Chapter 11

-2 months later- -

Mark hadn't spoken a word to Riley...He couldn't bring himself to say anything to her and he felt so bad about it...He'd tried so hard to talk with Riley...but just couldn't force himself to do it...He even grabbed her in the hallway of one of the arenas and kissed her with a fevered pitch, but just shook his head and walked away.

Kurt and Luther had since being trying to talk some kind of sense into Mark...He was going to lose Riley forever if he didn't get his head out of his ass. Kurt had, had plenty of talks with Mark and an equal amount with Riley also.

One night while Riley was sitting in her office doing some research on a foot fungus one of the guys had on her laptop, Mark pulled John and Cynthia into the dressing room with him Luther and Kurt.

John looked at Mark and said, "What's up man?" Mark was pacing around a little and said, "Riley said something to me a few months ago and it's been buggin me..." Cynthia said, "She told you didn't she...About her family and the...the rape."

Kurt's head snapped up and said, "What?"

Cynthia sighed heavy and swallowed, chewing on her bottom lip...She said, "By the time Riley was 16 she was a Sophomore in College with John and I. Even though we were 3 years older then her. She's a special kind of intelligent, she skipped several grades and after passing her SAT's and getting her GED the first college that wanted her snatched her."

Cynthia sat down in front of John on the couch and he wrapped his arms around her...as she continued, "One night, instead of staying at the dorm, she wanted to go 6 blocks from the college to see her parents and family...It was pretty late when she left...Half a block from the college she saw a car on the side of the road the hood and trunk up and she noticed the guy as one of the football players from the college...he was wearing a letterman's jacket. Being the nice and naïve 16 year old she was...She stopped and asked him if he needed help."

John could feel Cynthia shaking in his arms and took over and said, "Before Riley knew what was happening to her, he had her thrown in the back seat of her own car, her skirt around her waist, his pants down around his ankles and he was raping her...She was a virgin, and he took it viciously...I begged her for weeks and months to tell me who did it, I wanted to kill him...but she never said anything."

John could feel his temper rising even now years after it happened...Cynthia turned around and draped a leg over his as she rubbed along his eyebrows to calm him down a little...John sighed extremely heavy and continued, "5 blocks away, the hot water heater blew up in her families house...The smoke alarms didn't go off, and the sprinkler system that and been put in when the house was built was done with plastic pipes...A building mistake that was obviously made without thinking first...Her parents, her older brother 20, and her three little sisters 12, 8 and 4 were all burned to death by a fire that could've been prevented."

Cynthia wiped away tears off her cheeks and said, "She wanted nothing more then to either get their the same time to warn them to get out, or earlier to die with them...The day of the funeral we found her walking around the charred remains of the house...the house she grew up in...the house that was the only home she's ever known."

Later that night, Riley walked around the corner and saw Torrie Wilson flirting with Mark...She was touching his chest and he was whispering in her ear. From his profile she could see the smirk on his face...Riley blinked and could feel the stray tears sliding down her cheeks.

Riley walked into her office and leaned against the door trying to compose herself...She couldn't and wouldn't dare let him see what kind of effect he was having on her...This was ridiculous...She'd only known him for less then a year...I guess it didn't really matter how long she'd known him...she'd fallen for him hard...So hard she wasn't sure she was going to escape.

Riley knew what she had to do.

Riley walked down to Stephanie's office and informed her she was going to have to quit the company. Stephanie said, "WHAT? My dad loves you every one on the roster loves you...You can't leave." Riley said, "Everyone might love me...but not the one I want...And I can't stand by and watch it happen with some other girl."

Stephanie knew who Riley was talking about...so said, "How about you go on personal leave for a month...Maybe you'd feel better away from this place...Believe me after a while it just gets to a person." Riley said, "Fine...I doubt it...but I'll try anything at this point."

Riley walked out to her rental car...Mark had seen her walk out of Stephanie's office and Stephanie said, "I wish you'd get your head removed from your ass Mr. Jindrak...This business of you saying you're not good enough for her is bullshit...Paul thought that about me when we first started dating...But c'mon, eventually you have to give into what your heart says."

Mark followed Riley out of the building unseen...he watched as she got into her rental and she couldn't even drive...She sat there and broke down crying behind the wheel...Mark closed his eyes, he could feel his heart breaking for her...he was an asshole...As much as he wanted to go over and pull her from the car he couldn't...Stephanie told him to stay away from Riley for the month she was on leave...and he promised...which sucked cause he didn't make promises he couldn't keep.

Mark watched as Riley started the car and left the parking garage of the arena...her tears were still falling down.

Riley got home around 4 am...She crawled into bed and the never ending stream of tears from when she left the arena in Florida to when she got home to New York City was what helped her fall into a over worked sleep.