“This is going to be hard to read for those of you that know me, but I need you all to hear my voice.
I have been living in Madrid for the last [six] months and I had a friend visiting me this past weekend. We went out for the night to see a Flamenco show. We were both drunk, and when we left the final bar we got separated. Trying to get home, I got on the wrong bus, which took me to the end of the line in an unfamiliar area.
I was the last to get off the bus; all other riders had left the stop. I sat down on the bench at the bus stop to figure out my next move. A man who had been on the bus, seeing that I was lost and upset, sat down next to me and offered me help.
I was lost at 4 a.m., and all public transport had stopped running. I needed help and this man assured me he could help me get home.
It’s unclear exactly what happened next, but as soon as I started to realize I could be in danger, I tried to leave. But this man became forceful and violent towards me.
As I fought, he started to beat me. I was screaming and fighting with all of the power I could muster. I desperately tried to reach for my phone but he called out in Spanish, “I have your phone, you can’t call anyone.”
He hit me in the face over and over until I couldn’t fight anymore. I couldn’t scream anymore. I could barely see through the blood in my eyes.
I was sure he was going to kill me. Eventually, I closed my eyes. With the hope that he would stop beating me, I pretended to be dead. I prayed that when I opened my eyes he would be gone. I don’t know how much time passed before I finally opened my eyes, but when I did, he had disappeared.
He raped me.
Blinded by blood and darkness, I sat up and began grasping for my things. My leggings were wrapped around my shoes, preventing me from pulling them back on. Ripping at them, I was finally able to pull them up. And then I ran.
I ran barefoot into the street, screaming at the top of my lungs for help. I was waving frantically, and yet 3 or 4 cars drove past me. Finally, one stopped. I ran to it, screaming. Blood covered my face, hair, and jacket. A kind stranger — whom I’ll never have the chance to thank — called the ambulance and tried to soothe me while we waited for them to arrive.
I was rushed to the hospital. Alone. Terrified. And unable to contact anyone for hours.
The hospital staff took the situation very seriously. I was immediately given an MRI. They conducted a rape kit and performed an eye exam, as one of my eyes was swollen shut. My nose fractured in 4 places. I had bruises and scratches covering my body.
These last few days have been a blur of medical appointments, legal meetings, and a police investigation. The Madrid police have been unbelievably helpful throughout this entire process, they made my case a top priority. They asked me to return to the scene of the crime where I identified the exact location of the attack. There we found some of my things and my blood on the fence. The forensic team swabbed everything for DNA and took every precaution when dealing with the evidence and crime scene.