Free Date Rape New York by Janet McGiffin Page A

hotel, I’ve noticed. And it seems like all the staff are Italian, except for you!”
    “The hotel is owned by a Italian consortium and caters to wealthy Italians. We employ Italian staff because they speak Italian and can provide better service. But I went through the guest list. No Italian males traveling alone are registered here.”
    “You’re certain that this man won’t attack me on the street, Detective Cargill?” Grazia’s voice quavered as she turned her worried gaze on the detective.
    “From my thirty years’ experience as a cop, I can say that a typical drug-facilitated perpetrator targets a woman days or weeks in advance, or he observes her for a couple hours in a bar. He plans how he can drug her without anyone noticing. Then he plans how and where to move her without being observed. It’s all about tactics. These guys are expert strategists. If this man goes after you again, he will most likely approach you in a crowded bar. He will be charming. He will quickly become your friend. Steer clear of charming men in bars, and you’ll be safe.”
    “You’re safe in this hotel,” added Stanley. “We have a security officer on the premises twenty-four/seven.”
    Detective Cargill was reading from his notebook. “Here’s what we need to get this guy, Miss Conti. We need the medical examiner’s team to come up with male DNA from your room. We need matching male DNA off you, from Janine’s exam. Mostly, though, we need a suspect.”
    “I wish I could help you, Detective,” said Grazia. “but when I think about that night, I see a dark hole.”
    Cargill closed his notebook. “Stanley and I will keep hunting for Manuel. Either he’s our culprit, or he saw the guy. I’ll track down these four Italians who gave you their cards. Maybe one of them did it. Or they saw who you left with. I’ll keep after Nick; he might remember something. I’ll hunt up Mrs. Springer and Jacky with the sensitive nose.” Cargill leaned toward Grazia.
    “You’re our main source, Miss Conti, even though you don’t remember much. Once you get some sleep and the drug leaves your system, you’ll begin remembering details. You already remember more than you did this morning. Keep your journal close by and write down whatever pops into your head, no matter how odd. When you think you’ve got a lead, call me.”
    “You’ve got to find him, Detective Cargill!” Grazia couldn’t control the quaver in her voice. “I have to know that he’s in jail. Or I can’t go on. I just can’t.”
    Detective Cargill spoke earnestly. “Sure you can, Miss Conti. Even after worse things, people go on. That’s what humans do—we get back on our feet and keep going.”
    “That’s all? Just get up and go on?” Bitterness flooded her voice.
    “You have to go through the motions, Miss. After a while, it gets easier.”
    Stanley took Grazia up to her room. She stared into the elevator mirror at her pale face and dark smudges under her eyes. A muscle in her cheek twitched. She paced nervously in the hall while Stanley searched her room. Alone inside at last, she double locked the door and put on the chain. She slumped in the armchair and stared at her new clothes now folded into neat piles on the dresser—dark reminders of the horror of waking up this morning. She shoved them into the dresser and looked around the room. It used to feel cozy, but now it was a grim reminder of what had happened. She could ask to change rooms but the hotel’s rooms probably looked all the same, so the grim reminder would still be there. And the man could still find her.
    “Pull yourself together,” she said aloud. “You have handled motorcycle robbers holding you up in rush-hour traffic. You can get over feeling anxious about this room.”
    A tap on the door made her shriek. She rushed to the peephole. It was Sophia.
    * * *
    “What was so fascinating about the conversation?” The pretty young hotel maid was reading the crumbled message slip Grazia