I was a victim of sexual assault when I was a student in college. According to statistics gathered by the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, over 23% of female college students experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation. All women between the ages of 18 and 24 are the most likely to be targeted by sexual predators. While it’s true that males are also sexual assault victims, the numbers clearly indicate that the vast majority –90% – of adult rape victims are female.

I taught high school journalism for 20 years, so my students and I often examined important and often difficult to discuss issues on a daily basis. Nothing was out-of-bounds. My students were encouraged to ask me anything. My promise was that I would always tell them the truth. Periodically, I was asked whether there was anything in my life I regret. And the answer was always the same.

I look back on that night in 1975 when I went on a dinner date with a sweet-faced farm boy I’d met in the dining hall. He was on crutches, convalescing from a football injury. If memory serves, he was about six-foot-three and probably around 260 pounds, still I never for a moment had a bad feeling, nor the least concern when, after dinner, he invited me up to his dorm room. The stare from his roommate still registers. Another member of the football team who would go on to play in the NFL simply picked up his typewriter, walked out, and closed the door. My date, in what seemed like an instant, stripped the clothes from my body. I fought, which made him smile. “You know I can do anything I want to you,” he said. “And there’s nothing you can do about it.”

This was the moment in my life I would come to understand that I couldn’t fight my way out of a situation. I’d always considered myself strong and athletic, so I resisted. But as he pinned me to the bed, I realized he enjoyed the battle. The more I struggled the more aroused he became. Strangely, I recalled something my father said before sending me off to college. He’d given me just one piece of advice. He looked me in the eye and said, “Nothing is worth your life.” When I didn’t respond, my dad repeated the message. “Nothing is worth your life.”

I stopped fighting my attacker, believing my father’s words. To my astonishment, the man backed off. “What’s the matter with you!?” he roarded. It was then I understood he wanted me to fight, to scream, to beg. I laid on the bed motionless. Nothing was worth my life. He got off me and threw my clothes on the bed. I dressed and ran, expecting him to reach out and grab me every moment until I reached my own room.

The next morning a small girl approached me in my dorm hallway. “Can I ask you a personal question?” she said. She wanted to know if I’d gone out with the man. I said I had. “Did he strip you?” she asked. I nodded. “He stripped me, too.” Our conversation ended there when she just turned walked away.

Later that day, a dear friend who played on the football team marched angrily toward me at lunch and pulled me aside. “Why did you go out with him?” he asked. “Everyone knows about him!” Clearly, he was wrong. I didn’t know there was a rapist living in the quad. Neither did the girl who approached me. But apparently others were aware. How many of them were victims? And if his behavior was common knowledge, why was he still living on a college campus?

So, what do I regret? According to the National Research Council, 80% of sexual assaults go unreported to law enforcement. Like the vast majority of victims, I said nothing. I locked the event tightly in the back of my mind and chose to forget about it. However, the advent of the Me Too movement brought that memory back, and I wondered if I might have prevented others from being assulated, had I found the courage to speak up. It didn’t take long for me to realized that most likely nothing would have been done. I’d been on a date. I’d had a few drinks. I willingly went to his room, so what did I expect?

Sadly, 50 years later, this attitude still prevails and we now face an epidemic, a plague with life-long effects. The following statistics come directly from RAINN:

• 33% of women who are raped contemplate suicide. 13% of women who are raped attempt suicide.

• People who have been sexually assaulted are more likely to use drugs than the general public.

• Sexual violence also affects victims’ relationships with their family, friends, and co-workers.

• Victims are at risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.

How can we change this paradigm? We must encourage victims to come forward, so the predators can face justice. The blame-the-victim attitude must stop. And sex education needs to be taught in every school, so that young people can be armed with the facts and fundamental principals of consent.

We need to start now.

THE CASTLE

ANNE MONTGOMERY

Suspense/Thriller

NEXT CHAPTER PUBLISHING

Ancient ruins. Haunted memories. A ruthless predator. Can Maggie survive the ghosts of her past – and the monster hiding in plain sight?

When she returns to her job as a National Park Ranger at “The Castle”—a centuried-old Native American pueblo carved into an Arizona cliff—Maggie hopes the comfort of familiar ground will help her heal. Battling trauma and the grief of unimaginable loss, Maggie’s days are carefully measured, her life held together by the thinnest of threads.

But strange things are happening at the park. A mysterious child appears and vanishes without a trace. And a predator watches her every move, planning his attack.

With the help of friends, fellow survivors, and the land itself, Maggie begins to reclaim her strength. But the danger is closer than she knows, and soon Maggie will have to face a deadly threat… and her deepest fears.

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Bookstores, libraries, and other booksellers can order copies directly from the Ingram Catalog.

Praise for The Castle

“A deftly written and riveting read from cover to cover, “The Castle” effectively showcases author Anne Montgomery’s genuine mastery of the Romantic Suspense genre.” – Midwest Book Review

“A slow burn thriller, mixed in with a touch of mystical realism…A true five-star experience!” – Sara Steven Chick Lit Central

“A beautifully considered, sumptuous novel from a skilled storyteller.” – SaraRose Auburn Writing & Reviews

“This is a novel about good rage, about channeling the injustices of the world around us and fighting to do some good with both words and deeds. Lucky for readers, it was penned by a maestra like Anne Montgomery, so that we got a tense, powerful novel in the bargain too.” – Jennifer deBie-Rosie Amber Book Reviews

“Ms. Montgomery manipulates uncomfortable subjects and dark suspense into a gripping tale with hints of romance and humor carefully guiding readers on an informative journey of survival and self-discovery.“ Tonya Mathenia InD’tale Magazine

“Soul-stirring. A brilliant book…Truly a masterpiece.” – Anu Menon Thought is Free Book Blog

“I was gripped from start to end.” – Katherine Hayward Pérez Just Katherine Blog

“Ms. Montgomery has an almost magical talent to draw the reader into the worlds she creates through her words. Her characters are interesting, vulnerable and strong. While describing the locations in which her books are set, she weaves history with vivid images, immersing the reader in a hard-to-put-down story full of history, beauty and mystery.” – Margaret Millmore Author