Chapter 10:
Judy arrived at vice-squad at about 4 with the state's attorney, who was in charge on her case. She was supposed to repeat her testemony today and tell them anything else that got onto her mind since she first filled in the charge. The state's attorney had picked her up from the hospital where she had to stay for the night.
She'd been very sympathetic, trying to calm her and assure her that everything would be alright, that she would make it through with no difficulty. She told her not to be too nervous or afraid, people where there to help her. She'd never thought a state's attorney to feel so much empathy for someone. She really liked the woman, she felt like she could trust her – she felt safe with her.
She had been silent during their drive, captured in her thoughts and the attorney didn't force her to talk. Both of them knew it wasn't easy, it was a crucial moment – the first step into direction of a trial – and it was painful, extremly painful to be forced to relive this all over again, every second of it, every last detail. But there was no other way. As painful as it was – she needed to get through it – for the sake of the final result.
She entered the building lead by the state's attorney and they were welcomed by a detective, who introduced himself as Karl Sheldon, the detective in charge on her case. He was very careful on her – she noticed that. It was probably due to the job as a vice-squad detective. He stood several feet away from her – leaving her room, he had addressed her quietly, avoided to move around abruptly – especially towards her and he hadn't forced her to give him the hand. He was handling the fact that she was the victim of a violation very carefully and he did it very good.
"Miss Mandell – as state's attorney Devaney probably told you already – we're going to record your testemony once again, as detailed as you can remember. I'll give you some time for a break afterwards, so you can have a hold on yourself and the situation again. And then I need you back here for line-up to clearly identify your attacker. She had listened intentively and nodded to his proposal now, but didn't say anything.
"We gonna go to one of the interrogation rooms now. Don't worry, you won't be alone. The state's attorney will stay with you and me all the time. I don't want you to push too hard, just tell me what happened and what you can remember and try to answer my questions if you can. Don't force anything – it's of no use. You need anything before we start?"
"Some water would be nice."
She said shyly. The state's attorney considered an invitation on her, too.
"If you would get me a coffee, please?"
"Sure."
He came back two minutes later with the beverages and gave them to them. They sat down.
"I would like you to tell me about the events from the moment you entered the bar until you go to hospital, please. Can we have a start then?"
She took a deep breath and nodded slightly.
Flashback
She entered the bar at about eleven, dressed in a tight dark blue jeans and a wide cut dark wine red top made out of silk with a floral stitchery on it. she was wearing high heels, a silver watch and a necklace. Her long dark blonde hair was open and smoothly fell down her back. She was having discreet make up on her face, underlining her deep blue eyes and her full lips. She was looking gorgeous, absolutely beautiful – and she knew that.
She went to the counter, sat down and ordered herself a cocktail. She took an inconspicious look through the room while waiting for her drink. Some elder man were sitting at the counter with her and a bunch of younger people, but still older than her were sitting in the back of the bar, playing a card game – probably poker. When she looked back to the counter, the bartender had already put down the drink in front of her. She took it and sipped at it, carefully tasting and letting the flavour of it smooth her tongue. She loved that first taste of an ice-cold drink. It mostly was the best thing of an evening. She wasn't sure of staying long, she just wanted to have a bit of a good time and then she'd go home early enough , being a bit tipsy but not having a hangover the next morning.
She took her time alone to think about the events that would be coming up to her in the next few days. She just moved here not even a week ago and would start her new job tomorrow on Monday. She didn't have an own dwelling by now, living at an old school friend's place, who – working as a stewardess – wasn't home very often and neededsomeone she could share the enormous rent with. Except for her, she didn't know anyone in the city, but she was willing to change that and that was what made her come to the bar since she had arrived and got the few things she had packed into her friend's dwelling 8 days ago. It was a new start for her, a chance – she smiled by the thought of it and took another full sip of her drink.
About three quarters of an hour later – she had just ordered her drink – three guys, slightly older then her, entered the bar. One of them a tall black male, the other with an obviously hispanic background and the third probably with some kind of european forefathers. While the two set down, the third one directly headed to the female bartender and received a kiss from her. They definitely were related in some way – probably his mother.
She could literally feel his eyes on her, when he returned to the other two, walking behind her, another slight smile emerged from her lips. Seemed like she wasn't the only one who knew she was good looking tonight.
"Ma, would you get us three beers?"
She could hear him ask behind her. Now she definitely knew they were relatives.
"Sure honey."
She was eager and slightly amused how to see how the evening would proceed;: reading the signs right – he obviously felt attracted to her and she was willing to have a little fun tonight – a little bit of talking, flirting and drinking – she just needed to show him. That made her spent the next half an hour with slightly glancing over from time to time and innocently smiling at him, while he was chatting with the two other guys. Although he gave her a hard time barely responding to her. She was absolutely positve they were talking about her. She could see it in the way his comrades behaved, but she really wasn't up to that kind of game tonight. She needed some easy going stuff, nothing too hard to achieve; and sitting here and waiting for him to do something definitely hadn't been her plan for tonight. She was about to get up and leave, when he finally came over.
"You want another drink?"
He asked pointing to the emptied glass in front of her.
"Actually,..., yeah – why not."
He ordered her another cocktail and sat down beside her.
"You were really giving me a hard time."
She stated, sounding almost offended, but smiled at him none the less.
"With what?"
"With making me get you here."
She received a grin for that.
"Well sorry, but your getting the drink as an excuse."
"Thanks then. That's really generous!"
"Isn't it?...So, you got a name?"
"I'm Judy. What about you?"
"Bosco."
"Where did you get that from ?"
"It's a nickname..."
"So, what's your real name ?"
"It's Maurice."
"And where did the nickname come from?"
"It's a short form of Boscorelli."
"Your last name?"
"Yeah."
"Sounds italian."
"Smart girl."
"Thanks to the compliment."
"I don't think I've ever seen you here before...?"
"I assume that would mean you're here rather often?"
"As it is my mother's bar..."
"Yeah, I already got that. That doesn't make it that much surprising."
"So...?"
"Oh yeah: you never saw me here before, cause I just moved to N.Y. about a week ago."
"What for?"
"I'm starting a new job as a nursery teacher in an orphanage."
"Sounds like one of the most stressful jobs one could have."
"You think so? What about you – your job that relaxing?"
"No, not likely."
"So, what do you do?"
"I'm working for NYPD."
"You're a cop? And you thought my job to be stressful?"
"Well, it has a lot of – kids – involved."
"Necessarily, yeah. But I think criminals are more stressful than a child ever can be – and more dangerous."
"Depends on the child, I guess."
They were taking some more time, drinking, talking, laughing with each other and she felt how she got more and more tipsy and also tired with every drink she was taking. As much fun as it was and as much enthusiasm as he had in keeping her awake, she needed to get home and get some sleep. She was supposed to be at work at about 12 tommorrow to get a first introduction and start her routine on Tuesday. That was about ten more hours to go and not even eight hours of sleep, considering that she needed to get up earlier to get properly dressed and drive there. She really needed her bed – desperately.
"I don't wanna be rude, but I really need to get some sleep."
Somehow, she didn't even know how, a thought came to her mind. She knew she was tired, almost drowsy and it was late and he – for the matter of moment that seemed a good thing to her – was a cop. She wasn't afraid of anything, but she was careful. Having someone at hand, who could protect her wasn't the worst thing to happen.
"Would you take me to my place? I don't feel that good."
He hesitated for a moment, taking a close look at her – obviously trying to figure out what she wanted, but then he nodded.
"Yeah sure."
She had a hold on hisarm while they were walking back the three blocks to her dwelling without saying a word. She had her eyes half closed, letting him lead, for she had told him where to go and breathed in the cold night air deeply. She didn't have a rocky stomach, she just felt a little lightheaded.
When they arrived at her place and she opened her purse to find her keys, she started to giggle. She gave him an absolutely innocent look.
"I can't find them, goddamn it. Would you help me?"
He gave her a slight smile, took her purse and searched for her keys.
"Don't you steal anything – you hear me!"
She stated, still half smiling, as he gave the purse back to her and shook her keys he had in hands.
"Police – you forgot that?"
"Yeah, sure – I remember. So – hopefully – that means I can trust you."
He didn't answer, he just smiled, put the key to the lock and opened the front door for her.
"You need anything else? A helping hand, a lift upstairs, someone to bring you to bed?"
She took the keys from the door, stepped inside and turned around to face him. She didn't wanna be rude – she had given obvious signals, but she really didn't want him to stay. She needed to sleep. But as she was tipsy and that made her sentimental – her bad conscience won above the wish to sleep.
"You want some coffee?"
"Actually – I would love to."
She entered the apartment building fully, grabbed the handle and went up the stairs to second floor to get to her dwelling. Bosco followed her, having a close look on her movement, being alarmed so she wouldn't fall down the stairs. The possibility was there at last. She stopped in front of the door and giggled again as it took her some time to open the door. With the moment she opened the door – knowing that the bed was only a few steps away – she felt the tiredness overwhelm her. She turned around slowly, blocking the way and leaving him standing in the doorway.
"I'm sorry, but I think I'm a bit more tired then I thought. I really need to get some sleep..."
He didn't say anything for a moment, but she could see by the expression on his face, that he wasn't all so happy with her decision.
"Okay – you wanna say goodnight then?"
"Yeah. Good ..."
She didn't get to say "Night" as he leaned forward to actually kiss her good night and as she still had a bad conscience about attracting him first and now leaving him standing here, she gave in and allowed him to do it. When they were letting go of each other, he was heavily breathing and she immediately realized it would be even harder to make him leave. She got close to him and tried to tell him – as less offensive and soft as she could, so she wouldn't hurt his feelings, that he needed to go.
"I'm very, very tired, I really need to go to bed."
It was too late she realized it had sounded more like an invitation than an actual goodbye. But she didn't care any more. She turned away, headed to her bedroom and just hoped for him to understand the move and leave. She knew it wasn't the safest way to get rid of someone, she better should've told him the hard way, but she was too tired and too drunk to face him once again. But when she entered her bedroom, her top already taken off, he was behind her, grabbing her, turning her to him and kissing her passionately. She didn't even get a chance to insist against him. She felt the pressure of his body against hers as he pushed her to the bed. The strong grip of his hands as he was holding her down on the bed. She was unable to react – just was letting it happen. Her mind screamed to her to do something, to react – to struggle, to scream to do at last something. But she couldn't – she just couldn't believe what was happening. She felt like she had turned to stone. She had her clothes taken off, lying beneath him, unable to get away, unable to make him stop and did something or allowed him to do something she didn't really want. And then from one moment to another – as if somebody pushed a button, she was able to fight. She moaned, she winded underneath him – she struggled against his grip, but it wouldn't work. She couldn't get free. She was so weak, so powerless, so vulnerable – she couldn't make him stop. She was just able to try to escape and to wait – to wait for it to end and for him to leave. He finally rolled over, giving her free, sighed deeply and rose to head to the bathroom. She rolled herself together into a prenatal position, trying to protect her naked, exposed body and closed her eyes. When he came back, she pretended to be asleep, so he would just leave – leave her alone. And for once since she had entered her dwelling, she was lucky. He got dressed after he realized she was asleep and left...
End of flashback
Judy was crying silently when she had finished her testimony about the night she had been violated. The state's attorney was gently rubbing her back and tried to soothe her. The detective gave her a look full of empathy.
"I know this is very hard for you, Mrs. Mandell and I'm so sorry you have to go through this once again. But if you want your attacker to be sentenced, there – unfortunately – is no other way."
She nodded without saying a word. She knew that herself and she had known before that it would be painful for her.
"May I leave now?"
She asked in a shaky voice and by the expression on the detective's face she knew that he wanted nothing more but to say yes. But he couldn't.
"No. I'm sorry. You still have to identify your attacker. It'll only take a few minutes and then you can leave.
She shook her head slowly and rose from her chair.
"Okay, let's get this done. I'm sorry, but I can't stay here any longer than absolutely necessary.
The detective gave her a smile.
"I fully understand this."
He stepped out of the room, lead her down the floor and into another room with a wide glass window. She mildly panicked when she saw the glass, but the detective assured her not to be afraid.
"Don't worry, it's doubled glass – they can't see you. You only can see them..."
"Okay."
The detective knocked to the window and the officer standing behind it opened a door to let a few men get inside and line up in front of the window. Judy didn't even need a few seconds to identify her attacker, her rapist.
"It's him – I'm absolutely sure!"
She directly pointed to Bosco...
Judy arrived at vice-squad at about 4 with the state's attorney, who was in charge on her case. She was supposed to repeat her testemony today and tell them anything else that got onto her mind since she first filled in the charge. The state's attorney had picked her up from the hospital where she had to stay for the night.
She'd been very sympathetic, trying to calm her and assure her that everything would be alright, that she would make it through with no difficulty. She told her not to be too nervous or afraid, people where there to help her. She'd never thought a state's attorney to feel so much empathy for someone. She really liked the woman, she felt like she could trust her – she felt safe with her.
She had been silent during their drive, captured in her thoughts and the attorney didn't force her to talk. Both of them knew it wasn't easy, it was a crucial moment – the first step into direction of a trial – and it was painful, extremly painful to be forced to relive this all over again, every second of it, every last detail. But there was no other way. As painful as it was – she needed to get through it – for the sake of the final result.
She entered the building lead by the state's attorney and they were welcomed by a detective, who introduced himself as Karl Sheldon, the detective in charge on her case. He was very careful on her – she noticed that. It was probably due to the job as a vice-squad detective. He stood several feet away from her – leaving her room, he had addressed her quietly, avoided to move around abruptly – especially towards her and he hadn't forced her to give him the hand. He was handling the fact that she was the victim of a violation very carefully and he did it very good.
"Miss Mandell – as state's attorney Devaney probably told you already – we're going to record your testemony once again, as detailed as you can remember. I'll give you some time for a break afterwards, so you can have a hold on yourself and the situation again. And then I need you back here for line-up to clearly identify your attacker. She had listened intentively and nodded to his proposal now, but didn't say anything.
"We gonna go to one of the interrogation rooms now. Don't worry, you won't be alone. The state's attorney will stay with you and me all the time. I don't want you to push too hard, just tell me what happened and what you can remember and try to answer my questions if you can. Don't force anything – it's of no use. You need anything before we start?"
"Some water would be nice."
She said shyly. The state's attorney considered an invitation on her, too.
"If you would get me a coffee, please?"
"Sure."
He came back two minutes later with the beverages and gave them to them. They sat down.
"I would like you to tell me about the events from the moment you entered the bar until you go to hospital, please. Can we have a start then?"
She took a deep breath and nodded slightly.
Flashback
She entered the bar at about eleven, dressed in a tight dark blue jeans and a wide cut dark wine red top made out of silk with a floral stitchery on it. she was wearing high heels, a silver watch and a necklace. Her long dark blonde hair was open and smoothly fell down her back. She was having discreet make up on her face, underlining her deep blue eyes and her full lips. She was looking gorgeous, absolutely beautiful – and she knew that.
She went to the counter, sat down and ordered herself a cocktail. She took an inconspicious look through the room while waiting for her drink. Some elder man were sitting at the counter with her and a bunch of younger people, but still older than her were sitting in the back of the bar, playing a card game – probably poker. When she looked back to the counter, the bartender had already put down the drink in front of her. She took it and sipped at it, carefully tasting and letting the flavour of it smooth her tongue. She loved that first taste of an ice-cold drink. It mostly was the best thing of an evening. She wasn't sure of staying long, she just wanted to have a bit of a good time and then she'd go home early enough , being a bit tipsy but not having a hangover the next morning.
She took her time alone to think about the events that would be coming up to her in the next few days. She just moved here not even a week ago and would start her new job tomorrow on Monday. She didn't have an own dwelling by now, living at an old school friend's place, who – working as a stewardess – wasn't home very often and neededsomeone she could share the enormous rent with. Except for her, she didn't know anyone in the city, but she was willing to change that and that was what made her come to the bar since she had arrived and got the few things she had packed into her friend's dwelling 8 days ago. It was a new start for her, a chance – she smiled by the thought of it and took another full sip of her drink.
About three quarters of an hour later – she had just ordered her drink – three guys, slightly older then her, entered the bar. One of them a tall black male, the other with an obviously hispanic background and the third probably with some kind of european forefathers. While the two set down, the third one directly headed to the female bartender and received a kiss from her. They definitely were related in some way – probably his mother.
She could literally feel his eyes on her, when he returned to the other two, walking behind her, another slight smile emerged from her lips. Seemed like she wasn't the only one who knew she was good looking tonight.
"Ma, would you get us three beers?"
She could hear him ask behind her. Now she definitely knew they were relatives.
"Sure honey."
She was eager and slightly amused how to see how the evening would proceed;: reading the signs right – he obviously felt attracted to her and she was willing to have a little fun tonight – a little bit of talking, flirting and drinking – she just needed to show him. That made her spent the next half an hour with slightly glancing over from time to time and innocently smiling at him, while he was chatting with the two other guys. Although he gave her a hard time barely responding to her. She was absolutely positve they were talking about her. She could see it in the way his comrades behaved, but she really wasn't up to that kind of game tonight. She needed some easy going stuff, nothing too hard to achieve; and sitting here and waiting for him to do something definitely hadn't been her plan for tonight. She was about to get up and leave, when he finally came over.
"You want another drink?"
He asked pointing to the emptied glass in front of her.
"Actually,..., yeah – why not."
He ordered her another cocktail and sat down beside her.
"You were really giving me a hard time."
She stated, sounding almost offended, but smiled at him none the less.
"With what?"
"With making me get you here."
She received a grin for that.
"Well sorry, but your getting the drink as an excuse."
"Thanks then. That's really generous!"
"Isn't it?...So, you got a name?"
"I'm Judy. What about you?"
"Bosco."
"Where did you get that from ?"
"It's a nickname..."
"So, what's your real name ?"
"It's Maurice."
"And where did the nickname come from?"
"It's a short form of Boscorelli."
"Your last name?"
"Yeah."
"Sounds italian."
"Smart girl."
"Thanks to the compliment."
"I don't think I've ever seen you here before...?"
"I assume that would mean you're here rather often?"
"As it is my mother's bar..."
"Yeah, I already got that. That doesn't make it that much surprising."
"So...?"
"Oh yeah: you never saw me here before, cause I just moved to N.Y. about a week ago."
"What for?"
"I'm starting a new job as a nursery teacher in an orphanage."
"Sounds like one of the most stressful jobs one could have."
"You think so? What about you – your job that relaxing?"
"No, not likely."
"So, what do you do?"
"I'm working for NYPD."
"You're a cop? And you thought my job to be stressful?"
"Well, it has a lot of – kids – involved."
"Necessarily, yeah. But I think criminals are more stressful than a child ever can be – and more dangerous."
"Depends on the child, I guess."
They were taking some more time, drinking, talking, laughing with each other and she felt how she got more and more tipsy and also tired with every drink she was taking. As much fun as it was and as much enthusiasm as he had in keeping her awake, she needed to get home and get some sleep. She was supposed to be at work at about 12 tommorrow to get a first introduction and start her routine on Tuesday. That was about ten more hours to go and not even eight hours of sleep, considering that she needed to get up earlier to get properly dressed and drive there. She really needed her bed – desperately.
"I don't wanna be rude, but I really need to get some sleep."
Somehow, she didn't even know how, a thought came to her mind. She knew she was tired, almost drowsy and it was late and he – for the matter of moment that seemed a good thing to her – was a cop. She wasn't afraid of anything, but she was careful. Having someone at hand, who could protect her wasn't the worst thing to happen.
"Would you take me to my place? I don't feel that good."
He hesitated for a moment, taking a close look at her – obviously trying to figure out what she wanted, but then he nodded.
"Yeah sure."
She had a hold on hisarm while they were walking back the three blocks to her dwelling without saying a word. She had her eyes half closed, letting him lead, for she had told him where to go and breathed in the cold night air deeply. She didn't have a rocky stomach, she just felt a little lightheaded.
When they arrived at her place and she opened her purse to find her keys, she started to giggle. She gave him an absolutely innocent look.
"I can't find them, goddamn it. Would you help me?"
He gave her a slight smile, took her purse and searched for her keys.
"Don't you steal anything – you hear me!"
She stated, still half smiling, as he gave the purse back to her and shook her keys he had in hands.
"Police – you forgot that?"
"Yeah, sure – I remember. So – hopefully – that means I can trust you."
He didn't answer, he just smiled, put the key to the lock and opened the front door for her.
"You need anything else? A helping hand, a lift upstairs, someone to bring you to bed?"
She took the keys from the door, stepped inside and turned around to face him. She didn't wanna be rude – she had given obvious signals, but she really didn't want him to stay. She needed to sleep. But as she was tipsy and that made her sentimental – her bad conscience won above the wish to sleep.
"You want some coffee?"
"Actually – I would love to."
She entered the apartment building fully, grabbed the handle and went up the stairs to second floor to get to her dwelling. Bosco followed her, having a close look on her movement, being alarmed so she wouldn't fall down the stairs. The possibility was there at last. She stopped in front of the door and giggled again as it took her some time to open the door. With the moment she opened the door – knowing that the bed was only a few steps away – she felt the tiredness overwhelm her. She turned around slowly, blocking the way and leaving him standing in the doorway.
"I'm sorry, but I think I'm a bit more tired then I thought. I really need to get some sleep..."
He didn't say anything for a moment, but she could see by the expression on his face, that he wasn't all so happy with her decision.
"Okay – you wanna say goodnight then?"
"Yeah. Good ..."
She didn't get to say "Night" as he leaned forward to actually kiss her good night and as she still had a bad conscience about attracting him first and now leaving him standing here, she gave in and allowed him to do it. When they were letting go of each other, he was heavily breathing and she immediately realized it would be even harder to make him leave. She got close to him and tried to tell him – as less offensive and soft as she could, so she wouldn't hurt his feelings, that he needed to go.
"I'm very, very tired, I really need to go to bed."
It was too late she realized it had sounded more like an invitation than an actual goodbye. But she didn't care any more. She turned away, headed to her bedroom and just hoped for him to understand the move and leave. She knew it wasn't the safest way to get rid of someone, she better should've told him the hard way, but she was too tired and too drunk to face him once again. But when she entered her bedroom, her top already taken off, he was behind her, grabbing her, turning her to him and kissing her passionately. She didn't even get a chance to insist against him. She felt the pressure of his body against hers as he pushed her to the bed. The strong grip of his hands as he was holding her down on the bed. She was unable to react – just was letting it happen. Her mind screamed to her to do something, to react – to struggle, to scream to do at last something. But she couldn't – she just couldn't believe what was happening. She felt like she had turned to stone. She had her clothes taken off, lying beneath him, unable to get away, unable to make him stop and did something or allowed him to do something she didn't really want. And then from one moment to another – as if somebody pushed a button, she was able to fight. She moaned, she winded underneath him – she struggled against his grip, but it wouldn't work. She couldn't get free. She was so weak, so powerless, so vulnerable – she couldn't make him stop. She was just able to try to escape and to wait – to wait for it to end and for him to leave. He finally rolled over, giving her free, sighed deeply and rose to head to the bathroom. She rolled herself together into a prenatal position, trying to protect her naked, exposed body and closed her eyes. When he came back, she pretended to be asleep, so he would just leave – leave her alone. And for once since she had entered her dwelling, she was lucky. He got dressed after he realized she was asleep and left...
End of flashback
Judy was crying silently when she had finished her testimony about the night she had been violated. The state's attorney was gently rubbing her back and tried to soothe her. The detective gave her a look full of empathy.
"I know this is very hard for you, Mrs. Mandell and I'm so sorry you have to go through this once again. But if you want your attacker to be sentenced, there – unfortunately – is no other way."
She nodded without saying a word. She knew that herself and she had known before that it would be painful for her.
"May I leave now?"
She asked in a shaky voice and by the expression on the detective's face she knew that he wanted nothing more but to say yes. But he couldn't.
"No. I'm sorry. You still have to identify your attacker. It'll only take a few minutes and then you can leave.
She shook her head slowly and rose from her chair.
"Okay, let's get this done. I'm sorry, but I can't stay here any longer than absolutely necessary.
The detective gave her a smile.
"I fully understand this."
He stepped out of the room, lead her down the floor and into another room with a wide glass window. She mildly panicked when she saw the glass, but the detective assured her not to be afraid.
"Don't worry, it's doubled glass – they can't see you. You only can see them..."
"Okay."
The detective knocked to the window and the officer standing behind it opened a door to let a few men get inside and line up in front of the window. Judy didn't even need a few seconds to identify her attacker, her rapist.
"It's him – I'm absolutely sure!"
She directly pointed to Bosco...