Vicki hit the on ramp with Jessica, her medium sized collie mix, heading back up to New York where she intended to stay until she left for Africa. There were things she needed to research and prepare for. Most of the students had left for their assignments, so she would have her choice of rooms at the Kennel House.
Jessica was excited about the trip and bounded up into the seat next to the truck driver who stopped to pick them up. He seemed like a nice guy and gave the dog a treat right away. Each ride was a new way to reinvent yourself, but Vicki didn’t play games like Kristie did. She was headed for Africa to do some good. She would become a minister of the Lord’s work.
The driver stopped along the way for the riders to use the facilities if there were any. Otherwise he knew a couple of places where they could pop a squat. He stopped at a clearing where some thin reedy woods gave some privacy for Vicki to do her business while the trucker played ball with Jessica.
She was having fun with this driver talking about her travels and plans for the future. But her innocence was no protection from what he had in mind. He caught her with her pants down and every woman knows what happened next. She called for Jessica to come, but the driver had thought to lock her in the cab of the truck where she was in a frenzy of barking due to the nature of the situation.
He took her from behind holding her arms tight and forcing himself into her. At the finish of it the driver offered to complete the ride with her, but Vicki called to her dog once more. The driver opened the door and Jessica leaped out to worry over her owner. When Vicki refused the offer of the ride, he threw out her sleeping bag, guitar, and rucksack with a huff and a sneer and said, “You know I could make you come.”
She was terrified of what would happen on the next ride she took, so she loaded up her gear as the trucker sped off leaving a cloud of dust behind. She didn’t want to get into another unknown vehicle or situation. She hiked to the next payphone and called Ben, the mild mannered soft spoken Canadian handyman who lived full time at the Long Island compound. He jumped right in his pick up and cut the two hour drive down to rescue her to an hour and a half.
She spent the next couple of months licking her wounds under Ben’s careful ministrations. The daily meditations, research, and journal writing helped her to prepare for the next year abroad. Her strength and beliefs helped her to forgive her rapist… and besides she knew how karma worked. She was sure he would get his due sometime in the future..
(First Published 7/17/12)
