“Just give her a few minutes to calm down, Hugo,” Leticia suggests, enclosing her hand over myshakingone.
I slump into the hard wooden bench, feeling the most helpless I’ve ever been. I run my trembling hand through my shaggy mane, struggling to maintain enough strength for both Gemma and me. The past few months have been the most draining weeks of my life. Just getting Gemma to agree to press charges was a hard-fought battle. She wanted to pretend it never happened. To sweep it under the rug. It was only when I asked her how she would feel if another woman had to endure what she went through did she finally agree to meet with Leticia, on one condition: no one in our squadron was to be aware of what was happening. I instantly agreed. It wasn’t my news to shareanyway.
“Have you had any luck finding the witness from the alley?” I askLeticia.
She shakes her head. “No. But the Air Force isn’t exactly forthcoming when I request personnel records for every enlistee called Brody. Are you sure he was in the AirForce?”
I nod. “I’m certain he is in the Air Force. I have a knack for remembering faces. He isn’t in my section, but I’ve seen himaroundbase.”
Leticia smiles a tight smirk. “Hopefully he will grow a conscience and comeforward.”
Heneverdid…...
“The defense attorney was a real snake, conniving and low-handed. The moment I met him, I was on guard,” I say, peering at Ava, who is watching me with compassion in her eyes. “I had a reason to be wary. He was a deadly snake hidden in the long grass. Not only did the jury believe him and his clients’ side of the story, he twisted everything Gemma said on thestand.”
I swallow a brick in my throat. “Eight weeks after Madden McGee was cleared of all charges, I was arrested,” Ienlightenher.
Ava’s brows scrunch as her eyes dartbetweenmine.
“For the sexual assault ofGemma.”
Ava inhales a quick, sharp breath. “What? How? You saved her. Protected her. That doesn’t make any sense,” shestutters.
She scoots across the couch and encloses her hand over my shaking one. “What happened?” she queries, peering at me, her eyes void of the judgment I expected to see when I shared mystory.
“I was on mywayto….”
* * *
“Keep walking,Hugo, he isn’t worth theeffort.”
Tyrell wraps his arm around my shoulders and guides me down the hallway, past the snickering face of Madden McGee. We only arrived back on base earlier this week, preparing to re-deploy to Afghanistan. I just finished a grueling workout in the gym and could hear the showers beckoning me all the way from the fitness center. The instant I spotted Madden, any thoughts on enjoying the remainder of my rec time disappeared. It is the first time I’ve seen Madden in person since a jury of our peers found him and his three co-accused not guilty of sexually assaulting Gemma. I assumed even with the jury handing over the verdict of not guilty that some type of reprimand would still be given to Madden by our superiors in the Air Force. Nothinghappened.
Gemma’s entire life was upended in an instant. She was left unemployed and on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Madden didn’t suffer the slightest. He took an extended period of absence for “personal” reasons before returning to his original rank of Captain. Pictures of him riding a jet ski in the Caribbean have been circulating the dining facility most of the day, spurring on my agitation. He was vacationing in paradise while Gemma was living inahell.
My long strides down the corridor falter when Madden snickers, “If he’d been giving it to her right, she wouldn’t have been lookingelsewhere.”
I hardly hear the roaring laughter of the group surrounding Madden over my pulse shrilling in my ears when I pivot on my heels and charge for him. When he notices me approaching, the veins in his neck thrum, and his eyes widen. My fist lands on his right cheek before lowering to his stomach. I don’t know how many punches I inflict before Tyrell pulls me away, but my punishment was severe enough for Madden to be sporting a black eye and split lip as he gave his statement to the Air Force Police, requesting for them to press battery chargesagainstme.
I sit in a holding cell at Security Forces compound of our base for nearly sixteen hours before being ushered into a cold, sterile interrogation room. I’m surprised when I shuffle into the room, dragging a pair of metal shackles behind me, to discover Madden’s father standing in the corner of the room talking to a JAG officer.Since when did a civilian have any input in a case involving anAirman?
After removing the shackles from my hands and ankles, the JAG officer, whose name badge states “Christopher,” gestures for me to sit in a wooden chair pulled up close to a steeltable.
Christopher pulls out the chair across from me and takes a seat, his eyes arrested on a document in his hand. “These types of cases are generally hard to prove. With the whole She Said-He Said notion coming into play, it falls to the jury’s mood for how the verdict willswing.”
My heart rate kicks up, but I continue with my fifth amendment right, remaining quiet. I’ve already decided to plead guilty to the charges of battery against Madden, but I’m not going to disclose that to the DA, deciding it is in my best interests to wait it out foraplea.
When I take a seat, Christopher’s eyes lift from a manila folder to me. “But in your case, it’s a slam dunk. I can’t lose,” he states, his voice smeared withcockiness.
I give him an arrogant wink. Madden’s blood on my knuckles is prettyincriminatory.
“So, instead of wasting our time dragging this through court, we’re going to be kind and offer you apleadeal.”
My lips twitch, fighting to suppress the smile trying to cross my face. I knew they wouldn’t have brought me in here without a having a pre-drawn pleaagreement.
“If you sign this statement, admitting to all charges, you will avoid doing jail time and tainting your honorable family namewithmud.”
My brows furrow.My mother would be proud I defended Gemma, not dishonored.The confusion on my face amplifies when Christopher slides a pre-typed statement across the table for me to sign. His abrupt movement causes the ballpoint pen to roll off the name on top of the Alforddoctrine.
