Chapter 18

Getting to know her friends...

Rachel called Becca after school and let her know that she was okay after the attack. Becca was a little upset that she didn’t call her earlier, but understood when Rachel said she lost her phone at home and couldn’t get back in to get it.

“I’m totally serious, Becca. There were like, twenty guys trying to get me, and there was shooting and fighting...it was awful. Then, some guy like, grabbed me and gave me something to put me to sleep. And it was Dan Buford!”

“OMG! Terri Buford’s dad? I would never have guessed. So what happened next?”

“Well, I like, woke up in this weird room, and there was all of this, I don’t know, stuff in there to you know, tie people up, and he started going all crazy on me. He made me take my clothes off and change into this school girl outfit and...and...” she paused, choking back tears. “I’m sorry, Becca, can we not talk about this now? It’s still freaking me out a little bit”

“Oh! I’m sorry Rach. I forgot how terrible this must have been for you. It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me everything, I’m just glad you’re okay! We all are”

“I know, Becca. Mom wants to take me out of the area and start at another school, but I can’t handle that. I’ve just started to like, get to know some friends, and don’t want to leave you. I even want to go back to school someday, you know, when everything calms down”

“Please tell me you won’t go, Rachel. We would all be very sad if you did”

“I’ll let you know, Becca. I hope not”

Garrett and Maria came home at about five o’clock. Everyone was out side to meet them. Rachel ran out to greet her brother and protector.

Reaching the car, Rachel cried “Garrett! Are you okay? I’m so sorry this happened to you. It’s all my fault!” She hugged him tightly as he got out, and he winced as his still sore ribs were squeezed”

“Easy, sis! I’m pretty sore right now” Rachel eased her grip. “That’s better. You didn’t do anything wrong, Rach. The jerks who made the mistake of messing with us were the ones who were wrong. Don’t ever say that you’re sorry for this”

Gina made it over to where Garrett was and gave him a hug and a kiss. “How are you doing, Garrett?”

“Okaay, I guess, the arm is pretty sore still, and my ribs are bruised pretty good, but overall, I’m in good shape. I’m still foggy about the details of the attack, though. I’m sure it will come back in time, though”

“I hope you never remember that night, Garrett. I wish I could forget it” said Rachel as she wiped the tears away from her cheeks.

“I’m not that worried about it, and I kind of feel the same way you do, Rach. Some things are better left in the past”

Jim came out of the house and walked over to Garrett, and shook his good right hand. “Good to have you back, Headhunter", he said with a big grin.

Garrett was uncharacteristically grim “I’d rather forget the ‘headhunter’ name for the time being, Tank. I’ll take being plain old Garrett for now, especially since the season is over for me. I think I’d like to forget hitting people for a while, if that’s okay”

Smiling, Jim answered “I understand completely, Garrett. I’m Jim. Tank is gone for now too”

Jim was amazed at Garrett’s attitude. He had called him Headhunter to see if he had developed the aggressive attitude that could signal trouble down the line. Garrett instead reacted much like Jim did after an op. He needed to decompress and forget what he did. To find a sense of balance in life again. Garrett had the right attitude. He would be a formidable soldier if he ever chose that path. He wondered if his father was like that. Jim suspected he was.

“Let’s get this boy inside” said Maria. He needs something to eat.

They enjoyed each other’s company for the rest of the evening, Jim and Gina spent a lot of time talking to each other in the kitchen. Nothing romantic, just talking about life, and each other’s story. Bree smiled as she saw Gina come out of her shell a little bit. There was something there with Jim and Gina. She knew Jim would take it slow, as would Gina, but she hoped they would eventually find a way to make things work.

Garrett and Rachel were playing gin in the game room, there was a pool table there also, but Garrett wasn’t able to play with one arm broken. Maria and Bree talked about arrangement for her to stay through the birth of the baby, and finding out about each other.

Bree’s evening was interrupted by her cell phone ringing. It was a number she didn’t recognize, but she knew who it must be. She excused herself and went to her office.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Bree. It’s Steve”

“Oh, the man who let me kiss him and then ran off to who knows where?”

“Yes, I hope you’re not too mad at me. I wanted to stay, but I did tell you I had some thinking to do”

“You couldn’t think with me getting in the way?” she asked sarcastically.

“Something like that. I don’t mean to be like this, but you can be awfully...distracting, and I needed to focus on what went wrong, and to prevent it from happening again”

Smiling, Bree thought about what he said. Distracting...she liked that. “Okay, you’re forgiven, but only because you are so sweet for calling me distracting. By the way, where are you?”

“Montana. I have a small cabin here that let’s me get away from everything. I don’t give my satellite number out to anyone, so you can consider yourself privileged to have it, and don’t give it out. You are the only one I want to have this number” she could feel him smiling as he said it.

Bree found herself doodling hearts on her post it pad. “You are going to have a lot of making up to do when you get back, Steve”

“I’m actually looking forward to it, Bree. The making up part, that is”

“Me too, lover. I’m so glad I was able to talk to you before you left. I felt like such a needy little girl for telling you what I did. I have loved you for a long time, and I knew you would never break your professional ethics unless I did something first. You don’t think less of me for coming on to you, do you?”

“Hell, no! To have a drop dead gorgeous, wonderful, intelligent woman tell me she loves me is something that I won’t ever complain about, especially when I feel the same way about her”

Bree purred “I want you soooo much right now, Steve. Please hurry back. I’m very lonely”

“I’ll bet you are, Bree, and all good things come to those who wait. I’ll be back in a week”

“That’s too long” she pouted “Can’t you come back sooner?”

“You sound like a high school girl, Bree” Steve said with a chuckle.

“I feel like one, lover. I haven’t felt like this for years, and I don’t want to stop feeling this way ever again. If you come back sooner, I promise to make it worth it for you” she whispered.

“I’ll be back in three days” came the quick reply.

“I’ll be waiting, lover. I might even be dressed when you get back” came her whisper.

“Stop! I’ll get back as soon as I can!”

“Byeee, sweetheart” said Bree in her husky alto. She was beyond excited. What she hadn’t told Steve was that she had not been with a man since her surgery. Her only companion was her dilator for therapy, and that was it. She was fully functional and had all the sensation she needed down there, but she had never had an orgasm, nor had tried to. She was saving herself for the one that could rescue her from her hate. She had found her knight, and now she felt stirrings that she had never felt before. Her self-imposed punishment was over.

Friday found Bree taking Rachel and Gina to Rachel’s therapy session. They were riding in her limo, and Rachel could not get over how nice it was to be treated like she was important. Inside, she thanked God for a friend and sister like Bree.

Today’s therapy session with Julie was intense. Julie had booked Rachel for two hours, and she needed every minute. She went back through the events of the past week. there were tears, and some guilt, but by the time the session was over, Rachel felt much better about herself, and was able to leave some more of the bad feelings behind. She wasn’t out of the woods yet, but there was daylight at the end of the tunnel.

Julie was concerned about Rachel’s reluctance to leave Martinsburg, but had to admire her courage in wanting to face up to the bullies she was sure to encounter. Ultimately, she agreed to talk to Rachel more about her feelings on this matter in future sessions.

Rachel left the session feeling much better about the trial she had just been through. Gina and Bree were let in on the breakthroughs that had been made. She, Brianna and Gina went to the car.

Rachel’s phone rang as she got in the car. It was Becca.

“Hey, girl! Can you talk for a little bit? I have something to ask you”

“Sure, Becca. Like, what do you need?” replied Rachel.

“I am having the girls over tonight, and I was wondering if you could come over. You don’t have to stay the night if you don’t want to, but we were thinking it would be awesome if you came!”

“Oh! That would be so awesome! Let me ask my Mom!”

Rachel asked her mother about the get together. “Do you think it would be okay? I don’t have to stay over if you don’t want me to, but I would love some girl time with my friends. Please?”

“Do you think you are up to it? It’s really soon after a traumatic event event for you”

“I think so, Mom. If I feel bad, can you come and get me?”

“Of course, honey”

“Cool! Becca, I can come. I don’t know if I will stay, but I’ll try!”

“Awesome, Rach!, Try to be here at six. That’s when everybody else will start to arrive, okay?”

“Kay! I’ll be there at six! Thanks for thinking about me!”

“It was so cool! All the girls heard about what happened to you and they wanted to show their support. I’ll let everyone know you’re coming. Byee”

“Bye” Rachel ended the call and put her phone in her purse. Immediately, her hands went to her mouth and she hugged her mom and Bree. “Oh, Mom! They actually wanted me to come! This is soo cool! We need to get home so I can get my things together!”

Bree and Gina looked at each other with knowing smiles. Rachel was recovering faster than they had hoped. Her young mind was apparently quick to recover.

They got to the mansion and Rachel sprinted upstairs to get her things together for the party. She changed her clothes into a mid length floral cotton tank dress and a pair of sandals. Crossing her arms, she thought and decided to pack a nightie in case she needed one, and an extra pair of underwear. A pair of jeans, a UT sweatshirt and a pair of trainers was included to wear tomorrow. She also put her makeup case and three different colors of nail polish in her overnight bag.

She skipped downstairs and ran into the kitchen, where everyone was.

Jim and Garrett wolf whistled at Rachel, who blushed a deep red. “What are you all dressed up for? Got a hot date?” teased Garrett. Jim snorted, trying to stifle a laugh.

“Can’t I at least try to look good? I mean, after all, I was stuck in pants for most of my life. Maybe you should try a skirt, you might like it” she teased.

“No, I’ll leave that to you, little sis. You do look nice though”

“Well, thank you, Garrett” she answered, giving him a little curtsey.

Bree and Gina smiled at this display of femininity. They could see Rachel was relishing being a girl, and enjoying all of it’s benefits. She looked very pretty in her dress, and her makeup was done to perfection.

“Mom, are you going to take me to Becca’s house?”

“Come on, sweetie, let’s go. do you have everything?””¨
“I think so, Mom. Oh, and Garrett, I’ll tell Angela that you miss her!” she smiled sweetly.

Garrett smiled, then replied sarcastically “Yeahh, you do that, sis. I need all the help I can get with girls”

“You need more help than you might realize, Garrett” added Bree. “Never take a woman’s favor for granted”

“What she said, you big oink oink” laughed Rachel, while sticking her tongue out at him.

“All right, lets get going before Garret forgets what a gentleman he is and paddles your bottom” said Gina, smiling at the exchange.

“He wouldn’t dare! I would, like so ruin his rep with the girls”

As Rachel said this, Garrett quickly got up and made towards Rachel, who screamed and ran outside.

Gina and Rachel made the trip from outside Austin to Martinsburg. It was the first time they had been back since the incident, but Rachel didn’t seem to notice. She was a chatterbox all the way over, talking to her mother about the fashion tips she had learned, what she planned on doing at the party. Just normal mother daughter chit chat. She didn’t seem phased at all by driving past the house, with the crime scene tape still up. She never even looked at it, as she was so engrossed in talking to her mother.

“We’re here, Rach. Make sure you have everything you need”

“I do, Mom, I double checked at Bree’s. A girl needs to be prepared, right?”

“Absolutely, sweetie. Now give me a kiss and get going, It looks like everyone’s already here”

Rachel leaned over and gave her mother a kiss and a hug and was out the door. “Thanks for the ride Mom, I’ll call you if I need you tonight, but I think I’ll be alright”

Smoothing her dress, Rachel walked to the front door of Becca’s house and rang the bell. Angela answered the door.

“Rachel! You look fabulous! Becca! Girls! Rachel’s here! Come on in, girl!”

Angela’s father was sitting in his easy chair, looking very much like Ward Cleaver. “I think the whole neighborhood knows she’s here too, Ang”

“Oh, daddy. I’m just excited to have her here, after all she’s been through this week” then came the obvious question. “How’s poor Garrett doing?”

Hugging Angela, Rachel smiled and said, “Missing you, I suppose. I think he likes you, Angela, but don’t let on like I told you. Other than that, he’s fine, but he won’t be playing any more football this season because of a broken arm”

Angela smiled and hugged Rachel back as the rest of the girls came down. “I had heard that he was done for the season, but everybody says he was a hero”

“He’s my hero, that’s for sure”

Rachel hugged everyone. Becca, Brittany, Jayne, Katie, Hilary and Lisa. Everyone was there. They were all dressed in jeans, with Rachel the only one in a dress. They all made over Rachel. Mary, Becca and Angela’s mother came in to the front room where all the commotion was.

“My, don’t you look pretty, Rachel. That is a lovely dress! I wish I could get my daughters to dress a little nicer”

Blushing, Rachel answered “I just feel like I’m making up for lost time. I never got to wear pretty dresses when I was little. Besides Becca and Angela are beautiful no matter what they wear!” That remark earned Rachel a hug from her two friends.

“Well aren’t you just the sweetest thing, isn’t she Hal”

Never glancing up from his issue of Sports Illustrated, Hal repeated his wife “Yes she is, dear”

Rolling her eyes, Mary said, “Oh, he wouldn’t know a beautiful girl if she landed in his lap when he gets to reading his magazine”

Pulling on Rachel’s arm, Becca said, “Lets get your things upstairs, Rach, then we can make plans for tonight”

The girls all got into Angela’s room. She had a typical teen room, with pictures of horses, her first love, and a couple of movie posters from the “Harry Potter” series. The girls were all over Rachel to get her to dish what happened that fateful night. She gave them the details, from what she saw huddled in her room, and from what she had been told. She told the enraptured girls about how Garrett had shot the gun, and took out a kidnapper with his bare hands. Angela in particular loved that part.

The group got very quiet as Rachel described her ordeal at the hands of Mr. Buford. She told them how he called her names and made her dress up.

“...and he like, had me tied up, with my hands behind my back. He came at me, and I didn’t know what he was going to do to me, but I was sure he was going to hurt me really bad, so when he got close enough, I gave him a knee to his privates and when he went down, I kicked him in the head”

“Oh my God” whispered Brittany. “That was so brave”

“I didn’t feel brave, Britt. I was so scared, I almost wet myself. I couldn’t talk, and I couldn’t move my hands very well. I found his cell phone, and managed to dial 911. I was sooo frustrated. I couldn’t tell them who I was or anything. Finally I got through to someone who somehow knew it was me, and then the guys broke in and rescued me”

“What happened then?” asked Katie.

“I was glad to see them, but I was like, so embarrassed by what that creepshow made me wear, I wanted to fall in a hole. The skirt I had on was so short, I couldn’t keep from showing my bottom, and the underwear he gave me were see through. I didn’t want them seeing my butt!”

The girls all giggled at that. “God, how gross. I never knew that he was such a perv. He would have like, raped you, you know that don’t you” said Brittany.

“I guess so, but I’m glad he didn’t get the chance. That would have been terrible. Can you imagine?” she shuddered at the thought.

Katie piped up. “You’re amazing, Rachel, do you know that? That’s the kind of stuff that happens in the movies, and it happened to you!”

“Yeah, well I hope it doesn’t happen again. I don’t like being the ‘damsel in distress’, if you know what I mean”

“Girls, the pizza is here! Get cleaned up and come down” called Mary from downstairs.

“Okay, mama” said Angela “We’re coming”

The girls got cleaned up and five minutes later were downstairs tearing into the pizza in a most unladylike fashion. Rachel didn’t want to get her dress stained, so she took her time and ate small bites. This wasn’t lost on Mary.

“Girls! Slow down! Is Rachel the only lady present at the table?”

Rachel blushed. “Please, Mrs. Conway, I just don’t want to get my dress dirty, otherwise I’d be right in there with them”

“Yes, but you’re not. I’m very impressed with your manners”

Becca rolled her eyes and whined, “Mom! Rachel’s just like we are, she’s nothing special”

“Yes, Mrs. Conway, I am really nothing special. I just like to be neat is all”

“Whatever, child. You other girls could learn a thing or two in deportment from Rachel here”

“Mom! You are embarrassing Rachel”

Mary turned to Rachel, who was three shades redder than a tomato. “I’m sorry, dear, I’ve just been on my girls to be a little more ladylike at the table. I’m sorry I embarrassed you”

Rachel looked up from her plate, biting her lip. “It’s okay, Mrs. Conway, I guess I shouldn’t be so sensitive”

“Mom, Rachel told us about her kidnapping. It was like a movie!” said Becca excitedly.

“Now don’t be bothering her all night about what happened. I’m sure she would like to forget it, wouldn’t you”

“Yes, but I didn’t mind telling them about it. It was good to talk about it, and now I’m ready to move on” she paused and then said, “Can we watch ‘The Princess Diaries’ tonight? I’ve never seen it.

“That would be cool! said Lisa. “I love that movie!”

The girls all decided that they would watch “The Princess Diaries” first, because Rachel had never seen it.

Rachel watched the movie, and found herself identifying with the Ann Hathaway character. She thought that she was the most beautiful girl she had ever seen, and by the end of the movie was cheering with the rest of the girls. She finally understood what a “chick flick” was and she liked it.

The evening wore on, and they played games and did a makeover on each other. At two AM, they decided to go downstairs for a final snack. They all went down but Katie and Rachel, who was putting her dress away. She was in her pink sleep shirt, and Katie was in her lavender pajamas.

“Rachel, I really meant what I said when I told you that you were amazing”

“Thank you, Katie. Having you say that means a lot to me”

“I think you’re a special girl, and I’m glad to have you as a friend” She blushed slightly and came toward Rachel. She gave her a gentle hug, held her face then kissed her on the lips. Nothing terribly passionate, just a simple kiss that lasted a couple of seconds. “Very special” Katie repeated.

She then smiled at her and ran downstairs, leaving Rachel standing there with her mouth open and her eyes wide. She wasn’t mad at Katie. In fact, she kind of liked it. This was confusing.

Earlier that evening, Gina was watching television with Jim. Her cell phone rang. It was Randy’s father.

“Hello?” asked Gina.

“Gina, this is Dad”

“Hello, Dad, what can I do for you?”

“I’m coming out to Texas next week. I want to see my grandson”

“I’m assuming you mean Garrett?”

“Yes. I also want to see this person you say is my granddaughter”

“It’s too late to fight about this Dad. Are you going to cause her trouble? Because if you are, stay in North Carolina. Don’t waste the plane fare out here. She’s been through enough already”

“I know, I watch the news. Thanks for the call by the way”

“I didn’t call, and your sarcasm is wasted on me”

“I won’t cause any trouble. I won’t say anything to hurt your precious ‘daughter’. But I have a right to judge for myself if I want this person in my family”

“She’s in your family, General, like it or not. You can either choose to be a part of her life or not. The choice is yours” she replied icily.

“I’ll see you Monday night” It sounded like a threat.