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‘That fucking pervert!’ I hissed. I was so angry I wanted to go round there right now and give him a piece of my mind.
‘Testa di cazzo!’ Geli snarled. ‘And you kick him in balls,sì?’
‘No! I just froze. I didn’t know what to do. I was so shocked. I couldn’t believe it was happening. And then he smiled and said he knew I liked it. That I wanted him to touch me. But Ididn’t!’
‘Of course not. What a creep!’
‘I just couldn’t move. I wanted to speak, to say no. But at first, the words wouldn’t come out. Then I said it. “No, no, no! Don’t touch me!”I screamed. “Leave me alone!” Then his son came in and I just ran. I grabbed my bag and ran out of the house. I didn’t know what to do. So I called Umberto. He didn’t answer. I kept calling. No answer. Eventually he called me back. Said he was out with his mates. I said it was urgent. He asked why. I told him what happened. That Silvestro had put his hand up my skirt.’
‘What did he say?’ asked Geli.
‘He said…’ She started crying again. Geli topped up her empty glass. ‘He asked…’ Holly gulped down more gin. ‘He asked how short my skirt was…’
‘He didn’t?’ I shouted. ‘What a dick!’
‘I told him it wasn’t that short. Just a normal one.’
‘I would not have answered him,’ snapped Geli.
‘And do you know what Umberto said? He said that maybe… he said I should wear jeans or something instead so that I don’t tempt Silvestro. So that he doesn’t get the wrong idea.’
‘You’vegotto be joking! What a pig! Sorry, Holly, I know you think the sun shines out of his arse, but that’s out of order!’
‘It’s not that short, is it?’ she tugged at it as if she was trying to stretch it. ‘I like wearing skirts. Maybe I should have worn a longer one…’
‘Listen to me: the problem isnotwithyou, or what you were wearing. The problem is with Silvestro. Putting his hands where they were not invited or wanted. That’s assault. You didn’t ask for it and you didn’t deserve it. We need to call the police and report him. He can’t get away with this! We need to report him to your agency too. And as for Umberto, I’m sorry, Holly, but for him to say that to you, in your time of need…well…’
‘I don’t want to go to the police. They’ll laugh at me. Think I’m just a slut or a dumb blonde. It’ll be totally embarrassing.’ She winced. ‘I just want to forget about it. It’s not like anything will happen to him anyway, so it’s not worth the hassle.’
I understood why she thought that way. Too often victims were blamed. Women must have done something toask for itor encouraged the man in some way. It was bullshit. But we had to find a way to help change this perception. And one of the ways to do that was by speaking up.
‘I’ll be honest.’ I rested my hand on hers. ‘I can’t say what will happen or promise that if we report it that Silvestro will definitely be punished. All I’m saying is that if you feel up to it, it will be worth at leasttrying. So that you know that you did all you could. It’s your decision, but take time to think about it, okay?’
‘I’ll try.’
‘Of course, you stay here with us tonight,’ said Geli. ‘In the morning we can decide what to do,sì?’
‘Okay,’ said Holly.
‘Good,’ I said. ‘Until then, maybe it’s a good idea to put your clothes in a bag. It will have his DNA on it and it might help if you do decide to go ahead and report it.’
Holly nodded. I felt so bad that I would be going to London tomorrow and wouldn’t be around to help her through this, but my flight was booked and I had to get Leo checked out.
Talk about a crazy few days. Why did everything always happen at once? At least Geli would be here, though. Something told me that Holly was going to need her.
