. Others are on a witch hunt for whoever they don’t like, and a few…” Aiden sighed as he cursed, “fuckin’ hell, a few are blaming women for leaving their windows open and walking at night.”

Katelyn’s eyes flashed as she announced, “Well, they better not say that around me or they’ll go somewhere else!”

Nodding in agreement, Brogan moved down to the other end of the bar, refilling a few drink orders, but his thoughts were on Ginny. He knew she must be exhausted with only a few hours of sleep. Seeing Callan and Jason walk in, he jerked his chin in greeting.

“What a fuckin’ mess,” Jason said. “How’s Ginny?”

“Haven’t talked to her today, other than a text saying she’d be working late.” He did not add that her text also said that if he wanted, she would try to meet with him tonight since she would love to fall asleep in his arms again. That thought sent warmth through him, as the memory of her soft body tucked next to his fired his blood.

“Mom. Dad,” he heard Katelyn call out. Looking over, Brogan saw his parents coming in, his mother’s face full of concern and his father’s tight with anger. They slid into one of the booths in the back, Katelyn sliding in next to their mom, leaning her head over as Corrine wrapped her daughter in her arms. Aiden and Brogan soon joined, setting drinks in front of them.

“I was just talking to Mitch’s parents and they’re just as upset over Mayor Banks acting like he’s above all of this mess saying that the town is fine,” Eric said.

Mitch’s father was the police chief for a long time before his retirement, so Brogan knew Ed had had his share of run-ins with Corwin and Silas.

“Where’s Gareth?” Corrine asked Katelyn.

“He’s in Virginia Beach on a case, but don’t worry. I’ll stay here until Aiden or Brogan can take me home.”

“You’re done here,” Brogan stated, brooking no argument. “No need to stay. Mom and Dad can see you home.”

“Are you sure?” Katelyn asked, her gaze moving across the crowd.

“We got it,” Aiden assured, kissing the top of Katelyn’s head before he headed back to the bar.

Nodding, Katelyn frowned. “I hate this. I hate not feeling safe here.”

Corrine pulled her daughter in tighter. “I know, baby girl. I agree.”

As Brogan watched his family leave, he rubbed his hand over his face, fatigue pulling at him. He considered closing the bar early, but knew patrons would not go home, instead hitting somewhere else to drink. A place where there was no one who cared how much they drank. Moving behind the bar with Aiden, he collected a few tabs as he cut some of the heavier drinkers off.

Looking at the clock one more time, he counted the hours until he had Ginny in his arms once more.