“I didn’t realize they were like friends,” Robin muttered after they were gone.
“That goes no further,” I warned, waiting until they nodded. “I guess Kerwynn helped Wyatt get free from his family—was his advisor when a student.”
“Cool that they kept that bond.” She held her hands up in surrender. “Everything we hear around you goes in the vault. I get it.” She seemed a bit nervous and glanced at Gloria. “We actually are hoping that Mrs. Reid locks our minds like Gloria. I wouldn’t—I would never forgive myself if someone got info from me that hurt you.”
Emma came into the room. “What do you know? Something is in your tone.”
She looked a bit guilty and shared a look with Carmen. “Several employees heard Bevin bossing around the president of Familiar Treasures and others joked that Bevin acts like the owner.”
“Except it doesn’t really seem all that illogical if you look at the timeline. Some people know Tracey was involved in her life before their supposed meeting for the prank,” Carmen continued. “I saw her with Bev once at the security office. I didn’t realize it at first, but—Tracey’s pretty memorable.”
“Being that gorgeous and confident leaves an impression,” I agreed, glancing at each of them. “You’re really good with locking your minds on my information?”
“And signing NDAs like others have?” Emma pushed, already texting.
“Yes,” they immediately agreed.
“Jasmine is coming with NDAs but agrees we take other steps to protect them. Too much magic is used here as challenges which is the point of schooling, so it wouldn’t even be their fault.” She gave me a worried look. “But I suggest you not have this conversation after the day you’ve had. Have a day Saturday after work. Be a college kid. Seriously.”
“I don’t even know how, but sure,” I agreed. “Thanks, Emma.”
“No worries. I’m going to sit in here though and just ignore me. I’m fucking tired.”
I snorted. Yeah, it had been a day.
“Okay, well, we’ll talk about it Saturday,” Gloria hurried to agree. She cleared her throat and focused on me. “We have options. There’s no wrong answer.”
“I don’t understand and I’m normally socially inept, but honestly I’m just too fucking exhausted to put much together, so please spell it out,” I practically begged.
“When I was sexually assaulted—raped defectus,” Kate took over.
“Wait, what the fuck is raped defectus?” I demanded, glancing around in horror when all the women there flinched. “This is a real thing?”
“It’s a designation witches have come up with,” Gloria explained. “Basically, an interrupted or cut-off rape. The laws… They suck. It’s sexual assault—not even battery like other physical crimes—or rape. And then special circumstances if it’s a kid or a purity is taken. That’s not enough. There are so many levels of other ways people get hurt but…”
“Not for us,” Kate whispered, staring at her hands. “Crimes of a sexual nature are overwhelmingly committed against women. Why smear poor, poor men for a mistake, right? Their bright futures are what matter, not us.” She let out a shakybreath. “He would have raped me, but he was so fucking drunk he passed out. So I was raped defectus.”
I swallowed loudly. “What happened to him?”
She gave a half shrug. “He graduated. My RA told me not to be stupid and report it against someone like him.” She quickly wiped her eyes before giving me a sad smile. “Director Hensley told me it was my fault because respectable women don’t attend those sorts of parties and men cannot be blamed for their actions if we act badly by putting ourselves in that position.”
“Okay, we need to find that asshole and do bad things to him,” Emma grumbled. She snorted. “I’m texting Taylor.”
“He will,” I promised Kate. I kept her gaze and swallowed. “People said the same about what Gregg Haddock did to me.” I realized it was time to admit it as well. “He tried to rape me. If Professor Wyatt hadn’t intervened, Gregg would have…”
“Wow, okay, it really was him,” Gloria whispered, scooting closer. “Kate couldn’t let us touch her after. She would lean against us—whatever you can handle.”
I took the offer and leaned against her, even putting my head on her shoulder. “My parents wanted us mated. They gave him a potion. I didn’t know him and…” I took a deep breath and told them the truth.
Minus that I slept with Wyatt. I fibbed that he got me out of there and I went crazy before passing out, waking in my own bed a mess later.
“Yeah, I would have taken a pregnancy test too,” Carmen whispered. “People need—I know it’s hard but set the record straight, Bev. That’s so far from what I’ve heard said.”
“Why do I have to correct their bullshit about my life?” I demanded, tears filling my eyes. “Why is it on me to explain what happened like it’s any of their fucking business? There’s a whole council case and—”
“Where the guards said you lost your purity already,” she said gently. “I watched it. A lot of us did because Gregg was such a fucker.”
“People are stupid because it’s basic interrogation to throw the person off,” Emma muttered as she read something on her phone. “They didn’t have any real knowledge. I’ll message Jasmine that one of those guards should state as much.” She gave me a sad look. “It’s not on you. It sucks. It sucks huge fucking balls.”
