Chapter 27: Eve

“Jesus Chris, Eve, you have to report this.” Kasey shook her head in disbelief, wrapping her arms around herself in shock as she stared at me. I sat on my bed across from her, curled in the fetal position under my comforter, and shook my head.
“No one would believe me anyway, Kasey,” I said. “Besides, he didn’t actually rape me. The Rogues, per usual, were there to save the day.”
“You don’t sound too happy about that,” she said softly, her brows knitting together in concern. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m grateful,” I told her. “But I’m also sick of this. They’re no better, you know. They try to play the martyrs, but they’re not. They’re just as bad as an asshole like Max.”
Kasey said nothing to this, pulling her lip between her teeth to chew on it. “Are you going to tell Carter?” she asked. “Max needs punished, doesn’t he? What if he tries again?”
“I wont be the idiot who gibes him another opportunity,” I mumbled. “Fuck that asshole.”
“What if he tries it with someone else?” Kasey asked. “Or worse yet, what if he’s done it before and gotten away with it, Eve? Shouldn’t we say something?”
I sighed, closing my eyes against the migraine that was threatening to take me over. She was right, and I knew it. God forbid Max tried to hurt or rape someone else; even worse if he already had and never got in trouble for it. But would anyone believe the new, deranged girl over a seemingly nice guy like Max?
“Okay,” I said finally, shifting myself out from under the covers. “I’ll tell Mr. Carter.”
Kasey reached for my hand and squeezed it, helping me stand. “Do you want me to go with you?”
“No, it’s alright. I need to face this alone. But thank you.” As I turned to leave, Kasey stopped me, pulling me into a hug that warmed me from the inside.
“I’m sorry this happened to you,” she murmured. “No one deserves this.”
Something about the way she said it made tears spring to my eyeballs. I nodded, squeezing her back, and then straightened up, now more determined than ever to make sure Max received the punishment he deserved.
“Thank you for being my friend here,” I told her. “Apparently, I don’t have many of those.”
Arms folded across my chest, I walked down the hallways towards John Carter’s office, hoping I wouldn’t run into Max or the Rogues on my way there. I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle it, not after today. I was barely handling myself at the moment. And as I rounded the corner towards Carter’s office door, a sigh stopped me dead. It was Sadie, coming out of John’s office, and when she spotted me, her eyes narrowed into tiny, vindictive slits. A dangerous smile formed on her face, and I stopped walking abruptly. Something was wrong.
“Eve,” Carter said, stepping out the door behind her. His expression was serious; I didn’t like it one bit. “Just the woman I was coming to find.”
“I’m going to go check on Max,” Sadie said to Carter, looking directly at me when she said his name. “He needs a friend right now.”
“Of course, Sadie. Thank you for coming to see me.”
I was at a loss for words as Sadie passed by me, bumping into me as she fluttered by. “Good luck,” she whispered under her breath, and a ball of dread formed heavy in the pit of my stomach.
“Eve,” Carter said, nodding towards his office. “Come on in. We should talk.”
I almost turned around and fled, ran back to the safety of my room or even into the arms of Keane and the others. But I didn’t. I knew I couldn’t. Whatever Sadie had said to Carter changed everything, and I wasn’t even sure how yet. Silently, I followed John back into his office and stood awkwardly as he closed the door behind us, pointing to the empty chair across from his desk. I sat, trying to ward off the tremble in my hands and legs.
“So,” Carter said, folding his hands on his desk in front of him. “It’s been quite the debacle here the last hour.” I said nothing. Really, I wanted to know what he knew first without digging myself into a hole I knew I wouldn’t get out of. “Eve,” he continued, leaning forward to stare intently at me. “Is there anything you want to tell me?”
I took a shaky breath as nausea climbed up my throat, threatening to spill over. When I opened my mouth to speak, my chest felt tight with dread.
“Yes,” I said finally. “I’m here to report an assault.”
Mr. Carter nodded. He didn’t look surprised in the least. As we stared each other down, my hands began to sweat, and I wiped them unconsciously on my pant leg.
“That’s interesting,” he said. “Because Maxwell Hardy and Sadie Briggs also came to report an assault. Are we speaking of the same one?”
“Probably not,” I said earnestly, and Mr. Carter’s eyebrows shot straight up.
“Oh?”
“Max assaulted me,” I said. “He—he tried to rape me.”
Mr. Carter didn’t speak for a long moment. He only observed me over the spectacles on his face. I couldn’t read his expression. He had a good poker face. When he finally spoke, his voice was steady.
“Sadie and Max came into my office for help, and Mr. Hardy was certainly a sight to see,” Carter said. “Someone had beat him very, very badly. He’s in the hospital wing now still being stitched up.” Mr. Carter paused, scanning my face. “Would you happen to know anything about that?”
“I—” my words faltered. I snapped my mouth shut, pulling my lip between my teeth to chew on it until I tasted blood.
“Tell me,” Carter continued. “Did Mr. Hardy assault you before or after he was beaten to near unconsciousness?”
“Before,” I said stupidly, even though it was the truth. “That’s—that’s why he got beat up. I was being protected.”
“By Keane Hearne?” said Mr. Carter, and the way he said his name made me shiver with regret. I hadn’t wanted to drag the Rogues into this, but it was too late at this point. There was no avoiding it. Carter must have taken my silence for an answer because he nodded, then grabbed a pen and made a note on the paper in front of him. “Eve,” Carter said, dropping the pen to scrutinize me again. “Here’s what I heard. Sadie said she witnessed you and Mr. Hardy ‘getting cozy’ together on the bluffs. Keane, Beau, and Teague showed up as the two of you were kissing and lost their minds. She claims that you told them he was trying to rape you, and basically let the Rogues attack Max. Is that correct?”
My jaw dropped to the floor as I stared at him, suddenly trembling with rage. “I’m not sure I understand how Sadie witnessed anything,” I said. “You know, considering she wasn’t even there.”
“No?”
“Absolutely not.”
Mr. Carter sighed and leaned back, scoping me out. “I’m having a difficult time with this,” he said earnestly. “And it’s because of history with the Rogues as well as your own personal history.”
“My own personal history?” I repeated. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Mr. Carter sighed again, rubbing his hand over his face in exhaustion.
“Evelina, I think it’s about time we had a serious discussion.”
“About what?” I pulled my knees up into the chair, wrapping my arms around them in comfort. A change in the room shifted suddenly, and I felt like being sick.
“About the real reason you’re here,” Mr. Carter said, tapping the pen against his bottom lip as he watched me. I squirmed beneath his gaze, feeling claustrophobic suddenly in the confines of the office.
“I know why I’m here,” I said. “And so do you.”
“I’m afraid that’s not quite accurate.” Mr. Carter stopped speaking for a moment, watching me. “Tell me, Evelina—why do you think you’re here?”
“I already told you. My stepfather hates me. He thinks I’m a heathen. He has a lot of pull, so he got me sent away so I wouldn’t taint his precious persona.”
Mr. Carter nodded, dropping the pen onto the pad and setting it aside as he continued to watch me. “I’m about to tell you something,” he said softly. “And I need you to hear it.”
“Whatever.”
He sighed, removing his glasses before speaking again. “Evelina, six months ago, you were raped by your stepbrother, Grant.”
“Um—”
“During the assault, you grabbed a pair of scissors on your desk and stabbed him six times. He survived, but barely.”
I furrowed my brow, tasting blood on my lip where I’d been chewing it. “No, that’s not right. I don’t—I don’t have a brother.”
“As a result of the trauma, you’ve developed what we call dissociative personality disorder.”
I glanced back over my shoulder, waiting for someone to come in and yell surprise. What was this asshole even talking about?
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I—I think you have the wrong person.”
“No,” Mr. Carter said with a curt shake of his head. “We do not.”
“I’m sorry, but I have to go.” I started to stand, but my legs went weak and I stumbled, almost falling.
“Evalina,” he said softly. “I think it’s best if you stayed.”