Chapter 10

She fished another tissue out of her bag and wiped her eyes, still crying. “No, but he said he would if I didn’t stop fighting him.”

“I think he ran into the library, Jason,” Matt said over my phone. “I lost him in those trees near the entrance, but that has to be where he went. I don’t think I got a shot of his face. All he’d have to do is take off his hoodie, and I’d never recognize him. What did he do?”

“I’ll tell you later. I need to call the cops.”

“Who were you talking to?” she asked.

“My roommate.” I dialed 911. “Hello, I need to report an attempted rape in the back parking lot of Pearson Residence Hall. Male attacker, maybe six feet four, bulky guy, hoodie, all dark clothes. He ran into the library.”

“Your name, sir?” the dispatcher asked.

“Jason Long. The victim is with me on the steps from the parking lot to the dorm. Hang on.” I turned to the crying girl still clinging to me. “Are you all right, miss?”

She struggled to bring herself under control. “I skinned my elbows, but I’m fine. Just scared shitless. I don’t know where he came from. All of a sudden this guy with a red beard had his hand on my throat.”

I spoke into my phone again. “She has some brush burns and bruises from fighting the guy, but she says she’s okay. She tried to pepper spray him, but she thinks she missed. She says he has a red beard. He threatened her with a knife but didn’t cut her.”

“Police and an ambulance are on the way.”

We heard sirens seconds later. A campus security car lurched to a stop near the still-flashing headlights. “Over here!” I yelled.

In minutes we were surrounded by a group of emergency personnel. They whisked the girl away to the hospital. A middle-aged man in a suit and tie came to me. “I’m Detective Lieutenant Davis, head of the Sex Crimes Unit. You called it in?”

“Yes.”

“Your name, sir?

“Jason Long.”

“Ah, yes, that’s the name the caller gave. Are you a student here?”

“A senior.”

“May I have your address, Mr. Long?”

I gave it to him. “It’s an apartment about a block from campus.”

“Ah. Tell me what happened.”

“I heard what sounded like a fight and then a scream. I started to run closer to see what was going on, but the girl damn near bowled me over on the steps.”

“You said the attacker ran into the library.”

“Yeah.”

“Where were you when you saw that? Did you chase him? You can’t see the library entrance from here. You can barely see the trees in front of it.”

“Um, he took off running in that direction. I guess he went inside.”

“So you didn’t actually see him enter the building.”

“No, sir, I didn’t.”

“You told the dispatcher you did.”

“I meant he ran that way. He was headed that direction when I lost sight of him.”