“You want to help?” Jules asked. “We found out yesterday that a girl who was raped weeks ago is still bleeding vaginally from the assault, but her father won’t let her go to the doctor because he believes, I don’t know, I guess maybe that she should reap what she sows? Even though she did nothing more than go to a goddamn party? So okay, Mr. Grown-up. Do something about that. Help her.”
Harrison shifted in his seat. “Jules. I’m afraid it’s not?—”
“Yeah,” Jules said. “Right.”
“It’s tricky. If her father won’t allow it?—”
“My mother said the same thing,” Jules replied. “It’s complicated, her hands are tied.”
Harrison leaned forward. “Here’s what I can do—what I will do. Bring her to me, I’ll walk her down to the school nurse who’ll call her parents. With luck, it’ll shame them into taking action?—”
“Luck?” Jules said.
The teacher winced.
“And as forbring her to youandwalk her to the school nurse... You really think she’s gonna agree to that? Subject herself to not justyourjudgment?—”
“She’ll get no judgment from me?—”
“She won’t believe that,” Jules shot back. “Every adult in her life has failed her so far, so yeah, let’s subject her to more ofthat. That’ll help. Maybe she’ll try to kill herself, like Caroline Russo did.”
Mr. Harrison was silent as Jules continued. “So thanks but no thanks,we’lltake care of it. And while we’re at it, no way are we letting the grown-upstake charge of our investigation. We do that, we’ll never find the rapist. He’ll vanish, he’ll hide, he’ll stop—for now but not forever. In two, three years, he’ll do it again. I’ve been reading about serial rapists, how it’s a short hop from that to murder. Serial killing.”
“Is that really true?”
“Absolutely. If you want, I’ll write up a report, cite my sources?—”
“No, kid, I believe you.”
“What are the so-called grown-ups gonna do?” Jules leaned in to ask. “My mother thinks we should start shouting about it. Shut down the parties, set up a curfew—make it impossible for kids to get alcohol, like that’s the cause of the problem. Her words:make it impossible. Which you know damn well won’t happen, on account of your having once been seventeen.”
“Hah,” Harrison said. “Yeah.”
“And sure, maybe shutting down the parties makes it harder for our suspect to target his victims, but maybe—probably—it doesn’t. Probably he’ll just troll the mall, find vulnerable girls there. You’ll never know—until it’syourdaughter. And maybe not even then because she probably won’t tell you about thetraumaof herrapebecause for allshe knows you’ll quote some stupid Bible verse about reaping what she sowed.”
“I wouldnever?—”
“Your daughter’s lucky,” Jules shot back at him. “Not everyone’s is.”
Harrison was silent then, so Jules kept going.
“We’reso closeto catching him, Mr. H.,” he said. “So. Close. But if you and my mother don’t give us more time, he’ll get away—and you fucking well know it. FYI, this is one of those times it’s exceedingly appropriate to sayfuckin school.”
“Hah.” Harrison laughed, but then just sat there, still gazing at him.
“You gonna eat that?” Jules asked, motioning toward the man’s sandwich. “Because if you’re not, well, it puts my PB&J to shame.”
Mr. H picked up half of the ham and cheese and held it out to Jules.
“Thanks, but I’d rather have your support,” Jules told him.
“How about you have both,” the teacher said. “But you have topromiseme you’ll keep me in the loop.”
Jules exhaled hard. Thank God. He was so sure he wouldn’t be able to win this fight. “I will. Thank you.” He took the ham and cheese, took a bite andyes itwasas good as it looked. Although maybe everything tasted better when accompanied by intense relief.
“And you need to give me half of your sandwich.”
Jules looked at him. “You are definitely not getting the better end ofthatdeal.”
