XXV. confrontation

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

TW: Domestic violence

When she ducked out of the room, she found two officers holding back Robert who was trying to convince them to let him in. He looked breathless and helpless in his suit, sweat on his brow and an uneasiness in his eyes. He broke into a smile once he saw her. The officers eyed her warily. "Do you know this man?"

"Yes, I do," she relented. "Let go of him, please. He was just worried about me."

They released him and walked away to converse with one another but still kept an eye on him. It seemed that they had caught the vibe of possessiveness that emanated from him. Once they were somewhat out of sight, Robert clasped his arms around her. "I'm so glad you're okay! Once I heard about the shooting I knew I had to come to see if you were―"

"Wait," Virginie cut in, pushing him away. "How did you even know I was going to be here?"

Robert looked down sheepishly. "I kind of looked up where you were interning at and bribed the secretary to see who you were working for and what case you were working on. I just checked the little schedules in front of the court rooms until I found you." The murderous look on Virginie's face caused him to backpedal. "I don't know what you expected me to do! You haven't spoken to me in weeks. I missed you so much. I don't understand why you would think I wouldn't be here. Or why you look so upset."

Virginie put a thoughtful face on solely for sarcastic reasons. "I don't know...maybe because it's fucking creepy to do a background search on your girlfriend without her consent and who also told you to respect her damn privacy? Maybe something like that?"

Robert's face turned dark. "I don't appreciate your tone."

I don't appreciate yours either.

Virginie's eyes darted towards the entryway to the courtroom. She couldn't see inside but no one was looking for yet so she needed to make their escape quick. He was most likely going to hit her soon. "Why don't we continue this conversation in a place a little bit more private?"

Robert got closer to her. The feel of his hot breath against her skin made her feel scared. She could smell the alcohol on him. "You've been trying to control me ever since that night at my house. I don't want to be controlled." He grabbed her arm. "No one tells me what to do."

She could feel his fingers pressing deep into her skin and she forced herself to wince. He wouldn't bruise her but he had to think that he had a little bit of control over her. "Have you been drinking?"

Robert looked caught off guard. His eyes went blank before refocusing. "I don't know even know why you would ask me that. Even if I have been, it would be none of your business."

So...yes. She tried to diffuse the situation. "Baby, c'mon let's go someplace more private. We can talk more about―"

He twisted her arm and she cried out in pain. "You keep trying to change the subject and lead me away from the courtroom." His face fixed itself into an angry grimace. "Are you...ashamed of me? Do you not want your little lawyer boyfriend to see me? Does he even know that we're dating?"

"I'm not ashamed of you! I just prefer to keep my work and personal life separate. I don't know that much about him either." She shook her head, realizing what he had just said. "Alex is not my 'little lawyer boyfriend'! He has a girlfriend named Stephanie!"

Robert's eyes narrowed. "I thought you didn't talk about personal things."

Virginie rolled her eyes. "Are you serious?" Robert didn't say anything. His cold expression was his only reply. "She comes to the office a lot to bring him dinner. She introduced herself to me. It's not that hard to put things together."

"Okay. Then why do you keep leading me away and trying to change the subject?"

She sighed. "What subject? What on earth are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about why everything changed after that night that you went to my house! I don't understand what I did to make you so upset! Ever since then you've been dodgy and ignoring my calls. What did I do to you?"

Does he not remember what he did to me? "Are you saying you don't remember or that you don't understand why I'm upset about what happened?"

He put his head in his hands, shaking it rapidly. "I don't remember. I barely remember driving home. I know I got a bottle of Dom Pérignon and you weren't drinking any so I had the bottle to myself..."

Virginie couldn't tell if this was all an act or if he truly didn't understand what went on that night. "You forced yourself on to me and then fell asleep on top of me. Not to mention you punched me in the face."

"I punched you because you weren't doing what I asked," Robert seethed, his facial expression no longer full of despair. It had changed into something much darker.

"Excuse me? If I didn't want to kiss you, I didn't want to kiss you. I don't understand why you wouldn't want to have a willing participant."

Robert closed the distance between them and grabbed her wrists and put them above her head before slamming her against the wall, causing her to cry out. "I get whatever the fuck I want," he shouted, his mouth nearly foaming.

Her arms were at an awkward angle. "Robert...please. Please stop, you're hurting me." She could feel her muscles clenching under the immense pressure.

"Not until you realize who the boss is! I'm the one who tells you what to do! Not the other way around!" She could feel his spit hitting her face. She turned so that it wouldn't hit her eyes. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. His eyes were red and spit was flying mouth out of his mouth at a blinding speed. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!"

She tried something else. She put on a pleading face. She couldn't do anything to protect herself without blowing her cover and possibly losing him forever. She tried to keep her voice level. "Baby, let's go somewhere else so we can hash this out privately. You don't want someone seeing you like this, do you?"

He slammed his fist on the marble wall right next to her as her blood ran cold. She had never seen him like this. He was pissed. Not to mention drunk. Who knew what he was capable of? "Why do you keep saying that? I don't care if they see me!"

"Please, baby, I don't want you to get in trouble. I'm sure a lot of people can hear you and they're wondering what's going on," she murmured, trying to see if a change of tone would help. "Now if you could please let me―"

Robert tightened his grip on her wrists as she winced. "Stop telling me what to do!"

"Get your fucking filthy hands off her," Alex cautioned, his voice deadly soft.

Robert and Virginie both turned to look at him. Alex's eyes were empty and his face was flushed with red. His fists were clenched. His bloody shirt only added to the overall deadly aura emanating from him. After seeing what he did to the two gunmen, she wasn't sure what to expect from him.

Virginie was stunned. She had never had someone other than Colette care enough about her to come to her rescue and look so protective.

"Alex," she cautioned, "I'm fine. Just go back to your brother and Jabari, okay? This is a personal matter."

Robert smiled, looking more evil and drunk than ever. "You heard the lady. It's a personal matter. So mind your fucking business and get lost, kid."

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. They're going to fight. Over me. Dammit. Alex, please don't do anything stupid.

Alex got in Robert's face and ripped his hands off Virginie's. She collapsed on the floor near them, knocked off her feet by her new found freedom. "You're hurting her. You get fucking lost, kid."

"Puta madre," Robert breathed, lunging for Alex's face. Alex dodged each blow swiftly, looking completely bored and unbothered. Virginie watched in awe as the two danced, Alex eluding each swing that was taken at him, and Robert not giving up.

"Robert, please stop!" she yelled. "His brother is―"

"Robert Chavez," a voice said. "Long time no see."

Robert stopped and dropped his fists as he saw Ethan and Jabari standing at the door. Jabari ran to Virginie's side, checking out her wrists. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Jabari, honestly," she assured dismissively, trying to focus on the interaction between Ethan and Robert. They seemed to know each other. She hoped the connection wasn't the usual one because Ethan seemed like one of the good ones. But, of course, they all did, at first.
"I see you're still up to your old tricks, Chavez," Ethan noted, taking small but significant steps towards him. Robert's face grew paler as the larger man got closer to him. "Still preying on women I see."

'Still preying on women?' Does he know about Robert's underground activities and if so, why hasn't he stopped him?

Robert's mind seemed to be slowly piecing it all together. "Alex is your...oh shit."

"I'll be pressing charges," Alex huffed, also kneeling by Virginie. He looked up at her with tenderness in his eyes. Why did he come? How did he know where I was? Why did he look so much angrier at Robert than Jabari and Ethan did? I don't understand. "Are you alright? Who is he to you?"

She looked up at him and then shook her head. "I won't be pressing charges. He didn't mean it, he just got angry with me. It was my fault." She internally grimaced. She did not like falling on her sword like this and taking the blame. If she was Ethan, she would be pressuring herself to do the same thing. She knew that Alex and Ethan would both be confused at her request but she needed them to go along with it for now. She had to let Robert know that she was still on his side.

"Virginie," Alex urged through clenched teeth, "please reconsider. He doesn't have to hurt you anymore. None of this is your fault. He's the one who was hurting you."

"He didn't mean it," Virginie repeated, shaking her head. "He was just confused." She got up, brushing off her dress.
"I was confused because you're a conniving bitch," Robert responded, gaining back his anger. Virginie didn't even flinch at his words. She held no feelings for him so his words held no weight. She just wished he would shut up to make this easier. Besides, she had been called much worse.

"Don't talk to her like that!" Alex yelled.

Virginie rested a hand on his shoulder. "Alex, it's okay."

He shook his shoulder, taking her hand off of it. "No, it's not okay!"

Ethan looked annoyed. "Jones, Andrews! Place this man under arrest." The two officers that were holding him back before entered the area with handcuffs in their hands.

"On what charges, sir?" One of them asked, moving towards Robert to cuff him.

"One count assault and one count evidence tampering," Ethan replied smugly as Robert spat in his direction with his hands behind his back.

"Tampering with evidence? Where the fuck did that come from?" Robert hissed, his face turning red. "You can't put that charge on me, you have no basis."

"Oh?" Ethan asked, sounding bored. "So you stepping all up in a crime scene that you had no business being in isn't evidence tampering?"

Robert glared in response, his jaw clenched.

Virginie was confident that they wouldn't be able to hold him because evidence tampering needed to have intent, which they wouldn't be able to prove. However, she was going to let them take him away because she needed a moment to collect herself.

"Robert Chavez, you are under arrest," the officer declared. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you."

Robert struggled lightly against the restraints and Alex raised his eyebrow in amusement. "He can add resisting arrest to that list, easily. Keep trying it."

"Don't think that we're done with this conversation," Robert shouted as he was being dragged away. "Prepare yourself, Virginie. You will submit to me."

Virginie felt herself shudder at his words. She knew that he meant them. Ethan sat beside her so that now she was surrounded by men. She jerked back involuntarily but stopped herself. She was safe. She wasn't in that place anymore. These men weren't here to hurt her.

She felt someone touch her arm. She looked at Alex's thoughtful eyes, full of questions. Ones she could not answer. She turned to his brother. "Thank you for that, Ethan."

"What is your relationship with that man? He's bad news," Ethan inquired worriedly.

She bit her lip and did everything she could to not look at Alex. How could she face him? She fought for women who were in the same situation and told them to get out of those toxic relationships. Now here she was on the floor, surrounded by men who were pitying her as the battered woman.

The worst part was that she could easily stop this. She could've hit him when he had hit her or put him in his place but that wouldn't get her what she needed. That wouldn't help her rescue the hundreds of women that he kept trapped for selling and sex. A couple of punches and humiliation was a small price to pay in order to find them.

She tried to think of a way to make the truth sound sweeter but she couldn't. "I've been seeing him for a couple months now..."

She could hear Alex gritting his teeth behind her. "That's your fucking boyfriend?" He grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to look at him. "Did he hit you?"

Virginie shook her head. "No, Alex, as I told you before, I'm fine."

"Has he hurt you?"

She hesitated, looking at her wrists before answering. "No, Alex, I'm fine," she repeated.

"I'm going to kill that fucking bastard," Alex whispered. "Where is he? I'm gonna go down there and teach him a lesson. How dare he put his dirty ass hands on her."

"Calm down, Alex," Jabari soothed. "Let's go somewhere else and talk, okay?" Jabari took Alex by the hand while Alex stared at Virginie longingly. Jabari took Alex in the direction of the men's bathroom.

With Alex gone, Virginie turned back to Ethan. She had to find out more information about Robert so that she could pick him up. She needed him to see that she was on his side and didn't support what they had done to him. In any other case, she would let the bastard rot but she needed to stick to the plan. He had to think that she still wanted him.

"Please tell me you're not going to keep him too long," Virginie pleaded. "He has a lot of work to do and he'll be angry with me if you don't let him go."

"That's not up to me," Ethan shrugged. "He's one who decided to assault Alex and try to jump into a crime scene. You'll have to head down to the station." He paused, looking into the distance. "What do you know about him?"

Is he implying something? I was right, he does know about his underground dealings in the sex trade. I can't let him know that I know, however. That would blow my cover. "He's a hedge fund manager, he likes drinking and the Wolf of Wall Street, and he lives in Harrison."

A wave of confusion washed over Ethan's face but he quickly masked it. "Yes, I see."

She wanted to tell him that she knew and she wasn't staying with him for fun but she couldn't. Ethan had to realize that. That could potentially ruin everything and she wasn't going through all of this for nothing. She wasn't going to let those women suffer any more than they had to. She just hoped that he would keep the information that he knew to himself. If Alex knew, he would try harder to get her to break up with him or try to expose Robert himself. That would be tragic. "Do you know which precinct that he'll be at?"

Ethan got up and cleared his throat. "You know what? Why don't I take you?"

Virginie smiled. "That would be wonderful, thank you."

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net