Jen had dated Richie Cross for only two months but in that time he managed to make her life a living hell. The day she met Richie, he approached her at her locker.
“Hey beautiful, you smell like strawberries,” he whispered in her ear.
Jen was blushing. “It’s just my shampoo.”
By her reaction, he knew he found his prey. “Name’s Richie Cross, pretty sure you’ve heard of me.” His name carried to power by virtue of his parents. He inherited his ego (and his green eyes) from his father Nathan Cross, a billionaire cattle baron. But he got his looks from his mother, Alicia, an African American University professor.
She turned around, looking into his enchanting eyes. “Richie? Like Richie Rich?”
“What your name?” he asked. She had a beautiful smile to go with her gorgeous body.
“Jenny-Q; like a question, a riddle wrapped in an enigma,” Jen said in a voice that made her sound confident and cool.
Richie kissed her neck. “I just want to eat you up,” he whispered. “I want to devour you whole.” He sucked her neck, Jen was moaning. Tall, handsome, athletic; he was everything Jen thought she wanted.
The next day he was waiting for her. She tried to walk past him but he grabbed her arm, he pulled her close and kissed her. “Sorry about the other day, I can play a little rough sometimes.” Richie wasn’t going to let go. Jen would be trapped until the day of the video.
When the video was released Richie suddenly stopped harassing her. She assumed it was because the whole school thought of her as a slut and since he was headed off to college there was no reason to keep the ‘relationship’ going.
Then she found out about the payout: a lump sum given to her parents in lieu of pressing charges. What Jen didn’t know at the time was her mother took the payout, not her father.
Diego had seen the bruises, but he had no idea how to approach the situation.
“You have a boyfriend?” he asked. His voice was deep and masculine but that moment he was trying to be friendly.
Jen looked up at him, “Yeah. Richie Cross, he’s a senior” She needed his help, she needed his courage.
Diego needed to meet the bastard who was beating his little girl. “Maybe you can bring him over to the house sometime?”
When Richie came to the house he was groping Jen in front of her parents. He was making crude remarks, using inappropriate language. And when he noticed how angry Diego was becoming Richie gave the ultimate one-liner. “Chill, man: don’t make me call immigration.”
“Get the hell out of my house,” he shouted.
Richie grabbed Jen by the wrist. Jen looked to her father for help. Diego’s face was so enraged, but he only watched as Richie dragged her out the door.
“Our daughter has great taste in men,” Jen’s mother Suzanna said with a laugh. She was a fair skinned woman with light brown hair. After her son’s death, she had become emotionally numb, to the point of being downright cruel.
The night of the party Diego had begged Jen to stay home. But she snuck out, Diego knew why. She did it out of fear. Richie’s car would be outside waiting for her, if she didn’t go with him there was no telling what he would do. And clearly, her father didn’t have the courage to protect her.
Diego waited up all night for her to come home. At around two in the morning, he heard Richie’s Car. Richie’s friends dragged Jen’s unconscious body to the front lawn and left her there.
“You got some trash on your lawn!” Richie shouted. He saw the lights were on, he knew Diego was awake.
Diego threw open the door as Richie sped off. Suzanna woke up and upon seeing her daughter passed out on the lawn she rolled her eyes. “Let’s get her inside the house before the neighbors see.”
“I’m taking her to the hospital!” Diego shouted. He carried Jen to his car, a silver Honda, laying her body in the back seat. He drove as fast as he could, sobbing. He pulled into the emergency room. “Please help me. My daughter’s been assaulted.”
“Sir, you believe your daughter has been raped?” asked the nurse behind the desk. For a rape case, the police would have to be involved. She notified security and called for a gurney for Diego to lay Jen’s body.
He watched as they performed a rape kit, and when he heard the results Diego’s machismo finally kicked in. He went home to grab his wooden baseball bat. It was almost six in the morning; the students of White Creek would be starting to arrive at school in the next few hours.
He drove to the school, waiting for Richie’s car. As soon as he spotted the bright red BMV he got out. He walked to the driver’s side window and he smashed it with every ounce of his strength.
Richie got out. “You’re paying for that!”
Diego struck him in the face. “I took her to the hospital, they did a rape kit, when they test the blood on this bat you will never see the light of day.” He would go straight to the police station and speak to the officer assigned to the case he didn’t care if he got booked for assault.
“Do you know who my father is?” Richie asked as he spat blood on Diego’s face. His wealthy father could easily make the issue go away.
Diego hit him again knocking the boy to the ground. “I know who he is but he’s not here to stop me from breaking every bone in your body.” Diego grabbed the boy by the neck. “If you ever come near my daughter again I swear to God I will kill you.”
Jen woke up in the hospital alone. She was questioned by police. She gave her statement. Richie Cross was pulled out of class, the police asked for his side of the story. He told the police the sex had been consensual and Jen took drugs with him willingly. There was not enough evidence to press charges. Then Richie got cocky. He started sending the video to his friends. It was quickly uploaded to a well-known porn site. Now there was a case.
Jen was still in the hospital and even though it pained him Diego had to fly to Wyoming for business. Richie’s father Nathan called Suzanna to meet with him and his lawyer. They drew up a contract; no charges would be brought on Richie in exchange for a six-figure payout. Suzanna agreed since the deal also included a clause promising no charges would be brought on her husband for his brutal attack.
Diego returned home days later. When he found out what she had done he was furious. “I should have killed that kid!” His daughter had been tortured for weeks she deserved justice. “I would have gladly gone to prison!” Richie would be free to go to college, live out his life, while Jen would never be the same again.
“I don’t know why you even care. She snuck out of the house to go to that party,” Suzanna said.
He could not believe the words coming out of his wife’s mouth. He grabbed her by the wrist he raised his hand to strike her. But as he looked around the room all he could see were images of his dead son. Diego shook his head. He left the house driving straight to Nathan Cross’s estate. It wasn’t hard to find, the multi-millionaire lived in one of the largest Mansions in the area. He took the crowbar from his trunk and smashed in the keypad to the front gate. “Come out and face me you, coward!” Security was called but Nathan still made an appearance.
The old cowboy strutted up to the gate. “I don’t know how you do things down in Mexico but here, in the Dakotas, we play smart.”
“Open this gate,” Diego demanded.
Nathan only laughed. “No, you, my friend, you’ve lost. I hope you and your lovely family enjoy the money. Maybe use it to send your little slut to college.” Nathan was about to light a cigar when out of nowhere Diego flung the crowbar at his head. One of the guards shot Diego with a Taser.
Diego spent the next six hours in a holding cell.
“I can’t believe you,” Suzanna said when she finally came for him. “You’re lucky Nathan Cross is not pressing charges.”
Diego sprang up. “You sold our daughter’s dignity!”
“Jen is out of control!”
When they got home Jen was in her room lying in bed. Diego opened the door. The air reeked of alcohol and cigarettes. She had cut off her hair and was quietly crying in her sleep. Diego touched her bare shoulder.
Jen started screaming. “Richie no, please stop it hurts! Oh God, please let me die!”
Diego left the room he fell to knees sobbing.
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